How a Football Injury Turned Into a 6-Figure Film Hustle ft. Grizzly Films

Summary

Summary of "How a Football Injury Turned Into a 6-Figure Film Hustle ft. Grizzly Films"

The Level Up Podcast with Paul Alex Espinoza
Episode Title: How a Football Injury Turned Into a 6-Figure Film Hustle ft. Grizzly Films
Release Date: June 28, 2025

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Introduction to Grizzly Films

In this compelling episode, Paul Alex Espinoza interviews Grizzly from Grizzly Films, a seasoned photographer and filmmaker based in Miami, Florida. Grizzly shares his transformative journey from aspiring NFL linebacker to a successful entrepreneur in the film and photography industry, emphasizing the power of passion, perseverance, and strategic entrepreneurship.

From Football Dreams to Entrepreneurial Pursuits

Grizzly recounts his early years as a dedicated football player, dreaming of an NFL career. However, persistent injuries during his time at Bethune Cookman University forced him to reevaluate his future.

“At the age of 25, that's when I knew I was gonna do something with the camera.” [06:56]

Despite setbacks, Grizzly maintained his passion for photography, initially using it as a creative outlet for his family’s clothing line. His meeting with his future wife played a pivotal role in shifting his hobby into a viable business.

The Turning Point: Inspiration and Support

Grizzly credits his wife for recognizing the commercial potential of his photography skills. Her encouragement was instrumental in his decision to pursue photography full-time.

“She was like, I think you can make money from this. People, you know, book you for this and that.” [05:12]

This support system was crucial as Grizzly navigated the uncertain terrain of entrepreneurship, transitioning from various jobs, including working at a hospital, to committing fully to his passion.

Building a Photography Business

Grizzly details the strategic steps he took to establish his photography business. He emphasizes the importance of niching down, specifically focusing on maternity shoots, which provided a steady income stream and built strong client relationships.

“I was known for maternity, actually.” [13:51]

He highlights the significance of networking and maintaining long-term relationships with clients, which led to repeat business and referrals. This approach not only ensured financial stability but also fostered a loyal client base.

Challenges in Scaling the Business

Grizzly discusses the common pitfalls faced by photographers aiming to scale rapidly. He warns against seeking quick fame by shooting celebrities for free, which often fails to translate into sustainable income.

“I'm gonna be honest. It's no quick way to it.” [15:37]

He stresses the importance of valuing one’s work and setting appropriate rates to ensure profitability and business longevity.

The Importance of Editing Skills

In the digital age, Grizzly underscores the necessity of mastering editing techniques to enhance the quality of work and meet client expectations.

“Editing is everything.” [20:10]

He shares his personal experience of self-teaching through YouTube tutorials, emphasizing that technical proficiency in editing is crucial for delivering professional-grade photographs and videos.

Future Aspirations: Expanding into Film

Looking ahead, Grizzly reveals his ambition to pivot towards filmmaking, aiming to create action thrillers inspired by directors like Quentin Tarantino and Christopher Nolan. He envisions building a small, reliable team to support this transition, focusing on quality over quantity.

“Netflix is my goal.” [25:15]

Mentorship and Teaching

Grizzly expresses a strong desire to mentor aspiring photographers and filmmakers. He plans to launch a masterclass program that combines travel with hands-on learning, teaching not only technical skills but also the importance of mindset and client relations.

“I want to teach you how to really get clients. Not based off your talent, but off how you treat people.” [32:45]

Words of Motivation and Personal Philosophy

Throughout the episode, Grizzly emphasizes the significance of chasing one’s dreams despite adversity. He advocates for self-belief, surrounding oneself with supportive individuals, and maintaining authenticity in business relationships.

“Chase those dreams. Believe in yourself wholeheartedly, no matter what.” [39:03]

He also highlights the importance of balancing financial success with personal fulfillment, prioritizing the happiness and well-being of his family over material gains.

Conclusion: Embracing the Journey

Paul Alex concludes the episode by highlighting Grizzly's inspiring story of resilience and transformation. Grizzly’s journey from a thwarted football career to a thriving entrepreneurial venture serves as a testament to the power of passion, strategic planning, and unwavering self-belief.

“This is why, the Level Up podcast is all about empowering you to crush your goals.” [42:20]

Grizzly encourages listeners to pursue their dreams with dedication and integrity, reinforcing the podcast's mission to motivate and support aspiring entrepreneurs.

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Notable Quotes with Timestamps

• Grizzly on Transitioning Careers:
  “At the age of 25, that's when I knew I was gonna do something with the camera.” [06:56]

• Grizzly on Support from His Wife:
  “She was like, I think you can make money from this. People, you know, book you for this and that.” [05:12]

• Grizzly on Niching Down:
  “I was known for maternity, actually.” [13:51]

• Grizzly on Scaling Challenges:
  “I'm gonna be honest. It's no quick way to it.” [15:37]

• Grizzly on Editing Skills:
  “Editing is everything.” [20:10]

• Grizzly on Future Goals:
  “Netflix is my goal.” [25:15]

• Grizzly on Client Relations:
  “I want to teach you how to really get clients. Not based off your talent, but off how you treat people.” [32:45]

• Grizzly on Chasing Dreams:
  “Chase those dreams. Believe in yourself wholeheartedly, no matter what.” [39:03]

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Closing Thoughts

This episode of The Level Up Podcast offers invaluable insights into the entrepreneurial journey, highlighting the importance of adaptability, strategic niching, and the relentless pursuit of one's passions. Grizzly’s story serves as a powerful reminder that setbacks can lead to new, fulfilling paths when met with resilience and the right support system.

Listeners are encouraged to embrace their dreams, invest in their skills, and build meaningful relationships to achieve lasting success.

Transcript

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[Paul Alex]

Welcome to the Level Up Podcast. I'm your host, Paul Alex. I went from being a cop to an eight figure entrepreneur that helps average people like you and me make money every single day. I created this podcast to help you get motivated and to crush your goals. Let's win together. Remember, I have your six. Get ready to level up right now. Hey guys. And welcome to another episode of the Level up podcast with Paul Alex. Guys, I have another banging interview. Okay, look, usually I do the intro and you guys know how I get down, but I feel like you gotta do the intro man, just cause you're my boy, like. So go ahead, let the folks know right now who you are, what you're doing and then let's get it going.

[Grizzly]

Okay? So my name is Grizzly, that's short for Grizzly Films. I'm a photographer and filmer out here in Miami, Florida. Been doing it for a long time now. Paul got me on his cast. I'm a little nervous, but I'm gonna be me at the end of the day. I'm gonna give it to you, you know, raw, straight and hope this can inspire somebody else. Like somebody inspired me. Absolutely.

