Lesley and Brad recap Lesley's informative conversation with Matthew Lesko, the iconic question-mark-suit-wearing advocate for free government resources. Learn how to get support for your business or personal goals, shift your mindset around asking for help, and tap into programs that already exist to empower you. This episode breaks down key takeaways, including how Lesko’s mission began and the tools you can use to take action today.

If you have any questions about this episode or want to get some of the resources we mentioned, head over to LesleyLogan.co/podcast https://lesleylogan.co/podcast/. If you have any comments or questions about the Be It pod shoot us a message at beit@lesleylogan.co mailto:beit@lesleylogan.co.

And as always, if you’re enjoying the show please share it with someone who you think would enjoy it as well. It is your continued support that will help us continue to help others. Thank you so much! Never miss another show by subscribing at LesleyLogan.co/subscribe https://lesleylogan.co/podcast/#follow-subscribe-free.

In this episode you will learn about:

How to modify a Reformer with a stationary headrest for safer workouts.
How Matthew Lesko redefines success by staying true to his heart.
Why injecting fun into your work creates motivation and momentum.
The types of government resources most people overlook—and how to find them.
Why booking a real appointment beats filling out forms online.

Episode References/Links:

eLevate Workout and Q&A - https://lesleylogan.co/elevatewaitlist
Agency Mini - https://prfit.biz/mini
OPC Summer Tour - https://opc.me/tour
UK Mullet Tour - https://opc.me/uk
Cambodia October 2025 Waitlist - https://crowsnestretreats.com
Submit your questions - https://beitpod.com/questions
YouTube: How to Choose a Reformer - https://beitpod.com/choosingareformer
Book: Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert - https://a.co/d/9qFidcW
Matthew Lesko's - https://beitpod.com/leskohelp
Ep. 400: Gay Hendricks - https://beitpod.com/gayhendricks
Ep. 196: Beate Chelette - https://beitpod.com/beatechelette
Find Local Help for Basic Needs – https://www.findhelp.org
Government Contracting Support (Apex Accelerators) – www.apexaccelerators.us
Small Business Support (SBA Local Assistance) – www.sba.gov/local-assistance

If you enjoyed this episode, make sure and give us a five star rating and leave us a review on iTunes, Podcast Addict, Podchaser or Castbox. https://lovethepodcast.com/BITYSI

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Be in the know with all the workshops at OPC https://workshops.onlinepilatesclasses.com/lp-workshop-waitlist

Be It Till You See It Podcast Survey https://pod.lesleylogan.co/be-it-podcasts-survey

Be a part of Lesley’s Pilates Mentorship https://lesleylogan.co/elevate/

FREE Ditching Busy Webinar https://ditchingbusy.com/

Resources:

Watch the Be It Till You See It podcast on YouTube! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCq08HES7xLMvVa3Fy5DR8-g
Lesley Logan website https://lesleylogan.co/
Be It Till You See It Podcast https://lesleylogan.co/podcast/
Online Pilates Classes by Lesley Logan https://onlinepilatesclasses.com/
Online Pilates Classes by Lesley Logan on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjogqXLnfyhS5VlU4rdzlnQ
Profitable Pilates https://profitablepilates.com/about/

Follow Us on Social Media:

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LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/lesley-logan/
The OPC YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/@OnlinePilatesClasses

Episode Transcript:

Lesley Logan 0:00

Whatever you are setting yourself up to do, to go through the struggles, to go through the obstacles, to go through the failures, you have to actually want to do it. You're gonna have to care about the problem that you're solving.

Lesley Logan 0:12

Welcome to the Be It Till You See It podcast where we talk about taking messy action, knowing that perfect is boring. I'm Lesley Logan, Pilates instructor and fitness business coach. I've trained thousands of people around the world and the number one thing I see stopping people from achieving anything is self-doubt. My friends, action brings clarity and it's the antidote to fear. Each week, my guest will bring bold, executable, intrinsic and targeted steps that you can use to put yourself first and Be It Till You See It. It's a practice, not a perfect. Let's get started.

Lesley Logan 0:51

Welcome back to the Be It Till You See It interview recap where my co-host in life, Brad, and I

are going to dig into the endearingly fun convo I had with Matthew Lesko in our last episode. If you haven't yet listened to that interview, feel free to pause us now, go back and listen to that one, because you've missed out.

Brad Crowell 1:09

So you could also have said the wise, happy old man convo I had, who drops a lot of F bombs.

Lesley Logan 1:14

And also, when we say old, I just want to say, like, there's nothing. He is not like slow.

Brad Crowell 1:20

No, he does not come across that old. And he said PSM 81. I was like, what? Really?

