Certain Success™ Podcast
Welcome to The Certain Success™ Podcast, where faith, family, and business intersect to create a business (and a life) of purpose and design. Join your hosts Matt Fagioli & Joe Gaeta, both successful entrepreneurs, avid learners and disciples of Christ, as we share our stream-of-consciousness rants and interviews with fellow business owners & entrepreneurs to explore the unique challenges and opportunities of building and operating businesses while putting God first in life. Matt & Joe have dedicated much of their careers to helping entrepreneurs become more amazing humans that win big. If you're all about living intentionally and constantly growing and learning, this is the podcast for you!
Matt & Joe bring a fresh perspective to the world of business and entrepreneurship. Don't miss out on the chance to learn from experienced entrepreneurs and grow in your faith while building your business. Tune in to The Certain Success™ Podcast and discover the keys to living a life of certain success.
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Certain Success™ Podcast
How To Get In The Right Boat With The Right Humans: Christ Centered Community
What if the key to overcoming life's toughest challenges lies in the company you keep and the clarity of your spiritual path? Join us as we explore the metaphor of being in the right "boat" with the right people at the right time. Through personal anecdotes and relatable scenarios, we delve into how unexpected life currents can test our journeys and the critical role supportive companions play in navigating through these turbulent waters. We also emphasize how spiritual alignment and clarity in one's relationship with God can provide much-needed guidance and assurance, even when the outcome isn't immediately visible. Discover how an inner "burn" or passion can serve as a divine indicator of your path, urging you to trust in your mission amidst uncertainties.
Ever wondered how inviting Christ into your daily life can transform your struggles into triumphs? In this episode, Matt and Joe share personal stories and biblical references to illustrate the profound impact of God's guidance. Hear about the value of the Holy Spirit as the ultimate consultant, especially in business matters, and learn how authenticity and faith can lead to personal and professional success. We also highlight the importance of sharing experiences within a faith-rooted community, maintaining authenticity across different aspects of life, and overcoming the fears that prevent us from being our true selves. Tune in for an inspiring conversation that underscores the importance of living a purpose-driven life.
Hey guys, welcome back to the Certain Success Podcast. Matt and Joe here and we want to know what boat you're in and what boat you want to be in. And this is a conversation that, like all of our conversations, came from a longer personal chat about being in the right boat with the right people at the right time, and kind of when God makes it all click and you know you can get stuck in this mode of like man, I'm working my ass off, it's just not getting there and you're feeling like all the efforts for nothing because the result's not there yet and then all of a sudden it clicks and it's because God made the right people come together at the right moment to do the right thing and then it all clicks. Did I say it better that time?
Speaker 2:No, that's what we were talking about this morning. That's, I think that you just summed up a lot of not just what people go through in their personal lives, but we experience in all facets of our lives. Am I in the right boat? Sometimes we can be, you know, you know this, we.
Speaker 2:We have a, we have a house on the river, and when they open up the dam on the other side and you're not aware of it and you've already kayaked against um the uh, you're out on a nice little kayak with your wife and you're like what a serene morning. And because of the rains, they've decided to open up the dam and so there's a little bit more of a current coming as you start to return home and suddenly you realize your boat needs a little three horse engine on the back of it to help you get back. And so it's really interesting that we even we started talking about this this morning that that boat analogy it shows up in the Bible. It means so much to a lot of people about. Am I where I'm supposed to be?
Speaker 1:You know, it's funny because our this conversation now is taking a slightly different texture to the one we were having before, and I think it's such an important question to be asking, Cause I think we ask ourselves all the time like man, am I, am I going in the right direction?
Speaker 1:Is this what God really means for me to do? And all that language and um, you know, I've become convinced that God wants us to do whatever we want to do and that it starts with this burn of. We talked about this like I, you know, I'm crystal clear right now Like this is what I'm supposed to do, because the reason I'm so clear is because God's got this burn that he put in me. And so I'm answering the question by referring to the burn, like if I, if my just soul, burns to do this thing, then that's what God means for me to do, and I'm not questioning it because the outcome's not here yet. I'm like I, I know this is what I'm supposed to do. I don't know how long the road is, but it's absolutely clear that this is what I'm supposed to do.
