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The Daily Get Better Challenge

SPEAKER_00 0:00

At the end of every day, look at yourself in the mirror and ask, did I get better today? Monday, get better. Tuesday, get better. Wednesday, get better. If you do that for five years, ten years, fifteen years, how much better will you be? Are you getting better every single day? That's the real question. And it all comes down to taking small steps. You don't have to accomplish everything in one day or even one week. Just focus on getting a little better every single day.

Meet The Host And Returning Guest

Mark Jones 0:34

And welcome back to another episode of Real Estate AF, where the AF stands for and finance, and I'm your host, Mark Jones, and we are powered by LoneBot, now upgraded to Lonebot AI. Visit your app store, Google Play, and myloanbot.ai to get yours. And today, on our discussion, I'm bringing on a guest that's been on before, a couple of times actually. She's not in real estate, she's not in mortgage, but every time we get together, we have some pretty good conversations. And I think you guys can get quite a bit out of this. Without further ado, Blanca Abud.

SPEAKER_03 1:09

How are you doing? Hi, everybody. I'm doing great. Thank you for having me again.

Mark Jones 1:13

Of course, of course.

SPEAKER_03 1:14

For the actual fourth time.

Mark Jones 1:16

Right, because the first time was not the actual first time. It was a trial run. It was a trial.

SPEAKER_03 1:21

It was a trial run.

Mark Jones 1:23

So, Blanca, let's get into some of this stuff that we want to talk about today. Before we get going, tell everybody who you are, what you do, all that good stuff.

What A PEO Actually Does

SPEAKER_03 1:33

Yeah. So my name is Blanca Bood. I'm also known as the PEO lady. I bred in myself probably about 10 years ago. I'm in the PEO industry 15 years now. I'm the vice president of sales at Engage PEO. I manage the Texas market for my company. We're a national PEO. So we're licensed in all 50 states. I've been in the industry for a while. I would say that I'm the first female that has truly done content as well as educational material in my industry, where people really in Texas don't still don't truly know what a PEO is. So I've, you know, set myself apart in the fact that I've not only bred myself, but really put myself out there as the first female in PEO.

Mark Jones 2:16

That, and I would have to say you are very consistent. You're consistent with your messaging, you're consistent with the value add that you give to folks. You jump on your page, and it's either you're gonna see Blanca having a good time showing us who she is or educating us on the value of PEO, what it means, all that. So just as a recap, if you could tell us what the hell PEO is and stands for and all that.

SPEAKER_03 2:41

Yeah. So PEO is stands for professional employer organization and it's a one-stop shop. So it's an all-in-one solution to your back end office, administrative functions, and operational functions in a business, starting with HR compliance, which is our number one product, then going to payroll, then moving into employee benefits, risk management, and workers' comp insurance. We put everything on a HRIS platform, was which is our platform is the Prism HRS platform and everything Prism, not Prism.

Mark Jones 3:13

No.

SPEAKER_03 3:15

Prism HRS, which is our fully integrated platform that encompasses everything from applicant tracking, learning management system, your onboarding, your offboarding, your open enrollment, your payroll functions, your employee self-service, and then pretty much anything that you're wanting to do in regards to your employee and their life cycle within your company.

Mark Jones 3:36

Solid. Okay. So as we've already talked mostly about that stuff on previous. And then we actually had a discussion where we intertwined it with mortgage and real estate and all that jazz. This time we're going to dig into you and see kind of what got you here because there's a lot of folks out there that are striving to become a potential Blanca boo, maybe not in the PEO sector, but many others. And you being a single mom, kicking ass, taking names and cashing checks. I want to know. That's right. I want to know what's right. I mean, your journey. I mean, if you could tell us a little bit about it.

SPEAKER_03 4:16

Yeah. Well, I think definitely a lot of what I've done is always try to set myself apart from other people. When you talk to somebody that knows me, whether it's work-wise or personal-wise, they're always going to say my work ethic stands out the most. But I have really tried to make myself make a name for myself in everything that I do. And I just have a very different perspective on how to be successful and what clients want. Whereas I think you talk to a lot of people nowadays and they're not getting the service they need, they're not getting the guidance, the answers. It's different for a female. And I always tell people that like it's different for a woman working in a male-dominated industry, which business is male-dominated, sales is male-dominated. Most business owners are male. Obviously, there's a lot of female business owners now, but most of the people I work with are male and also within my company. Most of the other VPs are male. So being able to be a female, bringing the knowledge. I've always tried to be more knowledgeable. Not because I'm smarter, I know everything, but I'm very smart.

Mark Jones 5:28

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 5:29

Thank you. I I really try to learn the ins and outs. So if somebody has a question, I know the answer to it. And I will say that, you know, kind of what it says, I refuse to be average. I definitely refuse to be average. So I'm not an average type of person, that's for sure.

SPEAKER_02 5:47

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 5:47

And all my bosses that have ever, you know, that I've ever worked for will tell you things about me that are very different than most people's.

Mark Jones 5:55

So

Winning In A Male Dominated Field

Mark Jones 5:56

that that being said, I'm gonna ask you an off-script question because you brought it up. The idea of you working and thriving in a male-dominated industry, would it be silly of me to say that there are also plenty of positive attributes that a female like yourself would have an advantage over a male in in some cases? Especially when doing business with a man, if that makes sense.

SPEAKER_03 6:26

Well, it's actually, you know, I feel like that's a myth because the majority of my clients now are female.

Mark Jones 6:32

And and I see that as well. From our end, I pull credit on borrowers all day long. And 10 times out of 10, the female's credit's better than the males. Absolutely.

SPEAKER_03 6:43

And and it's funny because female business owners tend to gravitate towards me. So if there's an advantage, I feel like I have an advantage on both ends. Women sometimes want to work with another, another female, right? Because they feel more comfortable. And men will obviously they like to look at something pretty. So I can say that I appease both, but a lot of times, like I've had one of my clients that tells me that I tell people kind of gravitate towards me with the way that I look and my personality, but it's really my intelligence at the end of the day and my knowledge in the industry that helps close the deal, right? Absolutely. I'm not closing deals because I'm pretty.

Mark Jones 7:21

That's you're on the money. Yeah, it might get you in the door, but it's not gonna help you close that deal. And and matter of fact, it's a good segue into the idea of your intellect.

Learning English Through Trial By Fire

Mark Jones 7:33

You being from the border, not having knowing English up front. What was that journey like? I mean, take me through that.

SPEAKER_03 7:41

Yeah, it was it was difficult. I mean, I yeah, I didn't learn English till I was about seven.

SPEAKER_02 7:48

Okay.

SPEAKER_03 7:48

And I was that kid in the six class. I would say I was in first grade. So I was around six or seven in first grade, right? I will say that I was that kid in the class that is you know, the kid that doesn't speak English. Yeah, you know that that you get that sometimes, or that person doesn't speak, they need a translator. So back in the day there wasn't like immersion programs, they literally just threw you in an English speaking class.

Mark Jones 8:16

Really? Yeah, wow. Yeah, okay.

SPEAKER_03 8:17

We did not have a program. I don't, I never went to an ESL class or anything like that.

