Welcome To The Sweet Spot

SPEAKER_00 0:05

Greetings and welcome. Greetings and welcome everyone. Welcome back to the Sweet Spot. It is my joy and pleasure here on the Sweet Spot to be with you. I don't know. I'm so excited. I'm just gonna tell you point blank, this is gonna be one of our best weeks ever. Because I have in front of me one of the most brilliant minds I have met in my existence. His name is Kendall Glasspie. I know him as an author, I know him as a writer, I know him as a poet, I know him as a business leader, an idea, an idea, an ideologue. I know him as a partner in debate. I know him as a creator. As I said to you, um this is gonna be one of the best weeks ever because I am looking forward to Kendall's synthesis of creativity and intellect. He's also, while being a really amazing artist, uh he's also a business guru. He is the district manager, from what I understand, Kendall. You are the district manager of Community Board 10 in Harlem. Is that correct?

SPEAKER_01 1:15

That is correct.

SPEAKER_00 1:18

Which is so huge in Harlem. And uh I'm just delighted, Kendall, that you uh said yes to spending some time with us here on the sweet spot as we tackle uh some of the themes that we've been really working through all year long on the sweet spot, which are making moves on Monday, taking action on Tuesday, winning on Wednesday, really reaccessing our self-trust on Thursday, and then on Friday making sure we finish strong, only to have some self-care come back to us on Saturday and then flow into Sunday. We ease into Sunday, we call it Slowdown Sunday. And before I get into your thoughts on each of these days, and I'm gonna try to tap you for the whole week

Kendall’s Journey And Identity

SPEAKER_00 2:06

here. Can you tell us a little bit about your journey before we jump into me just asking you questions? Because I'd love for our audience to know you and to hear about you from you.

SPEAKER_01 2:19

Wow, wow, wow, wow. Thank you, Dr. Sweet. Um, it is a true honor to be able to share this space. Um, blown away by your introduction, really fighting back tears. Uh, let me introduce myself. My name is Kendall Glasby. Um, the titles, the the um things assigned to my name that that mean the most to me is I am a child of God, I'm a husband, I'm a father, and I am a persistent problem solver. Um, in terms of my uh sequence of development that I believe affords me the opportunity to uh be able to speak to certain things with with confidence, is I grew up with very modest means, which required a lot of flexibility and creativity. Um found myself um oftened um at the age of 14, 15, thank God for my maternal grandparents who took me in, but you know, uh not without challenge. Um and it it the reason why I have the opportunity to stand here or sit here uh today and have this conversation is because other individuals like yourself stepped in, offered me guidance, and gave me an opportunity to um foster and and cultivate skills and gifts that I would not have had the opportunity to use on a traject trajectory that I was I was on. Um through that, I am um uh holder of a bachelor's degree in uh organizational management. I have I have had the privilege of um consulting with hundreds of businesses, and my official uh, I would say nine to nine job is uh the district manager of community board 10, uh for which I am proud to service Central Harlem and the 140 plus thousand constituents that live there.

SPEAKER_00 4:40

Wow. Well, look, uh I I I still I'm just blown away again because you again, once you show me your depth, right? I forgot to mention that you're a great father, a great husband, a great friend, a great human being, in addition to all of the accomplishments. And so, Kendall, I'd like to just jump right in.

What Making Moves Monday Means

SPEAKER_00 5:01

Today's Making Moves Monday on the Sweet Spot. And every Monday we give our audience, our listeners, who are fantastic, by the way. We call them sweet spotters or sweet builders or sweet dreamers, depending on the mood that we're in. But for all the sweet spotters, the sweet dreamers, and the sweet builders out there, we'd like to hear your perspective when you hear making moves Monday. Now, I don't know if you even listen to the sweet spot or whatever, but making moves Monday is our thing. Thank you. Well, look, making moves Monday is our thing, and we always ask ourselves a question of like, what is it gonna take for me to make my move? I was wondering from your life and looking back in your life and the things that you've mentioned, some of the challenges that you've been through, the accomplishments as well. What does it take for you to make that move for you on like a Monday?

SPEAKER_01 5:56

Yeah, it's it's so interesting, right? So because of my varied experience, I relate to everyone and no one at the same time. And by default, I cannot help but to think outside of the box. So when I think about making moves on Mondays, I think about not being a part of the herd mentality. Right? Herd mentality has its place, and there are places where it makes sense, right? For instance, when we look at Amazon reviews, you see a product, you see something that has four stars with 600 reviews. That's a good example of how her mentality works. However, you're still behind the curve, right? You did not come up with that product, you didn't think about placing something that 600 individuals

Beyond Herd Mentality And Reviews

SPEAKER_01 6:56

would perhaps want to review and want to use. So my my being, my my my mind, the urgency of being an African-American male in this day and time, for me, it is very important to not consistently be navigating on the back tail end of her mentality. So when I think about making moves, I'm thinking about what's the the next thing that can instill value? What's the next thing that can, it's very interesting to say this out loud, but one of the challenges that I see as a as a people, African-American people, is we don't own much in the supply chain. Right? And when you think about true wealth, right, when you think about true legacy, a lot of it is connected to supply chain. So I'm always thinking about how do I create something within the supply chain? How do I corner something within the realm of supply chain with technology, right? The era that we're in right now, there are numerous opportunities within the realm of AI, technology, et cetera. So those are the things that come to mind when you when you when I think about making moves, right? Not being the average, going above and beyond.

