Ever Onward Podcast

Kam Wheeler: Innovation, Personal Growth, & Dynamic Culture | Ever Onward - Ep. 35

• Ahlquist. • Season 1 • Episode 35

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Curious about the secret to scaling a business while keeping your core values intact? Join us as we sit down with Kam Wheeler, the dynamic president, chairman, and owner of American Construction Supply, as well as the CEO of KW at Kam Wheeler Ventures. Kam's compelling journey of leading his family-owned business alongside his brother Jared, transforming it into a thriving enterprise, is packed with lessons on innovation, leadership, and community involvement. We'll dive into the significance of vertically integrating services and the innovative solutions they’ve implemented, such as a mobile app and online store.

This episode is full of insights on the human side of business. Kam shares his passion for employee appreciation, revealing how genuine care and significant investments in employee well-being foster loyalty and drive. Ever wondered how simple gestures like remembering birthdays can have a profound impact? Kam's real-life anecdotes and examples provide a blueprint for creating a positive workplace environment. Additionally, we'll explore the importance of continual self-improvement, with practical tips on incorporating lifelong learning into daily routines and maximizing efficiency through consistent morning habits.

Lastly, we touch on the emotional and strategic aspects of leadership beyond the boardroom. Learn how Kam leverages a Stoic mindset to overcome setbacks, emphasizing the power of resilience and strategic planning. Our conversation also delves into parenting with grace and purpose, highlighting the emotional freedom that comes from supporting children in discovering their unique paths. Plus, get inspired by Kam's dedication to youth sports volunteerism and mentorship, using sports as a tool to instill discipline and positive life choices. Whether you’re a business leader, parent, or mentor, this episode offers invaluable insights on balancing life's demands while pursuing your goals with passion and purpose.

Website: https://americanconstructionsupply.com/

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Speaker 1:

We're really excited today to have Cam Wheeler on as our guest on our Ever Onward podcast. Cam is the president and chairman and owner of American Construction Supply. You've probably seen their vans around. They have locations all over Idaho. It's a great Idaho company, american Construction Supply, and Cam. His leadership with Jared his brother I'm sure we'll talk about today has taken it to kind of the next level. Others I'm sure we'll talk about today has taken it to kind of the next level. He's also a CEO of KW at Cam Wheeler Ventures, a platform designed to help others achieve their aspirations through consulting, coaching and development. He's also big into football I'm sure we'll talk about that and giving back he has the Hawk Football Foundation.

Speaker 1:

Cam received his Bachelor of Science degree from Brigham Young University, idaho, and a master's in engineering from the University of Alabama at Birmingham, where he graduated at the top of his class. I can go on and on and on about Cam. A great community leader. He's really that next generation leader here in the Valley known by all. But very much an honor to have him on today to talk about his business. Before we get to Cam, we're going to have Kakoa Nawahini on doing the AllQuest update. Kakoa is one of my partners here has been doing a fabulous job in our build-to-suit market and leasing and it'll be fun to hear from Kakoa before we hear from Cam Wheeler. How's it?

Speaker 2:

going buddy. I'm doing well, how are you doing?

Speaker 1:

Hey, I was just down at Boise State at an event this morning and so while we were doing it it was a big conference and I was on one of the panels but the band was playing outside the team's practicing. I thought about you when I left. This is the time of year, yeah, do you miss it at?

Speaker 2:

all, All the time, especially with this recent injury. I miss it all the time. But yeah, this is go time.

Speaker 1:

August is the month yeah, they is the month. Yeah, they're gonna be good this year, right, what are you?

Speaker 2:

thinking I think they'll be really good. I think they got a lot of players that are returning um, a lot of leaders defensively and offensively. That'll help, especially with the the coaching change. I personally love coach d just as a human being, but as a coach when he was there. There's not a better guy to to follow and to play for and know that he cares about you. So I think they're primed for a really good season.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, you got him. They just the news yesterday breaking news about Jeremiah getting a new contract. Yeah, chris Peterson was in town, yep, like I mean it seems like it's hitting on all cylinders just in time. Well, that's a great connection for you. I know that allowed you to meet so many people and we're lucky to have you here as one of our partners. But tell us a little bit about like you've kind of been kicking some butt lately, man, like not just lately. I mean it's been cool to watch you. You've kind of become our build-a-suit kind of expert.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, no, it's been really cool to learn from the people on the team here at AllQuest and just be able to, you know, continue to grow into the role that I've been able to take and work with these groups, like you said, that build the suit, that are looking for space, that, whether it's they need to leave space, they need to own space, they're looking at land and really get creative on what their needs are and being able to meet those needs and so when you were coming on.

Speaker 1:

I thought it was a good chance to talk about it, because a lot of times people think we just do office buildings, just leave space. But one of the things we do and you've been it's kind of been your niche now is take a company that wants to own their own space and want to develop their own yard and space, and we do that too. And so just getting that word out there that if you are looking for space, we do have locations, we have land, but also build the suits where you can own, and those are really rewarding.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, it's been really rewarding and it's really fun too. Like I was saying, just being creative and working with these users are like, okay, what do we need, what do we have that fits that and how do we make this all come together in the way that you guys need it to come together? And so it's been. Yeah, it's kind of been what's taken shape over the role that I've been playing here, but it's been really fun to be able to solve those problems and to find these groups that need space, especially in a challenging time that we're in today, but still be able to make that happen.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, and I would say what you're really good at is, again, it's our relationships, but it is when you're looking for how do I make the land work, how do I find something that's going to work pricing there, and then how do I build something working with our team internally? Here, where you have an internal architect, Brad, you have Corey and his team. You just have so many levers to pull to make a deal work, whereas if you're just going out on your own and trying to figure out on your own, I think there's real value that you bring too by saying hey, we're going to help you from the moment we shake your hand all the way through site selection through through the build.

