Ep 320. The Man Behind the Mic: Getting to Know Jason Triplett!

Summary

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Side Hustle Squad Ep 320: The Man Behind the Mic – Getting to Know Jason Triplett!

Host: Mike Garvey
Guest: Jason Triplett (JT), with Eric Triplett & Adam Fullerton
Date: March 26, 2026

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Episode Overview

This episode takes a vibrant, freewheeling dive into the life and mindset of Jason Triplett—JT—a Marine Corps veteran, ex-musician, mining industry sales pro, and newly minted podcaster. Mix in some brotherly banter (with Eric Triplett, “The Pond Digger”) and sales wisdom, all against the backdrop of the Sponsor Games podcasting and creator event. Listeners get a candid look at side hustling, career pivots, relationship-driven sales, and the irreplaceable value of authenticity, grit, and fun in entrepreneurship.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Who Is JT? – Background & Personality

• Long Beach Roots and Music Dreams:
  • JT grew up in Southern California, tried to “find my way in this world” (02:57), leaning hard into music for a big part of his early years.
  • “I made a lot of sacrifices in life to follow that dream. Never got to that level of rock stardom I wanted.” – JT (04:05)
  • Played in Fallen Union for 11 years before the passion faded: “It wasn't fun anymore” (06:07).
• Marine Corps & Life Pivots:
  • Joined the Marines (1996–2000) to straighten out his life, and credits the Corps for much-needed discipline (04:47).
  • Returned to music after service, then shifted careers as interests changed (05:01).

2. The Journey into Podcasting

• From Music to the Mic:
  • Left music behind and, encouraged by his brother Eric, started podcasting (07:34).
  • Initial podcast was “In the Mind of Reels” (his motorcycle club nickname), but later rebranded as “In the Mind of JT” (09:20).
    • “Eric was like, ‘You should have just kept it JT.’ Leave it to Eric to be brutally honest.” – JT on rebranding (09:30)
  • JT’s current podcast is unapologetically broad: “Everything’s on the table—current events, politics, religion...” (54:22)

3. Insights from the Sponsor Games Event

• Taste of the Podcast/Creator World:
  • JT, Eric, and Adam discuss how, even among marketing pros, few have actually hosted podcasts, making their hands-on experience unique (14:11).
• Book is the New Business Card:
  • “It feels like everyone here has a book—maybe that’s the next step for us.” – Conversation (16:55)

4. Writing His Story – Memoirs of JT

• Family Legacy:
  • JT has been privately writing his life story since 2017—“I want to document... some of the cool shit I’ve done” (17:59).
  • Now considers using AI to help format and finish his memoirs (20:15).

5. Mining Equipment Sales as a Main Hustle

• Territory & Job:
  • Sells mining equipment across CA, NV, AZ, now focusing on parts & service rather than big machines (11:20).
  • Emphasizes personal relationships as key to sales—“If someone likes you, they're most likely gonna buy from you” (31:20)
    • “Sometimes you know you’re not going to sell anything, you’re just there to build the relationship” (34:24)
• Trust & Authenticity:
  • Open about not always having the answer—“I learned early on: say you don’t know and find out” (28:49).
  • Adam gives sales language tip: use “transparent” instead of “honest” (29:12–30:19).

6. Sales Tactics, Gatekeepers, and Building Rapport

• Bypassing Gatekeepers:
  • Early Fastenal days taught JT to park around back, talk with maintenance staff, and enter through “the back door” to get to decision-makers (39:27–41:25).
  • Adam shares a similar story: sometimes you just “walk in like you own the place” (43:04).
• Relationship Wins:
  • JT’s best customers trust him so much they’ll hand him a competitor’s quote to beat (49:35).
    • “You sure you want to give me that? Yeah, call me.” (50:39)
    • $30K sale thanks to trust and pricing transparency (50:47).
• Pricing & Mindset:
  • Will intentionally undercut on margin just to win business—“I’d rather quote low and get the sale than nothing at all” (53:00).

7. Lessons From Missed Side Hustles

• Trying & Dropping Mobile Detailing:
  • JT jumped into mobile detailing on Eric’s suggestion, spent $7K on supplies... and realized quickly, “Manual labor is not one of them [my skills]” (23:56).
• Self-Assess & Pivot:
  • Knows to stick to what fits his personality—“I like to use my mind, make suggestions, be personable in sales. Manual labor is not it, bro.” (23:58)

8. The Human Side of the Sale

• Empathy & Personal Connection:
  • “You let them talk... they want to use you as a vent, their psychologist. Info is power: next time, ask about their kid, and they’ll remember you.” (33:08)
• Small Gestures, Big Impact:
  • Bringing breakfast sandwiches for the site entry guards led to valuable tips (“M-SHAW’s here, don’t come on site!”) and prevented substantial fines (46:53).

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Music Dreams:
  • “I sacrificed a lot... to pursue, go that route. Some successes, but nothing crazy. I started realizing I’m just not in love with that anymore.” – JT (05:34)
• On Podcasting:
  • “My partner wanted to do one episode a month. I’m like, ‘No, let’s do this like a couple times a week!’” – JT (07:39)
• On Sales & Authenticity:
  • “If someone likes you, they're most likely gonna buy from you.” – JT (31:20)
  • “I learned early on: don’t try to bullshit. Just say, ‘I don’t know, but I can get you the answer.’” – JT (28:49)
• On Learning from Mistakes:
  • “I’ve done so much stupid over the years, and Eric’s just like, nothing surprises him anymore.” – JT (21:55)
• On Sales Tactics:
  • “You don’t go through the front. You go through the back, dude. Maintenance guys are the key.” – JT (39:27)
• On Pricing:
  • “I’d rather sell you something at a low margin than not get the sale at all.” – JT (52:53)

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Standout Segments & Timestamps

| Segment | Timestamp | |-----------------------------------------------|-------------| | JT’s Background – Marine & Musician | 03:20–06:40 | | Pivot to Podcasting, Rebranding Struggles | 07:23–09:49 | | Inside Sponsor Games: Podcasters & Creators | 13:45–17:12 | | On Memoirs: Documenting a Family Legacy | 17:12–20:17 | | Sales Job: Mining Equipment & Strategy | 11:20–12:13/28:04–34:00 | | Sales Language Tip: “Honest” vs “Transparent” | 29:11–31:00 | | Gatekeeper Hacks: Entering Through the Back | 39:26–41:25/43:04–44:30 | | Real-Life Sales Win via Relationships | 49:35–50:52 | | Side Hustle Failure: Detailing Business | 23:36–24:31 | | Building Empathy in Sales | 33:08–34:24 | | The Value of Small Gestures | 46:53–47:56 | | JT’s Podcast Info/Where to Find Him | 53:41–54:45 |

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Final Takeaways

• Success in business is less about a perfect system, more about knowing yourself, owning your mistakes, being transparent, and giving a damn about people.
• Side hustles are about experimentation—some work, some don’t, but each offers lessons.
• Relationship-building and persistence yield the biggest wins in sales, even in the grittiest industries.
• Personal stories and authenticity connect, whether in the field or behind the mic.

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Connect with JT & The Crew

• Facebook: JT Space Triplett
• Instagram & TikTok: @JTRoxYou
• Podcast: In the Mind of JT (YouTube & podcast directories)
• Topics: Everything’s on the table—current events, politics, religion, and more!

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This episode fuses real talk, industry insight, and plenty of laughs—a must-listen for anyone hustling on the side, especially those who value honesty, relationships, and a bit of irreverence on their entrepreneurial journey.

Transcript

[Mike Garvey]

Are you ready to kick back and get inspired? Grab your favorite drink, pop the top, and join the side Hustle Squad with Mike Garvey. This podcast is the perfect resource for anyone who's already started their side hustle or is just considering taking the lead. With in depth interviews featuring guests from the green industry and beyond, you'll gain valuable insights and learn what it takes to succeed in running a business while juggling a full time career. From personal stories to practical tips, the Soc side Hustle Squad podcast has everything you need to turn your passion into a thriving business. Now, here's your side Hustle Squad host, Mike Garvey.

