Three Days with 300 Multimillionaires

Two days ago, I was in the mountains of Utah, breathing in that crisp, high-altitude air while temps hovered in the 20s. Today, I’m back in Texas, sitting by the lake, soaking up the warm-ass weather.

In Ohio, we’d be waiting until June for a day like this.

As much as I despise being here when it’s 100 degrees with 90% humidity and a biblical swarm of mosquitos, this kind of weather in February almost makes up for it…almost.

Grateful for a slow, simple Sunday—being present, doing things I love, and reflecting on my time at the Gobundance event in Utah.

I want to share my three biggest takeaways with you. But before that, let’s talk about the first night.

Showing Up Different

The event started at 3 PM on Monday, but since it was short notice and the flights that would have gotten me there earlier were expensive, I didn’t get to the hotel until around 7 PM.

A year ago—hell, even a few weeks ago—I would have used that as an excuse to wait until morning to jump into the event. I would have played it safe, slid in under the radar, and avoided the discomfort of walking into a packed room of 300 multimillionaires mid-event.

Not this time.

I checked in, ran upstairs to drop my bags, and walked straight into the event. No hesitation.

I found the check-in table, grabbed my name tag, and then found my assigned table. Front row. And shit, no open seats.

So I walked all the way to the back of the massive conference room, grabbed a chair, hoisted it it over my head and carried it all the way back to the front. Nothing “low-key” about it.

Luckily, it was dinner, so the room wasn’t silent. Also — no one gave a shit. Not even me, which is huge because typically I would have been stuck in my own head. 

Everyone made room for me and I introduced myself to the guys at my table, had some dinner, and got a warm welcome. They loved that I was an Emerge member stepping outside my comfort zone and saying yes to this event on such short notice. The exact type of guy they want to help. 

After dinner, there was a presentation, but I was so fried from traveling that I barely absorbed any of it and as great as some of these speakers and presentations can be, that is not at all what these events are about. The real value is the people sitting around the tables in the room, all of us. Once we wrapped up, my mind was locked in on one thing—finding the two guys I had been nervous to see, like I mentioned last week.

Confronting the Conversations I’d Been Avoiding

Facing WG

I spotted WG pretty quickly.

We had connected a while back, exchanged messages, and he had shared some great insights. Then…nothing. I sent two messages weeks apart and got no response.

Naturally, my brain ran wild with theories. Did I say something stupid? Was I annoying? Did I blow my shot at building a connection?

So here I was, in Utah, walking up to him, ready to unload my list of self-pitying excuses.

"Hey man, sorry I haven’t been in touch…imposter syndrome got the best of me."
"Didn’t want to bother you, figured you were busy…"

Blah. Blah. Blah.

Before I could even get the words out, he saw me, broke into a big smile, gave me a firm handshake, and said he was stoked when he saw my Facebook post from the airport.

Turns out, my phone had been having issues sending and receiving messages (fucking Samsung piece of crap. If you ever think about switching from iPhone to Android…don’t). There was no rejection. No hidden meaning. Just a tech issue.

And yet, I had wasted all that time and energy making up bullshit stories in my head.

We started talking, and he hit me with a series of questions I wasn’t ready for:

WG: "So what do you want to get out of this weekend?"
Me: "Nothing specific, man, just here to serve and explore the opportunity."
WG: "Yeah, as you should. And what do opportunities lead to?"
Me: "Uh…more opportunities?"
WG: "Yes, and what do more opportunities result in?"

At this point, I thought I was trapped in an endless loop of questions...time to admit I am lost. 

Me: "I honestly don’t know where you’re going, man."
WG: "Okay, let me ask it this way—what are you really after? Why are you doing all of this? What do you NEED?"
Me: "Ohhhh…freedom!"
WG: "Yeah, obviously. And WHAT DO YOU NEED TO GET THERE?"
Me: "Ohhhhhhhh…connections!" (Nailed it right?)
WG: "DUDE! Money. You need to make money if you want freedom. Your relationship with money needs to change. Find ways to serve the guys in this room, and they’ll do the same for you. That’s where opportunity comes from. And ultimately, that’s how you create financial success."