Mark Jones 8:23

That that now leads me to because my brain does this. I wonder if that was actually an advantage for you because it made you learn now. Yeah, similar to me when I became a finance manager of a car dealership. I didn't get training. I didn't they said, here's a book, good luck. Yeah, trial by fire. And I learned quickly because I was failing quickly. Yeah. If that makes sense.

SPEAKER_03 8:46

I learned pretty quickly. I think, yeah, in a matter of a year being in an all English speaking class. Um, I did go to school in Mexico for like kinder, pre-K kinder. So I remember going to school in Mexico and then getting put in school in the US. So that was just a big shift. I would say probably within the year I was speaking English. Wow. My parents did don't really speak English that well. My mom doesn't really speak English at all. So coming from a predominantly Spanish speaking only family, and then you know, living in Mexico and then coming to the US, yeah, it was it was a big change, big transition. I would say it's scary. It was scary. For sure. Yeah.

Mark Jones 9:25

And not easy. No, I can only imagine. And and for you coming from Mexico, not knowing the language, not understanding the culture up front, because they are different. Matter of fact, not as different as it used to be because we're becoming more and more of a melting pot. But back then it was pretty different. It was pretty different. Yeah. What was that like? What was it? Do you think that it was more challenging learning the language, learning the culture, learning where you fit into all of it? Tell me about that.

SPEAKER_03 9:57

Uh no, actually, once I learned English, I was thriving in academics because I've always been really smart. So I always was head of my class. I won the spelling B in elementary school. Nerd. Literally, science was my favorite subject. Math and science were my favorite subject. So I was always getting A's in class, and my teachers would always tell my parents that I was gifted. So once I learned English, I just got right into academics and really excelled in academics.

Mark Jones 10:26

So now, how about the culture of things?

SPEAKER_03 10:29

I don't really remember a lot about the culture. And really, where I'm from in El Paso, like the Mexican culture is so immersed in your everyday life. So I don't think I felt a big difference. I felt I felt accepted. I felt like my classmates accepted me. I still have friends from elementary that I keep in touch with to this day. I remember one of my friends trying to teach me how to read. I think reading, learning to read was hard for me. But once I learned to read, I was just like, oh, I just took off after that.

Mark Jones 10:58

Well, I I am now 40 and reading is still hard for me. No big deal. It's still a challenge. You got it. Yeah.

Graduating At 16 And Proving Doubters Wrong

Mark Jones 11:06

So as you transitioned, and let me change this over. There we go. As you transitioned, as you're growing, what are some of the challenges? Can you name any of the specific challenges that you faced? Because I want the audience, the folks listening, to to maybe see if they've been in these situations before and how they overcame them versus your situation.

SPEAKER_03 11:32

Yeah, I would say that a lot of times I didn't fit in after I would like got into high school. I wanted to graduate early. And I remember like talking to the principal, and I was just like, I just want to get on the fast track out of high school. Like, how do I do that? So I ended up graduating when I was 16 from high school and I was Val Victorian. I just wanted to get out of high school. I hated high school so much. I felt like I didn't fit in. None of those people like understood me. I hated the rules. I hated, I really hated high school, period. I wanted to go to college. Like that was my thing. Like, I wanted so I started college when I was 17.

Mark Jones 12:05

So safe to say you had a pretty solid plan. Yes. And the the avenue laser focused to I was laser focused. So when people in high school were like, she's fast, and it meant something else, you were like, no, no, no. I'm focused.

SPEAKER_03 12:18

I was on the fast track to get out of high school. Yeah. I was on the fast track to go to college. That was my thing. Like I already knew what I wanted to do in college. I knew the degree I wanted. I was like, I need to get high school is just bringing me down, basically. Yeah. So even my principal, I remember at the time would be like, you know, you're never gonna fit in. And so I always felt like I was like the smart kid, like the nerdy kid that I didn't really fit in.

Mark Jones 12:42

That was gonna be my next question is were there anybody out there that underestimated you, your abilities at the time?

SPEAKER_03 12:49

I think people didn't think I was gonna graduate at 16. And I had told people, like, no, I am like watch this. Yeah, I think I have been underestimated my whole life. I mean, I'm small, like in stature, like I'm little. So I think that people can underestimate me, underestimate me in anything that I do if they don't know me. But yeah, well, I proved them wrong.

Mark Jones 13:09

Yeah, absolutely. Kind of like a mighty mouse concept, you know, not Napoleon, but more mighty mouse. Exactly. That Napoleon concept.

SPEAKER_03 13:16

Yeah. So yeah, so I was pretty young when I started college and I had my I earned my first degree when I was 21. I have a biochemistry degree from UTEP, University of Texas, El Paso. And then after that, I moved to San Antonio. I was 21 and I had my degree, and I thought it was like the coolest thing ever. I was like, nobody can tell me anything.

Mentors Family Influence And Relentless Hustle

Mark Jones 13:36

And I'm sure PEO wasn't your first industry, but before we get down that road, I want to ask, because there's a lot of there's a lot of folks out there that would say, How do you get to the top? How do you get to the place that you are today without any help? Were there any mentors? Were there any guides? Were there any staple people within your life that not only motivated you, but almost opened doors that you didn't think could have been opened, if that makes sense.

SPEAKER_03 14:10

I would say I was really active in my church group when I was growing up in high school and in college, and the church group leader, her name was Grace Bishop, Rest in peace, but I would say she was my mentor growing up. I would call her for like everything and anything. She was the person I ran things by. She was the person that would give me advice. So my church group leader was, and she ran all the youth group. So, and we had like a really tight group of friends in the youth group, and that was like I would say that got me through a lot of things. Yeah. Being young, you know, teenage years, high school years, early college years, the youth, the youth group at my church was like number one.

Mark Jones 14:52

Now, would you say that those things that she helped get you through? I would imagine it was mostly on the personal side, but as we go through personal things, they also can venture into the business side, tenacity, our work ethic, things of that nature, thick skin, um, those things.

SPEAKER_03 15:12

She was well, she was a Christian lady.

Mark Jones 15:14

I mean, I would say, and but she was some hardcore Christian ladies. I'm just saying.

SPEAKER_03 15:18

You know, it's funny that you say that. I just I didn't really like have a lot of people to lean towards. My mom, she has a very traditional Mexican, you know, mentality where the woman stays at home and is a housewife. So my mom was a housewife and she really didn't have much to tell me. But I will say my dad owned several businesses. So I would kind of see him. My dad was very hardworking, very smart, very intelligent, owned multiple companies. And so I kind of would see him working and I would go with him to business trips when I was really, really young. So I would kind of see like how the way my dad would negotiate and work deals and stuff like that. Like he would buy things wholesale. I guess like now, if you were to think like Amazon, you go and buy things wholesale and then resell them. My dad would do stuff like that. And so, and buy a thousand units of something and then go resell it.

Mark Jones 16:12

He saw the opportunity and he took the risks. Yeah. You know, and and that matter of fact, that being said, everyone should know at this point, every successful person, there's there's a there's an equation, there is a a playbook that we go through mentally, whether it's from coaching or mentors or seeing it happen and then applying or implementing what you're seeing within what is your playbook? What is your you know, what is your formula, so to speak, I guess for success.