[Eric Triplett]

Hey, what's going on, guys? It's your host, Mike Garvey with the side Hustle Squad podcast coming at you from the Branded Bull Studio here at Pod House Number 2 with the triplet brothers. What's up?

[JT (J.T.)]

What's up? So, yeah, that was like, quick right into it, bro. Like, bam.

[Adam Fullerton]

You could have been the. It could have been the triplet trio

[Eric Triplett]

today, but I know I screwed it up.

[Adam Fullerton]

It all up.

[Eric Triplett]

They're like, yeah. What? Our Uber driver's like, are you all three brothers? I was like, no, no. I didn't want to like, no, like.

[JT (J.T.)]

But we could pass for second.

[Eric Triplett]

We could.

[Mike Garvey]

We're all bald.

[Adam Fullerton]

That's gonna ruin his life.

[Eric Triplett]

Would I be the baby? I'd be the baby brother?

[JT (J.T.)]

Yeah, y would. He'd be the little guy.

[Adam Fullerton]

Little bit.

[JT (J.T.)]

He's the little guy. He's the little guy. But the big guy.

[Eric Triplett]

Bigger than I would have been the mistake because I would been like, what, 12 years younger than you? I would have been the oopsie between the triplets. Triplet.

[JT (J.T.)]

The little guy with the big guns, dude.

[Eric Triplett]

So. So we're here, Pod house number two. I'm here with gt.

[JT (J.T.)]

What's up, man?

[Eric Triplett]

Thank you for coming on.

[JT (J.T.)]

No, thanks for having me. It's been a blast the past couple days.

[Eric Triplett]

We met about what, a week ago? Week and a half ago.

[JT (J.T.)]

Well, I kind of feel like a naive before that because all I. All I remember is the booty that Eric showed me videos of. I'm like, God damn, dude. I don't know if that's a compliment, bro.

[Eric Triplett]

What, for my big ass?

[JT (J.T.)]

What? Oh, man. Yeah. Yeah, that was funny.

[Eric Triplett]

So jump into it. Give us a. You know, tell us about yourself, what you do. I want to. Let's get into it. I want to know. Get into the mind of jt.

[JT (J.T.)]

Well, once upon a time. I don't know, man. What do you want to know? I'M just a. Just a dude who is trying to find my way in this world, bro. Okay, so. Well, I do a lot of stupid, or I should say I've done a lot of stupid in the past, and I like to think I've kind of ground from it. Okay.

[Eric Triplett]

So, I mean, you're. You're Eric Triplett's brother.

[JT (J.T.)]

You're from.

[Eric Triplett]

Originally, you're from Southern California.

[JT (J.T.)]

Born and raised in Long Beach. That's kind of where. That was kind of our hood.

[Eric Triplett]

Okay.

[JT (J.T.)]

And went down the music path for a little while.

[Eric Triplett]

And tell me more about that. I want to know.

[JT (J.T.)]

Rockstar. I know I showed you a picture tonight. Yeah.

[Eric Triplett]

I was like, holy. There's, like. That was legit.

[JT (J.T.)]

You know what? I don't. It's so funny. As I get older, I don't really tell people about that now. It's not like.

[Eric Triplett]

And you weren't, like, bragging about it or anything? Oh, man, check this out. I'm like, wow.

[JT (J.T.)]

No, what it was is those pants, like, reminded me the mariachi band. Mariachi band had those pants. I was like, yeah, I used to wear those, man, back in the day.

[Eric Triplett]

And I was like, in what context?

[JT (J.T.)]

Yeah, yeah. No, music is a really big part of my life. I made a lot of sacrifices in life to follow that. That dream. And, you know, I never, never, never, never got to that. That level of rock stardom that I wanted.

[Eric Triplett]

Right.

[JT (J.T.)]

And I think I just. I got to the point where I came to a realization that, you know, I'm not going to get there.

[Eric Triplett]

So you're a veteran Marine Corps, yeah. Thank you for your service.

[JT (J.T.)]

Thanks, buddy.

[Eric Triplett]

So now you got out of the marine Corps in 2000. Take me from there.

[JT (J.T.)]

Yeah. 96 to 2000. I did my time, and then I was. I was a musician before that, and I was kind of going down the wrong path. Joined the Marine Corps thinking it was going to change my life and I need to get my. Together, which it did.

[Eric Triplett]

Yep.

[JT (J.T.)]

Got out and got back into music again and. And really put a lot of effort into it. And then, you know, we got to. You know, we did some pretty cool things over the years. You know, I got to play a lot of shows, traveled a little bit, got to play with a lot of musicians, but never got to that epitome of Rockstar.

[Eric Triplett]

It's a lot. I mean, it's. It could happen quick. It could happen, or it can happen, or it could take a long time to happen. You don't know, right? It's like, yeah, but you know what Grind.

[JT (J.T.)]

I sacrificed a lot of good jobs and some things to. And a lot of family time to pursue, go that route. And, you know, I had some successes, but nothing. Nothing crazy, but you know what I want to say. I don't know, maybe when I turned, like, 49, 50 years old, I started realizing that I'm just, like, not in love with that anymore. I started. You know, it got to the point I'd go to rehearsal, and it wasn't fun anymore.

[Eric Triplett]

That's when, you know, it's.

[JT (J.T.)]

Yeah, dude. Like, my band, Fallen Union, we were together, like, 11 years. That's longer than any, like, actual relationship I've been in with. With somebody. So we got to 11 years, and it was just like, you know. What? Just wasn't fun anymore.

[Eric Triplett]

Was it a difficult decision?

[JT (J.T.)]

Not really, bro. Did the dude.

[Eric Triplett]

The other members. What? What?

[JT (J.T.)]

No, I think. I think they were kind of feeling it. And the bass player, my. My bff, Jules, he was, you know, talking about selling this house and moving to Santa Maria, which is, like, four hours away. So I was like, yeah, you know, we. We played our last show, and I was like, yeah, dude, I think I'm. I'm ready to hang it up. But lately I've been kind of feeling it again. Yeah, I've been kind of feeling it again. But when I hung it up, my brother got me into the podcasting thing, and so I did a podcast with a buddy of mine who, you know, lasted about a year, but then he started pulling some like, well, I don't want to talk politics. I don't want to talk religion. I don't want to. I don't want to talk about club. I'm like, dude, those are, like, three things I talk about all the time.

[Eric Triplett]

Right, Right.

[JT (J.T.)]

You know, like, those are things I'm passionate about. And so I was talking to Eric about it, and he was like, yeah, you should probably just do your own thing.

[Eric Triplett]

You have no one to answer to. No one to.

[JT (J.T.)]

Yeah, dude, you know, do it.

[Eric Triplett]

You could talk about whatever you want.

[JT (J.T.)]

Not only that, but, you know, I know you need to be consistent on that stuff. And, like, my partner was like, yeah, let's do, like, one a month. I'm like, no, dude, this. Yeah, like, let's do this, like, a couple times a week.

[Eric Triplett]

And then, yeah, twice a week.

[JT (J.T.)]

Yeah. I got to the point where he's just, like, making excuses, and we started having a falling out on some things. I was just. You know what? I just got to go do my own thing.

[Eric Triplett]

So inside the.

[JT (J.T.)]

No, it's in the mind of real. In. Oh, I said in my reals.

[Adam Fullerton]

He's not editing that.

[JT (J.T.)]

Yeah.

[Eric Triplett]

Unedited, unfiltered. This.

[JT (J.T.)]

Initially, I had. I had a road name because I was in a club, and my name. My road name was reals.

[Eric Triplett]

R E E in a motorcycle club. Law enforcement, motor veteran Motorcycle club.

[Adam Fullerton]

No one in that, in that club had a white Harley.

[Eric Triplett]

I wouldn't have been allowed.

[JT (J.T.)]

True story. Yeah.