Lesley Logan 1:26

Yeah, yeah, he's feisty and fun, and.

Brad Crowell 1:29

Heck yeah.

Lesley Logan 1:29

And like, working so hard for everyone. And I was just so excited. And then when we I was like, I had just interviewed him that day, and our friend Michael and Brogan was here at the house, and I was like, oh my God, I just interviewed someone. You should have him on your show. And I just started describing him and our friend Michael was like, Matthew Lesko? And he was like, he's like, the guy with a question mark suit. And I'm like, yeah, that's him. And he's like, stop right now. I want him on my show. So anyways, super, super fun. We'll get into that episode in just a second. But today is July 3rd 2025 and it's National Compliment Your Mirror Day. National Compliment Your Mirror Day is on July 3rd. We live in an image-driven world. Sometimes this can cause us to not notice and compliment a very important person in our lives, ourselves. This day motivates us to look in the mirror and recognize all those things that make us exceptional, inside and out. So go look yourself in the mirror and give yourself a compliment.

Brad Crowell 2:25

Go do it.

Lesley Logan 2:25

Do it now. You can use your phone as a camera if , as a mirror, if you want. But sometimes I do that. Okay, literally, next week. Is it next week? I guess it's July 3rd, so maybe a little after a week.

Brad Crowell 2:38

Well, Happy July 4th for those in the United States.

Lesley Logan 2:41

Those who celebrate.

Brad Crowell 2:42

The independence that we are on the brink of not having.

Lesley Logan 2:47

You guys, I'm just going to be really honest, we're recording this while L.A. is being taken over by people. A lot of misleading information, a lot of bad stuff. Make sure always, always, always, always get news from the people who are on the ground, because people like to spend things. And so anyways, if you're celebrating the Fourth of July, Happy Fourth of July. But, in exciting news, on July 9th, I'm hosting a free workout for those people who are interested in eLevate, my mentorship program. And we'll have a Q&A, we'll have eLevate grads on there who will tell you why they love it so much. And you just want to go to lesleylogan.co/elevatewaitlist to get on, get the invitation, and come to that. We have, like, I don't know, at the time we're recording this, like, eight spots left, I think, which is not a lot of spots at all.

Brad Crowell 2:47

It's not a lot of spots, y'all.

Lesley Logan 3:27

No, and we're actually, like, gonna be, you know, pretty soon, starting to work out who has what time slot.

Brad Crowell 3:40

I mean, there are hundreds of people on the waitlist.

Lesley Logan 3:43

Yeah, like, like, several hundreds. Like, for eight people.

Brad Crowell 3:47

Eight spots, right? Because we started.

Lesley Logan 3:49

But don't let that deter you. That means you should go be one of those eight people.

Brad Crowell 3:53

100%

Lesley Logan 3:54

Yeah.

Brad Crowell 3:54

Yeah. And you're welcome to reach out, you know now, so, but yeah, July 9th, it's gonna be a super good time. We're going to have a free class, answer questions, have some alumni on there, but guess what I'm really excited about, too.

Lesley Logan 4:07

Yeah, we're doing Agency Mini, our coaching program that we do, where we.

Brad Crowell 4:12

Bringing it back.

Lesley Logan 4:12

We help as many people as possible.

Brad Crowell 4:12

Bring it back to me.

Lesley Logan 4:13

Yeah, and we're doing it in three days, so you don't have to be overwhelmed by a week-long situation with like, the Facebook, none of that stuff. So if you've heard of Mini before, this is a new Mini.

Brad Crowell 4:28

If you've done Mini before, you should come back and do that.

Lesley Logan 4:31

Yeah, we used to have a rule that you couldn't and now you can.

Brad Crowell 4:34

Yeah, we're, this is a special invite. Special invite because it's different. You know. We're, we're taking the concept and we made it better, we made it shorter, we made it easier, we made it faster, all the things. And so, you know, you really can learn a lot in just three days with us. And then, you know, there's also opportunities for coaching calls, which we never offer outside of our coaching group. Or you can book a coaching call with either Lesley or with me. It's a Round Robin. So you'll be surprised at who you get, because it's just based on our availability. But basically.

Lesley Logan 4:58

Oh, that's cool. So they're just booking it and, like.

Brad Crowell 5:07

They're just booking a call and getting aside.

Lesley Logan 5:08

Cool. It's like speed dating.