[Paul Alex]

And that's what it's about, man. So let's go ahead and talk about what you were doing before you got into entrepreneurship. Okay, so man, you could talk about, you know, this is the level of podcast, man. It's to help people with their mindset, to motivate them to self help. That's what it's about. Right? So what were you doing before? Right before you had that epiphany of like, you know what, going to start working for myself.

[Grizzly]

Oh man. Okay, so I'm a football guy. So I actually played football from five years old all the way through High school, I thought I was going to the NFL, you know, like a lot of us, you know, did, so. But right before this, I already had a camera in my hand. I always did. I had a clothing line by the Fit for King, me and my brother. It's still going, but I was doing the pictures just for that. I was just having fun. I really got into it because I met this young lady, which is now my wife. And that's the crazy part. I met her and I was really just taking pictures for fun. I didn't know what I really wanted to do, to be honest. I was like, hey, I love the camera. It puts me in a different mindset, different head space. I watch movies to this day, every day if I can, because it gives me a sense of escaping. Not saying I'm trying to escape reality, but I'm a dreamer. Yeah, I'm a big dreamer. And I still love a dream to this day. So I was just doing it to continue just dreaming. My wife, like, hey, you know, like, people make money doing this. Like, make money doing what? Taking pictures. Like, people pay for this. It's like, yeah. So that's why I got into it. But before that, I was just really just taking pictures for fun. I was enjoying the clothing line, enjoying the process of just living honestly. When the football dream didn't go about, I didn't really know what I really wanted to do. You know, it was a tough time, but I may do and try to just have fun with life like I try to do now.

[Paul Alex]

I have so many questions, man. So let's go back to the time where let's say you were like, hey, I'm about to do football. And then it didn't pan out. What year was that?

[Grizzly]

I graduated.08. So I went to college. I went to Bethune Cookman. I was there. I had a football scholarship, but I had injuries, too, so I didn't really feel 100%. And I felt in my heart that I knew football wasn't going to be the thing, really. And I kept it. I kept it real. I wasn't like.

[Paul Alex]

Like, one day you just told yourself, my body ain't gonna go through it.

[Grizzly]

It's not gonna go through it. I ended up transferring out of the school because I knew that.

[Paul Alex]

What were you playing?

[Grizzly]

Linebacker.

[Paul Alex]

Linebacker? Oh, that's. That's a tough gig, bro.

[Grizzly]

I played that Myanmar, our quarterback. My quarterback is still in the NFL today.

[Paul Alex]

No way.

[Grizzly]

Geno Smith.

[Paul Alex]

Oh, wow.

[Grizzly]

Got the Raiders now, so that's crazy. We had a tough team, but you.

[Paul Alex]

Still talked to him.

[Grizzly]

I still talk to him. We seen him on recently. That's awesome. We've seen him at our, like, our little school reunion. We kind of did a little party we had. He was there, he came. I just knew it, though. I knew it. I was like, this ain't it.

[Paul Alex]

That's crazy, man. One of my newest guys, his name's Trey, he actually was a Division 1 football player. Broke his back. And now we work together. So I'm going to link you guys after this. It's going to be good, but. All right, so to go back to your story, dude, so you go ahead. You knew. You knew in yourself. You're like, dude, like, football's not for me. You had met your wife now and she told you, like, hey, she's giving you, like, the idea. So are you saying it was your wife that inspired you to go ahead and actually make the move? Like, move the needle for you?

[Grizzly]

Yes, I'm 100%. I think I was doing it really just to have fun. And it just kind of kept my mind, you know, just like at peace. At peace and still that's what it does from this day. Like, I. I'm just at peace with the cameras in my hand. So she was like, hey, I think you can, you know, you can make money from this. People, you know, book you for this and that. I was like, okay, cool. So I still got into it. Yeah, I wanted to chase it as an entrepreneur, but it was still out of passion and love. And I. And I think that's what got me here to this day. Still having that same passion and love for what I'm doing. Because I was beyond. Other than football. I tried many other things if we want to be real. Like, I tried firemen. I tried. I worked at a hospital. I was just trying to find my way, but I always had a camera. But I was just trying things. And she was there for some of that part, too, as a friend and turned into a girlfriend into now we married, you know, So I was just trying things, but I always kept that camera hand. That was the only thing that really brought me peace.

[Paul Alex]

No, absolutely, man. That's awesome. So during that whole entire journey, how long from the time that you got injured in football till you actually started going ahead and making what you're doing now a full time career?

[Grizzly]

How long has it been since then?

[Paul Alex]

Yeah, like, what was the gap? Was it like a five year gap? Was it almost immediate? Like, what would you say?

[Grizzly]

I'd say, like, wow, I'm leaving high school. 08 and dealing with college. 0, 9, 10, 11, 12. Met my wife. Met my wife and I in 2014. So it was a big gap years until I'm trying to find out what I'm gonna do. My friends, they doing med school, Some of them attorneys, they know what they're doing. I'm like, I'm still trying to figure it out.

[Paul Alex]

You were trying to figure out through your, like, entire 20s?

[Grizzly]

Basically, yes.

[Paul Alex]

And then at what age did you finally say, you know what, this is it?

[Grizzly]

I would say 25, 24, 25. At the age of 25, that's when I knew. It was like, I knew I was gonna do something with the camera. I didn't know how to make money.

[Paul Alex]

Okay.

[Grizzly]

I didn't know how to make the money. So my wife, being that she was modeling at the time too, kind of understood, like, hey, we pay photographers that got great quality, such as yours, money. So I'm like, okay, let's see how this goes. It went good. It definitely went good. But of course, you know, you first start off, you ain't making the money that you want to make.

[Paul Alex]

Right.

[Grizzly]

But I always tell people, like, when you're doing what you love to do, the money will come.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah.

[Grizzly]

So I never chased the dollar bill at all. I still don't chase money. It seemed to just come because I believe in what I'm doing. I believe in the service I provide.

[Paul Alex]

So providing value, then it always comes back. And then you have an abundance of wealth.

[Grizzly]

Yes.

[Paul Alex]

No, absolutely, dude. I agree. So with that, at age 25, your wife's like, hey, let's go, man. See, it seems like your wife's giving you the ideas, man.

[Grizzly]

Yeah, she still kind of do.

[Paul Alex]

And it's a cheat coat. It's a cheat code. Now that, you know, my wife, my beautiful wife, like, I tell people it's a cheat code. Like, you just. Man, it's so powerful to be married and just be to that one woman. I mean, it actually progresses you in business, man.

[Grizzly]

It does, I think, because I believe a woman can be your up in your downfall.

[Paul Alex]

Absolutely.