Speaker 2:I don't know how long the road is, but it's absolutely clear that this is what I'm supposed to do because of the bird Yep. You know, I think you and I shared this in the past and there's a lot of people probably listening that have done the same thing. You know, you get caught on some of these videos that just make you crack up at the, the human, the humanness and all of us. You remember the video of the guy standing on the escalator that's broken and he's calling out for someone to come repair it and he's not moving he's not trying to, you know, physically walk up the stairs himself.
Speaker 2:He says is somebody out there who's gonna fix this? And as as he's doing that, people are staring at this individual and walking past him and maybe, maybe they were all stuck, maybe they're all just standing there and I like pieces of both of that yeah, I, but it makes you laugh at it.
Speaker 2:that video does exactly what it's supposed to do. It makes us laugh at ourselves. Sometimes we choose to stay in a certain box that is safe, and I did it, I got, I got the. I had the pleasure of doing a sermon once at church. It was lay ministry Sunday and they said hey, joe, would you like to do Sunday sermon? I'm like, yeah, and I called it anchors away and I asked a friend of mine if I could borrow his anchor and I had this anchor up on the altar next to me.
Speaker 2:You know, as I did this sermon and I and I talked about how in life it's so easy to allow that anchor to just keep us stuck, and I I think that's where a lot of what you and I were talking about this morning is being with the right humans, being in a boat that we know we can have that conversation and and when we do get stuck, there's someone else to grab the anchor and pull it up and and help us see where. You know, hey, we're not moving because, and sometimes I think we get in our own way, and so that community is so important the people we choose to have on that boat with us yeah, well, and I think you know if you, if you're questioning it because you know you're like, am I in the right boat?
Speaker 1:is this the right direction? I think you have to kind of go backwards and ask some other questions. Like well, I think I think I said this earlier too I think starting point is like well, are you, are you clear on your relationship with the Lord Everything cool with you and God, yes or no? Are you clear on who God says you are and what your mission is, yes or no? And if those things aren't true, then that's where you start. And if those things aren't true, then that's where you start.
Speaker 1:And if those things are true and you're like I'm on this boat because I feel like God told me to be on this boat, then it's like, okay, well, don't question that. Like, just because the outcome is not there, like I was saying a minute ago, like cool, you're on the right boat. Well, who's on the boat with you? And are those the right people? And I think you know there's pretty obvious biblical ways to unpack that. So how tell me how you would do that, joe? How do I know if the right people are on the boat with me?
Speaker 2:Ah, movement, movement. I think things are starting to move in the right direction. I'm with people I can have a like-minded conversation with. I mean, here are these fishermen in the Bible that are struggling to catch a single fish all night long. They're exhausted. Now they're in the boat with the right people. They're just missing somebody. People, they're just missing somebody and he's on the shore and he's laughing at them, basically like go back to the beach, when Christ was laughing at me.
Speaker 2:You know, in that conversation I had with him and he's like what is it that you want? And he's like you know what? Do this? Why don't you guys throw your nets over? And they're like we've already done that. Do this, why don't you guys throw your nets over? And they're like we've already done that. Yeah, trust me on this. And they do it and nearly sink their boats from the amount of fish they catch. And then the boat shows up again when the storm hits. They think they're going to die. And they see this. What they think is a ghost walking on the water towards them, and once again it's Christ. It's the one that's not in the boat. And I think, matt, if we're going anywhere with all of this as many times in our lives, we forget to invite the one person who needs to be in the boat with us at all times. Maybe the boat is the right boat person who needs to be in the boat with us at all times. Maybe the boat is the right boat god.
Speaker 1:God created us perfectly in his image and and we just keep getting in our own way I love, uh, our friend Bob Hamp talks about the presence of someone is, the problem is not the absence of something, it's the need for the presence of someone. And all of a sudden it all clicks, which goes to what I was telling you early this morning about. God was pouring out answers to us. I was praying some specific things, like god, unlock this one thing for me, like, tell me how these pieces fit together, and instantly it was just like a waterfall of like, like here's all this stuff that you're that you need to think about, to the point where I couldn't write fast enough and all I wanted to do was share it with you. So, and we I want to continue, but I want to punctuate that point of like, it was the presence of someone, like I went seeking the Lord and bam, as soon as he was, you know, I was aware of his presence.