Speaker 2:

So, anyway, you're good at it, man. I appreciate it. No, I appreciate that. I think it goes to speak, like you said, of the people that we have on the team here from every single discipline. We can take you from A to Z and pretty seamlessly and help solve problems along the way. There's just a lot of really good people that we have in construction development on the team that can take these groups all the way, and so it speaks to the people that you've been able to build and the team that you've built here for sure.

Speaker 1:

Well, you're a key part of it, man.

Speaker 2:

Thanks for coming on, I appreciate it Go Broncos, right Go Broncos, always, always.

Speaker 1:

Cam Wheeler. This is going to be fun. This will be fun. Let's start. I told you I didn't want to start talking until we got on here. Yeah, so I got to see you last week. You came with your son. I haven't stopped talking about this kid, 12 years old, 13. 13. Sorry, I missed it by a little bit, cannon's his name. And so he reaches out to me and says hey, I'd love to come interview mr alquist about business. And anyway, he comes in notebook there but questions memorized, yeah, thoughtful. The kid's impressive. Thanks.

Speaker 1:

I mean, I don't know what's in the water at the wheeler house right now, but it was awesome yeah, thank you, you better be very proud of him yeah articulate, smart, like and anyway, awesome, really cool, thanks, and he's an athlete too.

Speaker 3:

right, he is, yeah, he loves sports. So, um, getting him to play sports and to do his training, all that stuff, that's not hard, um. But this summer we put together a project he and I together talked about okay, what are we going to do this summer to use your time effectively? So he trains for two to three hours every day. He has some coaches that he works with, and so he's training sports stuff every day. Then we'll have practice at night.

Speaker 3:

But we put together a project like, okay, what's something that's going to help you develop as a person, that's going to help you get to where you want to go? And so we sat down together and worked out this project. And so he said, okay, I want to interview a bunch of different entrepreneurs and leaders. And so I said, okay, let's start making a list of things. And so he broke it down and said, okay, here I want to interview these 15 people. And I said, okay, then we need to make questions specific to each one. So then he came up. That was one of his assignments we had to come up with questions specific to each person who's going to interview. And then he had to reach out. He was responsible to set up the interview and to coordinate time and you know, work with your schedule and try to make it work, and so it was mind-blowing and I think he's done it, you know, to your point, it's a summer project.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, so he's telling me he's got a bunch of others lined up. Yeah, so we met with Spencer Danielson.

Speaker 3:

We're working on him meeting with Governor Little.

Speaker 1:

So if Governor Little's listening to this. We're trying to get him in there, but yeah, so I think that I think you're, I think you were probably number like 12 or 13 or something, so Memorized quite anyway. So, cam, long, long time friend, I've known you for a few years but what I like about you and I'll start this way is leadership, like it's kind of been in your DNA right the whole time and you're kind of, as I get older man and I just kind of look at the next generation of who's going to be kind of the business community leaders. It is you right there with everybody else. It's kind of like taking the reins and next generation. So thanks for coming on today.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, absolutely Thanks.

Speaker 1:

American Construction Supply is your main deal. Tell us a little bit about you to get rolling here, sure. So people that don't know you.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, so I grew up here in idaho. I grew up in nampa, idaho, um, so I saw people. We grew up two blocks from the railroad tracks, downtown nampa, on the corner second and 22nd, and little 800 square foot house. My parents started the company when I was about eight months old, um, so there's this picture of my mom, my dad, staying next to this 1983 toyota pickup truck and um'm, you know, not even a year old. And then my brother was about two and like that was our, that was our family, right, like that was our life.

Speaker 3:

Just growing up was very integrated into small business. My parents, you know, my mom, did the books and accounts, receivable accounts, payable, payroll, everything and then my dad was, you know, running the day to day and trying to grow the company. And so that was our life, like our family vacations were driving to Idaho Falls, driving to Twin Falls, going to Coeur d'Alene, going to you know wherever, as he was opening new locations and doing things like that, and we'd go stay and swim in the hotel pool and get to go order oatmeal or something for dinner, you knowmitty's or somewhere in, uh, idaho falls and, um, we just thought that was as good as it got like I didn't know the disneyland existed. We didn't know. You know, we didn't do stuff like that, and so it was just we, just that was kind of life, and the employees were around all the time and we were around them and so, yeah, it was very much like a you know.

Speaker 1:

So it's construction supply so it's hard working kind of blue collar people. Like the company grew, I mean, from where he started to how many locations are you at now and kind of talk about just the explosive growth of the American.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, so we've been very fortunate. Obviously, Boise and Idaho are great places to be at, and with the growth that we've experienced here, my brother and I purchased the company from my parents several years ago and we've been fortunate to be able to build out a really good team of people that have helped us to be able to grow pretty rapidly. Yeah, so we're close to 200 employees now, so the company's scaled in a lot of ways. We've opened a number of new locations. We recently just launched a mobile application. We have an online store. Now. We ship to all 50 states and then we go do forming, insuring, engineering work. We're licensed in like 17 different states now that we do that, and so it's been a great opportunity. There were a lot of great things in place that we were able to, you know, build off that foundation that had been laid previously, but able to make a lot of changes and improvements.