[Grizzly]

Women in general, if you want to have multiple women, you're going to have multiple problems. You got multiple problems. That's for sure.

[Paul Alex]

That's very true.

[Grizzly]

So me, I stuck to being just. I was dating her and sticking out with her, and she was there for the journey. When I ended up saying I wanted to go full time with it, though, honestly speaking, she didn't really know. Cause I'm not gonna lie, I was working. Like I told you, I Was working at a hospital at that time. I just quit one day. I up and quit. So I come home.

[Paul Alex]

You just decided one day. You were like, yeah, all right.

[Grizzly]

She pushed me towards, like, you know, do the camera thing. So I was doing it. I'm like, okay. But as far as taking it full time, I quit on my own decision. I literally quit that morning.

[Paul Alex]

Was it something that happened at work that made you quit?

[Grizzly]

Not. I think, yeah. I see the dead body. It bothered me.

[Paul Alex]

So, okay, there we go.

[Grizzly]

There we go. I was like, I see. Go to the morgue. I'm like, go to the morgue for what? Oh, can we go to the morgue?

[Paul Alex]

I said, you're like, I'm not doing.

[Grizzly]

This, because it made me feel dead. Not that I really feared the dead body.

[Paul Alex]

It just made you feel.

[Grizzly]

It made me feel like I'm like, I'm dying here. Like, this ain't what I want to do. This don't inspire me. This made me feel like I'm dying. So I quit. I come home, I say, hey, I know you believe in me in the camera thing. She's like, yeah, but I quit my job. She said, oh. So I said, you know, I love you, but I'm gonna do this with. At that point. I'm really like, I'm gonna do this with or without you at this point. Like, you say you believe in me, so you know what it is. She said, well, I believe in you. Let's do it.

[Paul Alex]

Okay.

[Grizzly]

Now, of course, when you're young, I'm not saying I had to. She was forced to be with me. But I said, if you want to go on the journey, let's do it together. And I. Because you made me believe in myself. And she was like, okay. Like, you could have told me you were going to quit. But she like, let's do it. So that was the last job I ever worked that was like, corporate, anything like that.

[Paul Alex]

And what'd your family say?

[Grizzly]

Oh, hey, that's the struggle that everybody goes through, man. My mom is very like, you know, chase your dreams. She don't really try to get in the way, but she's not gonna be like, yeah, go and quit a job. Like, nobody's believing in that. Nobody's believing that. My brothers are very. You know, they believe in work. Working hard is really gonna make it happen. And now they're older, now they understand that I did the right decision. I remember when my brother and this really lifted me. I don't know if I never told him. He said, hey, you don't need a plan B. Your plan A is gonna work just fine.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah.

[Grizzly]

And I was like, for him to say that my brother come from, you know, you gotta work hard, you gotta get out the mud, this and that. So he not Cameron. I ain't gonna make no money. They ain't ready to take care of your family. So, I mean, of course he had to see it and believe it. But that one thing he did say, really, it did. It did motivate me and push me. You know, other than that, like my other family members, I didn't really worry about what they said. Of course we all want that support. You know, we all wish we had that push. Now I'm pushing my nephews that do, you know, out of the norm, Wanna do music, wanna do this. I'm pushing. Cause I know it can't. It can't pay off, but, you know, we come from the parents. That's like, what is that? How are you going to feed a family? That camera ain't going to feed a family. Now, they see it, they believe it, but, you know, it was okay. Of course it. I'm very like. I'm a loving person. I love my family. So I want them to be there off the rip. But I understand, you know, it is what it is.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah. No, absolutely. And I feel like almost every entrepreneur goes through this with their family, man. You know, especially when you come from a family and it appears like your family is very traditional.

[Grizzly]

Yes.

[Paul Alex]

Right. It's like the old American dream of like, hey, work hard, get the house, start the family, be happy with retirement and you've made it.

[Grizzly]

Yeah. They know that you gotta have the health insurance from the job. This, this and that.

[Paul Alex]

I'm like, that's the number one thing.

[Grizzly]

I'm like, nah, that's not my route. And my mom, she knew. Cause she always said, like, you never really did, other than play football. Cause I did love it. You never did, like, the norm. Like, she knew, like, yeah, you were smart. I had all the advanced placement in school and all that, but I was. It just wasn't me. It wasn't. I knew books wasn't my thing either.

[Paul Alex]

Right.

[Grizzly]

Yeah, I'm gonna finish school. But I'm like, I don't want to do none of this. I don't be no teacher. I don't be none of that. Like, I want to be a creative. I want to help other people be creative.

[Paul Alex]

Right.

[Grizzly]

I want to help them see their dreams, so.

[Paul Alex]

Exactly.

[Grizzly]

For me, I feel like a camera allowed me to do that.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah, that's awesome, man. So you're a visionary, dude. Yeah, I'm a visionary. Like, you know, I could see things. I could extract information from people and then use it to go ahead and, like, build their story, man.

[Grizzly]

I know. I've seen it.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah, and what you're doing, dude, is you're able to see people's story and their vision through your photos, you know? Cause you do good work, bro. But with that being said, okay, so let's get down to what a lot of my audience likes to talk about, okay? Money. So how can you make money as a beginner? Let's say, you know, we didn't know each other. I got a camera, you know, I got it as a Christmas gift, and I'm like, dude, I want to pick this up. I want to make some money. What would you tell me? Let's do a mini masterclass, man.

[Grizzly]

Okay.

[Paul Alex]

What would you tell somebody? Like, what did you do in your humble beginnings, dude, when you were starting to go ahead and actually get gigs? How were you getting the gigs? Were you using, like, Craigslist? How were you searching for that? Was it network? Tell us your secret.

[Grizzly]

I would say right now. And even then, 2025, guys. We're in 2025. Social media is big, okay? I mean, you got direct line to most people. Not saying everybody's going to answer their DMs, but you do have that access. I would definitely just go do some cold leads like, I'm DMing everybody. Hey, this is what I offer. This is what I can do. If they have a business, they have personal. Most people still want to do Christmas shoots. Most people want to have maternity. Most people want to have their birthday shoots. Hey, I provide that service. If I was star right now, that's the first thing I'm doing. I'm in everybody's chest with it.

[Paul Alex]

Question. Would you niche down when you're starting? Like, would you be, like, the perfectionist in, let's say, like, the baby photos? Maternity?

[Grizzly]

I would say yes, because I did. I was known for maternity, actually.

[Paul Alex]

Oh, really?

[Grizzly]

I was a maternity.

[Paul Alex]

That's big money, dude.

[Grizzly]

It was good money.

[Paul Alex]

I mean, I just paid for my younger sister. She just had her kid. So essentially, you know, my wife, she's like, hey, we gotta get them as a gift. And she loved it.

