Soon after joining Higginbotham as a customer service representative in the employee benefits department, TJ Hutchings set a goal to become a managing director within five years, which he accomplished by the end of 2018. Hutchings has maintained a 95%-plus customer retention rate by tirelessly searching for savings solutions for his clients and fostering community relationships to bring them closer to resources that can improve their situation. On this episode, TJ discusses how his Cancer diagnosis led him to this current career path before deep diving into how employers should be approaching health insurance for their teams. He breaks down basic terminologies and best practices for small to medium-sized companies and how employees can make the most of their health plans. Chris and TJ also discuss the concept of businesses having to provide insurance, pre-existing conditions, the rising costs of care, and more. Enjoy! Follow Chris on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/FortWorthChris Learn more about Chris Powers and Fort Capital: www.FortCapitalLP.com Follow Chris on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/chrispowersjr/ (02:46) - TJ’s Background and Early Career (05:42) - What are folks left with when they are continually rejected in their appeals for health coverage? (06:32) - TJ’s Journey of Working with Higginbotham  (08:15) - How do you think about what you do for a living? (10:12) - What are the things that SMB owners should be asking when they’re at the table with you? (10:54) - Defining Markets (11:51) - Who sets rates? (13:55) - What variables can employers negotiate to get better rates or do privately do improve their individual standing? Healthcare Bluebook (16:58) - At what size do you start thinking about self-insuring? (20:06) - Individual Health vs. the Group Plan (20:35) - Why is insurance state-by-state? (21:35) - What are the types of plans and what do they mean? (25:12) - Basic Terminologies Co-Pay Deductible  Premium (26:19) - Why is it on your employer to cover health insurance in America? (27:35) - How do you make the decision on which bucket your company fits in? (31:22) - Dual-Options Plans for Employees (32:17) - Should most employers have their agent on site for open enrollment day? (34:08) - What happens when there are folks on the team with pre-existing conditions? (36:19) - What happens after folks and their companies have picked their policies? (38:39) - Is there any risk the employer takes on selecting a plan? (38:51) - Who are the main companies in this space? (41:00) - How far in advance should employers start thinking about next year’s plan? (42:48) - How do you navigate the constantly changing regulations as politicians revolve in and out of office to change things? (45:21) - Obamacare (46:00) - If I don’t have health insurance, and something terrible happens, who’s paying those bills? (47:06) - Why are health costs continuing to increase? Dr. Bricker Videos - AHealthcareZ (49:40) - Price Differences Between US and Canada for Pharmaceutical Drugs (50:42) - Is it a growing industry to have a company that fights the hospital billing on your behalf? (52:39) - Does the misfortune of a few impact the premium of the whole group?  (54:47) - What questions should companies be asking different agents? (57:30) - What does your dream client look like? (1:00:53) - Is there any technology that could disrupt this industry? (1:03:05) - Are there political issues in healthcare that keep you up at night? (1:07:07) - Was there something that happened in your childhood that shaped your path in life? (1:09:08) - Do you have a morning routine? (1:11:08) - What is the best advice you’ve been given & What advice would you give to someone starting in the industry? (1:12:56) - How can people find you? LinkedIn Instagram Twitter Website The FORT is produced by Straight Up Podcasts

Jefferson "Trey" Davis is the Owner of Davis Glass Cleaning Company based in Fort Worth, TX. On this episode, Chris and Trey discuss how he decided to make the jump into starting a sweaty business with only one client to over 100 in less than two years. They discuss Davis' day to day schedule and how he balances the actual service with administration work and business growth. The pair also discuss the massive amount of opportunity there is for these types of businesses, and Trey gives an incredible example of how he was making more money cleaning windows for 10 hours a week than he was at his full-time job. Enjoy! Follow Chris on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/FortWorthChris Learn more about Chris Powers and Fort Capital: www.FortCapitalLP.com Follow Chris on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/chrispowersjr/ Check out Trey's website: www.davisglassco.com Watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/0rCtBMzRogg (03:17) - Trey’s Childhood and Starting his Sweaty Business (05:19) - When did you decide to actually pull the trigger on this business? (07:40) - What were you trying to learn in order to launch this business in terms of actual service and the business side of it? (10:15) - What was your experience getting your first customer? (13:44) - What was your initial investment in supplies? (15:37) - What’s been the key for you in continuing to grow your customer base? (17:29) - How did you find Fort Capital? (19:42) - How would you bid a commercial building? (20:32) - What’s the difference between residential and commercial cleaning and how do you contract each?  (23:37) - How many customers do you have now? (23:55) - Have you ever had to fire a customer? (24:49) - How do you set up your booking and schedule? (25:37) - What does a typical day look like for you? (26:18) - How do you split your time between cleaning, admin work and finding customers? (27:08) - What are the biggest things you want help on as you grow? (30:21) - What do you see your job being if you weren’t cleaning anymore? (31:17) - What are some key things you’ve learned that you would tell someone who’s thinking about starting out? (33:50) - How do you handle rejection? (35:20) - What’s your pitch? (37:01) - How often do you need to replenish and replace supplies  (37:31) - How do you clean a window well? (38:09) - Getting Over the Feeling of Shame & Self-Doubt (41:22) - Was there a moment where you knew it was time to go full-time on this? (42:01) - How important was it having a supportive wife? (43:02) - The Massive Opportunity for These Sweaty Businesses (46:08) - What’s been your biggest failure or worst day of work? (49:27) - Do you have a childhood experience that shaped who you are today? (51:52) - What’s the best advice you’ve ever been given? (53:13) - How can people find you and your company? www.DavisGlassCo.com Instagram: www.Instagram.com/DavisGlassCleaningCompany The FORT is produced by Straight Up Podcasts