Speaker 1:

We have a lot of business people listen to this but talk about, um, I think, I think, people that have taken a company and then grown it right, and there's lots of ways to do that. But one of the things that I think you've been really good at is kind of vertically integrating stuff, like saying, okay, here's the stuff we we do already and talk us through how you've been so successful in doing that and knowing what to do next, because I think you're also getting a little bit into manufacturing now, which is kind of the natural place to go. Once you vertically integrate services, Then it's like, okay, how do we integrate products?

Speaker 3:

Yes, yeah. So that's been a lot of our growth. A lot of our growth has been in how do we improve our systems, how do we become more efficient at everything that we're doing? How do we become more efficient in how we're buying things, how all of our processes work internally? How do we become more efficient with converting dollars of output in marketing or with our team and payroll? How do we convert those to dollars of input in terms of revenue?

Speaker 3:

So we've looked at ways of, okay, how do we improve all those different efficiencies? And then, yeah, vertically integrating, and saying, okay, you know, there's only two ways to grow a business. You either have to grow the number of products and services you offer, and or you have to grow the number of people that you offer them to. And so, you know, we've tried to grow in both those areas. To say, okay, how do we reach a wider audience? And then, how do we sell more products and services to those people? And and then, how do we sell more products and services to those people? And so that's what we've, you know, attempted to do, and obviously we've done that in a number of different ways, but you know having a great team is what it all comes down to Biggest challenges to growth.

Speaker 3:

you think from your opinion, having gone through it, yeah, I mean capital is one right Capital, I think is a constraint for everyone is knowing okay where and how should we go. Deploy capital Like what's going to give us the best return on our investment, um, being strategic about how you go do that Um. And then your human resources, like human resources. I think that's one thing that people often overlook. They're saying, okay, if you just infused your company with a bunch of money, that all of a sudden everything's going to get so much better, and that's not necessarily the case. No-transcript. Keep those people. How do you get them in the right seats on the bus Because I'm a big believer in you, know higher character and then train skills and get them into the right position where you need them at Um. But you got to find the right people first, and that can often be the biggest barrier to growth.

Speaker 1:

I know leadership culture is a big thing for you and, um, you already hit on it, but I'm asking the follow-up question. So, so one of the things that you see happening is you can, when you're small, you got this kind of core group and kind of, hey, the values on the wall or what's in our heart and mind and we're here and we're all together and then, as that thing grows, especially with other locations, what are some of the tricks you found?

Speaker 1:

within 200 employee organizations, lots of different locations, to try to spread that culture. Keep that culture, because it's a constant, constant difference.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, it's difficult. I saw a movie a number of years ago called the Founder, talking about Ray Kroc and the foundation of McDonald's, and that was something that they were constantly trying to overcome as they were selling these franchises, with people putting their own spin on or changing things or changing the product, and that's real, as I remember. Watching that, I was like, okay, that's so true, because getting your systems in place, I feel like, is the most important thing, because systems don't take days off, systems don't get sick, systems will beat just about anything, but you have to have a culture in place first. If your culture, your culture, will feed your systems and then your systems will carry out your culture. I think that's profound.

Speaker 1:

That is a big deal, because it's almost like that book Atomic Habits. Right yeah, for personal growth. What are your systems that you surround yourself with daily? It's the same thing in a company right, yeah. And let's spend our time working on those, because they are more likely to be consistent than relying on an individual to be like your culture warrior coach Yep.

Speaker 3:

Yep, yeah, your goals will fall to the level of your habits, right, and so you know putting those habits in place, but making that the culture. And so you know there's a lot of things you can do, whether it's you know how we dress, you know the way the buildings look, you know the culture of what's taught, what's talked about, the systems that you have in place. When everyone comes and locks on to their computer, what does that look like? What are they surrounded with? How do we interact with people? How do the employees interact with each other?

Speaker 3:

There's so many, there's thousands of things that build a culture, and it's not just like, oh, it's not a sign we put on the wall, it's not just the colors on a building or the shirts or whatever that people wear. It's thousands of those things all integrated together. Where people feel loved, retain employees is, you know, having been an employee, having been in that spot and been the guy that was cleaning the toilets or sweeping out the shop, or, you know, doing any job in the organization, to take it from that perspective and be like, okay, what would have made me feel valued when I was doing this? Like what would have meant something to me, what would have made me go run through a brick wall and trying to do those kinds of things.

Speaker 1:

A lot of times it's simple, right, yeah, it is A lot of times it's simple. Yeah, it is A lot of times it's like hey, you know, I I really admire a couple of leaders that I that I consider kind of mentors and I didn't think about bringing him up today but I kind of miss seeing. Him was Kent Orem with ICCU, yeah, and when I started becoming friends with him and I watched his route, so here's a guy that grew that credit union, he's got, you know, hundreds of employees and I and I said what do you do to stay connected? And he had a system where he said I have got to stay connected and he he said, right now, on my phone, and he pulled up every morning he does. I mean that guy would do like birthdays and anniversaries and check on kids and whatever.

Speaker 1:

I'm like how on earth do you do that? And he's like it is a part of my day because I just want them to be connected to me and and and that was powerful, that was really powerful and I think I think your point is it's it's thousands of things. That's unique to each company, right, it's unique to each leader. Everyone's leadership's different. But somehow connecting in a real authentic way there's. There's just no way around that. You have to put in the work.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, and putting in the work and putting your money where your mouth is right, it's really easy. I think every organization on the planet says, oh, you know we care about our employees. But do you really right, like, are you really willing to say like, hey, we're going to put the things in place that are going to help us recruit great people and are going to help us retain great people, and so that's something that we, right, we do? Christmas party, we'd go rent out Shore Lodge up in McCall, idaho, and we'd give all the employees a day off. They'd all go up there and you know, we get rooms for everyone and cater a big dinner and everyone would get, you know, a gift, whether it's an iPad or a Traeger or a drone or whatever.