[Grizzly]

Maternity.

[Paul Alex]

Loved it. Expensive. I was like, God damn.

[Grizzly]

Is where it's at. Yeah, because you end up shooting the maternity. Shooting up, Shooting a baby when they come out. If you like shooting babies, then if they're not married already, they're gonna end up getting married. And now you may be able to shoot the wedd down the road, so. But I feel like the niche is everything, though. For sure.

[Paul Alex]

I love that look. For anyone that's listening right now and watching this, you saw the way his mind thinks. They're not married. You've already established that relationship with them. So when they do get married, guess who they're gonna hit up? You, right?

[Grizzly]

Yes.

[Paul Alex]

So, dude, that's networking.

[Grizzly]

Yes.

[Paul Alex]

Your network is your net worth. That's awesome. Dude, that's a bomb.

[Grizzly]

I have people I've been shooting for probably like five years now.

[Paul Alex]

Really?

[Grizzly]

I do all their birthdays. Shot they wedding. I love that shot their maternity, they getting pregnant again. I'm shooting. So it's like you built that relationship with them, you know, and it's just gonna keep. And then they tell they sister, they tell they cousins this and that. So now, hey, can you shoot my wedding? Can you shoot my maternity shoot? You know, it all just falls down the line. But definitely telling them the niche is the best thing. Cause if you try to start off shooting everything, you're not gonna build the strength.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah, yeah. And then would you say that, you know, for a successful entrepreneur, that's getting to photography or video. Okay. What would you say is the path of least resistance? Yes. The niching down. But let's say if somebody was like, hey, man, I'm trying to scale. I'm a hustler, you know, out of whatever it takes. What would be your expert advice right now, man?

[Grizzly]

To scale fast.

[Paul Alex]

To scale fast. You know, people. People want to scale fast in 20, 25. You know, that's just the way it is now.

[Grizzly]

And it's. It's sad to say that it is kind of tough to scale fast in this business.

[Paul Alex]

Okay. I like that.

[Grizzly]

I'm gonna be honest. It's no quick way to it.

[Paul Alex]

You guys hear that?

[Grizzly]

I know some people say, well, hey, I want to go shoot some celebrity getting a big following. Yeah. I know people that shoot all the celebrities ain't making no money.

[Paul Alex]

No way.

[Grizzly]

They got the biggest following.

[Paul Alex]

Wow.

[Grizzly]

On Instagram. I'm not gonna say no names, but trust me, I know a lot.

[Paul Alex]

So let me ask you this. Let me piggyback off that question. They have a big following. They shoot celebrities. Why aren't they making money?

[Grizzly]

I think what happens is they get caught into the trap of what it looks like. So when they're like I said, you dming certain people or reaching out to certain people, you don't come with no Numbers you come with, hey, I just want to work for free.

[Paul Alex]

Got it.

[Grizzly]

So off rip. They're going to treat you like that for a while sometimes too. That happens to with a lot of celebrities and stuff like that. Are the people that you think that will say after a few times, well, I book them. Sometimes that don't happen.

[Paul Alex]

Wow.

[Grizzly]

So they don't know how to capitalize off as far as how can I make money from it from those extra eyes. And I think that's what I did really well is that when I did work with certain people of status per se, I. I knew how to capitalize off it.

[Paul Alex]

Okay.

[Grizzly]

And I knew when to say, well, hey, this was cool. This was for free. But if you want this service to continue, this is what it costs.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah.

[Grizzly]

So when they try to scale fast, they skip how to make the money part and how to even speak to people about money.

[Paul Alex]

That's the hardest part.

[Grizzly]

That's the hardest part.

[Paul Alex]

A lot of them don't believe in.

[Grizzly]

Themselves either, so they don't even know how to speak about money.

[Paul Alex]

I love that you said that, man. I'm so big on having that self confidence in yourself. I actually tell people, charge more, charge more. Especially in 2025, man. You know, if you, you're expert in your niche and you know what you're talking about and you have the results and the social proof just like you do. Oh, dude, you could charge all day. Right. But no, that's amazing. That that makes total sense. You know, people, they think that just because you're actually shooting for a celebrity, that it should be for free so you could get the clout. And then they think the clout's gonna convert for them.

[Grizzly]

No, it didn't work that way.

[Paul Alex]

Wow.

[Grizzly]

So they think that's gonna scale them fast.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah.

[Grizzly]

But I think in this one, it's kind of tough to scale fast as a film, a photographer. You got to put in that work. I don't care if it's going to be 20, 26, they want to move faster. You got to kind of put in this work.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah.

[Grizzly]

You have to. And I know I don't see some guys that got great talent. And I'm like, you probably just, you probably should get paid that amount.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah.

[Grizzly]

But it just don't happen that way.

[Paul Alex]

Right.

[Grizzly]

Because people still want to. People need to know who you are.

[Paul Alex]

Right.

[Grizzly]

I realized like being personal in my business matters the most. Yeah. The quality is good because we all got good quality, but it's about who you are as a person. I get so Many calls from clients saying, I deal with this person. He was just a bad guy. He was a bad person. Yeah, he wasn't responsive. He was an a hole. Like, I'm like, wow. Like, people understand, like, people don't have to give you their money. They don't. They really don't. So when you treat these people like this, thank God I'm natural, just who I am. I'm a nice person. I'm not trying to fake the funko when I'm dealing with people.

[Paul Alex]

Right.

[Grizzly]

So it comes easy. But some people just not good with people.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah, no, it's hard to do. Absolutely right. You know, old school customer service, man, you know? No, it's good, dude. So let me ask you this. What would you say and have you had mentees before?

[Grizzly]

Yes.

[Paul Alex]

Proteges.

[Grizzly]

Proteges. Yes.

[Paul Alex]

Okay. What would you say? Okay. Makes a good photographer. Great. What characteristic being attention to detail.

[Grizzly]

Attention to detail. Okay, that's, that's, that's number one.

[Paul Alex]

And what, what are they looking for exactly?

[Grizzly]

I would say look for what your client really needs.

[Paul Alex]

So. So, like, are you talking about getting clarification before they do the shoot?

[Grizzly]

Yes.

[Paul Alex]

Okay, exactly.

[Grizzly]

Because that sometimes, like, they're rushing sometimes.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah.

[Grizzly]

And they just like, oh, I got paid. And it's like, yeah, you got paid, but have you made sure everything was correct with this, with this client is everything, you know, how it's supposed to be? So me, that's what I'm great at. We going. And my wife helps a lot too. She'd be like, hey, did you make sure you get this, this and that done? She kind of wanted it this way. I'm like, okay, make sure. Let me call her. And it be those simple things that can really kind of make them great. It ain't even about the quality, right? Because the quality can come easy if they learn. They want to learn that fast how to take pictures, how to edit and stuff like that. But it's about that real detailing to the people. Yeah, that's what's going to make them great. Not nothing to do with that camera question.