Nishant has extensive restaurant and food industry experience and is currently serving as the President and CEO of Dividend Restaurant Group, parent company to Romano’s Macaroni Grill and Sullivan’s Steakhouse. Nishant was responsible for the turnaround of both restaurants and the acquisition of Sullivan’s Steakhouse. On this episode, Nishant discusses his childhood growing up in Dubai and working at Mackinac helping distressed companies. They go through the process of what types of companies come to Mackinac, their diagnosis period, and what they look to achieve when working with companies. They also dive deep into running a restaurant during the pandemic, how to fix the labor issue in hospitality, and what pandemic-era changes will stick going forward. Finally, they wrap up talking about Nishant's venture into the Cannabis industry with his premium THC spirit company, Pamos, and the future of VC in the industry. Enjoy! Follow Chris on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/FortWorthChris Learn more about Chris Powers and Fort Capital: www.FortCapitalLP.com Follow Chris on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/chrispowersjr/ Visit www.pamos.com Mackinac Partners (01:12) - Nishant’s Background, Upbringing in Dubai, and Early Career (04:33) - What is Mackinaw and what do y’all do? (05:47) - What’s the process of working with distressed companies with Mackinaw?  (07:13) - Do most companies that come to you even know what their issues are? (07:41) - How quickly can Mackinaw determine the root issues of a client? (09:30) - How often is it a management team problem where you need to clean house? (10:09) - What are the reasons why companies go into distress? (12:08) - What do capital providers do wrong that start squeezing their businesses? (13:30) - How much forewarning are companies given that a new operator is about to come in and call all the shots? (14:20) - Is it common for family businesses to fail after they sell to PE? (14:56) - What happens after your 60-day diagnosis of a distressed business?  (18:26) - Why do companies not see things as clearly as you’ve explained them? (19:54) - Is there ever a time where you were unable to help a business? (20:50) - How does Mackinaw make money? (21:01) - Nishant’s Experience Building a Time-Share Business (25:34) - Building a Sales Platform from Scratch (30:25) - Is there a business to be had just to sell your time-share easily? (31:56) - How did you know it was time to sell the business? (33:35) - You Can Be Successful in Business Without Working in Your Passion (35:55) - The Difference Between Honesty and Trust (36:25) - Nishant’s Jump into Restaurants (39:52) - How did you source the Macaroni Grill deal? (45:21) -  What’s the goal for Mac Grill with growth? (46:44) - What was your world like during the Pandemic? (53:00) - What were the best and worst decision you made during Covid? (54:51) - What changes will stick in the business? What’s the labor market look like to you? (1:00:14) - What’s the private equity interest in the restaurant industry like right now? (1:02:00) - Nishant’s Work in Cannabis (1:04:57) - Industry Size and Cannabis Statistics (1:07:06) - How far away are we from mainstream acceptance and federal legalization? (1:10:53) - Nishant’s Cannabis Funding Concept  (1:14:09) -  Nishant’s Approach to Building and Implementing Platforms (1:15:53) - The Difference Between a System and a Process (1:16:20) - “You can think more freely when you’ve hit financial freedom” (1:17:04) - What’s something you see a lot of young people get wrong in their careers or early life? (1:17:56) - What’s the best advice you’ve been given? (1:18:46) - Is there a childhood experience that shaped who you’ve become? (1:19:43) - Why do you read so many legal documents? (1:21:58) - How can people find you? The FORT is produced by Straight Up Podcasts