Damn.

We shook hands, promised to stay in touch, and before the weekend was over, we were already discussing how we could help each other with some business stuff.

Facing BH

I met BH at a local Gobundance Elite event in Houston. Got added to the local WhatsApp chat. And then…I ghosted. I was the guy reading the messages and not responding because, well, because I was being a little bitch in all honesty. Eventually, they kicked me out (rightfully so).

Months later, I reached out to BH with a long-winded apology. He accepted it, I promised to stay in touch…and then I didn’t. Strike two.

Now here we were, in Utah. Time to own it.

I spotted him as we were getting on the elevator. He greeted me with a smile.

"Dude, how’s it going? Awesome you’re here. Excited to hear your takeaways from the event."

That was it. No awkwardness. No tension. Just a welcome and the fear melted away.

The next day, after spending 30 minutes turning into a prune in one of the hot tubs and deciding it was time for lunch, I spotted him again in one of the other hot tubs. Almost walked past, but then I thought, Nope, lunch can wait and you won’t shrivel up and die. Get in the damn hot tub and face this.

We had an amazing conversation about some personal and professional challenges we had been facing and what actions to take to overcome them.

And just like that, all the unnecessary weight I’d been carrying about these two guys was gone.

Lesson learned: We’re all human. Multimillionaire or not, we all get nervous. We all overthink. The key is to own it, learn from it, and just fucking show up.

Three Biggest Takeaways

1. Do More Than You Talk.

Reading Ego is the Enemy by Ryan Holiday on my flight to Utah, I realized something—I’ve been talking way more than I’ve been doing.

Talking feels productive. It strokes the ego. But it doesn’t move the needle. Very few people have talked their way to success. 

These guys? They don’t just talk. They brainstorm, share challenges, and problem-solve—but then they execute. That’s what gets results.

2. They Talk About Money Way Less Than You’d Expect.

Most people would expect non-stop money talk in a room of 300 entrepreneurs, but most people would be wrong. The conversations were about family, health, spirituality, giving back, and personal growth.

One of the Gobundance Champion guys told me:
"No one here cares about your net worth. We care about who you are. We care about how willing you are to learn. We care about the man you want to become—because that’s what leads to financial success."

Oh, and while we were there? These guys raised $550,000 for charity. I was completely blown away by the generosity. 

• A little tidbit here that came after the event is something my mentor shared with me. You ever want to change your mindset about money, give it away. No one has ever felt bad about giving money to someone that needs it more than you. 

3. Check Your Ego at the Door. You’re Here to Serve.

Like I shared last week my mentor has told me many times:
"Find purpose in serving others, and success will come quickly."

The more I lean into this, the more opportunities show up.

And here’s the thing—it has to be genuine. Not strategic. Not transactional. Just giving.

Funny how the more you serve, the more doors open.

If you’re thinking “well these kind of guys are light years ahead of me, how the hell could I possibly serve (if you don’t like this word, change it to - add value) them?

• Show up - when you can get time with them, no matter how inconvenient it is, show up. Just doing that goes a LONG way. 

• Ask great questions - this is a super power and one that anyone can develop. Asking great questions gets people to think through things they may have never thought of before, uncovering unknown problems and potential solutions. 

• Turn their advice into action - 

Final Thought

A year ago, I would have played small.

This time, I showed up, told my ego where to stick it and faced my fears. As a result, I walked away with connections, clarity, and a hell of a lot of growth and gratitude.

If you’re hesitating on stepping into the next level of your life—this is your fucking sign.

Get in the damn hot tub.

Song

Good Vibrations - The Beach Boys - I mean come on, you can’t listen to this song and not get happy and start dancing. 

Book

Extreme Ownership - Jocko Willink - This is the first book I read when I started my personal development journey and one of the few books I have ever read multiple times. I actually just purchased it again because my copy is in a storage unit in Ohio. About to read it a third time as I really dive back into leadership. Even named my dog after the author.