[Paul Alex]

Do you believe like now in 2025 that a lot of photographers have to master this skill of editing? Because the only reason why I say this is because now, cause of social media, man, you be seeing some of these people, they look like models. Hey, dang, I see them in person.

[Grizzly]

I'm like, God damn, we can talk about that all day. I know who look like it for real and who don't.

[Paul Alex]

So would you say in order to get paid, the Big bucks. As a photographer, do you have to master the skill of editing in 2025?

[Grizzly]

Yes.

[Paul Alex]

Yes.

[Grizzly]

Because I mean, even my wife wants a little touch up even on her face or something like that, like, you know. So editing is everything.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah.

[Grizzly]

Once you get the shot, you gotta know how to, you know, baby, that shot up, sweeten it up a little bit, you know. So that is big. I get a lot of calls like, can you teach me how to edit? Can you? How do I get this done? Editing is very big. I know. Cause I know a lot of models that be faking that funk and it's okay, you know, that's how they making their money too. Yeah. You know, so hey, I'm not hating on them. It just be. It'd be funny. Yeah, it does be funny. And a lot of photographers don't know how to really edit. And I think that's because sometimes not the fun part, sitting on your computer all day. And for me, I actually like, you know, I do photo and video at a very high level, like so. And I know to edit at a very high level on both sides. Whether it be photography, when I can make it look like a magazine, or whether it be a short film or a music video, which I be directing sometimes. Sometimes I gotta DP it myself or I bring a DP in, but then I gotta go home and edit it myself. I'm doing the color grading, I'm doing the cuts, everything, even the effects sometimes, you know, but that's just me. I wanted to be able to do everything. Now do I think that's always the right way to go? No, because I like sharing money with people. So I love bringing the team in and say, delegate. You do this, you do this and we all gonna make money. We all gonna have fun doing this. But I kinda got lucky, like my boy like to say that, hey, man, you do both at a crazy level. But that's because I love it though. Yeah, it was a difference. I really loved photography. I really loved making films, commercials and everything like that. That's what I love to do. Like my passion behind it. Like, I never, I'm never tired. I feel like you did these video two days in a row. Y' all was up this five in the morning. I'm not tired, I just love it. Yeah, that's what I love to do.

[Paul Alex]

So what would you say now that you pick this career and you have a huge network, man? I mean, you know, a lot of people, right? Especially a lot of people in business, you know, a lot of artists, you Travel all over the world. What would you say is the best, best part of your journey right now?

[Grizzly]

The traveling.

[Paul Alex]

The traveling?

[Grizzly]

Yeah. I mean, I don't like to play.

[Paul Alex]

Okay, okay. All right. You say traveling. What was the number one location you and the wife you gone to for work?

[Grizzly]

Number one.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah, man, you gotta pick one. You gotta pick one.

[Grizzly]

Dude, mind you, in one year, I went to, like, eight countries. So you talking about. I seen it all.

[Paul Alex]

I know, but you gotta pick one country, man.

[Grizzly]

I would say Thailand.

[Paul Alex]

Thailand.

[Grizzly]

Thailand for sure.

[Paul Alex]

What was it about Thailand that you.

[Grizzly]

Guys were like, wow, the people.

[Paul Alex]

The people.

[Grizzly]

The people are so nice. Like, oh, they're amazing. They treat you with so much respect in the food. Number two? Yeah, the food was better than anywhere. And I went a lot of places, anywhere I've ever been. Definitely better than the United States. United States is.

[Paul Alex]

I mean. Yeah, with, like, the food regulations out here, man.

[Grizzly]

It's crazy. Yeah. In Thailand, they laugh at us when we say, like, I was in Thailand, in Hong Kong, and I was like, oh, I don't want no ice cream. I don't want no milk. They was like, where you from? I'm from America. They say, that's garbage. That's why I drink this milk. Yeah, I drunk the milk. My stomach didn't hurt at all. I had no problem. Ate ice cream, went to bed with no problem at all.

[Paul Alex]

No issues.

[Grizzly]

So, yeah, our food is a big problem. But Thailand, number one for sure, if I had to give a number two would be. Would be probably Croatia. And that's a slept on place. Croatia was amazing. And I think all of them great. Because I'm paid to be there.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah, no, of course, man. I mean, you're not stressing, you're getting paid, you're enjoying the sights, you know, get to have fun and play, man. That's good. So let me ask you this, man. So what are you looking forward or what are you looking towards in the future? What are you looking forward towards in the future? Are you looking to expand your actual company? Are you looking to have people under you and then have, like, a massive team where you're, like, going ahead and, like, just, I guess, serving celebrities and.

[Grizzly]

Athletes and, like, you know, And I think this year. That's a great question, because this been the year I've been kind of thinking about how I'm going to pivot, and it's crazy that it kind of came natural. So for me, I've been working with a lot of companies, and that works for me. I just. I don't know it's easy to deal with companies more than dealing with people. Because sometimes people don't know what they want to do. A company is for sure. They know their direction, they're building for something. So when you're dealing, you're counting on, you know, not saying small business, but you're dealing on people that like the maternity shoes, stuff like that, that doesn't come as frequent all the time. So I got into companies a few years ago. So for me right now, what I've been focused on is getting me a smaller team. I don't want really a big team. I want a small team that I know I can count on.

[Paul Alex]

Got it.

[Grizzly]

I'm also even training my nephew right now who got into it naturally. So I'm like, hey. And I did him tough. Like you say. Oh, what's I say? Get any camera. I'm not giving you a camera. I'm not giving you any money. I pay you when you come work with me. But whatever camera you're gonna get, you're gonna go earn it. He called, oh, I need this equipment. This now I have all that equipment you need. You're not gonna get it. You're gonna work with this one camera for a year straight. And I told him that because when I started, I only had one camera for like more than a year.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah.

[Grizzly]

And people was like, man, you making all this money? Believe it or not, that one camera made all that money for me.

[Paul Alex]

Of course.

[Grizzly]

So right now I'm training him. I want a small, tight team. I'm focused on working with companies more on a full time basis, like yearly contracts at that point, because I want to put more time into short films. Me personally.

[Paul Alex]

That makes sense.

[Grizzly]

That's my goal. I want to be. Netflix is my goal.

[Paul Alex]

Is that where your passion is going to right now?

[Grizzly]

Yes.

[Paul Alex]

Okay.

[Grizzly]

It's always been there, but I knew it was gonna take time.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah.