Speaker 3:

Right, but everyone, everyone got to go have that experience and their wives can go to the spa and they can go do all that kind of stuff. But it's like, okay, like this costs me a lot of money to go put on right, like this is a you know, six figure Christmas party and you know some people like, oh, here, we'll give you a $10 gift card and tell you Merry Christmas and hope you have a good day. But, like, your employees feel that right, merry Christmas Clark yeah exactly, right, the jelly of the month club.

Speaker 3:

But you know, it's like if they really feel like, hey, you value them on top of you know everything else that you're trying to do for them, they'll go run through a brick wall for you, right, like when you feel valued, when someone makes me feel valued, I'll go do anything for them. And so I think that you know a lot of organizations. That's just what I've observed. It's like, okay, the ones that I've noticed that I want to be like I'll treat their people really really well.

Speaker 1:

I love that. Let me shift a little bit. So one of the kind of one of the mantras that I like to live by and help others with is that we all have kind of weaknesses, and I think there's a misconception that some people are just natural born leaders and there's certainly something to do with that. I mean, I spent some time with Canon. He's starting with a little bit of DNA there, right. But what I'm saying is we also grow and learn, and you said you read a lot. I mean, I think for a lot of people it's like you don't cap yourself Like whatever, like you might have. You know, we all bless with gifts and talents and then weaknesses and this idea that you can continually be learning and growing as a leader wherever you are in your company and setting your goals on. I'm going to spend time this year on this or that or the other. What are some things you do to continually kind of push yourself in leadership for your company, your family and life.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, I love that. So I'm a huge proponent of lifelong education, and that's part of the reason why Ken and I took on this project that he's worked on this summer is, I feel like, as a dad, one of the best things that I can teach my kids to do is to love to learn, and I went and earned a bachelor's degree, went and earned a master's degree, but most of what I know I learned on my own. I learned it from reading books. I learned it from meeting with mentors and other people that I look up to. I learned it from YouTube videos. I learned it from the School of Hard Knocks.

Speaker 3:

You learn most of what you know in other ways. It's like, okay, do I have to learn from the School of Hard Knocks on everything, or can I go learn from other people's failures? Can I go learn proactively from other people? And that's going to save me so much time Rather than making this mistake for the next 10 or 15 years. I can go read. I can go listen to podcasts. I can go meet with people. I can go find people that are doing things well Like I can go, you know, knock on someone's door, reach out to them, send them an email.

Speaker 1:

Especially in a dynamic workplace, right? I mean, as you're growing and things are changing, there's ever shifting constraints on a business, and if you can go learn those things and go say hey, how did you?

Speaker 3:

deal with this.

Speaker 3:

It's powerful right, yeah, it's powerful right, yeah, and you don't have to go learn all the lessons the hard way. And so it's like, okay, I've saved myself years and years and years of time by trying to be humble enough to learn from other people, trying to observe both what they did well or what failed for other people, and say, okay, I can learn from their mistake and go that way. But yeah, I think that prioritizing learning in your life is something that can't be overstated, like just having a desire, a hunger, thirst or whatever you want to call it to always continuously be getting better and to continuously be learning, and that can take so many different forms. I mean, we're on a podcast here today.

Speaker 3:

You know the information age that we live in. Information is so readily available. To be able to do that, it's not like, oh hey, I had to go to a library and get a book. It's like I listen to podcasts on the way over here I'm listening to a book. I can, you know, read a book in my free time. I can talk and meet with other people.

Speaker 1:

You can be pretty darn efficient, can't you?

Speaker 1:

Yeah, oh yeah, I can watch YouTube videos you can like, you know kind of this idea of the miracle morning, right, like starting your day every right day and just trying to have this routine. But you can stack these successes if thoughtfully done in the mornings, where, yeah, it is, you know, hydrate, stretch, exercise, all at the same time while I'm putting something in my ears that are going to make me learn, and just kind of setting yourself right, grounding yourself right, could be a powerful tool for anyone. People ask me well, how do you be more efficient? Well, some of it is just, it's not perfect every day. I mean, you'll have days you're just like, oh my gosh, my first thing starts at six and it ain't going to happen. You get that fresh start that next day and you can go at it.

Speaker 1:

But I like what you just said because I think there are ways, because I think there are ways and I think anyone listening, could you know how can I be more efficient about my days? Because you're going to have to. I think the word balance is probably. You know, I had a good friend of mine say really, we go through these times of life and sometimes balance just doesn't exist, right? How many kids do you have? Yeah, seven, seven, right?

Speaker 3:

Yeah, you're spinning a whole bunch of plates and you're just trying to keep them going right so you spin that one, get it going. Spin the next one, keep them going. This one's falling down. Okay, go spin that one again.

Speaker 1:

That's really life right. So it's hard to balance that. But what is possible is those times you do control and usually it's early morning or late. Make it as efficient as possible, maximize it. Make your drives I mean. I hop in and my podcasts come up and it's automatic. Now my Bluetooth's hooked up and there I go and you know it's either some really great country music or a podcast right. Yeah, so I love that. That's really good yeah.