SPEAKER_03 16:46

I have a formula now, but like if you asked me then, I didn't have a formula. My formula was like study hard, work hard. Like that was my formula and play hard. I always like to have fun. So I held two jobs. I went to school full time, I worked until nighttime. I would go home and study, sometimes on no sleep, go in the morning and take a test. So I ran pretty hard. I mean, it was it was hard work and to be that young, going to college. I also got a full right scholarship. I had my first year paid for at school, but then I ended up writing an essay that got picked up and I I got a full right scholarship, which I actually couldn't believe when I got the letter in the mail.

Mark Jones 17:27

That kind of stuff, full ride scholarship, that's not something that's handed to you. No, there's there's some things that you had to do to earn that.

SPEAKER_03 17:34

Yeah. So since the first year, when you're a Valvictorian, your first year is paid to any school. Um you just have to prove that you're a Valvictorian. And so after that, I was like, okay, well, so is that what you were? Yeah. Okay. I was Valvictorian. So you just exactly I had a 4.0 GPA and you show your Valvictorian certificate and you get your first year paid. So I knew for sure I had the first year paid, but then I was like, okay, well, how am I going to pay for the rest of school?

SPEAKER_02 17:56

Right.

SPEAKER_03 17:56

So somebody told me, go to the scholarship office and there's all these things on the board where you can just write essays. So I just picked up every single one. Wow. And it wrote all the essays to all the grants. I applied to every single one that you could possibly think of. And I got picked up. It got picked up.

Mark Jones 18:12

And and you know what? Those essays, they didn't have your picture on it. No.

SPEAKER_03 18:16

So I mean, it's all in No, I still remember I won the Yvonne Richardson Memorial Fund four-year scholarship. Yeah.

Mark Jones 18:24

What kind of fundamental?

SPEAKER_03 18:25

Nolan Richardson. Nolan Richardson, which is a very famous coach. Okay. He was a basketball coach. Okay. They had a child that passed away, so they did a fund on behalf of their deceased child that died early in age.

Mark Jones 18:37

Very good.

SPEAKER_03 18:38

And so it was a couple that did ended up not having any kids, and they they gave a four-year scholarship like every year.

Mark Jones 18:44

That's pretty cool.

SPEAKER_03 18:45

Yeah. So he was a former coach.

Mark Jones 18:46

So

Health Wake Up Call And Lifestyle Change

Mark Jones 18:47

you going through school, we know you were studious. We know you were a straight arrow. Did you participate in any sports going through? No. None at all. No time for it.

SPEAKER_03 18:56

I'm not athletic.

unknown 18:58

Really?

SPEAKER_03 18:58

Yeah, I'm really not athletic.

Mark Jones 19:00

I did that. That didn't surprise to me. I know.

SPEAKER_03 19:03

I didn't get to start working out until later on in my life. Okay. I actually was started getting really overweight. So yeah. Okay. When I was in my young 20s, I was really overweight. So, no, I'm not athletic. Okay. Now I didn't play any sports.

Mark Jones 19:16

This what when you were at that time, what made you make that shift? To lose weight? To get healthier. That's what I'll call it. So we'll be politically.

SPEAKER_03 19:26

I think I was 23. So I graduated college at 21. I moved to San Antonio. I had my daughter at 20.

SPEAKER_02 19:31

Okay.

SPEAKER_03 19:31

So I was a single mom, moved over here, and I started getting pain in my legs and my knees. And I went to the doctor, and the doctor said, You are obese. And that was like a wake-up call because nobody had told me, like, hey, you're getting a little fat, or some people just don't like to tell you the truth. Right. Right. So they even you're like, hey, do I look okay? They're like, oh, you look great. Yeah. I'm not that person, by the way. I'm always going to tell you the truth. That's right. I'm always like, hey, you're gaining a couple pounds. What's going on? Everything okay at home. What's going on? You're looking a little fluffy.

SPEAKER_02 20:04

That's awesome.

SPEAKER_03 20:04

But yeah, so I ended up hitting like almost 200 pounds. And what? Yeah. Okay. I was I gotta see a picture. I have pictures.

Mark Jones 20:12

I have right now. We're gonna flash the pictures up on the screen. Excuse me. The real.

SPEAKER_03 20:18

So I just was devastated when the doctor told me I was overweight and he's actually said obese for my height, which I'm 5'2. He said, You should be, you know, he showed me what the BMI scale is. I didn't even know what that was. So I wasn't educated in that. I just I have a had a biochemistry degree and I was entering the workforce and I ended up getting really unhealthy and really overweight. So I hunt I joined a gym, hired a trainer, I hired a personal trainer that would hold me accountable. And that's how I started losing weight.

SPEAKER_02 20:48

Boom.

SPEAKER_03 20:48

And I changed my eating, like I changed my lifestyle completely. I changed my eating habits. I I told you I'm gonna meal prep after this. So I focus on eating very clean and healthy. Obviously, you know, here and then I still enjoy some meals, but for the most part, I eat really clean and healthy.

Mark Jones 21:03

And that it's I mean, this is totally side topic, but watching something the other day, how they were talking about all of this Ozempic stuff, and people are using it and then they stop, and then essentially they gain the right weight right back. Oh, yeah. Why? Because your lifestyle didn't change. You didn't change anything that got you there, essentially. So a lot of folks they can go through any kind of diet, but at the end of the day, if you don't change your lifestyle, you're gonna go right back to what you were doing.

SPEAKER_03 21:32

Yeah, it was a lifestyle change too, where like I ended up really enjoying it, and then I started competing in bodybuilding physique and bikini competitions, and then I got picked up as a model after that. So then my whole life changed really when I lost weight. I started modeling, I started doing promo modeling, I started doing bikini contests, physique contests. So yeah, I was, I mean, at my prime time, I was like 14, 15. Body fat at all lean muscle.

Mark Jones 22:02

I was looking good.

SPEAKER_03 22:05

I was looking good. I was in college. I was out of college, so at this point, I didn't start on my fitness journey till out of college. Okay. But I will tell you, you know, your nutrition is so important because I started getting really depressed. I started, you know, it just affects your whole life.

Mark Jones 22:23

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 22:23

If you're unhealthy and you're not eating well, it literally affects everything, your energy level, just the way you think, just everything. So I overall started getting healthy like as a whole.

SPEAKER_02 22:38

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 22:38

Right. So once that happened and that shift happened, I think that also has had an effect on my career taking off. Really?

Mark Jones 22:45

I can imagine. I can imagine.

Career Pivots That Built Sales Mastery

Mark Jones 22:47

So let's let's talk about that career now for a little bit. So PEO was the first real no. Okay. Oh no. Let's let's talk about that.

SPEAKER_03 22:56

Yeah, no, I went through a series of different careers, all in sales. I've always been in sales. I've never done anything else. Actually, what brought me to San Antonio is enterprise rent a car. So to all my enterprise rent a car peeps, ERAC. That was my first job out of college. And man, anybody that's been in car rental, it is a hard job.

Mark Jones 23:15

Yeah, I've heard you have to have a degree, but you'll make a hundred grand if you work your butt off.

SPEAKER_03 23:19

Oh no, we made 30,000. Oh no. Yeah, that was your incoming salary. You were a considered a manager in training at with a required degree.

Mark Jones 23:28

With a required degree.