[Eric Triplett]

Would I have been allowed? I'd have to get.

[JT (J.T.)]

Yeah, we would have allowed you. We would have clowns on your ass. And your big ass, too.

[Eric Triplett]

Would have been fun. Hey, guys. You know.

[JT (J.T.)]

No, but you know what? I, So I, I, I thought it. You know, I even remember asking Eric because I was like, you know, I'm kind of thinking of doing in the mind of J.T. but no one knows. Like, J.T. doesn't really sound cool. Real sounds interesting. Like, okay. In the mind of reels, you know, and of course, that only lasted for, you know, a short time, so I probably did about. Actually, I did 20 episodes under in the minor reels and.

[Adam Fullerton]

Awesome.

[JT (J.T.)]

And then I started falling out of love with the club. Okay. And I was like, you know what? I'm gonna rebrand.

[Eric Triplett]

Cool.

[JT (J.T.)]

I'm gonna go back to.

[Eric Triplett]

Eric knows how to do that.

[JT (J.T.)]

Yeah, right. Well, actually, I sought his advice for it. He's like, you should have never been called. You should have never done in reels anyways. It's stupid. And I was like, well, leave it to Eric, to be brutally honest.

[Eric Triplett]

It's super direct.

[JT (J.T.)]

It's like, you should have just kept it jt. And I was like, well, you know, I was trying to. I was trying to do some clips.

[Eric Triplett]

So how long you been doing the jt?

[JT (J.T.)]

Well, I've had. I've had five episodes now in the mind of jt.

[Eric Triplett]

That's awesome. That's awesome. And they're long.

[JT (J.T.)]

Not really. Do the episodes, the one you're editing? Well, that's because it's kind of special. And I was with my brother and so. But usually, I mean, this. The episodes up to episode 20 have only been, like, you know, 45 minutes or so.

[Eric Triplett]

Yeah, that's good. That's good. So I'm not one of those three hour. I, like, I can't.

[JT (J.T.)]

Not only that, but I think you just lose interest. I think people lose interest.

[Eric Triplett]

There's different types of listeners, too. There's people that like the long ones and like. But I'm like, you know, sometimes I want to get you the information that I want to get to you and, you know, really kind of move on. Right. And let you go on to the next thing.

[JT (J.T.)]

I think part of that was with, you know, this last episode was two and a half hours long and it was with my brother. So it's like, you know, we got drunk and then, you know, we had to piss and take piss breaks and we, you know, he spilled the drink and broke the cup. So it's like.

[Eric Triplett]

Peed on your dog?

[JT (J.T.)]

Peed on my dog. So, you know, you know, next thing you know, it's three and a half hours long and I'm like, God damn, dude. I don't have to go through this. It's gonna take me a minute. It was a lot of fun, dude.

[Eric Triplett]

So, so now what do you do as your full time job?

[JT (J.T.)]

I sell mining equipment, you know, and when people ask me, they don't really like mining equipment, so I have to always use the example of Gold Rush.

[Eric Triplett]

Right.

[JT (J.T.)]

You've seen the show Gold Rush? Oh yeah, I've seen it. Yeah. That's the stuff I sell, right? Big, big stuff.

[Eric Triplett]

Big stuff.

[JT (J.T.)]

So. But now it's more of a parts and service oriented. Before I was with another company that really sold the big heavy duty stuff and big money stuff, but now it's just more partial service oriented and you know, I really enjoy my job.

[Eric Triplett]

Dude, that's awesome. Is it local to. I mean, is it nationwide or is it more.

[JT (J.T.)]

No, my, my territory is California, Nevada, Arizona. Kind of just stay in that area.

[Eric Triplett]

You stay in that area. Okay, but what about the company overall? Does. Or even the company stays there.

[JT (J.T.)]

Company overall. We're like, you know, we're starting to spread like a disease, bro. You know, we're end up in Nevada or you know, Southern, Southern Nevada. Like Las Vegas areas. My, my territory too, but we're starting to spread out. You know, we had a, one of our, one of our sales guys just sold a bunch of stuff to Colorado, the state of Colorado. So I mean we're, we'll sell to anybody, you know what I'm saying? That's kind of the thing. So. But yeah, I mean I got out of, I got out of the music and then I started getting into the podcasting because my brother kind of was, you know, imprinting that idea on me and then. So I've been doing it now and now I'm in it.

[Eric Triplett]

Now you're in it. You're here, you're at. What do you think of pod house number two?

[JT (J.T.)]

It's been good, man.

[Eric Triplett]

We got a light crew.

[JT (J.T.)]

Yeah, I love It. It's been a great time. Great ideas. I think there's some. Some substance there. Something definitely there that's gonna. I think it's gonna branch out and get bigger.

[Eric Triplett]

I think so, too. I think there's something definitely here, and I think it's just staying consistent, staying getting out there. People seeing the brand, seeing the.

[JT (J.T.)]

The.

[Eric Triplett]

The stunning. What is that? I want one of those. That's kind of cool. What is this? Oh, and you're all not in the same field and you all have your own shows. Like, wow. You know.

[JT (J.T.)]

You know, that's one. One thing I've noticed about it this week is, you know, you think because we're in the. We're in the. We're in the. We have the passion of doing the podcasting stuff. And so, like, the three of us know that there's a lot, like, it's just saturated with podcasts these days.

[Eric Triplett]

Yeah.

[JT (J.T.)]

But being here at this event this week

[Adam Fullerton]

is.

[JT (J.T.)]

Even these people who are into the marketing, a branding thing and they're trying to get sponsors, a lot of these people have never really done podcasts and don't really know they know about them, but they haven't been part of them,

[Eric Triplett]

so they don't have one.

[JT (J.T.)]

Yeah.

[Eric Triplett]

I mean, so when you start talking

[JT (J.T.)]

about it, it's like, oh, it's like. It's kind of like a thing, you know? And, you know, when. When you tell most people about it, hey, you should come on the show. Like, yeah, let's go. You know, because they don't know.

[Eric Triplett]

Right?

[JT (J.T.)]

You know, it's. It's kind of. It's kind of a cool little thing.

[Eric Triplett]

Yeah. So we're at sponsor games. Justin Moore, he's a sponsor coach for not just podcasts, but all creators and Tick Tock and Instagram. Right. And YouTube. And we've met a lot of different people in the past couple days. Past what? Day and a half.

[JT (J.T.)]

Yeah. We still got another day and a half.

[Eric Triplett]

We've done another day and a half ahead of us. And I'm like, man, it's a really interesting event. We got one guy walking across Africa, Right.

[JT (J.T.)]

That's crazy, dude.

[Eric Triplett]

Barefoot.

[JT (J.T.)]

I don't. Did he say barefoot?

[Eric Triplett]

Yeah.

[JT (J.T.)]

No. That guy is cray cray, dude. Like that.

[Eric Triplett]

And he doesn't know, you know, to that. To this, too.

[JT (J.T.)]

I didn't know he was doing that. Barefoot dude. That's crazy. He's trying to reminisce in the land of his people.

[Eric Triplett]

It's. It's wild.

[JT (J.T.)]

Trying to connect with the earth, I guess.

[Eric Triplett]

He was walking around with, he didn't have his shoes on today. I'm like, good for him.

[JT (J.T.)]

That's crazy, dude.

[Eric Triplett]

But then, then another influencer with250,000 followers on TikTok, that is a black male that coaches Women on over 40. Over 40 about fitness in their menopausal state. Right. Did I get that all out? And has a hell of a following.

[Adam Fullerton]

Yeah. And I didn't have a problem saying, what, what, how can you help these women?

[Eric Triplett]

You did. Why would, why would they listen to you?

[Adam Fullerton]

Women in my 40s, why would I come to a black male who's not a woman that, that. How are you going to be able to help me?

[JT (J.T.)]

Like, he definitely proved his point though.

[Eric Triplett]

Yeah, he was, he was, he was solid on that.

[Adam Fullerton]

He was articulate.