Brad Crowell 5:10

Kind of, but it's gonna be great because, you know, we, we don't have, we don't set aside the time to coach people who are not in our coaching group, because it's already a lot, right? And so what we've done differently this time is we're creating that space that time we actually are leaving, you know, time during six days where you can book a call with us. And you do that when you register for Agency Mini, so when you're going through and it says, like, oh, do you want to join Agency? Say yes. And then during the checkout, you'll say, oh yeah, and yes, I would like to add a coaching call and so, you know, we'll, we'll be able to chat. It's gonna be awesome. I'm looking forward to it. I'm looking forward to meeting everybody. I love hearing all the different things that are going on. I just had a coaching call with a new Agency member, and she's opening up a bigger space, like a much bigger space than her current space.

Lesley Logan 5:56

Oh, is it, who I think it is?

Brad Crowell 6:03

No, not at all. So, you know, and they, they were, they're trying to figure out, like, you know, all the mechanics behind that. And what's so fun is that Lesley and I've been able to be there for this conversation many, many, many, many times over the years, plus we've done it ourselves, right? So anyway, come join us. Go to Agency Mini, prfit.biz/mini P-R-F-I-T dot biz, that's profit without the O dot biz slash mini. Then, we're hitting the road.

Lesley Logan 6:33

Yeah, after Mini, we literally pack up the van and we're gonna go on tour, you guys, 15 cities and like, 20-something days. Our tour is powered by Balanced Body, and many of the events are sold out, like a lot of them are sold out and so but also on this one, there is an opportunity to join a virtual so if I've never come to a city near you, you've never had the time to drive a half hour across town, all that stuff, you can actually get tickets to the virtual events we're doing in Calgary. So go to opc.me/tour to see the lineup, the cities. I can name them for you. We're doing Phoenix, San Diego, Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, San Francisco, Sacramento, Eureka, Portland, Seattle, Vancouver, Kamloops, Calgary, McCall, Idaho, Salt Lake in Las Vegas.

Brad Crowell 7:18

That's right, I'm impressed you just rattled that off I think that's 16, right? Something like that. 15?

Lesley Logan 7:22

Some people keep saying 15, whenever I counted. It feels like 16, so I don't know.

Brad Crowell 7:28

Yeah. Well, anyway, it's a bunch. It's exciting. We've got a lot going on, and we can't wait to meet you in person. So come join us. Go to opc dot me slash T-O-U-R that's opc.me/tour. And then.

Lesley Logan 7:41

We had a lot of people in the U.K. jealous of this tour. And I'm like, hold on, we're coming your way in September. So we come home, we acclimate, then we go into the U.K. We have two city locations in the U.K. for our Mullet Tour, which means business in the front Pilates in the back. Don't worry, the business is also like life skills. So.

Brad Crowell 7:59

It's not like super deep business in a studio. So you can.

Lesley Logan 8:02

No, you can be a non-teacher.

Brad Crowell 8:04

One of them is about scheduling, and you can apply that to any element of life, like.

Lesley Logan 8:14

One of them is about habits.

Brad Crowell 8:14

And the other's about habits. That's right. So. So anyway, it's gonna be awesome. Go to opc.me/uk.

Lesley Logan 8:15

We'll do Leeds and we'll do Essex. And right now we have three spots left in Leeds. No, they're not days passes yet available for Leeds. There's only three weekend passes left, so we're not breaking those up. In Essex, we have day passes because it's during the week. Or you can save money by getting two day pass. So go to opc.me/uk you can come to both. There's only, like, two workshops that cross over. So.

Brad Crowell 8:37

You could come to Leeds and then to Essex, yeah, you totally could do that, and then you can continue the conversation. Because often, when you do a workshop and you leave, how often do you immediately revisit that content? Imagine being able to revisit it right away and just take it even deeper, hear it again and, like, really dial it in. So that's also an option. Then, in October, guess where we're going?

Lesley Logan 9:01

Back to Cambodia.

Brad Crowell 9:02

That's what we're doing. We can't wait. Obviously, we love Cambodia. We love going there. We love helping people experience another world altogether. It is just the coolest place.

Lesley Logan 9:13

I love just like getting some time away from the life and chaos that's going on that you like, absorb all the time, and you're dealing with all the time to just like, to just fill your cup up and be amazed about what community can look like in a village, and what it can look like to see temples that took hundreds, if not thousands of people over, you know, several years working together. And sometimes when I just feel like there's just no way we're going to solve this problem, that I go there and I'm like, well, they did this, and if they did this, I can solve a problem. So, like, I just it's always very, It's humbling, but also grounding, and then it really allows you to step away from what's going on and get a bigger, get a better understanding and come back into it.

Brad Crowell 9:57

I love it. Well, you're not wrong. It is mind-blowing it is one of those trips that will change your perspective of life in general. It's amazing. So you should join us. Go to crowsnestretreats.com crowsnestretreats.com. Come join us. There are still spots for this October, and it's not too late to get the plane tickets. I think Lesley and I just basically bought ours recently.