SPEAKER_03 23:29

You had to have a degree to work there. But I would say the skills that they taught you were invaluable. The training program that they have is one of the best. It's very well known in sales training. So I automatically like became recognized within enterprise. I won several awards. I was MVP in sales. I moved up really quickly. And then after that, I went into medical sales. Okay. So I was kind of like, I'm done with this whole rental. It's grueling hours, guys. Please don't ever be mean to your rental counter people. And you're standing up all day behind. You are sometimes washing cars, you're there at 6 a.m. You're working 12 hours. It is it is a grueling job. So be nice to those people. Wow. I have a whole like admiration now, being that I was on the other side of the counter, right? And I I've made some of my best friends, by the way, at Enterprise that I still keep in touch with to this day. So um after that, I went into medical sales and I actually sold hyperbaric medicine and I worked for a wound care facility at the surgical foundation hospital that's on a Hoopner. Okay. And that I would say was like my first real big job. That was like, oh my gosh, I have a medical sales job. I was working with doctors, I was marketing to doctors. That was probably my first like business-to-business job.

Mark Jones 24:44

And I would imagine that it prepared you for what you're in now.

SPEAKER_03 24:48

Absolutely.

Mark Jones 24:49

Because it is face-to-face sales, uh, a little bit of education concept there because educated them on the different medications, all that jazz. On the products, yep. Yeah. God, I just watched a movie about that. Oh, there was a sales lady that that just crushed it. I don't know what they were called.

SPEAKER_03 25:05

Oxycotton?

Mark Jones 25:06

Maybe. Was it that?

SPEAKER_03 25:08

I if it's the one I'm thinking, yeah. It was a good movie. I thought it was entertaining. She crushed it. I mean, women actually they hire a lot of women in medical sales and they do hire pretty girls in medical sales. And I did really well. I actually implemented some new techniques, some new processes within the company where actually the people that were there before me would be like, Why are you working so hard? Why are you making these spreadsheets? Why are you doing all this? And I'm like, Oh, I just think it's a good idea that we change these processes. And when I would present it to the owner of the company, like, this is genius. Everybody's gonna do this now. And I would be like, I'd be like, Oh, yeah, that spreadsheet. Now you're gonna have to do it. That's right.

SPEAKER_02 25:43

That's awesome.

SPEAKER_03 25:44

So I did really well in medical sales. And then after that, I the the company that I was working for, by the way, ended up going, took a really bad direction, ended up going bankrupt. So I got out of medical sales and I went into banking. So banking was my next kind of foot in the door that really prepared me to work with business owners. I started as a personal banker, I then went into business banking. I started at Citibank, believe it or not. Good deal. Citibank, they they're not even they don't have branches here anymore, but they used to.

SPEAKER_02 26:12

Absolutely.

SPEAKER_03 26:12

And I was a personal banker there. I then got promoted to business banker. And after Citibank, I went to work for a bank that was called Compass Bank. Yeah, I think and then I then it got bought out by BBVA. Yep. So I worked there for six years and I just loved it. What was that? Oh man, I started making it in 2008.

Mark Jones 26:32

Did you know Deanna Jennings? No. Okay, she I think she was ahead of their training stuff there at IBC for years. Really? Yeah, and then retired and joined her husband.

SPEAKER_03 26:43

I started in 08, which is actually a really bad year to start in banking.

SPEAKER_02 26:47

Yeah. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 26:48

Bad year. It wasn't the mortgage crash happened. All the banks were going like under. I don't know if you remember. Oh, yeah. Okay. It was a really bad year to be in banking.

Mark Jones 26:58

I was a business banker at Chase. Gosh, where was I?

SPEAKER_03 27:02

Fresno and we both have a business banking background.

Mark Jones 27:07

I was personal banker and then got promoted to business banker. I was shelling out the investment side and then shelling out the mortgage side until it was like, okay, I can do both of these. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 27:20

Yeah, yeah. I was I had my mortgage license at the time. I also had my insurance license because you have to be licensed on both. And then I will tell you that working at the bank, obviously back then is very different than now, but that is where I really, really learned all my skills, like my phone skills, how to call clients. Like Citibank was a it was dead. Okay. You would walk into a citibank, there was nobody, right? Nobody's so it was my job to bring clients in. How and I started picking up the phone. I started going to businesses, I started calling on companies. Yeah. And I've actually got the lobby packed. And I remember one day, one time a manager came in and he's like, Who are all these people? I'm like, they're waiting for me. Ah, that's epic. I okay. Take a number. Yeah, I'm like, I'm really busy right now. So I actually started just being like the best banker ever. Everybody knew me. I started getting referrals. Then I moved to BBVA and I mean the lobby would be packed and people would be like, No, I'm gonna wait for Blanca. She's my banker. And so I really started building these relationships with clients. To this day, I have some banking clients that are my PEO clients now.

Mark Jones 28:23

Yeah. So I that's pretty smart to leverage that book, especially if you have relationships with them.

SPEAKER_03 28:28

Yeah, I build long, long-term relationships. I mean, we're talking about 20 plus years, right? So I did really well in banking until it was time for me to explore other things. I was already the highest paid banker. I was like hit a ceiling basically.

Mark Jones 28:43

That's the reason why I left.

SPEAKER_03 28:44

I hit a ceiling. I was like, okay, I'm already like surpassed this. I need to find my next challenge. It wasn't challenging for anymore. I could do it with my eyes closed. I was like, okay, yeah. So I had just I didn't know what PEO was and I wasn't looking for a PEO job. And in my article that's coming out soon, I put like PEO found me. Like it was actually like almost like an accident that I got into the industry, but I had put some feelers out there. So some people that I did medical sales with, maybe thinking like maybe I'll get back into medical sales, not really knowing what I was gonna do, but just updated my resume, put it out there, and I get a call saying I have an opportunity of a lifetime. It's uncapped sales. Uh you can sell as much as you want, it's uncapped income potential. Yeah. So I was like, oh, okay, let's. I'm excited. I'm listening. I'm listening. I want to hear about this. So I interviewed for the job, and every interview that I've done for any job, I have gotten the job. Like any interview that I've ever, ever had, I've gotten the job. And you could talk to all my bosses that have interviewed me. I always try to do something different in the interviews to stand out. Okay. So I like my manager that hired me at the bank, I actually wrote scripts. Okay. And I and I took him to the interview and he was like, What's that? I'm like, these are all the scripts that I made and I hand-wrote them. I mean, it was pages on pages. And he was like, You wrote all these scripts and he was like reading them and he was like, Oh my God, this is so good.

Mark Jones 30:09

Now, mind you guys, that was well before Chat GPT. Okay.

SPEAKER_03 30:13

You had to write your own scripts and what you were gonna say when you talked to a client. Yeah, you had to be prepared, or when you had them on the phone. Yep. So on this interview, particularly, I was like, okay, well, what am I gonna do now?

SPEAKER_02 30:23

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 30:23

So I had gotten a lot of accolades at enterprise, a lot of accolades in medical sales. I'd gotten awards at the bank. I was awarded, I was number one banker. I was like top sales, all this stuff. So I put everything together in a binder. Okay. Basically, like all my sale rank, all my sales rankings, all my awards, all my accolades, my resume, everything. And I put in a binder and it's was called the brag book. I actually got it from I don't even know where I heard it. I heard it somewhere. So I was like, I'm gonna make a brag book to show this off. So when I got to the interview, because I really wanted that job, I knew like I wanted that job. I didn't even know what it was, but I wanted so I got to the interview, I did really well, and then I at the end I just kind of like passed that over to the uh hiring manager. And she's like, What's this? I'm like, I put a brag book together that way after the interview, you can look at it and you can see some of my accolades.