Speaker 1:Ask the questions. Answers are there, bam. And what'd you say the other day? The Holy spirit is the best business consultant there is, and I love that. It's like that's just the most concise, clear statement in the world about what you and I talk about every day, which is okay. Well, I wanted these specific business-related answers. Ask the Lord for those answers. Here they come and like where else would you go? So, so if it's like, oh man, I can't find the answer, well, where's? Where's the Lord?
Speaker 2:Yeah, we are. So I think, I think that all of us, anyone listening, all of us as humans, we can find ourselves, whatever analogy you want to come up in your mind. You know rowing against a current that seems to be going nowhere, looking at a blank wall, you know the rat in the maze I mean, there's so many analogies of that struggle. Remember the book who Moved my Cheese?
Speaker 1:Yep comes up a lot.
Speaker 2:Such a great book, such a quick read, to the point, and I think what happens for all of us is that the cheese gets moved and, uh, we don't want to. You know him and haw, what do we do? That's that's what we do. That's that's happens. And I think that it's such a powerful thing as as a community of people, when you're able to share those similar experiences, and then you have the breakthroughs, you have the aha moments, you have the moments, like Matt this morning, where he's just he's getting leveled with truth, and then what's the first thing he wants to do? He wants to share it. What a blessing that is for for anyone, that they can share it with somebody. I mean, you know, we had a client just recently tell us that our talks with them is such a blessing to them, it is such an important part of their business, and that's a good feeling. It's a great feeling that we can be that for people.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think. I mean I think we've, you know, come to understand for sure that so much of it you know what we call business consulting is about the human experience and about, I mean, we all. It's like we it's the same thing at church, Like you walk in the church and you're like all of a sudden you're supposed to be a different person when you cross that threshold. And in the business world we're all like when we put on our CEO hat, we're like, oh, I'm a business person now. It's like, well, you're still the same human being that's, you know, breathing in oxygen and the blood pumping through your veins, and like you're the same person when you're not at work, or you should be. And so you know, all this work is about us as humans, helping other humans to become better humans in the context of christ and the, the. The work comes along like the business success and all that stuff. It flows from more connection to christ.
Speaker 2:You know more clarity on you, know who, who god says you are and what you're put on this earth to go do, and all that stuff you know what that made me think, matt, when you said that and this, this image came in my mind is a guy on a small little rowboat just going across a canal, and on the other side of the canal is his business or her business, and they are this individual in this boat right now. This is their faith, this is what they profess to themselves, their family, their friends. This is who I am, and you just talked about crossing that threshold. And when they get to the shoreline, to the other side, and they step off that boat, for whatever odd reason, they feel like they have to become someone else. And that's where it, that's where this all gets exciting, and and you and I have found that out in in all our journey over the years is you don't have to be a different person once you get to the shore.
Speaker 1:Well, and and and in fact, and in fact that's the problem. You know when, when you know the, the the poor word identity, he keeps getting misused and thrown around and and whatever. But that's the heart of identity is I'm the same person whether I'm at work or at church, or with you or with Sherry or whatever. Like, I know who I am and I take myself into every room that I walk into, and you do too, joe, and you know if you're listening to this and that isn't exactly how you feel. If you're like, I need to be this way at work and I'm gonna be this way at church, and you know that's the problem. That's identity. That's now you're wearing three different false identities in three different places and probably none of them are actually who you actually are.
Speaker 1:And so that's the like, that's so essential. Like and and you really can't be effective in the boat, you can't be effective in community, until you're clear on who you are and you bring yourself to that meeting and you know the it's. It's so hard to articulate that and get people to understand. Like this it's. It's really simple that. And get people to understand Like, it's really simple. Like, you've got to be who you are when you walk in.
Speaker 2:You know, and having Christ on the other side, he's at the shoreline and he grabs your hand to get you out of the boat.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think he, you know, dunks you first and it's like you know, come on, like you need to be who you really are. If you're, if you're not showing up as exactly who God made you to be, if you're not your genuine self, it's because you're hiding something. So what are you hiding? You know, and like what, what? What's true about your life? Or what do you think is true about your life? That's making you say I have to show up as somebody else. I have to make these people think I am this, because if they could see what I really am, they're not going to like me.