Lesley Logan 10:18

We have haven't bought them yet. No.

Brad Crowell 10:19

We've been looking at them.

Lesley Logan 10:19

We're looking at them.

Brad Crowell 10:19

So we haven't bought them yet, right? So don't worry, there's room, okay, there's time. So come join us. But, before we get into the Matthew Lesko question mark jacket, he didn't wear it in the interview. But he.

Lesley Logan 10:33

Yes, he did.

Brad Crowell 10:34

He wore his question mark jacket?

Lesley Logan 10:36

Oh, yeah, you didn't watch?

Brad Crowell 10:37

No, I did watch, but I kept looking at his epic blue glasses.

Lesley Logan 10:41

No, there was question marks on that suit that clearly-fitted-to-him suit.

Brad Crowell 10:46

He's a badass.

Lesley Logan 10:47

Wonderfully fitted to him.

Brad Crowell 10:48

Well. Anyway, before we get into that, we have an audience question @MarleneBroek on YouTube says, I wish I could do a Scottish accent, because I think her last name is Scottish, but I'm not going to try. She said hello, I already have a Reformer, but my head rest is stationary. Any recommendation for a separate headrest, such as the kind that forms to one's neck, interesting, or one that is flat to go on top of it. Thank you so much for your time. All right, Marlene, get ready, because I already know what's coming.

Lesley Logan 11:22

So unfortunately, you all, many, many people are now making Reformers who've never done Pilates before, and they don't know that these things make a difference. So I'm super, super glad you're curious, because your headrest is not supposed to be stationary. So what I don't know from this is, if your headrest is stationary up or stationary down. My hope is that it's stationary down, because then we can get like a wedge pillow of some kind that will mimic a head rest being up. But then you could take that, that insert away, and then you could actually still do overhead exercises. If it is stationary up, you cannot do any overhead exercises. No, there's nothing we can do. I don't even know that what you can do, because I don't have a picture of your Reformer, don't know if it has hinges, if you could add anything. Unclear. So what I will say is, I'm just going to assume your headrest is stationary down for the rest of this conversation. You don't want a pillow or headrest that forms to your neck, because we're not actually trying to support the neck in that way we're, actually, when we have the headrest up, it's meant to tilt your head in just a way, so your neck can relax, but your upper abs can engage without us even telling you. That's why the headrest is up for footwork, for frogs and circles, for running, for pelvic lift, that your headrest is up so that your you just have this nice little support to help you engage your upper abs without you using your neck. It's really quite cool. He's very fast. So anyways, and it's down when you're not using that. So you can do overhead exercises. You get your box on top, things like that. So I would look into, Marlene, some sort of like foam wedge that you can cut to the size of your headrest.

Brad Crowell 13:00

And firm foam.

Lesley Logan 13:01

I would definitely say something firm. You don't want to be like a pillow.

Brad Crowell 13:05

Right. So, so, like, I'm thinking about your baby chair and that little funny wedge that you have for the baby chair. Kind of would be like that. So, like, and that wedge, you're sitting on it, and it doesn't move, like, it doesn't give, it, literally, is intended to level out the baby chair. So in this case, you would want something that's firm like that as well.

Lesley Logan 13:23

Yeah, very firm, like, you can even.

Brad Crowell 13:26

Like, you basically just taking it on and off.

Lesley Logan 13:27

I mean, I would imagine, like, if you have someone handy in your life with, like, a really cool saw that could, like, take a yoga block and, like, slice it from.

Brad Crowell 13:37

That's a good texture, yoga block. I bet you could modify a yoga block to make your own wedge.

Lesley Logan 13:42

Yeah. And I think that some yoga blocks even come like that. So, like you, I mean, like, there's a lot of things out there, but that's what I would do.

Brad Crowell 13:50

What kind of angle are we talking about here?

Lesley Logan 13:52

Let me just get my protractor out. It's, it's not as.

Brad Crowell 13:59

If there's a right angle, is it halfway?

Lesley Logan 14:01

No.

Brad Crowell 14:02

No. It's 1/3 of the way?

Lesley Logan 14:03

One-third, maybe. Your eyes are still able to look at the ceiling. You're not looking at your toes.

Brad Crowell 14:09

Got it.

Lesley Logan 14:10

Yeah.

Brad Crowell 14:10

Cool.

