Episode Transcript
[00:00:21] Speaker A: Welcome to your life and legacy. I'm your host, Chris Nudo. And today we're diving deep into what it really takes to build a meaningful life and legacy.
My guest is Darrell Steed, founder of Smart Wolf Consulting, who has spent over 15 years helping dealerships and businesses thrive with honest, results driven strategies. Known for telling the truth and taking action, Darrell believes that success is built on trust and integrity.
Darrell, welcome to the show.
[00:00:56] Speaker B: Thank you, sir.
Yeah, sorry about that. Thank you so much for inviting me in. I appreciate being here.
[00:01:02] Speaker A: Yeah. Glad to have you. Listen, you know, so many of us want to be trusted at home and at work and in our friendships, but often it feels like, you know, people still doubt trust. So let's start there for a minute. The challenge for many viewers is feeling unseen or misunderstood, even when they're trying to live a life of integrity.
So how do you. How do you really guide someone who feels unseen or misunderstood?
How do you help them to do the right thing?
[00:01:41] Speaker B: Well, I think that's just the world we live in is that people have a neat response to interpreting things that aren't there.
[00:01:52] Speaker C: Right?
[00:01:52] Speaker B: That you hear something and you see something, you're like. And they make their own interpretation. And that's a dangerous place to be because I may say something very clear and concise, but I don't know how you're perceiving it. And so when that happens, I think we have to ask a lot more questions, and then we have to do almost like a read back, like, you say something or you're having a conversation and say, hey, now, I want to make sure we're on the same page. What it, like, what are you getting from this? Like, how are you? Like, I want to make sure you're there. And.
And it's tough because we shouldn't have to do that. But we're in an age where if we don't do that, we're now responsible for the interpretation that most people misperceive or they get. And I think when you just say, okay, hey, now that we've had this conversation, what do we both, where are you at with this? What did you get from this? And then the same thing goes when, like, people are, I want to build my career, I want to do this is they need to be clear, intent, and you need to show them, not just tell them. You need to show them how to have these conversations so they understand how to do it for themselves rather than just being like, well, I think this is how you do it. Right? We need to be able to guide People with a little bit more grace and patience.
[00:02:57] Speaker A: That's absolutely true. Those real words of wisdom.
So you've been working in the automotive industry, virtually all sectors of sales, and now consulting them. And you know, let's be honest, the automotive industry isn't always known for its integrity.
So tell me how you've been able, as you know, Darrell, to bring your integrity and that level of honesty to, to that industry and really build your career. Like you've really turned things around in the automotive industry, especially along the west coast, with all you've been able to bring.
Tell me about how you've really developed those relationships.
[00:03:45] Speaker B: Well, it started for me, you know, for a couple things. One, when I was in the military, it was an air force and it was, you know, it's integrity first, right? And so it was really, that was kind of an ingrained thing even when I was a kid. But that really reinforced it was all you have at the end of the day is your name, right? You have your last name and that's who you are. And so if you become that type of person, right, you lie, you misdeceive, you think that's who you are, right? Because that's what people see. And so I wanted to be the person that you could trust and that worked hard. I'm not going to say I was the likable person like I was everybody liked, but I wanted to be the person you knew that was in your corner, trusted, and would be there for you if you needed it. And that was really important to me when I got in the auto industry. As we all know, probably not the most honest operation in the world when it comes to consumer experience is I wanted to do it a different way. When I was much younger, there was a person with faith, right? He believes in God and everything else. And he, I don't know if he wrote a book or it was a website, but it was selling Amongst wolves has nothing to do with my company. But I thought it was a cool parallel of it was you could do this without doing some of these deceptive tactics. And so I really took to that. And then it was more of just because somebody learned a way to do things that was effective for a long time does not mean they're a bad person or if they have a certain way do it, it's like maybe they haven't been shown a better way. And so I really took that as whether if I had to go through concrete walls to make this happen, is, is there a better way? And I would always ask questions like Just because we do this does, is this the best way we can do it? And oddly enough, that is now what I do with dealers. My trademark phrase is the truth hurts only when it should. My whole cycle is break the cycle. And the these all come from just because this is what was made us comfortable or worked for 20, 30, 40 years. As society, as technology, as everything continues to evolve, is there a different, Is there a better way? Is there a more impactful way that consumers can engage with you and can you create a connection from a trusted place rather than immediately having that mistrust?
[00:05:55] Speaker A: So what I've learned with regard to integrity is that it's sometimes forced, right? People are, and it shouldn't be. You know, integrity is, you know, by definition doing the right thing, even when people aren't watching. But, you know, when people are trying to do the right thing, they're trying to prove themselves. And what people like you and I really know is that it's really more about who you are. So what are some of those simple things that every day people can do to help them grow in integrity, you know, develop those habits?