Speaker 1:Most of that's just a lie. But also, there could be things in your life that you need to get out of your life, but for the most part it's. It's the deceiver saying like you're not good enough, you can't do it. You're, you know all those things and you're like I got to put on this facade that makes me look bigger and stronger, otherwise they're not going to buy from me, they're not going to partner with me. They're not going to partner with me, they're not going to respect me, she's not going to want to go on a date with me, like, whatever all those things are. But those are that now. As soon as those thoughts are the, the, the in the forefront, you're just not you anymore.
Speaker 2:May have shared this with you, maybe not, but Rick Warren talks about many years ago and if you don't know Rick Warren, he wrote Purpose Driven Life and we're going back 20 plus years ago and the CEO of Adidas had read his book and was so fired up after he read Purpose Driven Life and what God's purpose was in his life. Through his assistance, they got a hold of Rick. He gets on the phone with Rick and he says Rick, this is the CEO of Adidas. He didn't even pronounce it Adidas, it's Adidas, that's the correct pronunciation. And he says I need to come see you. You know the correct pronunciation. And he says I need to come see you. How soon can I meet with you?
Speaker 2:And now the CEO is, of course, across the pond, where you know whether it's Switzerland, whatever country they're based in. And Rick's like well, you know, I'm in the same place every Sunday, you can come meet me there. And so this guy actually, the following Sunday, sat at the back of the church, the Saddleback Church, waiting for his sermon to be done and the two of them finally met and he says your book has changed my life. And he says well, how so? And he says well, I think I'm supposed to become a minister. And Rick's like I think you may have missed something in the book. And he says no, I think I'm supposed to be a minister.
Speaker 2:And he says well, let me ask you, how many employees do you have? He says I think at the time there was about 10,000 employees. He says there's your church. He says start with the people in your inner circle. Are there other Christ followers? And he says yeah, I think there's two or three of them. He says start meeting with them weekly. And he says your church is right underneath you. They're all around you, whether they're in the same country or globally. But start a small group within your circle, the people that are already in your boat. Says you're already in the right boat, you just need to talk to them.
Speaker 1:Yeah, god, god gave you that book, I gave you that 10 000, a boat that holds 10,000 people and, um, all you have to do is show up as who you are and you know, bring the Lord in the room with you and, uh, or point at the fact that he's already there, um, dude. Well, so I think we've answered the question of are you on the right boat? How do you know if you're on the right boat? And I feel like the chances are that it's like 99% chance. You're already on the boat. And it's a question of are the right people on the boat? And the first person, the most important person to be in the boat, is Christ.
Speaker 1:Thinking that's anything other than the reality of his actual being, being there and speaking into whatever's going on and whatever level the waves are at? Um, which brings me to maybe, maybe, my last point, which we kind of skipped, because I I've loved, uh, the the idea of you know, when Peter gets out of the boat and he's walking on the waves, as soon as he's looking at the waves, he's done, and I catch myself all the time. God said that to me, like stop looking at the waves. And I was like, oh, that's what that means, you know, when like, oh, this problem, that problem, we're never going to get there, we're trying to, you know, move the business forward or whatever's going on, and he's like stop looking at the waves.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and then Jesus immediately reached out his hand and said use little faith. Yeah, let me lift you up, let me pull your butt out of the water, but our job is don't look down. Yeah, don't look down. No, I agree, man, and I think that myself included, and a lot of people can raise their hand and say I've looked down.
Speaker 1:Oh.
Speaker 1:I mean all the time, but I think the most powerful thing is just to start to develop this muscle of catching it. You know, man, I heard a sermon a million years ago about rock climbers hit the wall with their device or like hammer, I don't know what it's called, but they're hooking the ice and it's called self-arresting. They're stopping the fall by hooking ice. And so I think that just the most important thing is like understand everything that we just talked about, internalize it to the point where when you, when you start looking at the waves, you're like oh, I'm looking at the waves, I know what the answer is, I just look up.
Speaker 2:Love that.
Speaker 1:Dude, this was gold. All right you guys. Thanks for listening to the Certain Success Podcast. If you aren't sure if you're on the right boat, you should be at this point. Let us know. See you, Joe, Take care.