Eric Jorgenson is the author of The Almanack of Naval Ravikant, which collects and curates Naval’s wisdom from Twitter, Podcasts, and Essays over the past decade. He is also the founder of the Leverage Course, which was created to help people learn how to accomplish superhuman feats by playing a different game — building leverage. On this episode, Chris and Eric discuss the process for writing the book and the impact that Naval has had on Eric's life. They also go in-depth on creating online courses, including the things that did and didn't work. They finish with a great discussion on creating leverage in a world that could evolve into one where more people operate anonymously online. Enjoy! Follow Chris on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/FortWorthChris Learn more about Chris Powers and Fort Capital: www.FortCapitalLP.com Follow Chris on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/chrispowersjr/ Watch this Episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/PgVUf0pEjeY You can check out Eric's personal site here Eric's Leverage Course is available here (02:37) - Eric’s Background and Bareer (03:42) - Eric’s Daily “If you could complete one thing today, what would it be?” Tweets (05:59) - Monthly Goal Setting (08:23) - The Almanac of Naval Ravikant Poor Charlie’s Almanack (14:21) - What’s a 1-0 Quality filter? (15:22) - How did you decide on the final buckets of the book? (17:20) - Did you have a playbook to rely on for writing this? (18:15) - When do you know you’re done? (20:10) - Did Naval pre-screen and approve the final copy? (21:02) - How did you get Tim Ferriss to write the Forward? (22:22) - How did Naval become Naval? Naval with Shane Parrish Naval with Tim Ferriss Naval with Joe Rogan Naval's thread on how to get rich without getting lucky (25:42) - How did you get interested in these figures like Naval and Charlie Munger? The Munger Recommended Reading List (27:20) - If you asked Naval and Charlie “What is going on in the world?” What would they say? (31:08) - If you were to do a second book, what would you do differently? (34:31) - How do you know if the book is successful right now? (36:04) - What do you mean by “Everybody knows what to do with a book”? (37:57) - Did your course, Leverage, spin from what you learned from writing the book? (39:48) - Eric’s Partner Justin Mikolay  (42:06) - What was something that wasn’t obvious to you that Justin pointed out to make the course great? (44:16) - How do you know what to teach and how to avoid writer’s block when creating the course? (48:06) - What happens at the end of the course? (50:43) - What is an Aspirational Hourly Rate? (54:30) - What are self-imposed obstacles and what is a study group? (57:41) - How do you think about Leverage if we’re headed to an anonymous online world? (1:10:54) - What is one thing you believe that most people do not? (1:11:26) - Do you have a morning routine? (1:11:48) - What’s the Best Book You’ve Read The Systems Bible by John Gall (1:12:50) - How can people find you? www.navalmanack.com Jorgenson's Soundbox Eric on Twitter www.EJorgenson.com The FORT is produced by Straight Up Podcasts

Codie Sanchez is the Founder of Contrarian Thinking, a newsletter dedicated to inspiring mental and financial freedom. She acquires SMB's across different industries as well as investing in the legalized cannabis industry.  On this episode, Codie discusses her early career as a Conflict Journalist on the U.S./Mexico Border, her position on financial freedom, how she was able to build a successful newsletter, and the trend of investors becoming influencers. They also discuss Codie's passion for SM, her process for finding businesses to buy, and implementing her own operators. Chris and Codie wrap up with some hot topics such as college, Twitter trolls, and failure. Enjoy! Follow Chris on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/FortWorthChris Learn more about Chris Powers and Fort Capital: www.FortCapitalLP.com Follow Chris on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/chrispowersjr/ Codie on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/Codie_Sanchez Watch this Episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/Vw26Z17va9c (02:32) - Codie’s Background (04:31) - What is Conflict Journalism? (08:34) - Codie’s Views on Financial Freedom Read Her Tweet here Newsletter: Contrarian Thinking (12:12) - Venezuela’s Currency Crash and How Currencies Lose Value (14:45) - How did you build your newsletter Contrarian Thinking? (18:46) - When do you write and how do you find inspiration for what to write? Notion (22:35) - What’s the ultimate goal for your newsletter? (24:17) - Investors are Becoming Influencers (28:40) - Is this a bubble or are the fundamentals of investing changing? The Sovereign Individual by James Davidson (31:04) - Robinhood (32:47) - Why do you love SMB and what kinds of businesses interest you? (35:13) - How do you find deals and filter through to the ones that matter? Flippa BizBuySell (37:40) - How long does it take you to make an offer, and when do you find an operator? (39:07) - Are the majority of folks selling looking to exit entirely? (39:51) - How do you find operators? (41:50) - How do you finance your deals? (43:17) - How do you hold people accountable and keep folks incentivized? What role do you play post-sale? (47:10) - Are you buying these businesses with the plan to grow them? How do you receive cash from these businesses? (49:44) - What businesses do you like right now? The Third Wave: An Entrepreneur's Vision of the Future by Steve Case (53:20) - Wealthy is Healthy (56:52) - College or Not? (58:09) - Dealing with Twitter Trolls (1:02:13) - Time Management  (1:05:21) - What are some of your biggest failures? (1:11:33) - Do you have a childhood experience that shaped who you are? (1:14:10) - What is something that you believe in that most do not? (1:15:48) - How can people find you? ContrarianThinking.co Codie on Twitter The FORT is produced by Straight Up Podcasts