[00:06:32] Speaker B: I mean, I think the first one would be, is work on. And I'm not saying this is going to happen overnight, but work on being a servant leader and a servant.
And the reason I really focus on that is the moment. And I don't want it to be construed with always put other people first. You do need to focus on you and make sure that you're of sound mind, body and soul. But when you start realizing that when you help others without expectation, how that comes back to you 10 times. And when you realize if you have to force any type of honest behavior, then it's not genuine, right? There's no empathy, there's no genuineness to it.
[00:07:09] Speaker A: Right. People see that the honesty is missing.
[00:07:12] Speaker B: In that it's missing and they can feel it. That's right, they can feel it when they engage with you. Your body language says it everything. So you just have to ask yourself and like the comment you made, you know, do the right thing when no one's looking. Here's the other thing, guys. Don't be afraid to ask what the right thing is. Because some people, what they think is the right thing is all what they've seen, right? In the picture. They live because everyone's fighting their own battles.
[00:07:36] Speaker A: Their life, right?
[00:07:37] Speaker B: May not understand.
Yeah, they may not understand. Like, I thought I was doing the right thing.
I heard someone say like. And the reason I say that is there's some Pretty crazy travesties that have happened in the world where they said they thought they were doing the right thing, but it wasn't the right thing.
[00:07:56] Speaker C: Right.
[00:07:57] Speaker B: A lot of things that happened back in, you know, we're talking the World War Twos, the World War ones, but they were like, oh, they thought they were doing the right thing, but they weren't.
[00:08:04] Speaker A: That's right.
[00:08:05] Speaker B: So sometimes it's okay to get a second opinion or a couple opinions and saying, hey, guys, how would you handle this? How would you handle this? And then you can make an educated decision.
[00:08:13] Speaker A: And when you do, when you do the right thing, or at least try to do the right thing, hopefully you're building trust in the relationship. So why does trust really matter? Like, you know, it's a pretty obvious question, but I'll leave it with you for a second, Darrell.
[00:08:33] Speaker B: So, I mean, trust is your real currency, right? Or I should say time is your big currency. And then trust is number two. And sometimes maybe it's vice versa, is at the end of the day, if someone can't trust you, people want certainty. So one of the basic human needs, right, Whether you look at Tony Robbins or a couple of other philosophy, philosophical people, is certainty is a big one. Well, if I don't have trust, you're taking that directly away from me. And the moment someone can trust you in any sense or fashion, they don't have to like you. And I think that's where people make big mistakes. You don't have to be the most likable guy if they trust you because they go like this. Yeah, the guy's kind of a, you know, like, he's kind of a hard ass or he's kind of the. But they go, but this guy never lies to me. And he's always there.
So, you know, and I think people kind of confuse that. Yeah. And I think people confuse that and understand that don't lie to people.
And if you think you have to lie to him.
And that's why when I came up with my trademark phrase, I did, it was, I rather tell you the truth and you be upset about it because it resonates with you than me lie to you and you find out later that I'm not someone you can depend on.
I love that.
[00:09:39] Speaker A: So on that note, we'll be right back. Up next, we'll explore why choosing steady growth over quick wins often leads to a more meaningful legacy.
[00:09:55] Speaker C: Sam.
[00:10:24] Speaker A: Welcome back to your life and legacy. Loving what you're watching. Don't miss a moment. Your life and legacy or any favorite NOW Media show live or on demand, anytime, anywhere. Download the free Now Media TV app on Roku or iOS and enjoy instant access to our full lineup of bilingual programming in both English and Spanish.
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I'm here with Darrell Steed and in this segment we're talking about why so many of us chase quick wins, but often end up burned out or unfulfilled. Darrell, you've seen firsthand why steady growth leads to something deeper than just temporary success.
Absolutely. The challenge is, yeah, the challenge really here is that constant temptation to shortcuts and get rich quick. You know, fast results really rarely bring long term fulfillment.
So tell me, why do you think so many people are tempted for the fast results that they know just doesn't last?
[00:11:51] Speaker B: Well, I mean, that's another, you know, one of those things that it's a societal problem of understanding we want the get rich quick scheme or we want the like how do we get it the fastest way we can.
And so we're always looking for the shortcut or an easy path, like, you know, because when we do the hard work or we have to do the consistency or things like that, I mean, simply put, it's, it's hard, right? And it's, it's going to take some more time. What we fail to realize when it comes to the doing it in a consistent or a crawl walk, run approach to where you get these results is that when you do that, it becomes something that becomes natural, it becomes a habit, and then you always have those results. So like for instance, when I work with a lot of the automotive industry and what you see is it looks like a cardiogram, right? So it looks like a heart rate machine. And you have an up month and then a down month and then an up month and a down.