Mark Jones 31:13

Yeah, because I didn't want to just sit here and talk about me. Yeah, now you can read all of it later.

SPEAKER_03 31:17

Yeah. And so it actually, that brag book made it all the way to the Dallas office for like the regional manager that was interviewing me, was like, Hey, I got this brag book in the mail that you put together and was like, What is this about? Like, nobody's ever done this. And I'm like, I just wanted to do something different. So, so then I got the job. Boom. It's awesome. Okay, yes. I got the job, and I've been in PEO ever since then, and that was 15 years ago.

Owner Mentality As A W2 Seller

Mark Jones 31:43

Now, PEO, without really talking about the PEO industry itself, there's plenty that you would be able to shed light for our listeners in regards to the idea of owning your business. And even though you're W-2, just like I'm W-2 under my own business concept, going at your let's call it tasks, your goals without the idea that somebody is here to double check me. I'm more so doing it for me. And I and I know that's you.

SPEAKER_03 32:21

Yeah, that's a good point. So I've always had a an owner mentality. I think that's one of the things my bosses are they've never really had to micromanage me. They've never really had to like oversee my work. Most of the time, my bosses would always be like telling me to go home. Basically, like, go home. There's nobody here. Why are you still working? So the ownership mentality and really taking ownership of your job, even though you may be a W-2 employee, does set you apart from other people to the point where, like, in my first PEO company, people thought I owned it. Yeah. People would be like, oh, so you're the owner. And I'm like, no, I'm like, way not.

Mark Jones 32:58

No, but that's that's that's how it should come across when you believe in what you're doing, when you're good at what you're doing.

SPEAKER_03 33:04

Yeah, it's that mentality that really has taken me to now being an owner, right? And really owning my own book or my own shares of the company that I'm at now.

Mark Jones 33:14

So and overall, you own your destiny. Why? Because you're fully in control, you know?

SPEAKER_03 33:19

Absolutely. I you are in control. That's one of the things I love about sales. I I really, really love that about sales. Like I live in a neighborhood with doctors' attorneys and all kinds of stuff in there. Everybody always asks me, what do you do? I'm like, I'm in sales. Yeah. But you know, being in sales, you do control your own destiny. You control your own future because the harder you work, the more money you make. And it's really up to you. So there is no excuses. And I always worked for a W-2 like salary job, but I pretend like I have no money in the bank. I wake up every day like I'm broke. Like the rent's like, yes, like I gotta pay the rent tomorrow. Like that's how I wake up. A lot of people don't wake up like that. A lot of people are very comfortable, yeah. They get very complacent, especially if they've been in their industry for multiple years, right? They're not reinventing them themselves, they're not thinking of new trends or innovative things to put their name out there. So I would say those things set me apart, but it's really just the passion, right? Like I'm passionate about what I do, and you could tell. Yeah. Like people that talk to me are like, man, you really love your job.

Mark Jones 34:19

And I'm like, yeah. Well, I think you also have a sense of love for being the best. And I don't think that's a a fault, that's a positive trick, to be honest. There's five people in the room. Anybody want to arm wrestle type concept to make sure that I'm on top? Yeah. But you mentioned something a moment ago where you said that you live in a certain neighborhood where there's doctors and attorneys, et cetera, and you're sales. What I want the folks out there to understand and know is even the doctors and the attorneys will reach a plateau if they don't grasp the concept that what they do too is also sales. If that makes sense.

SPEAKER_03 35:01

In a way, in a way, yes. But I would say they're probably in a capped sales environment at that point. Unless you own it. Unless you own it or unless you're diversifying what you're doing. Like, I mean, yes, I'm a PEO, but there's a lot of other investments that I'm working on. So PEO is not the only thing that I do now. So you really have to, I would say, diversify yourself in different ways. Obviously, we know one form of income is not going to do it nowadays. So you really have to think about I want to get I want to get your thoughts on something.

Mark Jones 35:30

So yeah, I there are many people that I'm seeing social media, and this has been for years, that are promoting the multi-stream, and you've got to create multi-streams of income. And my message to those people is you've got to create the one stream that allows you to then create the others. There's no way, and I think a lot of folks are taking that advice that we're seeing online and whatnot at face value of you got to have multiple streams of income and forgetting or skipping over the fact that you need to be the best at one thing first that generates the income that allows you to put and place seeds in those other places. Yes, to take a risk and lose and still keep going.

SPEAKER_03 36:14

So it has to do with the consistency part. So, like people already know me to be consistent to deliver a certain level of service. So that's already known. That's what got me to where I am, right? So once I got to a certain position in my career, I started thinking, okay, well, what am I gonna do next?

Mark Jones 36:31

So I aka what am I gonna do with this money?

SPEAKER_03 36:34

Yes, exactly. You can only buy so many houses and personal than everything else, yeah. And pools and stuff. So I'm like, what am I gonna do? So I did start uh working with a wholesale investor. So we I do do some wholesaling on the side. I just am launching my Amazon and Walmart storefronts. Very good. So I have that going on right now, and then I have ventured in a lot of other insurance partnerships. I have a lot of partnerships where it's like a revenue split partnership with other referral people that I work with. So I'm in, I'm in a lot of things, and that's a good thing.

Mark Jones 37:11

The

Diversifying Income Without Losing Focus

Mark Jones 37:12

diversification concept is not a bad thing unless you don't have the funds to be diversifying. Yes. Does that make sense?

SPEAKER_03 37:19

Well, then you really can't diversify at that point.

Mark Jones 37:22

But there are a ton of people out there that I'll talk to and they're like, Yeah, I've got my hand in this jar and this jar and this jar. Okay, well, what do you do for a living? Oh, well, I work here and I make 40 grand a year. Well, you don't have enough there to be leveraging all this other stuff yet. Um I think that And I don't want to sound rude, but it's just hey, crawl before you walk concept.

SPEAKER_03 37:44

And I think that people are just not patient. Like I I've had people that come into PEO and they leave the first year or second year. Like, it's not an easy sale. You're not gonna make your book like the first year, second year.

Mark Jones 37:55

It takes years. Well, make making the kind of money that you make at the caliber of sales, yeah, it shouldn't be easy.

SPEAKER_03 38:03

It's not, it's not easy. Mind you, I did go to school for nine years. Okay, I have a master's degree in business administration. So I'm glad you said that. I I am educated in business, so so let me ask you, because you said that, I do not have a degree.

Mark Jones 38:20

Okay, went to school for all of it, but I'm a blog.

SPEAKER_03 38:24

You went to school and dropped out.