[Eric Triplett]

He was articulate about it because again, he probably gets that all the time. And it's probably like he's working with Lulu.

[Adam Fullerton]

He just finished his book. He just had it released. Yeah, he's on it, bro. He's legit

[Eric Triplett]

been working with them. Wow.

[JT (J.T.)]

That's what I noticed. A lot of these people have, have

[Eric Triplett]

a book and I feel like the book, the book ads. We were talking about this at dinner. It's like, so there's something there. Something with like the book outweighs a lot. Outweighs, followers outweighs. It's like, oh, you're a five time author. Like we.

[JT (J.T.)]

I see it, but like, you know, it's funny. I was, you know, everybody starts talking about the book and it kind of had me kind of think of something that I, I started in 2017. I, I had this wild hair at my ass to come up with this thing called the Memoirs of jt.

[Eric Triplett]

I love it.

[JT (J.T.)]

So. And it's funny because I literally just like woke up one day and I don't have any kids, you know, and I don't. I have a small, we have a small family. Triplets have a small family. Right. So I was like, you know what, I want to, at the time, again, 2017. I want to document, you know, some of the cool shit I've done.

[Eric Triplett]

Yeah.

[JT (J.T.)]

You know, like, I've done some cool shit. Yeah. I don't have any kids. But moving forward, like, you know, we got Eric's, got Taylor and April and they're going to have kids. And it's like, eventually I'm not going to be here anymore. It'd be cool if my family knew some of the shit I'd done.

[Eric Triplett]

Right. That's awesome.

[JT (J.T.)]

So I started, I started Just kind of dabbling around. This is way before AI came out and I started. I started writing some and. And you know, when I had time, I would. I would write about it and. And you know, one. One page turned into five and then next thing you got like 50 pages of. Like, even the pond digger doesn't. I mean, I. I might have sent you a few inserps of. Of. But I've been still sitting on this. It's awesome. For a while. Like. And, you know, there's. And it's really funny.

[Eric Triplett]

Started in 2017.

[JT (J.T.)]

Yeah, 2017. And I really like. Because I know some of my time frames are kind of not accurate. It was like. Because I even start off with an excerpt of. You know, I. I don't have it in front of me, but basically stating, hey, my time frame might be a little off.

[Eric Triplett]

Right.

[JT (J.T.)]

On some of this disclaimer. Yeah. And it's really kind of what it is because I'm like, I'm just going back based off of, you know, from memory. And I pretty much just talk about, you know, my. My childhood I was raised, you know, you know, my. My memories of my dad, how I was, you know, was with my mom, and then my. My relationship with Eric and then how I got into a band. So I started. I started just, you know, kind of writing things down. Well, I don't say. Right. I mean. Typing it.

[Eric Triplett]

Yeah.

[JT (J.T.)]

Right.

[Eric Triplett]

Typing stuff up. Yeah.

[JT (J.T.)]

So, you know, it's funny because coming here made me like kind of flash back to that because I'm like, dude, I've kind of taken a break a little bit. Yeah. Kind of taking a break from it because now with AI and stuff, I'm like, I could easily take all that that I have written and put it into this AI. So they are. And help me kind of format it.

[Eric Triplett]

Format it. Structure it.

[JT (J.T.)]

Yeah.

[Eric Triplett]

Put it together. And I mean, you know, you have the AI master.

[JT (J.T.)]

Well. And dude, Eric got me in the chat gbt like, you know, I'm a pretty savvy guy when it comes to technology, but this of got me into.

[Eric Triplett]

He got me into it too. Different things in October when we stated our like at Louisville, and I'm like, wait. I'm like. He's like, all right, we need to do this and I want to need to talk into it and we're going to plan everything. I'm like, holy. Blew my mind.

[JT (J.T.)]

Yeah. You know what? It's.

[Eric Triplett]

It's a tool and it's. It. You gotta embrace it. It's here and it's awesome.

[JT (J.T.)]

But That's. That's the big brother mode. He's always. He's always been that guy to kind of fucking throw new shit at me.

[Adam Fullerton]

Hey, guys. Adam Fullerton here with Branded Bull as a proud sponsor of the side Hustle Squad podcast. We're all about helping lawn care and landscaping businesses make their mark and stand out from the competition. Visit [e-mail] to learn more about our professional branding website and graphic design services and how we can help your business look awesome and grow.

[Eric Triplett]

Hey, what's going on, guys? With Jobber, you can easily manage jobs, track your team, get paid faster, all from one simple app. Join thousands of satisfied lawn care professionals who trust Jobber to keep their business growing strong. Visit the link in the bio today and start your free trial.

[JT (J.T.)]

I like to think you've learned some shit from me though, too, right?

[Eric Triplett]

What have you learned?

[Adam Fullerton]

Like, what not to do?

[JT (J.T.)]

I will say, dude, I. I've done so much stupid over the years, and Eric's just like, anything you could share. It doesn't even surprise him anymore. Like fun.

[Eric Triplett]

Anything fun.

[JT (J.T.)]

I don't know.

[Eric Triplett]

You don't have to start.

[JT (J.T.)]

I can't think of anything.

[Adam Fullerton]

He comes.

[JT (J.T.)]

What do you.

[Adam Fullerton]

He comes to me. He comes to me advice. He's like an, you know. An what? When they ask you what to do, don't do it. Don't do what you recommend they do.

[Eric Triplett]

I didn't know that's what they were called.

[Adam Fullerton]

Yeah, so I. There was a lot. There's. For a while, I would. I would. I would give him advice and he would do opposite what I told him.

[Eric Triplett]

So did you start.

[Adam Fullerton]

So I started giving him the wrong advice so he might go the opposite direction. He still it up.

[Eric Triplett]

He went in a different direction.

[JT (J.T.)]

Bro, I do take your advice. Sometimes I do. Prime example right here, bro. And this isn't. This isn't necessarily advice, but my. You know, I was. I've always been talking about like elevating and doing something better and being my own boss. And he's like, bro, you should open a mobile detailing business. And bro, did I not? Like a week later I buying it omc. If I can, I go to the detailing store and. And drop like 6, 7 grand on detailing supplies. I start doing a little bit of research. I don't know. And if I can go and I do it and I open up the business and, you know, that lasted nice, like three months, dude. I was like, yeah, this is. This isn't my thing. So I do take advice. I need to take some advice. It just wasn't my thing. It wasn't the right niche for me, bro.

[Eric Triplett]

What did you not like about it, dude?

[JT (J.T.)]

Way too hard work, bro.

[Adam Fullerton]

Yeah, he had to work.

[JT (J.T.)]

Like, let's, let's not get it twisted. Like, I'm a hard worker. Yeah, I'm a hard worker, but I have a certain, like, as Liam Neeson would say, I have a certain level

[Eric Triplett]

of skills, a specific set of skills.

[JT (J.T.)]

Manual labor is not one of them. Okay. Yeah, it's not, dude. I'm certain skills and that's not it, bro. I like to, I like to use my mind. I like to, you know, make suggestions. Like, you know, I, I have a certain niche, dude, and that's not it. Like I'm a very personable person. You are extremely good in sales. And I just have my own little thing and, and you know, a manual labor is not it, bro.

[Eric Triplett]

Right, right.

[JT (J.T.)]

So. And. But that was a, that was a prime example of something you recommended. I gave it a shot. Didn't. Didn't pan out.

[Eric Triplett]

So who, who's better at sales?

[JT (J.T.)]

You know, I would probably say Eric. But the thing is we have different, you know, he, he's.

[Adam Fullerton]

Hey, on that, on that three and a half hour episode. Yeah, we did some role plays on it.

[JT (J.T.)]

Yes.

[Adam Fullerton]

Yeah.

[Eric Triplett]

Wait, like, like you and he was the sales.

[JT (J.T.)]

We both.

[Eric Triplett]

And then you flipped it.

[JT (J.T.)]

Yeah.

[Eric Triplett]

Oh, like you gotta. I can't wait for this episode.