Speaker 3:

Well, and, like you know, I had a few great examples of that growing up. I mean, my mom is a superstar, she's a rock star. Every morning of my life, waking up, come upstairs and there was breakfast ready on the table and she was ready to go Hair done, makeup done, she had already exercised for like a half an hour. You know you'd hear loads of laundry going in the background the laundry room but it's like I mean it's, you know, whatever time 6, 6, 30 AM, and she already accomplished all those things. Right, my dad was already up, done his routine, gone, going off to work, whatever, um. So it became a very natural thing for me, I mean, our family that was just kind of like ingrained in us of, um, you know, having routines maximizing think about the power of that lesson.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, oh, powerful. Right, think about, like you know, it's that age old adage of of lead always and use words only when necessary. Right, think about the leadership and example of I'm thinking of, I know, your, your parents, and that, over and over again, of okay, the routine I'm, I'm living, the routine. I'm not telling you, son, this is what you need to do. Look at what I'm doing and model after that. So much more powerful than telling someone something.

Speaker 3:

No, a hundred percent. Like you know the way that you live, the things that you eat, you know what's normal to you. I mean, like I, you know I love drinking water. I, you know, do that. And so, like I just kind of noticed, like my son Cannon always has a bottle of water going around with him, like pretty much wherever he goes. But like you know your kids, the people around you, like they see your habits and they'll learn from you in that. And so, no, I definitely had some powerful examples modeled to me. For sure.

Speaker 3:

I served in LDS Mission in Southern California. I remember when I came home and went to school, it like blew my mind that most of my roommates' classes didn't start until they'd have like a 10 am class or an 11.45 or something like that. And I had a 7.45 am class every day because that was the earliest it was offered. But I would take, you know, 18 to 21 credits every semester and I just thought that was totally normal. I was like, okay, yeah, I'll be in class from 7.45 till 5.30 PM every day, Kind of like why wouldn't you?

Speaker 3:

Why wouldn't you right? It's like, why wouldn't you? And okay, all my classes are all stacked on Mondays, wednesdays and Fridays. That way I can work on Tuesdays and Thursdays and I'm not going to take one class here, two classes there. And being able to be more efficient is what sets people apart. I mean every really successful person that I know, because time is the one thing that everyone has the same amount of right.

Speaker 1:

It doesn't matter who you are, and I think that's like I really wanted to get in some of these scenes with you because I got some more questions for you but if you think about work right, you can't just people say, well, you got to work hard, yeah, very true. And got to work hard, yeah, very true, yeah. And that that, I think, is your internal motor and your desires, your genuine, like what, what drives you. But then the other part of it is efficiency, and I think that's what you can learn right Cause, cause the world is also full of people that work hard, but how efficient are they and how insightful are they and how, how, you know, where do they put vision in their life? And okay, here's where I'm heading, here's my plan, here's how I'm going to go get it, and then here's how efficiently I'm going to do it.

Speaker 1:

During these ages in life, which are, you know, they, they come and go. I mean, you've got some times that you know, and for me, what I'm going through right now is I didn't think it would be like this. Now I'm getting older, I've got grandkids and I've got adult kids and I just thought, well, I thought it would be different right now and it's busy, it's like Chad and I thought we'd have all this free time and we don't and I'm like, oh well, that's fine, it's great, I actually like it this way. But you know, some of these misconceptions we have about life and time, you just you deal with it and that's what's good. Oh, there'll be more later on, right?

Speaker 3:

We won't be busy. Later on There'll be time to do all these things.

Speaker 1:

Living for the tomorrow is not a way to live. It's enjoying the journey right and really maximizing the journey with the people you love.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, no, I couldn't agree more. But yeah, being efficient and being intentional with your time, I think, is another powerful thing. I remember my mission president saying this to me the night before I left to come home. And I remember my mission president saying this to me the night before I left to come home. He said you know, be intentional with your time, because the world will rob you of every second of it if you'll let it Right. And so, like making the decision, like, okay, this is what my morning's going to look like, this is what I'm going to do every day, these are the things that are non-negotiables for me, and then everything else can fill in around that, right, everyone drills and phone calls and things happen or things you have to take care of.

Speaker 3:

But it's like, okay, what are my non-negotiables, what are the things that I'm going to do, no matter what, and it's people that can do those things and do those things consistently for a long period of time that, really, you know, set themselves up and I'm a huge kobe bryant fan, but kobe would talk about that constantly. Right, it's like, hey, if I, if I wake up at 3 30 am and I train from four to six then, and then I rest, recover, have some breakfast. What was his book?

Speaker 1:

Go train again, I love that. I can't remember the name of it right now. He's got a great one, but it's one of his autobiographies that were written. Anyway, the guy was a machine. Yeah, yeah, unbelievable the Mamba mentality.

Speaker 3:

Mamba mentality, right, like you know, seven days after winning the NBA finals in 2009,. He calls up the general manager of the Orlando Magic and, you know guy calls up Stan Van Gundy, who's their head coach. He's like, hey, I've got Kobe Bryant on the other line. He wants to come use the facility every day for the next week. Do you have any problem with that? He's like Kobe wants to use our facilities. Like yeah, he's gonna be down here with his family for at Disney World, he wants to come use the facility every morning. Like, well, when does he want to use it? He says he needs it from 4 30 to 7 am every day. It's like, well, disney World's like 45 minutes away. He's like, yep, he says he'll be there, but he needs a private gym with security. Blah, blah, blah, whatever right, every day, seven days after winning the NBA finals Stories from legendary right.