Lesley Logan 14:11

Yeah. So Marlene, I hope this helps you. This is why I did the Reformer, you know, how to choose a reformer video. And this is why these are things we have to think about when it comes to what, what changes did an engineer make when making your rReformer, you know, like, did they change the springs for bungee cords? Did they change the foot bar that moves to a fixed vertical foot bar? Did they change that there's no head the headrest doesn't go down or doesn't go up? Did they change the shoulder rest so that they're round and not actually something that like allows your shoulders to be wide, or your foot to be against something that like fills their foot out like the Contrology shoulder blocks actually fit the shape of your foot. That's why they're (inaudible). That's why they're made the way they're made. So.

Brad Crowell 14:53

I was like, what?

Lesley Logan 14:55

So anyways, I don't think you have to go buy a whole other Reformer, Marlene, but I would do this, and then I would have a little savings account for the another, the next Reformer. And trust me, someone will buy this off you for the same thing you paid for it, because everything goes up in price and they're not paying tax on shipping.

Brad Crowell 15:10

No doubt. Well, and then when you're ready to go shopping, reach back out to us and we'll connect you with Balanced Body, where we've got a discount code for you there. So yeah, all right. If you have a question.

Lesley Logan 15:21

Send it to the beitpod.com/questions.

Brad Crowell 15:24

That's right. Send it to beitpod.com/questions beitpod.com/questions. If you have a win, and you want us to cover that win on the FYFs on Friday, you can also submit it right there as well. So thanks for asking that. Stick around. We'll be right back. We're going to dig into the question mark-filled convo with Matthew Lesko. Actually, it's more like mind-blowing convo. He has said wealth of information and exuberance for life. I really enjoyed it. So we'll be right back.

Brad Crowell 15:50

Okay, welcome back. Let's talk about Mr. Matthew Lesko. At the age of 81, Matthew is still rocking those question mark suits and has spent four decades helping people find free resources that they did not know existed, which I kind of think is amazing. He has written over 100 books, y'all, he's written 100 books. He has appeared on shows like Oprah, Larry King, The Good Morning America, and built a thriving online community that connects people to grants, businesses and funding and overlooked financial support. PS, I did math while I was listening, his, his community is like 5000 plus people. Yeah, that's crazy. From a string of failed businesses to becoming a recognizable voice for everyday people, Matthew has made it his mission to make support accessible. And it proves it's not about luck. It's about knowing where to look. So we're fired up about that. That was amazing. Tell me one of your favorite things about this convo.

Lesley Logan 16:47

Okay. How many things can I talk about? But first I want to just like he emphasized, there's no single formula for success. He talks about how life and starting anything new, this is important, means dealing with failure, struggle and a lot of guesswork. My perfectionist, here it is from someone who's written 100 books and is 81 years old and seen it all. You know, it come like success actually comes from dealing with failure, struggling, a lot of guesswork. And he believes success doesn't come from knowing everything, but from possessing the energy and willingness to keep trying and learn from failures. Hold on. I have to, I have to say this. He strongly advocates that you follow your heart. Stated, he says the way to get anything done is your heart has to be in it. He also said your heart is smarter than your brain, and to trust that more than anything. And I love this, because I think, like a lot of people, like, well, what's specifically when we coach people on their Pilates business, I'm like, oh, you know, who do you want to help? Well, that's, I want to help everyone.

Brad Crowell 17:45

Me, too.

Lesley Logan 17:45

Right. But like, who do you want to help? Because if your heart's not in it, you're gonna really be annoyed helping the person that you don't want to help. And then you're if your heart's not in it, you're gonna start resenting them and, like, start going, oh, this becomes another job, right? Like, your heart has to be in what you're doing.

Brad Crowell 18:01

Yeah, definitely. You know, it's so funny. We were just talking about this recently, where I feel like there's the two extremes, like I'll do anything for money. I'll only do it if I love it. And, you know, I know I kind of flip flopped over this, you know, during my life. And he has a very compelling argument to follow your heart, and I think also too, you know, he's very savvy. He's very business savvy. So he's been able to figure out how, by following his heart, can he also make money. And he's turned it into like a mission, and that mission has attracted other people who are like-minded. And, I mean, that is like the ideal scenario.

Lesley Logan 18:45

Well, and also, if you realize, like, you know, first of all, you know, Big Magic is a great book for everyone to read. And some of your things that you love to do, that you're like, are creative, aren't meant for making money on. So that's, we're not. I don't think that Matthew or us are advocating that you like if you love pottery, that you go or you only make pots, and that's how you make money. That whatever you are setting yourself up to do, to go through the struggles, to go through the obstacles, to go through the failures, you'll, you have to actually want to do it. You can have to care about the problem that you're solving. If you don't care, you're not gonna be able to handle those obstacles. You're not gonna be able to go through it. You're gonna, you'll get, you'll get a door slam on your face and just go, okay, well, I'm not into it, right? So I think that's what he means, that your heart has to be in it. Like not everything you love doing will be a thing you make money on, but you gotta care about what you're doing. Gotta have care for it to be successful.