[JT (J.T.)]

You know what? I probably, I would definitely give Eric the props on this because he's got hours and hours of, you know, coaching and training and you know, he has his own business, he's got employees. So it's like I would say we're both skilled, but we have. It's in a different way, wouldn't you say? Because we're kind of in a different, different. He's good.

[Adam Fullerton]

He's good. But he does have like this edgy salesperson that could be the annoying salesperson. Well, like, I don't mean that.

[Eric Triplett]

Right?

[Adam Fullerton]

Because, because he's. He's good. He's good. Yeah, he justifies a lot and he over talks a little bit and those are like these little tweaks that we can play with a little bit. But I do think he's relationship wise. He's. He's really talented at that. And in the business he's at right now, I think he has enough relationship where he can justify a little bit and get away with it. But if he was like just walked into. To try and sell someone that he didn't know, he would be up A bunch. But the fact that he built the relationships and he's working with, you know, these mining companies and they, you know, he shows up once a week, says, hey, what's up guys? What's going on? And like he brings some coffee or donuts or whatever, right? Building relationships. He can up and justify things. He can up and talk too much. And they, they're like, oh, that's cool. He, you know, I have a relationship with him, but in a, in a straight, raw, cold call, walk in kind of sales environment, he would lose now. But that makes sense.

[JT (J.T.)]

Yes, I would agree with you to a certain extent, especially in the business I'm in now. Like I've only recently come into this business within, you know, I was at my old job for three years, I don't know, probably four years. And then now I've been with a hard rock now for, you know, since October or August. And the thing about this business is, bro, you cannot people, bro, these guys

[Eric Triplett]

have been in the industry.

[JT (J.T.)]

Oh bro, they've been in this 40 years, bro. Like a guy like me try to come in and a guy who's been in the aggregate business for 40 years,

[Eric Triplett]

if I was in the aggregate business and own and, and like I would want you to walk in to sell me something. Like you are the salesperson, like anything other than. You know what I mean?

[Mike Garvey]

Right?

[Eric Triplett]

Am I, my, am I spot on with that?

[Adam Fullerton]

Like, I want to be clear, like

[Eric Triplett]

you fit the mold of who I should be talking to.

[JT (J.T.)]

I agree with you on that. The looks definitely help a lot because it helps, right? Not some clean cut, you know, 20 year old kind of cellulose douchebag.

[Eric Triplett]

Yeah, they want, yeah.

[Adam Fullerton]

He's also a service salesperson, so he's like a reoccurring business. So this is a, this is a, the aggregate business. They go through parts and they, they need material, they need new machines. And so he, he services that niche market and he handles that reoccurring, problem solving solutions. He's the answer to that. And so all those businesses need someone like J.T. in their life.

[Eric Triplett]

And so when the machines are broken, they ship back up, right?

[Adam Fullerton]

So they have to put up with his justifying and over talking, they have to put up with a little bit of that. Just so. Because when, because when they need him, he's going to be there for him and they know it.

[Eric Triplett]

Right?

[Adam Fullerton]

So that's why I'm saying like he's got that real, he's got that setup to where they're cool with that.

[Eric Triplett]

Is it a Rough group.

[JT (J.T.)]

It can be sometimes. Some of these are like, no nonsense, dude. But you know what? Now, I've been around a while, and most of these. It's a small business, bro. So I've been around. Like, I can go to any plant now within my territories, and I pretty much know my way around, and I can talk to people. The thing is, I learned early on to say, don't try to. You. I just. I like, I.

[Eric Triplett]

You don't know. You don't know.

[JT (J.T.)]

I'm like, hey, bro, you know what? I don't know anything about this, bro. I'm being honest with you. But I have resources. Let me find out. I'll get you some answers. You know, Guys, appreciate.

[Adam Fullerton]

Okay, let's just stop right there, you know, so that one word. I'm all about words. Hey, I'm just being honest with you. I don't like that. And that. You probably say that to you guys all the time.

[JT (J.T.)]

No, I'm just.

[Eric Triplett]

You don't like that?

[JT (J.T.)]

You know, a lot of stuff is on the fly, bro, Honestly. Because I. I'll tell them, hey, I don't know. I don't know about this. Let me find out.

[Adam Fullerton]

You're up. I'm trying to. It's a teachable moment, right? Okay, look, if you're like, hey, I'm just being honest with you. I don't really know about this. You think you're being like, hey, I don't know about this. And so I'm being tr. You know, like, I'm telling you what's up. But when you say, hey, I'm really just being honest with you, it implies that you sometimes lie to them. So that word.

[JT (J.T.)]

That's what you're saying? So, you know, I'm being like, you're not honest with them. On. On, little brother. The rest of the time, little brother, shut the up.

[Adam Fullerton]

And let me teach you. When you say, hey, I'm just. Hey, I'm being honest with you. I don't know anything about this. It implies that sometimes you might lie to them.

[JT (J.T.)]

I see what you're saying.

[Adam Fullerton]

Even though. Even though you know you don't.

[JT (J.T.)]

Whatever.

[Adam Fullerton]

So when you say, hey, I just want to be transparent. I don't really know anything about this side of the business. Being transparent is different than being honest. See what I mean?

[JT (J.T.)]

You should just take that out of the equation. That is what you're saying.

[Adam Fullerton]

Honest should be a word. You never have to say, hey, I want to be honest with you. That comes out like, hey, I just want to be transparent. This is my calendar. I can't be out here for another two weeks. Normally, I come and see you every week.

[JT (J.T.)]

It's a better word.

[Adam Fullerton]

I want to be transparent. I'm going to be out of town. I'm going to be doing this, and I'm going to be doing that. And so I'm not going to be back for two and a half, three weeks. So if you have a problem, you have to call me. I just want to be transparent as

[JT (J.T.)]

we move forward, actually.

[Adam Fullerton]

So that would be one little trick that I could just tweak you a little bit.

[JT (J.T.)]

You know what? And I think I'm fortunate. I. I don't think. I think I built good enough relationships

[Adam Fullerton]

with most people to get away with saying honestly, sometimes.

[JT (J.T.)]

That's right. Exactly.

[Adam Fullerton]

But doesn't mean that you can't take that out of your vocabulary and start putting in transparency.

[JT (J.T.)]

Yeah, that's a way better word. Yeah, for sure. I absolutely agree with you on that. But like your panties.

[Adam Fullerton]

Transparent this.

[JT (J.T.)]

Motherfucker. At least they're not edible.

[Eric Triplett]

Oh, man, this has been great.

[JT (J.T.)]

But now you have. You have a valid point for sure.

[Adam Fullerton]

That's why I'm the better salesperson.

[JT (J.T.)]

You know what it is? Well, I go in there with one thought, okay? And I learned this very on in sales, bro, like, way many years ago. If someone likes you, they're most likely gonna buy from you.

[Eric Triplett]

Right.

[JT (J.T.)]

There is a caveat to that, though, because they can like you as a person, they love you, but you don't have anything to sell them. Like, they. You don't have a need. They don't have a need for you. But prime example, when I was with ams, my previous company, same, same type of stuff. Same. Same business, same industry. Same industry. But, dude, I can't tell you how many times to be like, jt, dude, you come in here all the time, dude, I think you're great. And the guys would tell me straight, I think you're a good dude, but honestly, you guys don't have anything I need. Okay, I. I get it. I totally understand. So. And. But we did. But then, Then. Then I would hear. And then I would hear from some other people. I'd be like, I really. I really like you. You're a good dude. You're a good sales guy. You're honest. But I don't like your company because there's. There's shortfalls there. You know, before my time.

[Eric Triplett]

Right.

[JT (J.T.)]

Right there. There were some scenarios that arose. Go, well, yeah, and I get it, dude. And. And in this business, it's there's a lot of. And then, then there was other guys.

[Eric Triplett]

They don't forget.

[JT (J.T.)]

I've been using your competitor for 20 years, bro. I can call them right now and I'll have product delivered and by tomorrow. And, you know, you guys can't get it for a week. Like, what do you say to that?