And the reason we do this is because we have a adverse intake to being able to do anything consistent. If it doesn't work after 30 days, they want to change the whole thing. Rather than realizing we need to go through seasons, we have to go through cycles.
And that goes, and that starts, and it's an epidemic thing of that starts at hiring and firing, that starts at training and developing.
And I think when people, the groups that I work with, when I do contracts and agreements with them, immediately, I mean, from go, we say this is going to take 6 months, 12 months, 18 months, depending on what they want to build.
And immediately it becomes one of those things where we, it's just laying the groundwork of this isn't something you're going to get results from in 30 days, but when we're done, you'll never have to worry about it again.
And so it just really breeds that consistency.
[00:13:34] Speaker A: And often in life it's not about right and wrong, it's a, it's just about recognizing the stage that you're in.
And if you want a different result, it's doing something different. As you've stated, you and I had the pleasure of talking yesterday before today and we talked about your lifestyle and the habits that you've developed from getting up early in the morning to work out. And you know, you have, you have habits that have really set the tone for you as a father, as a husband, a family man, and as a consultant here in the automotive industry. So my question for you is share for our audience those habits and how you got started with them and why they're so important to you today for maintaining who you are and then how you train others.
[00:14:31] Speaker B: That's another great question. And I will keep it very short because we could probably spend a whole hour just on that. But it's.
I used to be in extremely great shape, right. Went in the military at 17, did all those things, stay in shape. And then like anything else, guys, in life, okay, everyone has stumbles, everyone has trip ups, everyone has things that like, derail them. And of course I, you know, whether it was personal motivation, I had one of those guys and I got to being extremely big, unhealthy. I was almost £300. I looked like I ate. Yeah, I look like.
[00:15:03] Speaker A: Never know that looking at you.
[00:15:04] Speaker B: Yeah. And I look like I ate me. And, and I was joined. All life had to offer. Ok, probably twice. Okay, so.
And what I realized was I was no longer present in the way I needed to be for my wife. I was no longer present for my kids, like, because I couldn't do certain things. And then for my job, I had tons of energy. My career came first. But I also knew that, like, because of all those things, I was probably not as focused as I need to be there. So I made a choice. And discipline is that word that is probably the toughest thing in people's life is to have discipline because you don't always have motivation. But I did that. I lost a lot of weight.
I decided that I wanted to really be a servant leader. I wanted to make sure that I was here for my kids. Now I'm in better shape than my kids, which is kind of great. And be there for my relationship with my wife.
And, you know, there was a lot of give and take there and there was some things that didn't go the way I wanted it. And you just have to keep going through it. Now, why that's so important for anybody I deal with is I started my consulting business and I wanted them to. I'm. I wanted them to be the best. I wanted to be great. And that's what I give to them now. And I have the energy and the time and the drive and I'm organized and I've done all these things.
But I also that it bleeds out on people because they see it. Right. I can't just tell people how to do it. I've got to show them, They've got to see it. So when I tell you guys, you need to be in social media, you need to do this. I'm in social media. I'm learning all these things. And I'm not some young cat, right. That's just like, this is where you live. Like, I had to learn these things. So I'm practicing what I preach more importantly.
[00:16:35] Speaker A: Well, the saying I believe is things are often caught versus taught.
And you're living the life and showing them. Listen, let me show you how I live my life. And as a result, people are starting to see you can have this too.
[00:16:55] Speaker B: Yeah. And what's actually, what's fortunate that's come from that. I have my consulting business doing great. I've now got some new partners that we're bringing even more into what I do. Like, more we'll call it like fingers of like, things that we can be expertise in. But now, now I do coaching. I do personal development coaching, everything else. Because what they've seen is they've seen my transformation. So they ask and they said, hey, can you help me out? So I do mentoring and personal coaching and that's starting to build. It's small, right. But when they see me, they see a regular guy. They don't see a guy who was born with good genetics, that's a gym rat that lives in there and like tells them that they're going to be this specimen.
[00:17:32] Speaker C: Right.
[00:17:32] Speaker B: Because we see that. And of course, everybody wants that, right. That the. The magazine cover view. But then one, they might not be able to get it.
[00:17:40] Speaker A: And they want it like they want it by going to the gym once.
[00:17:43] Speaker B: Yeah. And then they think that it might be.
[00:17:44] Speaker A: Or I'LL spend a week at the gym and I should look amazing.
[00:17:47] Speaker B: Look amazing. And they think that in some, for some people, it's not possible. Genetics, everything else. But then they say, here's a guy who went through all these things. He does it, he's healthy, he's doing it, he's positive, life is good.