Brad Crowell 19:40

Yeah, and I think there was something he said that just went right out of my mind. But he, he, he was talking about the when his, when he first, he actually, first off, I had no idea, he was in the military, but apparently he was in the military after he got out, he started.

Lesley Logan 20:02

81 (inaudible). I don't think you get to be 81 and you weren't, unless you're an asshole, draft dodger dickhead. Anyway.

Brad Crowell 20:02

That's fair. So he, he said he started a bunch of businesses and they failed. He started another business and they failed, and then he became a consultant, and that somehow, you know, was working, but then he was making millionaires billionaires. And he was like, that sucks. You know, he's like, these people don't care about anybody except for themselves. And he was not and he was not really enjoying it. And you know, he said he had this moment though, where he's showing up for the job, and he's like, uh, someday it's gonna be better and more fun, and then hopefully when I'm retired, I'll be able to go enjoy life. And he said, wait a minute. Why? Why should I keep doing something that I hate just hoping that someday it'll make it'll be better, it'll I will enjoy it more, or it's gonna pay me what I want to pay. He's like, I only have one life to live, and I'm better. I should start enjoying what I'm doing now. How do I do that? How do I do that? You know? So he said he flipped the script and decided to prioritize having fun. And he said having fun is contagious. He said it's a little contagious. In fact, you know, just his approach to the podcast was contagious and fun and joyful, you know. And he said it's also when you're doing something that feels fun, you are naturally motivated to work harder, right? So, you know, instead of like, kicking yourself to go get the thing done, that you have to do, what if you could do something that is fun, you know, you're gonna do it well, because you love doing it?

Lesley Logan 21:37

Yeah. Yeah. It made me think a little bit about Gay Hendricks is, like, zone of genius kind of a thing. Like, I feel like.

Brad Crowell 21:44

Sure.

Lesley Logan 21:44

I feel like they're very similar, except for this one is, like, except for Matthew is teaching us how to get the money we need to go do the thing we love.

Brad Crowell 21:54

Yeah, it's, it's very true, and he's encyclopedic with that, as well. He was very impressive.

Lesley Logan 21:58

I will say. Like, if you listen to episode 400, Gay Hendricks will help you figure out what your zone of genius is. And then Matthew Lesko will give you all the websites for where you can get paid to do your zone of genius. I think that these are two must listen tos.

Brad Crowell 22:12

Who knew that kind of a thing, just, mind-blowing.

Lesley Logan 22:12

And I think that each state has that. You have to figure out, like, how does your state, how does your state make money? Right? Because every state's a little different. How they tax, what they tax. So like, obviously Nevada is not excited to help us unless we are a casino. So since we are not one of those things, we're not getting that. But at the same time, there's still going to be things we can reach out to figure like, find ways, because this, they do have local people who need.

Brad Crowell 22:40

Yeah, gambling and tourism, that's how Nevada makes money.

Lesley Logan 22:43

Yeah. So that's how that makes money. So, like, but we can figure out, like, okay, well, how, what does the city need, right? Because we actually don't live for, the strip is not part of Las Vegas, surprising. It's technically paradise, but, but, but you can figure out what your city needs to get, what your county needs to get, what state needs, and then go, oh, well, what are they? They're paying for that, they're giving out grants for that. Like, yeah, you do the paperwork. But like, not many people are.

Brad Crowell 23:06

Not many people are.

Lesley Logan 23:07

Remember, I forget her name, B-D B-D.

Brad Crowell 23:12

B-E-A-T-Y?

Lesley Logan 23:14

Yeah. No, no, B-E-A-T-T-E. She was on our on an episode of The Be It Pod, and she got a, she got an SBA grant because she filled out the fucking paperwork.

Brad Crowell 23:26

Yeah, I.

Lesley Logan 23:27

B-D

Brad Crowell 23:28

Don't have her name there.

Lesley Logan 23:30

Well, she's in the two hundreds. Let's see how.

Brad Crowell 23:35

Oh, B-E-A-T-E Chalet, Chalet. She was, she,her interview was 196. I'm very proud.

Lesley Logan 23:43

Ah, I was so close. And I was thinking, Beate Chelette, but I was like, no, I was confusing her with Aletta Rochat. And I was like, no, but actually, I should have said it out loud, because I was right. Anyway, so close, so close. Yeah, but she, if you guys listen to her episode 196 she actually got an SBA grant for her business idea. You know?

Brad Crowell 24:05

I love that.

Lesley Logan 24:05

Because she did the thing that Matthew said to do, make the appointment, sit down with the people like, fill out the thing. Anyways.