Speaker 3:

And you talk about having natural gifts and sometimes not having the most natural ability in any one thing can actually be a blessing, right, like having to work harder than other people, and that's one of the things. Like, if I can teach my kids anything, I hope that I can teach them that that, um, there's always going to be someone that's more talented than you are at any given thing, but it's. Can you learn how to work hard? Can you learn how to maximize your efficiency in that area? Can you learn how to do things that other people aren't willing to do? And from my experience and observation, that's what sets people apart they're willing to do things that other people aren't willing to do. And I look back and I'm grateful that a lot of those lessons were instilled in me, but it's like a lot of my roommates weren't willing to go wake up at 7.45 am. My roommates weren't willing to go wake up at 7 45 am, so they'd already been there at school for two years.

Speaker 3:

I came, I graduated in two and a half years and I was done and I had moved on to the next phase of my life and they were going to be there for two more years because they were taking one or two classes a day. They're just there to have fun, um, but being intentional with your time allows you to accomplish things that you know might take other people a decade. It's okay, I okay, I can go do this in a year. Like, hey, this is going to take someone else a month. I can go do it in three days. Hey, this is going to take someone a week, I can go do it in a couple hours. And just having that mentality I love that you know.

Speaker 1:

We have our leasing team. Here is Mark Holt and Kakoa right.

Speaker 1:

So those guys are great guys, but I love being in a room with them because the other thing, that same mentality you can have individually of, hey, this is how I'm going to get through things that can translate into your business life Absolutely. You get around people like that that go, hey, here's the competition, here's where we're set up, here's how we're going to be more efficient. And that was my point. It's not them just saying, hey, we're going to go work harder. It's like okay, what's the strategy? To work harder? How are you going to dominate your days and your field? Because you've just out-thought and out-worked everybody. It's a combination of both right.

Speaker 3:

Yep, it's not just like, oh hey, we're going to spend more time in the office. We're going to be in the office every day from 6 am until 10 pm. It's like, okay, well, that's not it. It's okay. How can I learn more? How can I be more efficient? How can I have all the data? How can I be the most prepared guy in every room that I go into? Right, I know what they're thinking. I know what their questions are going to be. I know what all my competitors are doing. I know more about my competitor's product than my competitors do, and that's been one of the things that I feel like in my career was something when I was really young and I can outwork other people, and so I know when I go into a meeting to go try and get a project, I can know my product better than anyone else does, and I can know my competitors products better than they do that is beautiful.

Speaker 1:

Think how that translates to your business today. Just doing that over years and preparing now to say, okay, here's, here's the competition, here's what we do. You add relationships on top of that and taking care of people and having a product that you know there's no. You get around smart people that know what they're doing and there's no question why they're successful. Cam, I think that's the thing around you. It's like okay, this is, this is a good deal. Let me ask let's shift a little bit here. So we've talked a lot about success and background or whatever. How do you, how do you deal, how do you train yourself to deal with setbacks?

Speaker 1:

Um you know opportunities whatever you want to call them, challenges that come your way either, either business and what. What skills have you developed, to kind of say, here's how I deal with it?

Speaker 3:

Yeah, um, that's a really great question because that's something that's really difficult, especially for anyone that's a high achiever, right, like, I mean, you know, growing up for me as a kid, like I had this perfectionism complex that I still deal with and struggle with, where you want everything to be perfect. Right, like, you want to think through. Hey, I worked through this, I thought through this, I studied through this, I prepared, I had a plan laid out, I went and executed everything perfectly, but it didn't turn out perfect, right, um, and you know you're going to make mistakes or other people are gonna make mistakes, and you know we live in an imperfect world and those things will happen. Um, learning how to handle those kinds of things Cause, like, at first it's like, okay, you're really hard on yourself and then maybe you're really hard on other people. Um, but, as I've learned and grown, um, about five years ago, I started studying stoicism and I've become a huge fan of all the ancient Stoics, whether it's Marcus Aurelius or Seneca or any of the others, and learning profound wisdom.

Speaker 3:

That's really helped me to see and to know that things happen the way that they're supposed to happen and that many things are out of our control, but the thing that is in our control is how we deal with it. Right, we don't get to pick circumstances, we don't get to pick outcomes, but we get to pick the way that we handle things. And so you know, that was something where I changed my mindset from okay, I'm focused on an outcome and I want this outcome. I want this to happen. You know, I'm going to make this happen. I'm going to create a plan, I'm going to do everything that it takes to try and get this outcome, instead of changing it to say, okay, what do I want from this personally, and how can I learn and grow, knowing that things are going to happen along the way and it's not going to turn out the way that I wanted it to? And when those things happen, deciding ahead of time, how am I going to respond?

Speaker 1:

I love that. It's almost like you're planning for success and you have a strategy and you have a vision in your mind like, hey, here's where I'm going. But you're almost preparing yourself, saying, hey, it's not going to go, like I think it's going to go. So when it doesn't, I've almost got. I'm kind of playing three-dimensional chess to get there right from the beginning, instead of thinking that it's this linear path.

Speaker 1:

To my thing, it's just a, it's a healthy way to go through things and I think for me too, I think when you go through challenges, it's almost like this magical moment where you say, okay, I see the end and I don't know how I'm going to get there, but I'm going to work through like four or five or six or seven scenarios and then I'm like, okay, great, no matter what comes my way, I've got a pathway. And then that's comforting. And then you're like, okay, now I've just got to be attuned to myself and people around me and my relationships to navigate how to get there. But there's something very freeing about seeing that pathway and I think that's a great skill. What you just said is I love that and I'm not perfect at it, I'm far from perfect at it.