So they go, you know what? That's obtainable? And so they ask that, you know, because. And when I tell them the work that gets put in, it's the same thing. Like a trainer would tell you, oh, no, this isn't easy. I'm working out six days a week. However, I'm not living in the gym six hours a day, right?
But I do these things and it's a slow, steady race, which goes back to the consistency. There was no way I was going to drop.
[00:18:20] Speaker A: That's right.
[00:18:20] Speaker B: This weight and magic, it's going to be a. It's going to take time.
[00:18:25] Speaker A: It's going to be a marathon and light. What we learn is life is a marathon, right? It's, you know, 26 miles. For most people, 26 and a half seems unbearable. And it is. It's a long race, you know, so. So you have your demons, I have mine. You've overcome yours. Not completely. They still live within, within you. Like, I know, like, trust me, we're the same. We talked about that yesterday. So. Well, tell me how you resist those pressures that, you know, how do you keep the demons locked inside so that you can maintain your integrity and, and be the person that you are quickly? What's, what are some of those ways?
[00:19:09] Speaker B: For me, it's one. It's one simple thing. Anything you decide to do. So if I'm going to say, like, I'm going to gain weight again or I'm not going to work out, or I'm going to lie to people or any of those things that would give the disruptive forces that come at us every day. You. It's this real simple question for this one act, right? Could go down to cheating. It could go to all these things. For one act is the 30 seconds, 5 minutes, 10 minutes, one day. Whatever it is of pleasure, euphoria, excitement, victory, is that worth destroying all the time and work you've put into everything else?
[00:19:47] Speaker A: And that's right, in an instant, trust is destroyed.
[00:19:50] Speaker B: And so when you think of, when you think of trust is like, I give it to everybody. You have it. Now. If you burn me, you don't have it, but some people want you to earn it. So if you did have to Earn it. And then you blow it up for one moment, you probably are never getting it back.
[00:20:05] Speaker A: You're never getting it back. Absolutely. Anybody who's been married knows that.
Listen, Darrell, where can viewers connect with you and learn more about working with Smart Wolf Consulting?
[00:20:15] Speaker B: So I have a website, smartwolf consulting.com. i also have one auto street smarts.com but if the easiest way to find me would be on social media. So Daryl Steed, Smart Wolf Consulting on Facebook, tik tok, Instagram, LinkedIn. If you find me my numbers there, my emails are there and just drop me a line and I'm always available.
[00:20:36] Speaker A: I love that. Hey, coming up next, we're going to talk about how to find big piece. When life's big decisions feel overwhelming.
[00:21:06] Speaker B: Foreign.
[00:21:19] Speaker A: Welcome back to your life and legacy.
We've been all faced with moments when big decisions about family, money or career feel overwhelming. Darrel, you've helped people really simplified choices that they felt were impossible. Let's talk about finding peace in those critical moments.
The challenge is decisions often paralyze people because they have too many choices or they get anxious, they get stuck.
So really, when somebody is feeling like they can't move forward, their own life circumstances, because of who they are, are getting in the way of what you're trying to help them. How do you help them?
[00:22:05] Speaker B: Oh, man, that's definitely not a soup question, is it? But yeah, so I.
[00:22:11] Speaker A: Keeping you on your toes.
[00:22:12] Speaker B: So on that note, the first thing I usually try to guide people. I don't want to tell them. I guide them so that they can make that decision is when a lot of decisions or a lot of noise gets put into the conversation. So they can't, they just can't. Like, they're just, it just becomes overwhelming to make a decision is tell them, if none of this noise existed, which decision would you make?
And then, and that doesn't mean that's the right decision yet. But then when they say, okay, I would choose whatever they would go with okay. Okay. Now what's the one factor of all the noise that would change that decision? Just one. They don't get to put in 10.
And let's say it's a their parents or family or wife or kids, like something like really core.
[00:22:57] Speaker C: Okay.
[00:22:58] Speaker B: Then the second question comes in. Is, is that a big enough issue or concern?
[00:23:04] Speaker C: Right.
[00:23:04] Speaker B: Do you think, like that's going to ruin what you have with that person or that thing? If they say yes, they then they now know their decision.
[00:23:11] Speaker C: Right.
[00:23:11] Speaker B: You have to ask them one question.
[00:23:13] Speaker A: Past the original you're really simplifying the complexity of the noise in their mind so that the decision, you're focusing them in on that decision, which I believe is giving them freedom.
[00:23:29] Speaker B: Well, and I think that's it. Most people because. And it's okay. Like it's, there's nothing wrong with that. I mean if they, if everyone did this, I wouldn't have a job, right. I wouldn't be a coach and a consultant is they don't go and like watch TED talks and they don't read books and they don't do these things to like self improvement.