[Grizzly]

Cause I done directed big music videos. I done worked with some big artists. Some of the biggest Jamaican artists I done worked with Rick Ross, Wale Cranium, Dexter Daps, the biggest dj, Dutchy Dax, you know, So I done seen it all, been on big sets. That don't nothing kind of shakes me at all. So I'm ready to go for the movies. That's my goal right now.

[Paul Alex]

So you've seen what it takes.

[Grizzly]

I know. Yes, I've seen.

[Paul Alex]

So if you were to go ahead and do movies, are you talking about, like directing, producing, like the whole nine or like, I want to direct for sure.

[Grizzly]

And I got A team that I know I can bring in that can really get it done.

[Paul Alex]

Nice.

[Grizzly]

I see these movies that they making now and I love them. They're great. But I know I can do it. That's a fact.

[Paul Alex]

Any specific genre?

[Grizzly]

Me, I'm, I'm into the action, action, action.

[Paul Alex]

My man.

[Grizzly]

Action thriller. Love it. That's me all day. I need guns and violence. I need to know.

[Paul Alex]

Come on man, bring it back, bring it back.

[Grizzly]

I need that. Cause my favorite directors like Quentin Tarantino, Christopher Nolan, Michael Bay, that's my top three. And I kind of really got ideas from them and kind of built my own monster. That's what made Grizzly. My nickname is from my wife. Most people think that's my real name, but Grizzly is actually my nickname. If I have a son, I will name him Grizzly though. I love that I will name him Grizzly.

[Paul Alex]

You should, you should.

[Grizzly]

I think right now I'm gonna go with the just running companies like they social media, they may need anything they may need for their website. Just stay in control of that, let that make the income while I can have time to really chase my dream and make the movies.

[Paul Alex]

I think it's, I think it's a powerful move that you're deciding to go from working with independent clients to companies and a lot of people, they're like, I don't want to lose the clientele. They look at the Instagram gratification of the money. But you're going for the long money, dude. You're going for longevity, which is smart.

[Grizzly]

Yes.

[Paul Alex]

I have quite a few friends that dude, they've landed big, big company contracts with like energy drinks, like every single energy drink. Right. Imagine if you were the go to.

[Grizzly]

Company for the media team and that's how you want it. Because what I realized too is that like how you say, like that instant, you can't chase the instant gratification. You can't do that.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah.

[Grizzly]

That'll have you thinking about short term little dreams of course. And then you sitting there, you still kind of like running this little wheel race, the little rat race they like to call it. You just running that over and over. Sometimes you gotta in this business. I done seen big ups and downs and how I look at life is. It's just a roller coaster. Right. So you're gonna have ups and downs. Absolutely, that's part of it. I think we need the highs and we need the lows to learn no matter what your low may be, it can be a million dollars this year and only 20,000 are following, I think you gotta embrace that journey. And a lot of people don't want to embrace that. Especially in my field, they don't want to embrace that. Well, I gotta. I gotta be broke or this isn't that. And with Instagram, we all look like we got money. It's like money to me. That's very true.

[Paul Alex]

Very true.

[Grizzly]

I wanna make sure my family Good.

[Paul Alex]

Yes.

[Grizzly]

That's money to me. That my wife can do what she wanna do. My daughter can do what she wanna do. She does dance. It's very expensive. So, like, that's my dream. That's my. For me being rich right there to look. I don't care. Nobody see me as. Yes, I got nice things, I got cars, clothes. But that don't mean nothing.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah.

[Grizzly]

Cause it's like, my wife always tell me, she's like, oh, when you got the car, why didn't you post it? Because I got it for me.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah.

[Grizzly]

If they see it, they see it. When they see it. If they want to talk about cars, we already talk about cars. Because I really love cars.

[Paul Alex]

Of course.

[Grizzly]

So I'm not doing it to flex on anybody. Nothing like that. If we want to talk DM me, we can talk about cars all day. I really know about engines. We can do that. I'm doing what I really love to do, and I'm doing it for the other people around me.

[Paul Alex]

Absolutely.

[Grizzly]

And I think what happens when we doing, like, this career with film and photography, and it puts you around those certain people that they're chasing those people too. They chasing those celebrities. I wanna look like that. Like, I'm like. I see photographers looking like rappers. Yeah. I'm like, bro, like, you in photography, are you into what it looks like? Cause you next to those people.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah.

[Grizzly]

I'm like, man, I'm not a rapper.

[Paul Alex]

I feel like I hear the same thing in. When athletes play sports.

[Grizzly]

Yes.

[Paul Alex]

And they wanna be rappers, right. They dress like the rappers.

[Grizzly]

They dress just like the rappers, you know, I'm like, man, I'm okay with the marketing. I got my dreams. I want Rolexes and stuff like that. Cause I really enjoy them, you know. But I'm not trying to look like nobody or them guys, and it's cool. But I support those. I support the rappers. I support all the athletes. I work with a lot of athletes. I work with a lot of rappers. You know, I think we all should be in our lane at the end of the day, you know, and chasing our dreams. So I'm just hoping to inspire somebody. I don't Care if it's one person, any room I walk into. That's my goal.

[Paul Alex]

I love that man. So let me ask you the most important question of this interview. What is your why?

[Grizzly]

My why is. Nah, I gotta answer it.

[Paul Alex]

Sorry to put you on the spot.

[Grizzly]

Nah, it's good. I think my why is my family and I wanna continue dreaming. I wanna continue dreaming. I don't wanna never stop dreaming at all. And I say that meaning like not saying I'm not living in the now but when you chasing dreams, you're gonna do everything that you're gonna dream about anyway if you really believe in the dreams that you're dreaming. So when I dream about something I'm like, I'm do that probably in a year it's going to happen and I'm going to say I remember I dreamt about that. What's my next big dream I want to do? Or even maybe a small dream. My wife has seen it with her own eyes. She has seen me talk about something and dream about something like I'm already enjoying it. And she like it done happened like this.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah.

[Grizzly]

From every car I done drove, from every camera I done brought, she like, I remember when you really spoke about that camera and you buying this expensive camera out of nowhere, it feel like nah, I dreamt about this. So I want to just continue dreaming and just having fun with life. That's my why.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah.

[Grizzly]

You know, and seeing my family happy, my daughter, my wife.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah.

[Grizzly]

My mom in law, my mother, my brothers, as long as everybody happy, that's, that's okay with me.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah.

[Grizzly]

I, I never. And I, it's like when I talk about business, it's hard sometimes because I know people want to talk about the dollar. Of course they want to share what they number is. They want to know how much you make a year. Grizzly. How much you making a month? I done seen 20,000amonth. I've seen 30,000amonth. That really don't mean nothing. Yeah, I never really. I hate to talk about the money aspect because I feel like then you're gonna chase a dollar bill and you're gonna be somewhere you shouldn't be.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah, you're right.