On this episode, Chris breaks down how Fort Capital transacts and acquires properties. He starts with the company's emphasis on how important their process has been to their success, who's involved, and what type of deals they pursue. Then he breaks down each step of the acquisition from the time a deal is brought to their attention to closing. Enjoy! Follow Chris on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/FortWorthChris Learn more about Chris Powers and Fort Capital: www.FortCapitalLP.com Follow Chris on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/chrispowersjr/ Follow Fort Capital on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/fort-capital/ (01:12) - How You Acquire Properties Matters (03:03) - Who’s involved in the process? (03:31) - Pursuing Off-Market & Light-Market Deals Instead of Auctions (04:53) - Acquisition Consultants Leads.FortCapitallp.com (06:36) - Running a ‘Quick Check’ (08:00) - Deal Pipeline Folders (08:45) - Weekly Deal Meetings  (12:13) - Investment Committee Meetings (12:53) - Drafting an LOI (13:45) - Project Kick-Off (15:19) - PSA (Purchase Sale Agreement) (15:54) - Writing an Investment Memo Listen to FORT #81 for more details on Investment Memos Fort Capital Free Resources (18:33) - Raising Capital  (21:07) - Bank Financing  (22:50) - Getting Entities Developed (Bank Accounts, Titling, Administrative Tasks) (23:19) - Property Management Due Diligence Listen to FORT #97 for more detail on Due Diligence (23:48) - Huddle-Up Before Going Hard on Our Money (24:38) - Wrap Up  The FORT is produced by Straight Up Podcasts

Sean Sweeney, Co-Founder of Hall Sweeney Properties, talks about his journey in the industry, navigating through the '08 crisis, and founding his own firm. He breaks down the process of ground-up development, including site selection, working with architects and contractors, and property management. He also discusses popular unit sizes in real estate and reflects on the Forbes list.

On this special bonus episode, Chris is joined once again by Kevin Dahlstrom (Episode #131 of FORT) for a role-reversal interview. Chris talks about his current career transition and how the past 2 years have lead him to his decision regarding his role at Fort Capital. Kevin and Chris also discuss creating space to think, being multi-dimensional, Twitter and more. Enjoy! Follow Chris on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/FortWorthChris Learn more about Chris Powers and Fort Capital: www.FortCapitalLP.com Follow Chris on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/chrispowersjr/ (01:14) - Chris’ Current Career Transition (10:39) - Do you think of yourself as a ‘Zero to One’ person? (15:15) - Chris’ “Oh, sh*t!” Moment at the Beginning of COVID (19:31) - Was there a specific moment that was the catalyst for making your career change? (24:08) - The Enneagram Test (26:42) - How are you thinking about what’s next for you in life? (32:17) - Creating Space to Just Think (34:09) - Being Multi-Dimensional as a Key to Happiness (36:47) - “Stacking the Pancakes” (40:51) - The Time-Billionaire (41:40) - Chris’ Experience with Twitter (51:55) - Chris’ Habits and Routines  (56:45) - The Letter Writing Exercise (58:34) - Building in Public: Chris and Kevin’s upcoming Brainstorming Trip (1:03:36) - What’s one thing you’re looking forward to? (1:06:53) - Wrap Up and Final Thoughts The FORT with Chris Powers is produced by Straight Up Podcasts