Brad Crowell 24:13

Impressive. All right. Well, anyway, stick around. We'll be right back. We're going to dig into that amazing convo you had with him about the Be It Action Items, which y'all literally, you have to take notes like, it is, it's 100% you have to go back. You slow it down, listen to it twice, write down all the things he said. But we're gonna talk about it so.

Lesley Logan 24:31

And it's also in the transcripts.

Brad Crowell 24:33

Oh yeah, we'll put the links in the transcripts, but stick around. We'll be right back.

Brad Crowell 24:37

Okay. Finally, let's talk about those Be It Action Items. Say it with me Mindi. What bold, executable, intrinsic or targeted action items can we take away from your convo with Matthew Lesko. He shared an abundance of untapped government resources, both state and federal. By the way, it's not just the federal.

Lesley Logan 25:00

And I guess for the people who live internationally, I imagine these things probably exist in a lot of places you live.

Brad Crowell 25:05

I'm 100% sure about Canada. In fact, I have a lot of musician friends who would get grants in Canada where the Canadian government was willing to sponsor.

Lesley Logan 25:14

Yes. We have had guests who do that. That is amazing.

Brad Crowell 25:16

Yeah. And that that like, I don't even maybe that's available here too. I have no idea, but I'll tell you. You know, that was seemed to me like, like my college friends were like, I want to make an album. And they literally applied to the Canadian federal government, and they got like, 10 grand to make an album. And I was in college going, how the hell, why can't I get 10 grand?

Lesley Logan 25:36

I mean, they were Canadian, obviously.

Brad Crowell 25:38

Yeah, they were, they were obviously Canadian. So anyway, he shared a bunch of untapped resources. He said that 40% of everything in our economy are organizations that give you free money to solve a problem. I don't really understand that statistic, and I can't actually validate that, but he's been doing this for four decades, y'all, so he knows all these things. He emphasized that these programs are already paid for with our tax dollars. So it's on us to take advantage of them, or the money just sits there, it doesn't get used, right? And also, it might not be the kind of thing that they get to they don't just hoard it and pile it. It might be like, hey, you can give up to $2 million away, but if they don't, they don't get to keep it, right? So basically, it's on us to go take advantage of what is available to us. And it was fascinating to listen to him talk about the different reasons that someone might want to go get a talk to these organizations and go through the process. He emphasized that, well, yeah, there, and this stuff is already funded. It's already paid for. He advised the to seek out free government and nonprofit resources directly, rather than relying on standard search engines like Google, specifically, because they don't actually do SEO, or they're gated searches, you can't actually search them with outside search engines like Google. Right? And so basically, he gave us examples like findhelp.org which is amazing. It's about local finding local help for things like food, housing, health, money.

Lesley Logan 27:04

That, right there is so amazing how many people are struggling to afford groceries right now. Like, maybe, maybe you're not someone who is it, but maybe someone you know is. You can send them that information.

Brad Crowell 27:15

findhelp.org you know, and there will be links in the show notes. So there's more links in the show notes.

Lesley Logan 27:22

So many.

Brad Crowell 27:22

Yeah. He talked about the SBA. He talked about Apex Accelerators, which I've never heard of before. He talked about career and job training.

Lesley Logan 27:30

Oh, and turn your VPNs off, y'all.

Brad Crowell 27:31

Yeah, yeah. They're, you know, if they're a government side, it might have trouble if you have a VPN on. He talked about HUD, which is like another United States government, housing urban development, and he said, there's free financial and debt counseling, right? And they can help you get out of debt.

Lesley Logan 27:48

I mean, I had no idea, because, like so many of my friends and everyone had, like, use those companies that can, like, you know, supposedly help, but it could affect your credit at the same time. Like, who? Who knew if you use the government agency, maybe it would have been different.

Brad Crowell 28:02

I wish I had known when I when I had a failed business. It would have been really helpful. Wish I had known. So anyway, what about you? I mean, all those things and there's still more.

Lesley Logan 28:11

Okay, so we said it already. We're gonna say it again, because it's a Be It Action Item. Once you find a resource, book an appointment, okay? Matthew said, everybody just wants to fill out on application online, and wait for the money. You can't do that, he said, because you don't know.

Brad Crowell 28:23

What did everybody wants to say what?