Mark Jones 38:25

Oh yeah, oh yeah, dropped out real hard. I got in an argument with my law professor. I was working at the time. I had just started a credit repair business. I was working inside of the bank at Walmart. I was going up to New York once a month to see my high school sweetheart, discovered Canal Street, started bringing back fake Ed Hardy stuff, I was selling those at the poker games that I was running. I was I was a hustler. Yeah. All the while I had my normal banking job. But the entire time I would have people say, Oh, you gotta have that, you gotta have that degree. And at that time in my life, I was shaking and moving with people that did not and were doing very well in life. So my question to you is more so there's no doubt you did you learned in college, right? There's no doubt you learned in high school, et cetera, et cetera. If anything, you learn more about yourself than anything, right? Probably is. But would you say that after you got out and into the real world, did you start learning more so about what business is, how it works? Because school teaches you the books.

SPEAKER_03 39:32

Yeah. So I I I have had that question come up a lot of times, but I always worked during college. Okay. I never just went to college, I didn't have that luxury. Yeah. Even though my school was paid for, like, I mean, I was in fully independent. Sure. So I always worked one or two full-time jobs and went to school full-time. Right. So I was team no sleep. Like I literally didn't sleep. Yeah. So, or I slept very little, let's just say. But I I would see the students that only went to school, not all of them, because there's anomalies. There's people that only focused on school and they're doing great right now. But I also know the students that just went to school and didn't work. And what they end up doing is they just go back to school, go back to school and get all these degrees, all these degrees. And then they never actually even enter the workforce because they're so educated that they don't even they have no personal skills, they have no business acumen, they have nothing other than a bunch of degrees. So I don't think you should just go to school.

SPEAKER_02 40:26

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 40:27

I was I had an advantage because I was already excelling in sales and going to school. So when I had my degree, I already had a long resume of sales. I mean, I was in retail sales, guys. I worked at Best Buy, I was in the TV, I was selling TVs, I worked in the boom room, I worked at Sam's Club, I worked all over. So I had I've sold clothes. If everybody knows from El Paso, I sold clothes for a living. I worked at the buckle, I worked everywhere.

SPEAKER_02 40:53

That's awesome.

SPEAKER_03 40:54

So I always hustled. So no, I don't believe that education alone will get you where you need to go. But it's like if you have talent and work ethic, great. If you just have work ethic, that alone can get you where you need to be. If you just have talent and no work ethic, that sometimes doesn't work either.

Mark Jones 41:11

Most of the time.

SPEAKER_03 41:12

They they do say that a person that is working as hard as you that has no education, vice versa, somebody that does have work ethic and talent and has education normally gets promoted faster. But I don't know. I don't have any statistics on that, I don't have any research on that. I really don't.

Mark Jones 41:28

And I couldn't tell you because I haven't worked for anybody in a while.

SPEAKER_03 41:30

I just don't mind, but I will tell you that the type of person that it takes to not have an education and succeed and be a hustler is a different type of person. Yeah, I don't think they make those people anymore. Those people don't exist anymore, Mark. Those people are extinct. We're going extinct, okay?

Mark Jones 41:47

You see that legit my unicorn horse.

SPEAKER_03 41:49

Legit.

Mark Jones 41:50

Like that's awesome.

SPEAKER_03 41:51

Everybody always asks me, where can we hire somebody like you? I'm like, there is no train, you would have to train somebody to have that type of work ethic. And even then, you really can't even train mentality at that point, right? Mentality thing.

Mark Jones 42:05

I believe it is a you grow through what you go through type concept. Yeah. So safe to say I've been through some shit. I've overcome that most of it. Yeah, all of it. Because I'm still kicking. Same concept with you. You're educated and still got in the thick of things, going through it and said, No, I'm not giving up. Hit me on the head, I'll get up. Let's go. You know?

SPEAKER_03 42:28

It's just the same thing. Like, I've always had a I guess a chip on my shoulder. I've always been like, you know what? I'm gonna prove people wrong. Um that was me. People are not gonna tell me I can't do something. Watch, I'm gonna do it. If actually, if somebody told me I couldn't do it, I'd be like, Oh, okay, watch me now. Like, I'm gonna do it now because you said I couldn't do it.

Mark Jones 42:46

You know, it reminds me of like what is that, next Friday, the guy in the thing with the curly hair.

unknown 42:51

Woo!

SPEAKER_03 42:52

I wish you was um, you know, it's it you learn a lot, but there's a lot of sacrifices that go along with it. Like I sacrificed a lot being a single mom, going to school, working full-time, like it was a lot of sacrifices, a lot of time with my daughter that I didn't spend. It was a lot of very late nights, it was a lot of isolation, it was a lot of loneliness, it was a lot of really being very, very focused. And for anybody that has been on that journey or that path knows what I'm talking about. Yeah, like it is not easy. It's it it is very hard. And looking back now, like I'm just like, how did I do it? I know how I did it. You still are you still are I'm doing it. I'm I'm still doing it, but I'm saying, like, I guess you don't realize how resilient you are and how you know how things can you know make you motivated. Like I would take things that would make me mad or angry or upset or sad, and I would use that for mute motivation, right? That would fuel me. That's right. Yeah, to be like, oh God, okay, let's go. And so, you know, I lost my dad. When I was very young, my dad passed away. So I really only had my mom, and my mom herself was not a very, very good role model. I always talk about that. My mom, again, she's just a firm believer in that women should not be in the workforce, women should be at home, taking care of the household. So me and my mom don't see eye to eye in a lot of things. So I but you know, it's hard when like even your own family, you really can't confide in them. So I just did it on my own.

Mark Jones 44:27

I think it's safe to say that your mom is still proud of you.

SPEAKER_03 44:29

Oh, my mom is very proud of me. Oh, she is very proud of me. But she a lot for a long time she couldn't understand what I was doing.

SPEAKER_02 44:35

Right. Totally different mindset.

SPEAKER_03 44:40

People in my family were like, we don't understand. Like, you already have a degree. Like, why are you gonna get a master's degree? You don't need it. You're I was already making good money at the time. So it's not like it was gonna make a big difference. But honestly, for me, like, and I get that question a lot. Did my master's degree really help me? Did my MBA really help me? And for me, it did. Yeah, like for me, it really did. So it was worth every penny. I could say I love that. Yeah, well plus free education. That's true. That's true.

Mark Jones 45:07

So as, and I don't know how old you are, but I just hit 40. Yeah.

Turning 40 Travel Burnout And Retirement Math

Mark Jones 45:11

A couple of days.

SPEAKER_03 45:11

We're in the 40s club. Yeah. So a couple of days ago. Okay, then I'm altered. I'll be 42, guys.

Mark Jones 45:19

There you go.

SPEAKER_03 45:19

Full disclosure.

Mark Jones 45:21

Full disclosure. No aliens. No. Okay, so most well, I don't even, I can't even say most. A lot of folks when they hit their 40s, it's about like this. Am I stuck? Do I keep going? Do I feel like I've accomplished what I've needed to? Almost like a checkpoint, a gut check moment that people have. For me, I still feel great. I I don't I haven't lost a single speck of motivation in what I do. For you, as you rolled into your 40s, what what was that transition like business-wise, mentality-wise, did you let it take over you or did you prove those things?

SPEAKER_03 46:08

I I know the answer to this, but there's a lot of answers to this is a big question.

Mark Jones 46:13

Kind of like a 40 question. Yeah, it's a big well.