[Eric Triplett]

Okay, I can.

[JT (J.T.)]

Yeah, honestly, what do you. What do you say to that?

[Eric Triplett]

You're pissing up a rope.

[JT (J.T.)]

So my point is my mission. When I go into people, I'm not. I'm not trying to be their friend, but I'm going in there trying to build a relationship, and I do that by certain things. I, I'll notice things, I watch things. You know, Eric used the thing. Well, I talk a lot. Actually, I don't really do that much anymore. I've kind of learned over the years that, you know, you let them talk. Like, you go in and seek somebody, they want to tell you about their family, they want to tell you about their wife, they want to tell you about their up autistic kid, they want to tell you about all kinds of. And they want to use you as a van. I'll be your psychologist. Tell me whatever the. You want because you know what information's power. You're telling me some. So what, when I go in next week, I'm gonna ask about your kid and then you're gonna open up to me some more how your wife cheated on you and you want to go and do this and my kids in the house, you know, like, you're gonna, you're gonna catch these things. And so, you know, that's why I try to go in there with a different approach and not just be like, hey, you want to buy some? Sometimes you gotta. Sometimes, you know, you gotta go in there knowing you're not gonna sell anything.

[Eric Triplett]

You're just going in there to.

[JT (J.T.)]

But you're gonna get some more knowledge and you're gonna gain some more information and you're gonna show your face and they're going to remember you next time they need some liners for their crusher. You know what, jt, If I can come in here last week, I didn't have a need then, but you know what? Now I call him, let's give him a call, see if he can give me a quote. And that's kind of how I've been doing things these days. Doesn't always work out that way, but, you know, but then another scenario. I tell you what, we had conag recently. There's this customer in Vegas they're the biggest asphalt construction company in all of Las Vegas, bro. Las Vegas Paving, dude. They're huge, bro. And I knew him, I knew this guy from a previous, from my previous job. He didn't really buy much from us because he didn't like the company. But I stayed friends with him and I got, I got hooked up with my current job. I went out there and it was like we didn't miss a beat. We caught up. But now I have more to offer him and he slowly has been giving me, you know, you know, opportunities to cultivate stuff.

[Eric Triplett]

Yeah.

[JT (J.T.)]

So Con Egg comes around, bro. I'm like, hey, bro, I want to take you out to dinner to get to dinner during Con Egg. So we'll meet up on Tuesday, dude. I planned this like four months in advance, bro. So this was locked in reservation, dude. We go out, we go out to dinner and we get up, we have a nice fat steak. Taylor, there's a bunch of us, we had a great time. That was Tuesday night. I go back to Konig Wednesday and my phone's blowing up and I'm looking at. He sent me three quote requests for he needed. So I was like, you know, it's not about whining and dining. You know, did that help? I don't know. Maybe. I think you build more of a friendship and a trust when you, when you take customers out like that. But.

[Eric Triplett]

And they like you. They like hanging out with you.

[JT (J.T.)]

They like.

[Eric Triplett]

Yeah, you know what I mean?

[JT (J.T.)]

That's. I think and I know that's the case. Not only that, he's. He was an army officer. He was an officer in the army. So like we just had a connection.

[Eric Triplett]

But I'm learning like, so. So I'm now dealing in robotics, right? Robotic mowers, Robotic, handheld or battery powered equipment. I don't know shit about sales. I've never sold really. I've sold okay, some. I don't even in my company now to the fertilization we control. I don't really. I could I sell a little bit, but I don't do. I do like maybe 10% of the sales. My partner does all the sales. I do the other stuff. So now I'm stepping into this whole new thing where I need to talk to. There's not one ideal customer either. There's homeowners that want to buy robotic mowers. There's other landscapers that want to buy handheld battery powered equipment. Colleges, cemeteries, municipalities, state turnpike. I don't know where it's going to go. And I'm not The vet. And I don't. I need to find people that like. And I'm surrounding myself with some people that have been in sales but also know, you know, know some of the tactics and the. And the things to do, like to, you know, have these meetings. Right. And cultivate these relationships. So I'm really like, you know, eager to learn how this is going to go because it's not just one. Like, again, like I said, not one ideal customer. There's multiple different things. So we'll see how it goes. I'm gonna need some sales trading from the triplets.

[JT (J.T.)]

You know, there's one thing that there's this company called Fastenal, you know, Honestly, bro. Good.

[Adam Fullerton]

I don't say honestly. That was a joke. Neither one of you caught it, bro.

[JT (J.T.)]

Well, maybe because I'm like five deep into whiskey, bro. Give me a break.

[Adam Fullerton]

Listen, honestly.

[Eric Triplett]

Well, I really thought he was gonna.

[JT (J.T.)]

I'm like, I thought, I thought he was gonna bust out. I thought he would say, honestly, like,

[Eric Triplett]

you shouldn't sell anything.

[JT (J.T.)]

For the record. Hey, just so your viewers know, we've been drinking whiskey like we're five, six deep in this, dude. So. Yeah, I didn't catch it. All right, educators, what are you gonna say? Are you just being a smart ass?

[Adam Fullerton]

I was just being a smart ass.

[JT (J.T.)]

Oh, okay. Anyhow, what I was gonna tell you. There's. There's a company called Fastenal that I used to work for, man. And I started off as the lowest sales guy on the. Just a sales guy going out selling nuts and bolts. And I was really good at it. And I got promoted to a management position pretty quickly and I got my own. My own store in Norco.

[Eric Triplett]

Okay.

[JT (J.T.)]

But I learned in that job, I really learned some really cool sales tactics. Was because I. I was like, it, dude. I was really hungry, man. And so when I went into places, you know, a lot of times if you go into like the front door, you're gonna get. You're gonna get shut down by the gatekeeper, bro. The receptionist. Yeah, I should be like, no, he's not busy. Yeah, that receptionist, bro. You don't ever go to that dumb, right? What you do is you go around back and you. And you talk to the maintenance guys, bro. The guys in the back who are like on the machines doing the. And so I started going around back and I would park back there and I just casually walk in. Like, I, like I.

[Eric Triplett]

Hey, right?

[JT (J.T.)]

And then. And especially if they're strips are good at that. Well, and if they look like. Look, man, Like, I'm not.

[Adam Fullerton]

I'm proud of him for this right here.

[JT (J.T.)]

I'm not.

[Adam Fullerton]

I'm proud of him.

[JT (J.T.)]

I'm not. I'm not being a. I'm not trying to talk. But my fact is, like, some of these guys didn't speak English, right? Some of the. Like, you're trying to communicate, dude.

[Eric Triplett]

Yeah.

[JT (J.T.)]

And like, my friend, what's going on? Hey, my friend, come here. Hey, what's his name? What's his name? The jefe, the hefe. What's. What's his name? Oh, oh, yeah. Zach. Yeah. Yeah, Zach.

[Eric Triplett]

I'm here to see him.

[JT (J.T.)]

Yeah. Is he here today? Oh, yeah, yeah. Go up, go front. Talk to Zach. Yeah, he's. He's. He's here right now. And so I'll systematically, I will talk to each person as I walk in through the back, and then I walk into the front office from the back.

[Eric Triplett]

Hey, Linda.

[JT (J.T.)]

Yeah, by that time, I already know her name. Like, I know that. I know the fucking manager's name. I know the fucking foreman's name. I know the fucking receptionist name. And then I'll walk in like, oh, yeah, I just talked to fucking Joseph. He said, hey, I gotta see Zach.

[Eric Triplett]

Right?

[JT (J.T.)]

And then, sure enough, I would talk to him. I was like, okay, that's the key right there. You don't go through the front. You go through the back, dude. And so I just. I was doing that a lot, bro. And that worked. I could work for.

[Adam Fullerton]

Roped in.

[JT (J.T.)]

It works like a charm, bro.

[Eric Triplett]

Give me a scenario.