[00:23:43] Speaker C: Right.
[00:23:43] Speaker B: Some people do, some people don't. But when you have that knowledge is letting them know the noise can be a lot for everyone. There's days that I have a lot of noise and then I just turn it off. Like I just turn it all off.
[00:23:54] Speaker A: I say, I say don't listen to the radio in the car because there's enough noise going on here with traffic and everything else going on.
[00:24:00] Speaker B: But when you say, hey guys, when we simplify it, right, And I know this sounds juvenile to most people is did we really have any problems when we were kids? Not how we were raised, but when you were a kid, did you really have any problems?
[00:24:14] Speaker C: Right?
[00:24:14] Speaker B: You woke up, you ate, right. I mean, unless you had like that was an issue, right? Then maybe you had a tough childhood, but you ate. You had a roof over your head for most cases and you were going to play or you had to go to school, right. These were very simple decisions.
[00:24:27] Speaker C: Right.
[00:24:27] Speaker B: For most of people. I'm not going to say all, well, why are we trying to over complicate what that is? Right. We want to add the complications mostly because in my personal opinion is we're looking for a reason why we can't succeed rather than focusing on why we can. So when we take all the noise out now, it becomes a us problem, right. It's a real mere reflection of what's happening. And so you just go like this, let's quiet the noise. Let's be very simple and let's make a very easy decision rather than make an easy decision complicated. And that's how I train my people to have success in their job as well. We don't need, I don't need to look at 15 KPIs or performance indicators. We're going to measure one and we're going to focus on that. Then we're going to add a second one. But we're not like we don't need 14 of these guys because the behaviors Create the.
[00:25:14] Speaker A: I love that.
[00:25:15] Speaker B: And we need to simply.
[00:25:15] Speaker A: You're taking. You're taking giant things that are, you know, really the paralyzing factors for most people and breaking them into small steps.
[00:25:25] Speaker B: Well, and my personal training regimen.
[00:25:27] Speaker C: Right.
[00:25:28] Speaker B: Of what I do is anytime you give someone more than five things that they have to do, right. So the rule of five for me is that's where we become a problem, right? When we were a kid, how do we learn how to count? We used our hand and we were like, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. We could see it with one hand. The moment I have to put up the other hand, I have to shift my focus.
Well, if we, if we keep it under five, then it's something easy for you to always remember, whether you're older, you're younger. Like, you don't have to over complicate things, but when you get distracted, when it gets loud, when it gets this and you're like, man, I just need it to just. I just need to center. There's a couple other things you can do. One, okay, if you're going to listen to music, take a break, listen music, make sure it's not like music to, like, get you pumped up. This needs to be to center you, right? Like to bring you back down.
Maybe it's to take a walk. Maybe it's to go outside and get some sunshine. Like, you've got to be able to have those mental breaks. Because what I find interesting about people in the business, in the workplace is, all right, I'm going to sit at my desk and just take a break. That's not a break. You have to remove yourself from the situation and give yourself a different.
[00:26:32] Speaker A: You need to step away.
[00:26:33] Speaker B: You can go like this.
[00:26:33] Speaker A: Like, that's right.
[00:26:34] Speaker B: Now I'm. I'm away from that.
Now I can re. Center walk, listen to music, phone call, whatever it may be for you, right? Because everybody has different things. And now you can come back and go, okay, now let me get back into it. But when we, when we attempt to do these things in the act where we're at, we're not disconnecting. And that's how you really center is taking a moment for reflection and disconnection.
[00:26:57] Speaker A: And that's perfect. So. So what I'm hearing in you is your values. I hear some faith, wisdom, for sure. So I'm guessing that all of these decisions really shape the story that you're. You're guiding people to at this moment.
[00:27:15] Speaker B: Yeah, I, I want to guide them to you guys. Like, and I've Told a lot of people I'm not the richest guy out there, actually. I work really hard and I, I do okay to take care of my family, but I'm not like retiring tomorrow. I'm not independently wealthy, but I love what I do and I'm at peace. And I, like, negativity doesn't even come in here. Like, I do live all the time on social media and everything else, and people want to be negative and tear down. I'm like, it just kind of rolls off my back. And the reason why is, guys, we don't have to like live stressed. We, we have control of how we want our life to be and how we focus on it and what we focus. And so my whole thing is to make sure we have that peace and have that guidance for people to successes.
And it goes with my company, right. Is feed the wolf. You want to survive.
[00:28:05] Speaker C: Right.
[00:28:05] Speaker B: So if it's positivity and things of that nature, then feed that. Don't focus on the negative. Don't focus on the excuses. Right. Don't give that air or energy.
And it's, and it's worked for me for the last 15 years.