SPEAKER_03 46:16

I will tell you like, I don't look my age. So a lot of times when I go into boardrooms or business rooms and I take over the meeting and I'm very, very confident. I know what I'm talking about. People are like, who is this girl? I'm also very little. So people think that I'm younger, and so they don't realize that I am in my 40s and that I have been doing this for a long time. So I it's kind of like a shock factor almost, which I think is it's hilarious. Yeah, yeah. It really is great. But I will tell you, as far as hitting 40, like I am slowing down. Okay. I'm not as I'm still energetic because I've always been a high energy type of person, but I'm not as energetic. Sure. I am going, I am thinking of retirement. Yeah. Like that's where my mind is at. Yeah. My mind is like, okay, I probably have eight solid, maybe eight years. So I hit 50 to really, really go harder, go at this pace.

SPEAKER_02 47:08

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 47:09

So my mind is like, what am I doing to set myself up for retirement? I mean, I have my financial advisor, I have a bunch of different things that I'm working on. I am thinking about retirement. Like I physically, and I tell this to my boss all the time, I physically can't go this hard forever, right? Like your body does feel it. My body feels it. Same here. I say I've been in sales for 30 plus years, but in in sales years, that's like 60. Okay. So in sales years, it's like doubles, it's like dog years. I always tell people that. So for me, I'm already thinking, okay, in the next three years at 45, I'm winding down. And then in the next five years, I'm retiring. Yeah. That's where I'm at.

Mark Jones 47:51

And I'd love to think that I would do the same thing, but I also thought when I hit 30, I'll start slowing down and 35. And now here I am, 40. And I'm like, let's go. Good point. Good point.

SPEAKER_03 48:04

You're at the very beginning. Okay. Just wait. I'm gonna come back in a couple years, Mark. See how you're feeling better? Yeah, how are you feeling over there? You start feeling a little bit? Yeah, you start feeling a lot of things you didn't used to feel. You know, I travel, like I cover the the beautiful state of Texas and I travel all over all over the state. So having a job that requires for you to travel is also a whole nother beast in itself. Like traveling for business is very hard. Wearing, it is very wearing. And you know, I live in and out of a suitcase for four months out of the year when I'm in my peak season. Like I actually just stay in a suitcase. Like I come home, I unpack, I pack, I unpack, I pack like that in itself, and being at the airport that many hours, being stuck, flights delayed, having to get rental car, having to drive, it is very draining. It's exciting at first. Everybody thinks, oh my God, that is so fun. You get to go to all these places. Like, and at first, I think the first couple years that I did it was exciting. It's not exciting anymore. It's just like another, you know, meeting, another thing you have to do that's part of your job. But that's where my mind's at right now. Obviously, I'm still trying to reinvent myself. I'm still trying to think of new trends. I'm still trying to stay, you know, at top of mind of people. Like, I want to still stay relevant. I want to stay when people are thinking, hey, I have a business problem, I want them to think I'm gonna call Blanca, right? When people have challenges in their business, I want them to think I'm gonna call Blanca.

SPEAKER_02 49:32

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 49:32

When anything's going on in their business, I want them to call me. So how is that? How are they gonna remember that? So I'm constantly thinking of ways to put myself out there to do ed like today, this morning, I did an educational breakfast where I'm talking about PEO, where I'm talking about business challenges, what business owners are going through, what business owners wish they didn't do, what what they wish they knew, right? That somebody would have told them when they first started. So those are the things that I'm trying to stay on top of and I'm trying to really build my circle. I think at this age, like they say like your circle starts getting smaller. That is true.

Mark Jones 50:08

It is true.

SPEAKER_03 50:09

That is very true.

Mark Jones 50:10

I've been shrinking mine since 18. Some of the they can't shoot some of them off.

SPEAKER_03 50:15

I I have recently started doing that, and I will tell you like the circle that I have right now is is great. It is very, very made of a lot of business owners, very successful, very supportive, very smart. But overall, like your circle starts getting smaller when you get in your 40s and when you get older.

Mark Jones 50:32

At least it should.

SPEAKER_03 50:33

Or yeah, or at least it's should. So that's kind of where Blanca is at right now. Circles getting smaller. I'm getting tired.

Mark Jones 50:41

That's also right. A couple more questions that I have for you here before we wrap this up. So,

Reinvention And The Hidden 14 Hour Days

Mark Jones 50:48

in regards to the transitions that you've made, has there ever been a moment that you've had to reinvent yourself? Lots. Right. Lots of moments. Tell me about some of that.

SPEAKER_03 51:00

You know, some of the times that I left a position wasn't because I wanted to, right? Yeah. I left medical sales because there was some poor leadership going on. But I really love that job. And so I had to I had to go into banking, even though it's sales, I never had sold financial products before. That was a reinvention. Going into banking from medical sales was a big reinvention for me. I've had to reinvent myself several many, many times. Uh, many times. Honestly, losing weight and you know, getting fit was a reinvention in itself. That was a big reinvention for me. Where people did not recognize we get honestly more responsible. And so it is, it's I think we're reinventing ourselves all the time.

Mark Jones 51:49

I would think so, or at least I think I am. Especially when you call it keeping up with the Joneses. I'm the Joneses, so I don't need to reinvent. It's like keep up, y'all.

SPEAKER_03 52:00

That's true. Guys, that is a good point.

Mark Jones 52:02

But definitely with let's call it technology, the way people are communicating. I am not a very politically correct person. I've had to reinvent myself to acclimate to how people accept discussions until I get to know you better. And then all right, you can have it. And then come to find out, oh, okay, they like me because I'm me. But I think our industry's business, our world, it's constantly changing. Constantly. And if you're not keeping up with the what is acceptable, what people are looking for, what kind of value should I add to whatever it is that you're doing, you're gonna be left behind.

SPEAKER_03 52:46

Def well, I think that the people that are successful and that stay successful are because they are reinventing themselves constantly.

SPEAKER_02 52:52

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 52:53

I mean, we do insurance, and insurance is constantly changing. You know, technology itself and the technology that we use for our clients is always changing. So we have to stay in the forefront of the new technology products that are out there. Employees are changing. So the demographics of employees are changing. And then, you know, now you have the Gen Z employees, you have the millennial employees. So, how do you handle all these different types of employees? Now we have the alpha generation, which is my son. I wish I was in the alpha generation. That sounds cool.

Mark Jones 53:24

Trust me, you don't. No, no, maybe not in that sense, but I was like, they already have a bad name, they've got all these things that are working on the city.

SPEAKER_03 53:31

Okay, gosh, I guess they have yeah, I'm Gen X, so I like my generation where I are you Gen X? Yes, I'm a millennial. I think you're right, you were right on the cut or something like that. I think you're a millennial and don't even know it.

Mark Jones 53:45

I don't think so. You were born in '83. Yeah. You're a millennial.

SPEAKER_03 53:49

Is it? No, it's not. I'm glad to be the person. Oh god. Well, I don't I don't identify as a millennial. I identify as a Gen X. If you look at Gen X, I feel like that's me.

Mark Jones 54:02

I'm a Gen X. So sorry. And on the weekend she identifies as a furry.

SPEAKER_03 54:08

Yeah, no, I do not. No. That's awesome. I identify as Gen X, people. It's a blanket.