[Adam Fullerton]

Well, just like, you know, you're trying to get to the gatekeeper at the college or whatever. Like, you can just drive into the back, go straight to the maintenance department.

[Eric Triplett]

Yeah. Or the golf course.

[Adam Fullerton]

Yeah. Like, you. Like, you work there.

[Eric Triplett]

Yeah, Right, right.

[Adam Fullerton]

So one time. One time I went to this. Gosh, this is so funny. There was a. There was this huge pond. It's in Redlands, and it's this huge waterfall water feature. It was part of this water reclamation thing. And they paid like a million dollars for this water feature. And it's. It was total bullshit. It was so horrible. Is a public works project.

[Eric Triplett]

Oh, God.

[Adam Fullerton]

I was like, I could have made a lot of money at fucking 700 grand.

[Eric Triplett]

Right?

[Adam Fullerton]

You know, I could have made a lot. And they were. They. They had drained it and they were trying to fix something. And I was like, oh, dude, I got this is money. And I pulled it. I pulled up in one of my rigs, like, full construction. Looks like. Looked like a contractor. Like, the construction gates were there. And it was locked up. And. And I just. I pulled into it like I. Like I was supposed to be there. And I got out of there. I got my orange long sleeve shirt on with the fucking logo on the front. My iconic Pondigger logo. And they. They had the rock that they used was the wrong size and it was the wrong structure. And I knew it. I could tell from the freeway, bro.

[Eric Triplett]

And it was wrong.

[Adam Fullerton]

Yeah. And I was like, I gotta get a sample of that rock. I wouldn't. I need samples of that rock and I need photographs of this job site. So I literally drove into, like, drove straight into the job site like I was supposed to be there and got out of the truck and slammed the door. And I had the. Yeah, dude. And I had. I grabbed two. Two Gatorade bottles and I walked right into the pond. It was drained at the time. And they like. Like they had these guys raking the gravel back and they exposed all the filtration. And I was like, I gotta get to that filtration. I gotta take pictures of it for my book, dude. Literally, this is one of the books I wrote. And I walk straight across the job, walk down to the bottom, break up my phone, start taking pictures. I look up and guys are looking at me. And I just, like, raised my hand like, what's up? Like, what? You know, I'm blasting pictures and shit. Put my phone in my pocket, grab that Gatorade bottle, and I'm fucking scooping up gravel into the Gatorade bottle.

[JT (J.T.)]

Awesome.

[Adam Fullerton]

And I fucking get up and I take more pictures. I walk around a little bit, and guys are still looking at me like, who the fuck is this guy? I walk right back in my truck through the Gatorade bottles inside, Started the truck.

[JT (J.T.)]

Boom.

[Adam Fullerton]

Took off like, I own the place, dude. That was it. Sometimes you have to go in through. Like, if I would have called the. Like, hey, I need to get the. Can I get to the superintendent? How can I walk the job site? I wanted to see some things. I wanted to see the picture. I just. Right through the back door like, I own the place.

[Eric Triplett]

Done.

[Adam Fullerton]

And that. That's it. So that could work for the. For the rope stuff. It's like you can drive right onto the college campuses because you're like, you can start to go into the front. Hey, can I speak to the super? Can I speak to the so and so? And if you're getting the run around, you just.

[Eric Triplett]

Just go, yeah, yeah. Find facilities and get there.

[Adam Fullerton]

You just kind of roll in and kind of pull up in the back, like, I might be lost. I don't even know if you're the right guy.

[Eric Triplett]

I want to talk. Yeah.

[Adam Fullerton]

See what I'm saying? Like, listen, listen, this is really important.

[Eric Triplett]

Yeah.

[Adam Fullerton]

Hey, I might be lost. I don't even know if I'm talking to the right guy. I was hoping to find out, to talk to someone about this, and instead of going to the gatekeeper, they're going to go like, oh, yeah, and they're going to blow you off. They're going to push you around like, hey, send me an email or whatever they do. But if you pull in the back like he says, and you're like, I don't even know if you're the right person to talk to, I might be lost. But I'm looking to do this. When you tell them I don't know if you're the right person, they're like, yeah, I'm in the right person. I can, I can. I am the right person. I've been here. I can make sure.

[Eric Triplett]

I can make these decisions.

[Adam Fullerton]

I can make sure you get to the right person. I know who, who is who. And so, like, you challenge their, Their authority and their ability.

[Eric Triplett]

Yeah, I don't know if. I don't know if you're the right person.

[Adam Fullerton]

Yeah, Like, I might, you know, but you, the tone is like, hey, I might be lost. I'm not even sure if I'm talking to the right person yet. But I was looking for this.

[Eric Triplett]

And you get like the.

[Adam Fullerton]

Yeah, they're gonna be like, oh, yeah, I can solve that problem for you. Because people want us. They want to help.

[Eric Triplett]

Help.

[Adam Fullerton]

Yeah.

[JT (J.T.)]

You know, and also I noticed works too. There's, there's. Sometimes you go to, you go to a place like I have this place in Lucerne Valley is a big. It's the biggest cement manufacturer out there. It's a big plant out there. It's called Mitsubishi Cement. And when you go in, there's a guard. You gotta sign in all this other. Mind you, I've been going there for a while. I know that whole place, bro. I know most people there. But if I go in there, sometimes I'll take breakfast sandwiches, bro, and I'll give it to the actual gate. The guards, because, dude, they don't get. They don't get donuts. The donuts go to the manufacturer. The, the, the service guys, the guys who issue the po. The gate guards never get donuts. Sandwiches, bro. And I'll come up and I'll make. Hey, bro, I just got some sandwiches. You want one yeah, dude. And one time really paid off. One time because just little things like, you know, OSHA or if MSHAW is on site, I don't typically want to go because if I go on side and mshaw's there, it opens me up to them checking me. Like, they can go on my truck with no questions. Adding on my truck Europe, you get pulled in. Yeah, dude. Like, and so one day, if I rolled up and I had some breakfast sandwiches, dude, I'm like, you know what? I got some extras. Hey, you guys want some sandwiches? Like, yeah, man, get us some sandwiches. Hey, just heads up, M. Shaw's here. You don't want to come outside? I was like, thanks, buddy. Appreciate it, dude. If I can u turn got the out of there. Okay. Because you get busted with M. Shaw, you were never coming on site again, bro. Or the thing is, you can get fined and the company that I work for won't pay for. You have to pay for it, bro.

[Adam Fullerton]

Sometimes give me five, ten grand, dude.

[JT (J.T.)]

Like, yeah, expensive not having the right ppe. Like, if I go on, like, in my boots and I don't have steel toes, bro. Why are you on here? Why are you? Yeah, they can literally find me. Personally, like, my company wouldn't pay, but I would have to pay for five, ten grand. Like, no, that's. But like, little things like that, I think.

[Eric Triplett]

What's the difference between OSHA and. What is it just safe?

[JT (J.T.)]

This different safety protocols, dude, is one

[Eric Triplett]

state, one federal or no.

[JT (J.T.)]

Something like that. I don't know the extent of it, but it was both. Like, I just went through m shot training. 24 hours of m shot training. You gotta do it in person every year, bro. It's. It's on all virtual.

[Eric Triplett]

Yeah, everything is like that now.

[JT (J.T.)]

Yeah, it's. It's lame.

[Eric Triplett]

Yeah. Yeah.

[JT (J.T.)]

But, you know, I'm not. I don't know, ever. I don't know all the techniques. Like, my brother's way more skilled and. And trained on that. I just know that if. If a person likes me for me, they're most likely gonna buy from me. So I try to find ways for them to like me. Okay, well, how can I relate to this person? You know, if he rides a Harley, it's a done deal. He's got a beard. It's pretty much done deal.

[Eric Triplett]

Like, I mean, is that like 90 of the clients?

[JT (J.T.)]

Yeah, dude. Old Cresty dudes, bro, right.

[Eric Triplett]

That ride Harleys that have beards.

[JT (J.T.)]