SPEAKER_00 8:23

Sounds like you want to be like ahead of the curve and also be a supplier within the curve or within the chain, not to just be the recipient of being the end user or uh a part of the right.

SPEAKER_01 8:35

Yeah, exactly right. I forgive me for uh sometimes my thoughts don't come out so sincere, but I think let me go back a little bit, right? So when I think about the things that that really make life easy and the the contributions of African Americans from an invention standpoint, from an invention standpoint, it's mind-boggling, right? But when I think about how do I get those items, the supply chain for those items are not also African American. I'm not, I'm not, I'm not raising my fist right now, right? I I I love all people, but I do think there is something to that, right? If I'm first to market, that means that I should potentially have the opportunity to also control supply chain for that market, right? So I'm always looking at things from a business perspective in that manner, and how do I how do I change that? How do I get ahead of that? I'm not sure if that makes sense, but that's my response to it.

SPEAKER_00 9:49

You're making me think about it because I hadn't really thought of it that way. I'm asking myself as I'm listening to you, well, what am I doing that's sort of at the top of the food chain, or where am I the initiator? Where am I not just uh punching in and executing a job for someone else?

SPEAKER_01 10:08

Where am I being you yeah, you may not even think about it, but you are at the top of the food chain because your clientele is really the best of the best, and you're engaging them with the most important aspect of their life, right? The thing that is allowing them to show up their best selves, that is allowing them to earn a premium on what they are able to contribute, right? But when I also think about the field of psychology, really it's something that uh, you know, someone can't can't patent or just corner a market, but you really are speaking to the endless space of decision making. Endless space of decision making. The endless space of decision making. How many decisions do we make on a day-to-day basis? That is really a huge opportunity, which we could probably talk about offline.

SPEAKER_00 11:10

Oh, yeah. Absolutely, absolutely. I'm thinking, I listen to you now, I'm thinking this through.

Making It Practical With A Job

SPEAKER_00 11:16

So, all right, so okay, I'm I'm thinking, I'm putting myself in the shoes of somebody who's listening to us right now, and they're like going, okay, well, look, I have to get up and I have to work. I got a job, I've got kids, I've got rent to pay, I've got things to do. Making a move that is just at the top of the future, what is that? Like, how does that become practical for me? Because I actually do have to spin the wheel or till the soil or do the make the donuts or whatever it is, you know, do my deliveries, whatever it is that I do that that may not be as creative, it may not be the most um powerful thing in the in the line, but it gets me paid and it gets the food on the table and it gets the gas in the car. Uh how should one think if in that regard? Do I leave what I do and then go plant my entrepreneurial um flag and just take my chances out there? Or how does one do this?

SPEAKER_01 12:16

Yeah, I I think that's a great question. Um, and thank you for uh bringing me bringing me back and anchoring me. I I think it's basic financial principles, right? Um, you want to pay yourself first, right? So you you you want to have a little bit left of the tank so that you are consistently doing something for yourself, right? You can very easily get stuck on the hamster wheel of doing a nine to five, right? And then look up a year, two years, three years, and still be in that same mental state, that same spiritual state, that same financial state, right? So when I think about moving, right, it's it's being intentional about taking steps of progress towards something that is important to you, whatever that may be. Even if it's a step a day, right? But you are intentional about moving and martial arts. The best way to defend against something is to not be there. It's to not forget all the fancy blocks and hitting someone first, right? Because the truth is is anytime you're in a position to hit someone, you're also in a position to get hit.

SPEAKER_00 13:53

Never thought of it that way. Never thought of it that way. That is just like I'm I'm like, okay, so bring this home for me. I have a job. It's a handsome wheel type job. I am essentially doing a nine to five. You just talked about the supply chain and being at the top of the supply chain. Uh and you said, okay, take one step, whatever it is, in the direction of me getting is it getting off the hamster wheel or is it starting my own business? Or what exactly are we talking about?

SPEAKER_01 14:37

It really depends. No one knows you better than you. To me, the path of well, I wouldn't say the path of least resistance, but the best way to learn something or to upskill is to do it on someone else's dime. If you can find alignment with what you are looking to do, with the current space or opportunity that you are currently in, and you can use that as an opportunity to add additional value to demonstrate additional initiative, you put yourself in a win-win scenario, regardless of what it may be, right? If it you can be doing something, no, no, not to it, but you could be working in uh hospitality or or or fast food, right? It could be something as simple as you wanting to be your own business owner, right? Every business owner by default is a perpetual opportunity seeker. When you're dealing with customer service, it affords you numerous opportunities to strengthen the skill sets to support with that. You may just simply say, Hey, manager, I've been looking at our customer experience. Here are one, two, three ways for which I think we can enhance the customer experience. I would like to pilot or test these concepts or ideas. Are you in agreement with it, right? You don't want to just do something just because you think it's a good idea. You you want buy-in, right? You also want to be able to demonstrate a pre and post. This is what it looked like prior to me making this initiative or putting forth this effort. This is what it looks like now. Best case scenario, you enhance the customer experience. They see you as someone who is a visionary, who is not afraid to take initiative to make things happen. Worst case scenario, it doesn't work. But you've learned something on someone else's time.