Rhett Bennett is the Founder and CEO of Black Mountain, a private natural resources company with several business units: E&P operations, commercial saltwater disposal, midstream, and in-basin frac sand mining.  On this episode, Chris and Rhett deep dive into the Nickel industry. Black Mountain has recently stepped into the industry by purchasing a mine in Western Australia. Rhett delivers great insight into how Nickel is used in battery metals and will be critical for the Electric Vehicle industry. They also talk about the decreasing investment in Oil & Gas and how that creates a wealth of opportunity for the industry, and some great statistics that knock some reality into the increasing calls for more EV's. Enjoy! Follow Chris on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/FortWorthChris Learn more about Chris Powers and Fort Capital: www.FortCapitalLP.com Follow Chris on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/chrispowersjr/ (02:50) - Rhett’s Background (06:26) - When did you move from friends and family money into institutional money? (07:01) - Do you look at what you do as high-risk?  (08:50) - Is there an education you put yourself through before entering a new venture? (12:11) - How quickly did you hire Hayden Gillespie after meeting him? (13:05) - How did you get into nickel? (21:24) - Global Warming (27:36) - What does 80% more efficient mean when you talk about nickel for an internal combustion engine? (29:55) - Is nickel used for anything other than batteries? (30:20) - What are the two classes of nickel? (30:54) - How do you hire a team in Australia from America? (34:23) - Why did you implement new leadership in the Australian company you acquired? (37:01) - Is there a lot of nickel in the world? (42:20) - Opportunity in Betting Against ESG (44:32) - What brings money back into Oil and Gas? (47:37) - Nickel & Oil and Gas Statistics The FORT with Chris Powers is produced by Straight Up Podcasts

Today's episode features Joe Pohlen, Founder and Partner of Cardinal Senior Management, an assisted living company operating facilities in Michigan and Pennsylvania. On this episode, Chris and Joe dive into the different levels of senior care and look into how Joe's facilities look and operate. Joe describes the process of acquiring buildings, the sales process of adding residents, and how they focus on maintaining the dignity of the resident above all else. They also have a sobering discussion on just how hard the pandemic hit seniors.Enjoy! (03:18) - Joe’s Background and Career(15:52) - What are you doing on Day 1 after you close?(18:12) - What kind of work do your salespeople do?(18:50) - Who brought this sales-driven philosophy into the organization? (19:49) - How does taking over a new property work in terms of existing staff and training?(20:34) - What do your lease-up plans look like?(21:22) - How long have leasers planned on coming to Cardinal before signing?(22:52) - How many people come in against their will?(23:07) - How do you get these people comfortable with living there?(24:18) - What activities can residents participate in?(25:25) - What happens on holidays?(26:32) - How do you get paid?(27:11) - Is there a doctor on staff that prescribes medication and how do staff administer medications?(29:11) - Are there upsells on the sales side of Cardinal?(30:15) - How are residents able to afford this rent?(31:44) - How does medication arrive at pharmacies and then your facilities?(32:22) - What do the resident’s kids care about the most?(34:37) - What are some of the lingo and sandboxes that people don’t understand at the beginning?(35:23) - What are your fixed and variable costs?(36:04) - Is your business a target for legal issues?(37:26) - What are some reasons you could get sued?(38:01) - Why is keeping the resident’s dignity your main focus?(49:23) - What was happening in your world during COVID?(58:30) - What was it like to be a resident the past 6-8 months?(1:00:26) - How did vaccine administrations work?(1:01:36) - What did the past year teach you about leadership?(1:03:46) - Is there any technology on the horizon that will have a profound impact on your industry?(1:07:22) - Does dating and marriage happen with residents?(1:08:08) - Population and Age Stats of the Boomer & Silent Generation(1:09:07) - With people living longer, how will people be able to afford so many years of care?(1:10:06) - What do the next 10 years look like to you?(1:10:43) - How would you be valued with 50 properties?(1:11:56) - What happens to prisoners when they get really old?(1:12:50) - What’s your perspective on the world when you spend so much time with the elderly?(1:14:50) - How many deals will you do this year?(1:15:02) - Is there more opportunity out there for you right now?(1:15:57) - Do you plan on staying in assisted living or do you want to go into nursing homes or independent living?(1:17:27) - Is there anything from a government standpoint that you would like to see changed?Twitter Questions(1:18:58) - How can people experiencing poverty sustainably afford assisted living?(1:19:39) - How do you approach the distributed nature of your business?(1:20:33) - What’s going to happen in 15 years with the largest population aging into assisted-living eligible?Personal Questions(1:21:47) - Do you have a morning routine?(1:22:33) - Did you have a childhood experience that led you to be such a great leader?(1:23:50) - If someone was getting into your industry, what’s the best advice you can give them?(1:25:02) - How can people reach you?jpohlen@livecardinal.comThe FORT with Chris Powers is produced by Straight Up Podcasts