Speaker 1:

None of us are, but.

Speaker 3:

I'm learning and I'm growing, and that is one thing where I feel like I've made a lot of improvement is not letting down on my goals, not letting down on my standards, but to say, okay, this is what I want, this is what I want to achieve, and there's going to be things in here that I can try to foresee. There's going to be other things that I'm not going to foresee, but I can decide ahead of time how I'm going to respond, and knowing that everything that happens is part of God's plan for us and that there are certain things that are going to be outside of our control, but that are meant to help us learn lessons that we need to learn in order to be who we need to be.

Speaker 1:

I love that, one of the things that we're, frankly, you know. When you have adult kids, sometimes it's like you know you want to be the parent you were when they were little. When you can't, you kind of got to.

Speaker 1:

But one of the things I'm in an adult relationship with them, rather than a parent to child, and it's different, and one of the things I've been learning the last few weeks with some people that are kind of helping us out, is this artificial timeline we place on things, just whether it's our kids or our lives or whatever, and kind of saying, hey, no, I'm, you know, I'm not going to put an artificial timeline on that what's important to me. So I'm making these lists of kind of goals and this is where I want to be and these are what successes are. But time's kind of not linked to that anymore, and it's been freeing to say, no, it may take longer, but it doesn't change my approach, it doesn't change what I'm going to do, it doesn't change how I'm going to react, and it's been really, really a cool process for me because I'm looking back at it saying, no, some of those are artificial.

Speaker 3:

Still achieve the same goal with my daughter, but it's going to just take a little longer.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, well, and I think the things that we self-identify- with right, my son has to be this star player, has to be this person, or I have to be able to tell my friends that, oh yeah, my child got into this university or got this thing, or oh, their life is so great because my identity is so wrapped up in what happens with my kids. And then, all of a sudden, like you're now trying to control this narrative with your kids and I see a lot of people, huge pressure Right.

Speaker 3:

And so, like I've seen, so many people's adult parent to child relationships suffer because of that, because they haven't really thought through like, okay, am I self identifying with my child's success? Am I self identifying with what they become, which, you know, what I want for them may not necessarily be what is best for them, or the path that they need to learn on or the timeline that needed to learn.

Speaker 1:

That's harder said than done, right. Because, you also love your kid and you want to give them these opportunities, and then you're rooting for them like crazy. Right, I think back. I'll tell a story about my son. So I only had one boy and I thought he was going to be Larry bird. Right, Cause I like yeah.

Speaker 2:

That's just what I thought.

Speaker 1:

And I remember, like year two in the Y ball and me calling my dad on the way home and saying, hey, like we're year two and the guy can't do a right-handed layup off his left foot yet we're in trouble, right, and my son will laugh at this. But then he became, almost through some just series of events that were just God's hand in his life, he got into music and playing a guitar and becoming a jazz uh, jazz guitarist. And I think back to watching him, like sometimes on stage at these competitions and watching him just thrive and thinking, man, I'm glad, I'm glad that it wasn't me trying to force him into what you wanted him to.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, I'm glad that.

Speaker 1:

I, I'm glad that and again, it wasn't my wisdom, it was just some really fortunate people we met in events. But but trying to help your kid, but let them, let them kind of grow and be and find the talents that they have. It's a, it's an art.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, and it's a difficult thing, and obviously you're further down you know that path than I am. But, um, you know, and being able to observe that both in my life and in other people's lives, you know putting your um self-worth in who you really are and in what your divine identity and potential is, I think is a much healthier way of learning to love yourself and learning to have grace and mercy for yourself and allowing yourself to learn to grow. I think that so many people fall victim to their own mistakes that they make and then they start beating themselves up or think like, okay, I was a failure at this. My dad wanted me to be this and I couldn't do it. And this person wanted me to be that and I couldn't do it.

Speaker 3:

And this person may have all the potential in the world. It's just in a different area from, maybe, what they thought or what someone else thought or tried to put on them. But you know, putting our value in who we really are, not in just what we do or what we have or what we accomplish. And you know I don't ever like telling people once I'm asking oh, you know, what do you do? You know what I do is different from who I am, and so you know what you do can be a part of your identity, but I don't think it should be all of your identity, or even you know the largest part of your identity.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, and how critical Cam is, that foundation of like, like the breaking it down to like with your son or grandson or your, your granddaughter, like like child of God, kind of you're loved, you're this, you know you got all these unique talents and you know the titles that we all carry, but first and foremost you're like son or daughter of God and they love you and you know where does that? You know, I know for us and just like whatever your higher power is, but having some identity outside of the things you are, the things you have, because those things come and go. And when you can kind of go back to something that is comfortable and then you surround that with a family that loves you no matter what, and so it's comfortable, and then you surround that with a family that loves you no matter what, and so foundational?

Speaker 1:

no, I agree, and I think it's hard for people to go through these things, but, boy, if they can go back to that and feel that love it's, it's a big deal and I kind of agree more like I love sports.

Speaker 3:

Like I love sports. I always have, like it's just been, you know, part of my dna, like my whole life. Like I've loved sports. I've always been actively involved in it and still, but like for everyone, for all of us, at some point sports end. Right and like if your whole life is consumed in being a basketball player, being a football player, being a cheerleader, being this or being that, and you have lessons and you work hard and you train and you practice and you go to camps and you do all these things and so much of your time is spent in this, it becomes really easy to make that your identity. And at some point it ends and then it's like, okay, like what do I do now? Right, like I.