[00:28:17] Speaker A: How does faith really build into that? Because when I, when I, you know, that steadfastness of just not allowing the craziness and negativity of the world, which we're surrounded by constantly. So your faith in your value system, how does that keep you grounded?
[00:28:36] Speaker B: Well, I mean, at the end of the day, it's, I'm one guy, right? And there's, you know, we, we have a creator. And if people believe different things, that's okay. I don't judge them for that. I personally believe in God and I'm one guy. And so I don't know what my mission is, but I know it's definitely not to be mean. It's definitely not to tear people down. It's definitely not that I know that for sure. That's my certainty there.
[00:29:00] Speaker A: Well, not only do you not only do know it, but you say it.
[00:29:03] Speaker B: Sure.
[00:29:03] Speaker A: Like you, you, you live it like it's different. I think we all know, we all would like to say we know the difference between right and wrong and we don't want to do wrong. But you live it, you demonstrate it, you actually express it out loud.
[00:29:17] Speaker B: Well, and it's because I'm not a, I'm not afraid. And I guess this is how it for me is like knowing that, you know, my creator, our creator, like, you know, he's given us this opportunity to live life for however long it is, right? Is that when I'm with people, is that I'm not going to tear you down because I have my own flaws. I'm not perfect.
And so I want to be somebody where again, I, I tell everybody, I might not be the most likable person because you have different opinions or events, but I'm going to be that person you can count on if you're ever in a, in a pinch. I'm going to be there for you, whether it's time, if I can help you financially, and when I think you live that it, it does a lot of things for people when they say, okay, he doesn't just say it, he does it. But more importantly, it comes out. And sometimes it can come out in passion. So they're like, man, you're a little too fired up about this, which I get right. But is I'm only doing it because I don't want to see people have to struggle. And that comes from my childhood. I had a not so great childhood and those things. But it didn't, and, you know, it didn't make me. My life wasn't defined to be in that, that, that cycle. I wanted to be like, I know all these things happen, so I have all these reasons why I shouldn't.
[00:30:35] Speaker C: Right.
[00:30:35] Speaker B: I could say all these things. I said, I'm going to break this.
[00:30:38] Speaker A: Cycle and say, you have the excuses if you wanted to listen to those voices, but those are not the voices you're listening.
[00:30:44] Speaker B: I wanted to define the fact that even though people have travesties and bad things happen to them and everything else, you still can decide to change it. Now, with that being said, I don't want to take anything away from anybody of saying that's going to be easy. It's never easy to break the cycle or do it. However, when you have faith and you say, look, I need to have conviction, I need to have faith, I need to understand that. And then by having that faith and conviction, it also makes it easier to understand what's important.
Family, kids.
[00:31:15] Speaker A: Absolutely. And that's a great place to take a quick break. And we'll be right back. Up next, Darrell will share his perspective on measuring what really matters in life and business, like he was just about to do.
Welcome back to your life and legacy of loving what you're watching. Don't miss a moment of your life and legacy or any of your favorite NOW Media shows live or on demand, anytime, anywhere. Download the free Now Media TV app on Roku or iOS and enjoy instant access to our full lineup of bilingual programming, both in English and Spanish. Prefer to listen on the go catch the podcast version of the show right on Now Media TV's website at NowMedia TV.
In this closing segment, we're talking about one of the deepest questions. What really matters? Too often people measure life by money, numbers, business. But, Darrel, you've taught that true success is measured by value, services, and legacy.
The challenge is shifting away from shallow metrics of, you know, success towards, you know, something deeper to something lasting and measurable. So let's pick up where we left off. Instead of chasing the numbers, what really.
[00:33:11] Speaker B: Matters to Darren, for me, I mean, it's my. My kids first, then my. My wife. I know some people. That's controversial, right? But my kids don't survive without me. My wife will be just fine without me, okay? And so I put my kids first, and now once they're 18, then my focus will shift, right? And then it's my relationship.
My faith is obviously in there because I think it's important that. I think that gives you a ground, that gives you, like a foundation to focus on. And then it's becoming that servant leader of understanding and teaching, training, coaching, talking about. Right is showing people that you need to be a better way. And I like starting at the business aspect because I think there's some things that are missing. Like, for one, when I deal with owners and things that nature is. Do your people scream from the rooftops? They love where they work? Well, that's a direct reflection, right? So how do we. How do we show them the care, the concern, the empathy, the grace to where. If people don't love where they're at, why would they want. Like, why would your customers want to do business with you? And so it's really understanding for me, outside of my core, right? My family, my kids, Everything else is people.
People are the most important things. Time is one of the most important things. Money is a scorecard, right? And so if we relevant to sports is, yeah, money's a scorecard, right? So if you're making it, okay, that's the score. But that's about as far as it is because I've seen people that live paycheck to paycheck, happier than they've ever been. And then I've seen people with an absorbent amount of money miserable.