SPEAKER_00 17:11

And you've made the move.

SPEAKER_01 17:13

And you've made the move.

SPEAKER_00 17:14

You've made the move. So the question is what, okay, so what I'm taking away from this is like there's always a move that we can make, no matter what our situation is, even if we're not there yet, like at the top of the food chain, if we're not the supplier or whatever, we can begin to take initiative and figure out ways that innovative, that we could be innovative and actually add value wherever we are, and then take that to wherever we need to take it to go.

Choose A Destination And Explore

SPEAKER_01 17:42

Yeah, but I think the first step, which I guess I wasn't so clear on this, is really identifying what's your destination. Where do you want to go? You don't just get on the plane without a clear destination. None of it makes sense if you have not first identified where it is I want to go. Or explore, right? Because you don't have to go somewhere and that be your final destination, right? We don't we take vacations, we don't go there to live, we go there to experience it.

SPEAKER_00 18:13

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 18:14

Take the move and opportunity to experience something or love something that you have not done so before.

SPEAKER_00 18:23

That's challenging, and I love it. I think that's a challenge, and I think that's the message for today, because at the end of the day, it's about understanding where do I want to go. We say making moves Monday, and what I'm picking up from you right now as I listen to you, KG, as I call you, I'm picking up that I gotta know my destination. I gotta know where I'm headed. Like I just want to just be making a move on Monday, just because it's Monday, okay, making moves Monday. Where are you going? Where am I going? What is my destination for today? And I'm wondering if that can be broken down into smaller goals or larger goals. Whichever one I want to choose, it sounds like. I have an opportunity. What's my destination? Who am I where do I want to go? And then what is the move I need to make? Amen. I got it. I got it. And this is why I love talking to you, KG. And this is what I'm hoping our listeners got today. What you did was you challenged me to take a step back and think about okay, where do you really want to go? And what is the move you need to make right now that can help you add value to the moment and then stack it for where you want to take it.

SPEAKER_01 19:39

Yeah, Doc. So I know you love music.

SPEAKER_00 19:42

Yes.

SPEAKER_01 19:42

I know you you love music, right? It's it's about creating our own unique soundtrack for our life. Right? Because if if I put my playlist on, it may not resonate with you. It can make the drive really, really miserable for you. Right? Yeah. And and I I'm not a fan of all music, right? So when you when you talk about taking initiative and taking the ownership of being the driver of our destiny, absolutely. Create your own soundtrack. Whatever that may look for you, look like for you.

SPEAKER_00 20:23

Well, that's the move we're gonna make today. We're gonna create our own soundtrack, the soundtrack of our lives, the soundtrack that gets us going. I want to thank you, KG, because this was rich. I have to go back now and think through some things about making moves Monday. I have attached the destination. I'm really running with that one. Where am I headed if I'm making this move? Have I thought it out as to where I want to go? And you know what's cool about that for me as I listen to you is that I can see that in my world in psychiatry and psychology and all of that, sometimes the destination isn't necessarily a place. It's a feeling I might want when I wake up in the mornings that I feel either fulfilled or I'm eager, that I want to get up and face the day. It could be a place in a conversation I want to get to with someone where we can begin to have that conversation. And that might be the move today. So, uh, yeah, and maybe it's also about taking my power back. I mean, another thing I got from you was we talk about supply chain and all this fancy stuff, but at the end of the day, where have I lost power? Where have I given up the wheel? And and and where can I begin to think about how to make my own soundtrack again, to drive again and make the right move. Does that sound like I got what you were saying?

SPEAKER_01 21:52

Very powerful. You you gave me stuff in reflecting back what I what I said.

Soundtrack Metaphor And Tomorrow Tease

SPEAKER_01 21:58

But yes, those those are all very Powerful interpretations of what I said.

SPEAKER_00 22:04

Well, I want to thank you for diving in with us here on Making Moves Monday. KG, thank you so much for your profundity. Thank you so much for your insightfulness. I love it. Would you be willing to come back tomorrow to tackle Take Action Tuesday with us? Would that be okay with you, brother?

SPEAKER_01 22:21

Absolutely. I'll be delighted.

SPEAKER_00 22:22

All right, well, man, I'm excited. This is the sweet spot. It's for science, it's for soul, it's for success. We are interviewing with the one and only Kendall Glass with KG, as I call him. Don't miss Take Action Tuesday tomorrow. We'll be back.