Speaker 3:

I know people who's like okay, their daughter is 18 years old and she's danced five nights a week a dance studio since she was two years old and it's like, oh well, she loves dance. Like she loves it. It's like, but does or has she just never tried anything else? Like she never did anything else and that's been what her whole identity has been wrapped up into. And I think that as parents, we often do our kids a disservice by wanting them to be something so bad and not allowing them to try different things or to do or to be something different than what we thought they should be or what we wanted them to be.

Speaker 1:

Amen, amen. Hey, tell us about some of the volunteer stuff you do. I know you do some. It takes a lot of time, right, but I know you're pretty into the volunteer opportunities you have.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, it's kind of crazy how things like that just happen in life, right? It's like you don't plan for or think so many things are going to happen and they just naturally happen. You just make connections and things just work out. So my son's, like five or six years old, wants to sign up to play football. So I'm like, okay, I'll coach him. So I start coaching flag football and next year I'm coaching more kids in flag football. And I'm getting text messages or reach out from parents that hey, you know, we played against your team and I really liked your way of coaching, I really liked the way you interacted with the kids. Or you know, we have a friend whose son plays on your team and they say they just love you, like, is there any way we can get our son on your team? And so it just kind of grew from there.

Speaker 3:

So here I am, you know, just coaching football. I mean, I had coached soccer and t-ball and basketball and you know anything because I wanted to be around my kids and so if my kids are playing something, I want to be around them, and so I was coaching flag football. And next thing I know I have like 30 kids on my team and it's like, okay, well, now we're going to go into tackle. And so we kind of, you know, moved on and moved up and now I run a tackle football program called Warriors Football Club. So we have about 100 kids in our program, we have several different teams and I have an amazing organization of people that coach and run and administration and they handle the whole thing and really make it amazing. But our emphasis is on utilizing football as a tool to help prepare young men for life, and that's what our mission is and what we're based on is, if we only help you to become a great football player, then we failed and we want to help them be great football players and great athletes, but first and foremost, like we want to help them be great young men. And so, you know, it just kind of evolved from there.

Speaker 3:

And then I got asked to be involved with our local high school out in Nampa and we live in Skyview Boundaries, and so they asked if I'd come be part of the program there and things just worked out to where things aligned. And so, you know, I've taken on a role that's largely just, you know, volunteering to try and help make it better and trying to help raise money, trying to help create opportunities for kids that maybe otherwise wouldn't have them, or enhancing those opportunities, and so it's really been. It's been a blessing in my life. It's fun for me but, at the same time, like I find it as a way to be able to try to give things to kids that I wish that I would have had when I was a kid right Like you know, getting a 10 year old helmet and a 30 year old pair of uh set of shoulder pads, and, you know, some pants that were passed down and some Jersey that had been around forever.

Speaker 3:

Um, you know, trying to find better ways to make kids excited and to feel um, you know, I I believe in the law of vibration, I believe in the um law of attraction, and I believe that if people see themselves as something greater, that they'll achieve those um same goals and they'll attract that same type of energy. So if you view yourself as, oh hey, this is all I'm ever going to be, this is all I am, this is what my family is, um, and so my hope is that I can help teach kids that you can be whatever you want to be, you can go achieve whatever you want to achieve and if you believe in yourself and if you believe that good things are going to happen to you, you can go work and go make it happen, and so that's really like kind of the crux of it, yeah.

Speaker 2:

Yeah.

Speaker 3:

Like I'm, you know, coaching football and and teaching, you know that type of stuff, but really it's. It's centered around wanting to make a difference in kids' lives and wanting to help give them opportunities that, you know, I wish I would have had and that I wish other people around me would have had, Because I saw a lot of people that I grew up with or kids that I played with that didn't end up going down the right path, and so much of athletics was just all centered around winning. It was all centered around just, you know, the outcome on Friday night or the outcome in the basketball tournament or whatever but helping them to realize that sports are a great teacher for life, not just to go win a trophy or to go win a championship or something.

Speaker 1:

Incredible. I can't believe how fast that went by. Usually at the end of this we say, hey, give us some words of wisdom on the way out, but that whole thing was packed. Anything we didn't cover, sure appreciate you.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, no, happy to chat any time and, you know, love the platform, love what you're doing.

Speaker 1:

Let's do American Construction Supply for just AmericanConstructionSupplycom. Matty. What are they let's give? Just so you can look that up Again. Locations everywhere. You've seen the trucks everywhere. I love the red, white and blue everywhere.

Speaker 3:

Yeah we're very patriotic.

Speaker 1:

You know, one of the funny things is my grandson Cash. He goes to your demo days and gets his shirt.

Speaker 3:

Gets all the merch.

Speaker 1:

But then he won't take it off. I love it Like he has to wear his American shirt.

Speaker 3:

I love it. That's awesome. It's always fun.

Speaker 1:

So American Construction Supply, and then the football URL for your league.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, so it's warriorsfootballclub. So warriorsfootballclub on Instagram. We're also on Facebook as well. I don't know if the websites are live for either of those yet.

Speaker 1:

For the.

Speaker 2:

Facebook ones, yeah, and then Skyview.

Speaker 3:

Hawks Football as well, is another one. And then Cam Wheeler Ventures is my other business for my investment portfolio, so the URL for that is just camwheelerventurescom, so you can look that up as well.

Speaker 1:

Great Thanks. We've got to do this again. This was awesome. Yeah, thank you, cam Appreciate it. Yep.