You know, it's even cooler, bro. I got such a cool relationship with this. With this one dude, at one of my customers.

[Adam Fullerton]

Listen. Listen to that closely. I got such a cool relationship. No, this one.

[JT (J.T.)]

Dude, shut the up. No, this. This is how awesome it is now, dude. No, you know what? You just connect with certain people, right? You just connect. And I have this one customer. They literally have to get, like, three quotes before they can make any decision on anything. And I've built such a good relationship with this guy. I went in. I went to see him one day just shooting the. I didn't even. I didn't even ask. Sometimes I'll go in there just to. Just to, like. I don't go in there to ask you for a sale. I'll just go in there to see. He's like, bro, I need. I need some parts, man. All right, well, throw them at. What do you need? Well, it. You know what? Kimball just quoted me on the. Let me print out the quote. I'll give it to you. So he prints out the quote. I got pricing. I got part numbers. I got the whole. I'm like, hey, you sure you want to get it? Say them, dude. Yeah, call me.

[Eric Triplett]

That's great.

[JT (J.T.)]

I think. Will you get that kind of. I'm like, that's. You're doing. You're doing something right.

[Eric Triplett]

That's awesome.

[JT (J.T.)]

You know, So I ended up getting that sale, too. It was like, 30 grand.

[Eric Triplett]

Oh, yeah.

[JT (J.T.)]

So, yeah, the. The Kimballs was like 36. And I was like, even 30 grand was still making, like, 20 margin on it. Pretty. That's really good, dude. I was like, yeah, bro, that's awesome. But not only that, but it showed. It showed, like, Kimball was raping them.

[Eric Triplett]

Right.

[JT (J.T.)]

And I'm like, look, bro, they're six grand more.

[Eric Triplett]

Well, that's a lot of the. A lot of things to get comfortable charging because they've been getting it for so long. Like, I look at my insurance this last. This past year, it was like, oh, it just keeps going up and up and up. Workman's comp, pesticide insurance, general liability, everything. It's never gone down. And they should. My. The broker should be looking at this stuff every year and trying to give me the best price. No, it wasn't the case. So you know what? I took it and went somewhere else and saved six grand.

[JT (J.T.)]

Yeah.

[Eric Triplett]

Because they weren't. Weren't really doing it for me. And that's what happens. I think these complacent. They get complacent.

[JT (J.T.)]

It's funny you say that, because a lot of times I know when I'm going to someplace, like, I already know they're going to. I already know they got at least two quotes from my competitors who are all like, they just head hunt us, bro. And I know some of these guys are so used to going with them. And so sometimes I'll go in there, I'm like, hey, at least let me quote you. At least I can keep my competitors honest. Right. And then that way you'll know where we're at. And dude, I can't tell you how many times that's gotten me a deal. Like, yeah, dude, you actually came in. You came in cheaper. If I know I'm competing against each other, I will intentionally drop the margin to like 15.

[Eric Triplett]

Yeah.

[JT (J.T.)]

Just to get it.

[Eric Triplett]

Yeah.

[JT (J.T.)]

I'm like, dude, you're right. You're. You are cheaper. So let's do it. I'm like, yeah.

[Eric Triplett]

Hell yeah.

[JT (J.T.)]

So a lot, a lot of these, like, I'm not trying to be greedy. That's the thing. I'm not trying to mark your up, you know, 40. Like, I, I genuinely want to help you.

[Eric Triplett]

Yeah.

[JT (J.T.)]

Like, I look at it, I'd rather sell you something at a low margin than not get the sale at all, right?

[Eric Triplett]

Absolutely.

[JT (J.T.)]

Even if I sell you at 15%, at least I'm going to get something. I'm going to sell it to you. If I quote at 30% and then you don't buy, then I don't get in at all. So I'd rather have you, I'd rather quote low, still get the sale than nothing at all. That's a lot of times that plays a factor. I do doesn't always work, but, you know, that's. This is kind of the mentality.

[Eric Triplett]

Awesome. How can people find you? I mean, people want to. I want to listen to you more. I want to listen to the episode of you guys. What if you want to. Anything you left out that you want to cover.

[JT (J.T.)]

Yeah.

[Eric Triplett]

And how can people find you?

[JT (J.T.)]

Well, I'm still building my socials. I'm. I'm way more active on Instagram and Facebook. You can find me on Facebook @JT Space Triplets. You know, everybody's got Facebook and then Instagram. I'm pretty active on. I, I post, you know, almost daily. And you can find me at JT Rocks. You. It's J, T, R O X, Y O U. I'm on. I'm on Tick Tock with the same name. J.T. rockshoe. And then you can find my podcast if you're interested. Which, by the way, it's the podcast subject matters. I like to just say every Everything's on the table. Talk about anything.

[Eric Triplett]

Current events.

[JT (J.T.)]

Current events, politics, religion. You know, if I'm going through certain. You know, I've got certain thoughts on something or different guests. You know, I'm still trying to grow that side of. Of my. My socials, but nothing's off the table. Yeah, you can talk about anything, and that's unapologetic, you know, kind of thing.

[Eric Triplett]

Unfiltered.

[JT (J.T.)]

That's why I call it in the mind of jt, because sometimes I got some crazy on my things. I got to get them off my chest. So. Yeah, you can find me on YouTube. I. I try to post my. My shows within 24 hours. Aside from the one I just recently did with the Pond Diggers. Three and a half hour episode. I'm still editing, but I'll get that posted here soon and.

[Eric Triplett]

Awesome.

[JT (J.T.)]

You know, yeah, I'm just a. I'm just a normal dude with some thoughts.

[Eric Triplett]

I love it. And then. And I think it's. It's awesome. I'm so glad we're here. Pot house number two at sponsor games and. And we're gonna keep this going.

[JT (J.T.)]

Yeah. I appreciate you. You have me. The Pond Digger is my brother and all, and, you know, that's. That's always a perk. But I genuinely appreciate y' all having me out here. It's been a great time. We've had a good time, actually. We have fun. We've been drunk pretty much every day since we got here. You know, it's been fun. But, yeah, hopefully. Hopefully I'll be able to join you guys some more and do some more of this.

[Eric Triplett]

Yeah, I mean, we talked about it tonight. We want to order the tour bus, you know, with. Right.

[JT (J.T.)]

As long as there's some midgets floating around, at least rocking the sweaters, you know.

[Eric Triplett]

Okay.

[JT (J.T.)]

I got this little thing for midgets, man.

[Eric Triplett]

I know.

[JT (J.T.)]

Imagine them rocking the sweater as he always.

[Eric Triplett]

Eric had this midget obsession.

[JT (J.T.)]

I don't know.

[Adam Fullerton]

I don't know. I just. It recently hit me, but, like, we were talking about it, and I'm like,

[JT (J.T.)]

that's a lot weird, you know?

[Adam Fullerton]

And then all of a sudden, I'm getting these midget things happening on freaking Instagram and that he sends you. No, there's wrestling.

[Eric Triplett]

Your algorithm is.

[Adam Fullerton]

Yeah, it's all jacked down.

[Eric Triplett]

You're going to need, like, a solid month of, like, rebalancing after. Awesome. Well, thank you. Thank you for coming on.

[Adam Fullerton]

Yeah, awesome.

[JT (J.T.)]

Thanks for having me. It's been a great time.

[Eric Triplett]

We'll catch you guys on the next one.

[JT (J.T.)]

Take care brother.

[Mike Garvey]

Thanks for tuning in to the side Hustle Squad Podcast with Mike Garvey. We hope you enjoyed this episode and gained valuable insights to help you succeed in your side Hustle journey. Connect with Mike using the links in the podcast description. If you love the show, please leave us a well worded five star review on Apple Podcasts. Your feedback and support help us grow and continue to provide you with the best content. And don't forget to follow the show to be notified when the next edition of the side Hustle Squad Podcast is available. We have many exciting guests and topics lined up so you won't want to miss a single episode. Thanks again for listening and we'll catch you next time on the side Hustle Squad Podcast.