Lesley Logan 28:23

Everybody wants to just fill out the applications online. Like, you know, like, oh, let me just do it online. It's just copy paste, copy paste. And he's saying, don't do that, because you don't know how the application should be filled out. And, like, there's always the little nuances, right? Like, we're currently working with lawyers who are filling out legal forms for us to go to Canada. So if we had done it ourselves, we wouldn't know the insight and the nuances to like, oh, actually, put this instead of that, because this will get you across. And that is actually going to be like, we have enough of those. So like, you want to make sure that you're working with someone who's like, fighting for you to fill it out correctly will tell you what certain things mean. I mean, sometimes I don't even know. It's like, you're like, oh, I think that's where I put my business name, and it's not, it's where you put your account number or something like that. So, you know, just work with the people. They're in the office I'm talking, I'm sure it'll brighten their day to hear what you're working on, right, what you need help with. Also, they often know the other people in the area, the community, the other resources to help you, right, like, oh, if I'm not the right resource, this person is, if you're starting a business or a nonprofit or side hustle, the smartest move is to call your local SBA office and speak with a counselor. Again, not something online, not a chatGPT. You gotta go and talk to someone. And then he also said, talk to experts who.

Brad Crowell 29:42

SBA stands for Small Business Administration, right? So that's a federal government thing, but they have local offices around the country, so you can actually go in and make an appointment to to their office. In fact, also too, not that I'm like, a huge fan of the big banks, but big banks actually often have training programs for business owners, too.

Lesley Logan 30:02

Yes, but we're not fans of big banks because they won't help you get an SBA.

Brad Crowell 30:05

Almost never will they help you get a loan. But, you know, there are resources available there too, but the SBA is actually, like, trying to help you get the money.

Lesley Logan 30:13

Yeah, I would fuck the big banks.

Brad Crowell 30:17

If the big banks, like, honestly, the SBA doesn't let you apply for SBA funding directly through the SBA. You have to apply through a bank. You don't necessarily need to apply through a big bank, though. So that's the difference there.

Lesley Logan 30:30

Right. So, and then also make sure you have the experts who can help you, help people like you, guide you to the right programs and the paperwork, and they usually do this for free. And you know, he's someone who loves to help people. So, like, there's, there's things out there. You're not on your own. Your friends and family might not be the best people to ask, but, you know what? Go to these offices and go, oh, they can't help you. Do you know who? Do you know who will, who can? Like, what else should I search? What should I be searching? Because I get the right thing. Like, they'll, they'll even, even at the DMV people help me, if you just ask the right questions and you're really nice. So trust me, people want to help people.

Brad Crowell 30:34

Yeah, it's true. It's true. Well, what a wealth of information. Also, he has like, here's like, books that are like, $20 so, like, even if you're, you know, look, if you're looking for more and you, you know, want to check out his resources. He has that community. The community he built is like people trying to help people find the right stuff. So, I mean, it's just curious. It's just fascinating.

Lesley Logan 31:29

Sounds super positive.

Brad Crowell 31:30

It sounds really positive, yeah.

Lesley Logan 31:31

Yeah. Who doesn't need that in their life? Anyways, share this with a friend who needs to hear it.

Brad Crowell 31:36

Share it. Send it.

Lesley Logan 31:37

This is the episode to share. There's so much in there for people, everybody.

Brad Crowell 31:41

Episode 545, y'all, share it.

Lesley Logan 31:43

545

Brad Crowell 31:44

545

Lesley Logan 31:44

I'm Lesley Logan.

Brad Crowell 31:45

And I'm Brad Crowell. Thanks so much for being here.

Lesley Logan 31:48

Oh, okay, you totally did. Show. We already said to share this. So now, go Be It Till You See It.

Brad Crowell 31:55

Bye for now.

Lesley Logan 31:57

That's all I got for this episode of the Be It Till You See It Podcast. One thing that would help both myself and future listeners is for you to rate the show and leave a review and follow or subscribe for free wherever you listen to your podcast. Also, make sure to introduce yourself over at the Be It Pod on Instagram. I would love to know more about you. Share this episode with whoever you think needs to hear it. Help us and others Be It Till You See It. Have an awesome day. Be It Till You See It is a production of The Bloom Podcast Network. If you want to leave us a message or a question that we might read on another episode, you can text us at +1-310-905-5534 or send a DM on Instagram @BeItPod.

Brad Crowell 32:39

It's written, filmed, and recorded by your host, Lesley Logan, and me, Brad Crowell.

Lesley Logan 32:44

It is transcribed, produced and edited by the epic team at Disenyo.co.

Brad Crowell 32:49

Our theme music is by Ali at Apex Production Music and our branding by designer and artist, Gianfranco Cioffi.

Lesley Logan 32:55

Special thanks to Melissa Solomon for creating our visuals.

Brad Crowell 32:59

Also to Angelina Herico for adding all of our content to our website. And finally to Meridith Root for keeping us all on point and on time.

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545. Discover Promising Grants You Didn’t Know You Qualified For