[Grizzly]

Cause you were making money before this.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah.

[Grizzly]

So you know it's not about the dollar bill because you could have stayed doing what you was doing.

[Paul Alex]

Absolutely. It's about fulfillment, man.

[Grizzly]

It's about fulfillment.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah, you're right. And I know a lot of people that, you know, they make a lot of money but they're not fulfilled. And at the end of the day. This is why, like, we encourage, you know, mindset. We encourage self help because it's important. Before you can be successful in entrepreneurship, before you can make this abundance of wealth. Right. You have to have a strong, strong why. Right. And I think it's the biggest aspect that a lot of people don't talk about. Right. But I love your story, dude. I love absolutely everything that you're doing, man. So right now, let's say, for example, we have a lot of beginners, dude. We have a lot of people that are looking for their why they're looking for like something that they want to do in life. Like whether it's a side hustle, whether it's to replace our 9 to 5. So if, let's say, for example, I get a few requests or you start getting your DMs blowed up after the episode comes out and they're like, dude, Grizzly, do you have a program like, like, like, where can I learn from you, man?

[Grizzly]

I would say definitely reach out to me because I am starting a program. I do want to start like my master class.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah.

[Grizzly]

I also want to do some traveling with it because that's kind of the fun part of being a film photographer. Kind of get you indoors. So I was like, I want to do a program where we travel. We travel the world. We travel in places where I teach you. But I also want to teach more importantly, like you say, your mindset.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah.

[Grizzly]

I want to teach you how to really get clients. Not based off your talent, but off how you treat people.

[Paul Alex]

You. Yep.

[Grizzly]

So I'm starting a masterclass definitely this year.

[Paul Alex]

You should, man. You got more than enough experience, you work with enough clients, enough authority, you know what you're talking about. You have the proof, you know. So at the end of the day, I think having a master class is one another stream for you. But it's gonna help a lot of people as well. And it's very unique, dude. Traveling and the photography, that's awesome.

[Grizzly]

Yeah. I was like, me and my wife was like, we should travel. We should bring some models. That way they have fun. They know how to interact with, even interact with the models. You gotta learn that too. How you treat women, how you treat people on set in general. Yeah, that's big. And I think that's what really helped me grow, is how I treat people. Everybody say, oh, Grizzly worked with him. Oh, he's a good, he's good. Oh, Grizzly called me, I'm gonna go work with him. Off rips. Most time I call People, it's crazy enough I call them and I need to work on this project with me. They never ask how much they getting paid. I'd be like, hey, well, how much you want for this, man? Grizzly, you already know whatever you want to do. And because I'm a great person.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah.

[Grizzly]

You know, so I'm definitely. That's what I'm gonna teach. We're gonna teach how to be a great person more than anything.

[Paul Alex]

I love that, dude. I love your core values. That's what it's about, man. That's what people do good business with and they do longevity business. Right. That's how you keep clients. Let me ask you this, man. I'm big on self education. Any books that you have read in the past or currently reading that you can recommend to the audience.

[Grizzly]

Oooh, I was YouTube University. I didn't read too much like books.

[Paul Alex]

And that's okay. If you got some good YouTube channels or some people that like, you can recommend.

[Grizzly]

Dude, hey, bro, I'm crazy. Like One guy on YouTube named Matt Peter McCannon, he's like the goat. Probably here to YouTube. Matt and Pete McKinnon is probably all you're gonna need, to be honest with you.

[Paul Alex]

And this is for photography and video.

[Grizzly]

Photography and video.

[Paul Alex]

And what do they show exactly?

[Grizzly]

They show from how to use equipment to. They don't get into the gaining clients per se, but they're more on like how to get started in what you're doing. They'll teach you a little bit of that and how to work with certain things and stuff like that. But there are a lot of inspiration as you're watching their YouTube, you get inspired.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah.

[Grizzly]

So I got inspired by them and then I just started when they were teaching something. I was googling it.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Grizzly]

Cause my wife would tell you I was on YouTube probably sometimes 40 hours straight. She would come home. I'm still on the computer learning.

[Paul Alex]

Wow.

[Grizzly]

She like. Did you even sleep? I slept a little bit. I'm about to learn how to do this program in three days. Yeah, I learned how to do what we work on like what we call Adobe Suite.

[Paul Alex]

Yep.

[Grizzly]

I learned how to work that program probably in like 72 hours. Like I was done pretty fast. I got into Photoshop. That took me a little longer. Like I got into Photoshop. I probably got really good with it after like a month because it takes a long time to really know how to edit those pictures, make girls look how they want to look and stuff like that. This generation will have a little easier, but for sure they're going to have a lot easier. But I was. I was in that computer just learning.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah.

[Grizzly]

Books, I would say one book I read. I can't remember the name right now. It was about. Really about. Was it Andrew Carney? It was about really, like how to deal with people.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah.

[Grizzly]

It still wasn't about the cameras. It was like how to deal with people, how to make people work with you, how to be a great boss, stuff like that. I was reading those type of books before anything. Dealing with a camera. Yeah, I got camera and stuff like that from YouTube and just going out there and do it. I did not go. A lot of people went to film school, stuff like that. I didn't do no film school. So when I was on big sets, they was like, oh, what film school you went to? You know how to work all this stuff. You're young. I'm like, nah. I taught myself. These guys, like, they're like, what? I was on a set, HBO show called the Ballers. I was on that set. I'm like, I know how to work this stuff already. I'm in my 20s, son. They like, not no film school. I just taught myself.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah. So that's awesome.

[Grizzly]

I think YouTube University is a thing. There you go. I should start my own YouTube university channel. That's what I'm thinking about doing.

[Paul Alex]

That was gonna lead me to my next question. What YouTuber or what influencer or what consultant online can people go to to actually learn how to generate money using their camera? And if you say. If you say there's no one, then Grizzly's your guy, guys.

[Grizzly]

Yeah, I think I am gonna get into that. I don't think Nobody really on YouTube really teaches how to really make the money aspect.

[Paul Alex]

Well, that's what I'm saying, dude.

[Grizzly]

And I think some of them are getting paid so much from YouTube. I think Matt spoke about that or another guy. He was like, we get paid so much from YouTube. He was like, I don't even know if I know how to make money outside of YouTube. And I was like, dang, it's not his fault.

[Paul Alex]

It's crazy to me.