And we always make the joke, like, I mean, I still make it. Like, if I would have hit the powerball, right, and I would have been independently wealthy, like, oh, that would have solved all your problems. It doesn't. It just brings different ones.
[00:34:57] Speaker A: No. And that's. Right. Well, you and I talked about how you've been through various seasons in life. You've gone from high income jobs to.
But you had no time, traveling everywhere, always at the whim of others to where you're at today.
So tell our viewers that life journey and, you know, what it was like and where you're at today and why today is so much better.
[00:35:25] Speaker B: Well, and I think, yeah, I mean, that's great. Is like, as a, as a kid, my mom moved around everywhere. No, we weren't in the military. My mom just, she dated a lot of people and wherever they went, that's where she went. But it was highly abusive. We were homeless, we were in shelters. We were in a lot of different, like, not so great situations.
And I eventually ended up in foster care. I got a great foster family, finished high school, just short of all the accolades. But 3.9, went to college, went in the military.
So I, you know, I made it to, you know, as a kid, it was rough. I didn't get to really be a kid.
[00:36:03] Speaker C: Right.
[00:36:04] Speaker B: Like, I didn't get that, you know, but as an adult, it was also like, I wouldn't take it back because it also is a reflection of understanding what hard times look like. So if I lost my business, if I lost my job and everything else, I know what it looks like to eat top ramen and macaroni and cheese and that's the only thing you can afford. And making the best of those situations. I don't want to do that.
Right. If I have a choice. But it's understanding the people around you, your circle. And then when you. As I worked a business, I was working a job making probably about a half a million dollars a year, as some would say in the auto industry. I was on the gravy train with biscuit wheels. I was doing everything right. I was working hard, never saw my kids, never saw my wife, didn't see my friends, had tons of money.
[00:36:49] Speaker C: Right.
[00:36:50] Speaker B: Have bought houses.
Now I make 35% of that, maybe before taxes.
I get to be in my kid's life every single day, which was my dream. My dream was to be a dad because I didn't have one.
[00:37:01] Speaker C: Right.
[00:37:02] Speaker B: So I get to be in my kid's life. It's. It's so rewarding. And yeah, there are things I can't do because I don't have all the money. Sure.
But I also kind of prescribe to, if anybody knows, Gary V. Right.
Is we also don't need as much as we like to buy.
[00:37:18] Speaker C: Right.
[00:37:19] Speaker B: Really important things.
[00:37:20] Speaker A: Correct.
[00:37:20] Speaker B: So I really changed focus and I realized what it was in, in 15 years of, well, actually 20 years in the auto industry. But it was in 2012.
Yeah, 2012, I think, where I said I chose my family over my career, which was tough because I had been for the first 12 and a half years was.
[00:37:43] Speaker A: Tell me, tell me some of those things you do with the kids. Because I think the things you do with your kids today, the things you do with your wife today, because you've made that time, are very practical ways for somebody to track their progress in life. So beyond business and money.
[00:37:58] Speaker B: Yeah. So my kids, like any other parent in today's society, when I can rip them away from an electronic or video game.
[00:38:06] Speaker A: Yeah, right.
[00:38:07] Speaker B: We do, we go hikes. I've got them into hiking a little bit. We do kayaking and paddle boarding every other weekend or so we do trips. So like, here's a crazy one for people. Birthday, like birthdays. Instead of doing birthday parties and everything else, if they want it, they can choose that. But instead of doing presents and constantly having stuff, we do trips.
So my kids just happened to. My two younger kids have to have birthdays about a month and a half apart from each other. And so we do a trip every single year instead of presents because now they get an experience, they get a memory.
[00:38:40] Speaker C: Right.
[00:38:41] Speaker B: And we do something different. Same thing with my wife.
We hiking, kayaking, you know, we, we travel and it's, we want those experiences so that our kids can realize, like, it's not about things, it's about time, it's about experiences.
Things come and go. And in all fairness, when you're kids, you get a toy, you get something, and then by six months from now you're on to something else. So.
[00:39:06] Speaker A: But those experiences, your kids lasted six, six months.
I was waiting for you to say six days.
[00:39:13] Speaker B: Right. I was being, I mean I was being objectively hopeful. Six months.
But like, we took them like, and I'll give you guys a quick story, we took them to Mexico for their birthday trip. We went down to Playa del Carmen and we took him to the underwater caves and the like racecourse and the zip lines.
[00:39:32] Speaker A: Yeah, the cenotes.
How cool.