Mark Jones 54:14

That's awesome. So to kind of wrap this thing up, the folks I think have been able to hear plenty about what you've gone through, how you've reinvented yourself, how you've overcome the obstacles that were put in front of you, not by choice, it's just what happens when you are someone that comes from another country to hear and has to acclimate. They've learned a lot about the chips on your shoulders that you're able to tackle. And it is it's it's impressive. What are some things that people don't know? What are what are some things that people would be surprised to know about you?

SPEAKER_03 54:51

I think I kind of talked about everything, but anytime like somebody actually like is in my office or in around me during working hours, like people don't realize how many hours I work in a day. Like people think like all of this is just easy, but I'm normally working 12 to 14 hours a day. People don't realize until they have been around me correct that long. Even when my friends get so tired of it, because during lunch, I have my laptop, sometimes dinner, happy hour. I'm working. Vacation, I am working. My kids already know. I try very hard to not, but things come up. We deal with insurance, we deal with very critical pieces of businesses that I have to work. Like hey, an emergency. You're married to the game. You're married to the game. Exactly. Well, I mean, and the the pieces that we handle are so critical, and I take it, I take my job really serious. I think maybe that's another thing that people think, oh, like Blanca's just a pretty face, or you know, but I take my job very seriously. Right, right. Like, and for me, like my clients and their employees, like they really mattered to me. So I will answer the call, I will answer the email. I I will where some people won't. So I think that until somebody is really around me, they don't realize that. You know, you see things on social media.

Mark Jones 56:09

That's literally where I was about to go. Go for it, keep going.

SPEAKER_03 56:12

You know, and and a lot of times, like that's like the pretty stuff, right? Like we don't really put the ugly stuff out there where it's like I'm up at 5 a.m., I'm working till god-awful hours of the night and morning.

Mark Jones 56:23

So those aren't the things that that we tend to put on there, on the line. And a lot of folks tend to get a misperception of the truth because they think, oh, that's easy. She just shows up and and and it happens because of the pretty face. Okay, you get what I'm saying? Yeah, I wish that was the case, guys. And I'm glad that you you uh indulged us with that because it's it's just it's something that a lot of folks out there believe I've got the the look, I've got this. Okay, but do you have the work ethic? Do you have what it takes to make it as a business owner or as a salesperson 100% commissioned to thrive? Not just to get through it, because anybody can, especially matter of fact, put that on me. Bang. Anyone can get into a sales job. Why? Because it's sales, your commission, whether you sell something or not, it is what it is. It's a difference between being a salesperson and being a top salesperson. And what you are is a top salesperson. And obviously, by way of this conversation, people know now why and how that's possible.

unknown 57:33

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 57:34

I mean, and I think you know, to stay at the top, because you could be at the top and then not be at the top.

Mark Jones 57:41

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 57:42

But to stay at the top for uh a consistent amount of years is very hard.

Mark Jones 57:46

It's a testament.

SPEAKER_03 57:47

It is, it is very hard. To be a consistent top producer in any industry is very hard.

Mark Jones 57:53

I have to agree.

SPEAKER_03 57:54

And that was where the reinventing comes, that's where the consistency comes, that's where there are no excuses come into play. That's where the worth ethic comes into play. I mean, there's a hundred things that you that it takes to stay a consistently top producer in any industry. So people don't know and until you know, yeah, right? Until they're in your circle or they're they're around you, they then they understand.

Mark Jones 58:20

Then they're like, man, they will get they will feel they may not understand, but they at least see.

SPEAKER_03 58:27

They see, and they gain respect, right? A lot of people that maybe didn't respect me or didn't really know me, but you know, people are haters.

Mark Jones 58:34

Haters gonna hate.

SPEAKER_03 58:35

Haters gonna hate. But until somebody's like, no, wait a minute, you don't know Blanca. Blanca really busts her butt. She really works hard for her clients, like she really does everything and goes above and beyond for her clients. Then then you're like, oh wow. So then it's like a respect factor, right? You may not like me, but there's gonna be a respect level there. So it's a lot of things. Again, being a woman in sales versus being male in sales is very different. But I will tell you, like for me, like being confident in what I do, being confident in how I speak, being confident that I can talk to anybody. Uh, and I really tell I tell anybody really anything.

Mark Jones 59:11

I think it has a lot to do with your relatability, and your relatability comes from what you've gone through thus far in life, and and you apply it instead of disregarding it as just, oh, I went through that. No, no, no, no. I went through that, and now I'm gonna use it to connect with this new customer or whatever. Absolutely.

SPEAKER_03 59:28

So absolutely, yeah. That is that is a fact, and that is what we all have been going through, Mark and I, just so everybody knows. That's right.

Mark Jones 59:37

That's right. It ain't easy. Well, Blanca, it's always nice. Is there anything that you would like to tell our guests out there? We'll go right there and I'll zoom

From The Border To The Boardroom

Mark Jones 59:46

in.

SPEAKER_03 59:46

I just want to talk really quick about my new magazine cover and article that's gonna be launching uh sometime this week. It is called From the Border to the Boardroom, and it's a great interview that I did with Yolanda Ayala. The magazine is called Business Club Aichihuawa Magazine. Aichihuawa. Aichihuawa, which I thought it was very fitting because I am from Chihuahua and my family's from Chihuahua. So, and I'm in business. But I I share a lot of what we were talking about in the magazine and the article. I put a lot of effort into it. I really want other women, other Latinas, to know that they can make it, to know that there is hope, that there is a way to be successful, right? And so, and and that way it does not have to involve OnlyFans or other things that women think they have to do nowadays, right? So I I really want it to be something inspirational, not only for women, but for men as well, to know that you can come from another country and you can, you know, live in a border city and and make it. So, from the border to the boardroom, check it out. It's gonna be launching soon.

Mark Jones 1:00:49

So that's awesome. Well, Blanca, thank you so much for joining me as always. And for the folks out there listening, I'm sure Blanca will make sure to give me a link so I can drop it in this episode here in the description.

Vegas Plans Subscribers And Final Get Better

Mark Jones 1:01:01

But by the time this comes out, I will be in Las Vegas promoting the new Lone Bot AI. So if you're around Las Vegas, the Bellagio from the 23rd through the 26th, come by and check out our booth. As always, guys, thank you for tuning in. Thank you for subscribing and sharing. We're now just under 60,000 subscribers, which blows my mind every day. But I have to hang my hat on the concept of consistency. I haven't put an episode out in a week. I felt kind of weird about it. Blanca pushed and I said, Let's go. Let's go. So sometimes us high caliber top salespeople, we need a little motivation too. And that's okay. But until the next one, see you later.

SPEAKER_03 1:01:42

Thank you, Mark. Bye. You had to put one out in a week, sir.

Mark Jones 1:01:47

Oh, I know.

SPEAKER_03 1:01:48

Good. Why? I'm glad you pushed you up.

Mark Jones 1:01:50

I am too.

SPEAKER_00 1:01:51

Trust me. Oh good.

SPEAKER_03 1:01:54

And so, um, did I get better today?

SPEAKER_00 1:01:56

Monday, get better.

SPEAKER_03 1:01:58

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 1:01:58

Tuesday, get better. Wednesday get better. If you do that for five years, ten years, fifteen years, how much better will you be? Are you getting better every single day? That's the real question. And it all comes down to taking small steps. You don't have to accomplish everything in one day or even one week.