[Grizzly]

But he started being so much of a big YouTuber. He wasn't really out there getting clients. He was just teaching stuff, he know, having fun on projects. And he was like, a lot of YouTubers just bringing me money. So I wasn't really going out there really knowing how to get it. So I had to go get it out the mud. I knew how to really go get clients, build clients, you know, for Long term.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah, man.

[Grizzly]

From the maternity shoot to the wedding to the next baby, if I felt like they had a third baby or a third maternity shoot and I didn't get that shoot, something went wrong.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah.

[Grizzly]

Something went wrong with how I must have treated them.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah.

[Grizzly]

Has that happened, though? The bridge.

[Paul Alex]

The bridge was burnt somewhere, somehow.

[Grizzly]

Somewhere. And that. And that's like. Like my wife would say right now, I dealt with hundreds of people, not probably even thousand people at this point. Now I can probably count on my hand that probably, they say, had a sour taste with me. Was it probably my fault? Probably not. Because I'm like, what have I really done to anybody?

[Paul Alex]

But I love the confidence.

[Grizzly]

Like, I'm like, I don't really have a bad taste in anybody else. My wife, she's like, I really think about it. You haven't lost any clients.

[Paul Alex]

Yeah.

[Grizzly]

If a client couldn't shoot with me, they probably say, well, they either move somewhere far or they was like, I just can't get in your schedule. Yeah. I'm like, ah, you should have wrote up me again or something like that. You should have hit me up. That's the only reason other than that I haven't lost a client and I don't know when.

[Paul Alex]

I love that. I love that. So. Okay, guys. So you guys can expect a master.

[Grizzly]

Class slash program from Grizzly soon, definitely in the summer. Because I want to. I want to take them out of town. I want to, of course, do it right. I want to do it right.

[Paul Alex]

Do it right. That's awesome, man. All right, so words of motivation, man. That's your camera. Let them know, like, all right, this is the level of podcast. So everybody that's watching here, they usually watch this for self help to get inspired. I mean, you have such an inspiring story, dude. Huge, Huge. And the thing is, you face so much adversity, dude. You want to do football. You knew you were going to be able to do it because physically you just. You. You were done, dude. So a lot of people just give up.

[Grizzly]

Yeah.

[Paul Alex]

They just be, I'm just gonna go to nine to five.

[Grizzly]

Yeah.

[Paul Alex]

But you decided you put your passion towards what you're passionate about, dude, and you grew it.

[Grizzly]

You work hard in football. I was like, I can work hard with this camera. I said, it ain't gonna beat me up. Like, the football field is. So, hey, let's get into it.

[Paul Alex]

So what are you gonna tell the folks, man?

[Grizzly]

So I would say, chase those dreams. And I mean, like, when. I mean chase, I mean, like how you wanted to breathe I think a lot of people just quit too early, especially in this generation. Believe in yourself and get the right people around you that actually believe in you. Don't sit around people that talk down on their own dreams that mean they don't believe in yours. And I realize one thing, you can't share all your dreams with everybody because they'll speak down on it, even behind your back. And I believe in energy facts. So watch who you share your dreams with, but believe in yours wholeheartedly, no matter what. I don't care if your mama don't believe in you. Honestly, you gotta believe in yourself more than anybody. And I think it'll come. I believe, I believe in God, so I believe in that energy. What you put out is what you gonna get. So put out the right energy.

[Paul Alex]

So what would you tell the folks that, let's say they have a family member, they have a spouse, they have a friend that doesn't believe in that, man, they're bringing them bad energy. How do you go ahead and avoid those type of people?

[Grizzly]

I think you gotta separate off real and it sound like, messed up. Like, oh, this is my brother. This is this and that. Oh, this is my own wife. Sometimes people get divorced. That's just the truth.

[Paul Alex]

Love them from afar.

[Grizzly]

You love them from afar, you know, so if they're not with you all the way, why be with them?

[Paul Alex]

Exactly.

[Grizzly]

Especially if you out there giving your energy to them. I'm a separate. I separate myself from people real easy. I don't waste no time because I got a family to take care of.

[Paul Alex]

Absolutely.

[Grizzly]

Hey, I love you. It's cool. But you, where you at?

[Paul Alex]

I love that. I love that. Love them from afar. Guys, do not waste your energy with people that are not gonna pour energy into you. So with that being said, Grizzly, where can they find you, brother?

[Grizzly]

You can find me at on Instagram. Rizzlyfilms I do answer all my DMs. My phone number. I still have my phone number on my Instagram. Cause I'm like, you can get in contact with me easy. Hello. No excuse. Just don't hit me up after like 11. I'm like, Grizzly, what do you think about this, man? Cause I get all that all the time. Like, my clients love it. They'll call me anytime, but any day, just DM me, call me, I'm here. I'm not hard to find at all. I'm not that type of person.

[Paul Alex]

Love that. Love that. And then are you still doing, like, events, you do it all or right.

[Grizzly]

Now I won't shoot an event, but I'll definitely send somebody out to get it done. Boom. And it'll be overseen by me. But right now, more business as far as with companies. We're shooting commercials, we're shooting the big music videos, stuff like that. We're still shooting the weddings at a certain amount per year. Cause there'd be a lot of those and they're tough.

[Paul Alex]

Absolutely.

[Grizzly]

Some of the weddings. And I still got a soft spot for the maternity shoots, so I'm still doing a few maternities. Only a few per year.

[Paul Alex]

Well, there you guys go. Grizzly, man, you. You are killing it, my friend. And I can't wait till you actually come out with the master class. It's gonna be phenomenal. I already know it is. You're gonna smash it. So with that being said, guys, look out for Grizzly on Netflix. It's coming. It's coming because you speak into existence, bro, and you make it happen. That's what we're talking about, the Level up. Right? Guys, this is Paul. Alex is the level of podcast. Once again, make sure to like, make sure to go ahead and share this with somebody that you care about, okay? It's gonna change their life. Inspiring story with Grizzly from being a football star to now being a full time entrepreneur in the video and photo game, guys. I mean he is changing lives, guys. You guys are gonna see him in his movies and man, don't forget about me, bro.

[Grizzly]

I won't.

[Paul Alex]

I'm just saying.

[Grizzly]

No, I won't. You my boy, you already know.

[Paul Alex]

But guys, make sure to tune in. Make sure to add us on YouTube and Spotify and Apple podcasts. We are currently ranked top three in business in the United States. We'll catch you on the next one.

[Grizzly]

Number three, baby.

[Paul Alex]

Thanks for listening up to the Level up podcast. If you enjoyed today's episode, make sure to share with a family, friend and everyone you know who's ready to level up. Leave a five star review on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and wherever you tune in. It really helps spreading the word. And don't forget to check out officialpaulalex.com for more episodes and resources to kickstart your journey. Let's level up together.

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