[00:39:34] Speaker B: And my nine year old, and mind you, we did that two years ago. He still talks about it. Every time they ask him for a, like a project or what his favorite memory is, they immediately go back to that, like, and he said he wants to show the pictures and everything else. So it's a really cool thing of like those are what really matters and grounds you is when you have those experience and can look back on them and you can. They say, like, what'd you get for your birthday? My dad took me on a trip. We went here, we went here. They're super excited. And it's. And it resonates too.
[00:40:02] Speaker A: Yeah, we went to Mexico. Yeah, right.
So, you know, often people rely on their faith to measure the deeper things in law, in life. And you know, I've heard, I, I love the fact that many times throughout the show today, you've mentioned that servant leadership.
And I can really tell that that is part of your, you know, love, service and character.
Just kind of give us some more examples of time with that, your family and even in business perhaps where that servant leadership is at the core of who Darrell is.
[00:40:46] Speaker B: Yeah, I mean, the big, the biggest example I can say is that, like, you know, things that I don't have to do, but I want to do because it, you know, it's there to serve, it's to give back community. So, like, my middle son is in freshman football.
[00:41:01] Speaker C: Right.
[00:41:02] Speaker B: So the football team, they need volunteers. I volunteered for every game that I could be available for.
When they go on field trips, I'm. I'm the first one to volunteer. If they need me, great. If they don't.
[00:41:12] Speaker C: Right.
[00:41:13] Speaker B: You know, it's fine.
[00:41:14] Speaker A: I love that. I really.
[00:41:15] Speaker B: And, and don't think that I'm doing this, guys, because I feel guilty or anything else. If you've been around 40 screaming 9 year olds, this is not something that's on the top my like, you know, exciting list. But I want to make sure that there's someone there that's going to have fun with them.
[00:41:28] Speaker C: Right.
[00:41:30] Speaker B: And then, you know, when it comes to like, my clients or my family.
[00:41:33] Speaker A: They'Re going to remember that you were there also. They're so important.
[00:41:37] Speaker B: But I also want, in a, in an age that we see that a lot of kids have fractured homes or they don't have a dad in the picture, which is what I dealt with when I was younger, is I want them to be able to see that there's like that positive role model too, not just for them, but for other kids, so that they know that, that there's that. So, like, I actually have a, like, I've been asked to be a God father for a couple people, which is a huge honor to me, but I'm also like the adopted dad to a lot of guys because they don't have that.
[00:42:06] Speaker C: Right.
[00:42:06] Speaker B: And so it's serving those people because at the end of the day, when I didn't have those things, it was a catapult of making sure people don't have to go through that same type of situation when it comes to clients.
If you call me, I. My Phone's on from 5am to 10pm if you call me, I'm going to answer because I highly doubt you're calling me just to, like, chop it up. So it's like letting them know that if you need something, text me, call me, whatever it may be, I'm going to make you a priority. Because that's what I want them to see, is it's okay to be that it doesn't take away from anything I do. And if I'm not available, I'll tell you I'm not available. It's also being okay with telling people, no, like, I'll serve you, but I also have to make sure I have to, like, I block that time away from my family. I block that time away from, you know, and so it's. It's really balancing all those things in life. But at the end of the day, every time I get to hear somebody or I get to see someone grow, right? If I hear it, then obviously it's true. But when you see it, it's. It's so rewarding to say, like, man, look at the person who barely could perform or they said they were going to fire if they couldn't get it together.
And because you spent time with them, like, they've gotten better. So, like, one client particularly, they pay for weekly sessions, right? Coaching sessions. We do it with their whole team.
But I've had seven of their people reach out to me for individual sessions. There's no additional charge. I just want to help them get better.
[00:43:30] Speaker A: You are demonstrating perfectly the way you live in that servant leadership. Darrel, this has been an amazing time together. Great conversations.
I can't tell you how privileged I feel to have gotten to know you and share all of this with our viewers. Tell our viewers one more time where it is they can connect with you.
[00:43:51] Speaker B: So, yeah, I have a website, smartwolf consulting.com also one that's auto street smarts.com. but the easiest way, guys, is go to social media. Whether you're LinkedIn, Facebook, TikTok, Instagram, either type in Daryl Steed or Smart Wolf Consulting. You'll find me and drop me a line. I'm available anytime and I will always make time for you.
[00:44:10] Speaker A: Darrell, thank you so much for joining us today and sharing your wisdom. What we've been learning is that building trust, choosing steady growth, finding peace and tough decisions, and measuring what is truly matters are the foundations of leaving a legacy worth remembering for our viewers? I encourage you to reflect on these ideas.
What are you measuring in your life? And does it truly reflect the legacy you want to leave?
I'm Chris Nudo, and this has been your life and legacy on Now Media tv. Until next time, keep building a legacy that lasts.
