Always Be Building

This episode we have returning guest Doomberg. Over the years Doomberg has made multiple appearances on the show and his episodes are some of my favorite to record. 

If you don't already know, Doomberg runs one of the largest paid substack newsletters and puts out some incredible content around energy, markets, business, politics, and the other craziness going on in the world. 

This episode we talk about how OPEC is losing its influence and the ripple effects that will ensue if the cartel ultimately dissolves. We discuss how ESG has peaked, and how the green movement is on its last leg. 

The conversation then turns to politics and what's at stake in the upcoming U.S. election. It has become increasingly apparent that "democracy" is threatening to the establishment as they try to cling to their globalist ambitions in the face of the rising popularity of nationalism in western nations. 

Lastly, we talk the economy, the fed, and how alternative assets like Gold and Bitcoin will play an increasingly important role in a world where governments can't stop printing money. 

Hope you enjoy the show! 

Check Doomberg's substack: www.doomberg.com

Don't forget to like, subscribe, and hit the notification bell for new episodes. 

Credits for the BYD video: https://www.youtube.com/@Wheelsboy

Timestamps:
00:00:00 - Intro
00:01:12 - Doomberg's Return and Background
00:01:14 - China's Role in Natural Gas Market
00:02:15 - OPEC and Changing World Order
00:03:39 - Impact of OPEC's Strategy on Natural Gas Sector
00:04:27 - OPEC's Influence and Future
00:06:07 - OPEC's Past Strategies and Current Situation
00:11:36 - Natural Gas Displacement and Transportation
00:14:20 - Impact of Natural Gas on Oil Production
00:17:00 - Natural Gas in Transportation: Case of China
00:18:53 - China's Pollution Concerns and Shift to LNG
00:20:22 - Natural Gas and US Manufacturing
00:22:06 - Shift in Energy Investment Trends
00:23:15 - Discussion on ESG and Energy Policies
00:26:27 - Impact of Energy Policies on Industries
00:29:53 - Energy Policies and Democracy
00:31:51 - Current Political Climate
00:34:27 - Elon Musk's Impact on Free Speech
00:37:34 - Nationalists vs Globalists Debate
00:40:54 - Election and Voting Perspectives
00:42:55 - Discussion on Trump's Strategy
00:44:59 - The Role of Twitter and Substack
00:46:42 - The Role of Gold and the Global Economy
00:49:42 - The Impact of the Upcoming Elections
00:56:22 - Discussion on Gold as a Reserve Asset
00:57:25 - Bitcoin and the Financial Institutions

This episode's guest is Nik Hulewsky, the co-founder of multiple 7 figure businesses that he has successfully built and flipped. Nik started on the corporate career path and ultimately got fired from his job. 

Rather than going back to the corporate world he used an SMB loan to buy his first business, a medical payments company. After a few years he grew the revenue of that business and exited. Since then he has gone on to co-found multiple companies and is currently partnered with Chris Koerner (a previous guest on the pod). 

This episode we discuss the different business pursuits Nik has chased and talk about his successes and failures. We get into some of the specific business challenges that the medical industry faces and how technology is changing that space. Lastly, we talk about what Nik is planning for the future and how his past ventures have shaped the way he views new opportunities. 

Hope you enjoy the show! 

Timestamps:
00:00:00 - Precap
00:01:17 - Introduction and Background
00:01:37 - Nick's Early Career and First Firing
00:02:51 - Learning from Failure and Job Loss
00:07:58 - Transitioning into Entrepreneurship
00:10:40 - First Business Acquisition and Growth
00:11:09 - Insights on Control in Business
00:12:14 - First Venture and Learning Experience
00:14:08 - Expansion and Sale of Businesses
00:16:14 - Overview of Healthcare Provider Payment Methods
00:16:42 - Understanding Commercial and Private Insurance
00:17:11 - The Problem with the Healthcare System
00:17:40 - Discrepancies in Medical Billing and Pricing
00:18:22 - The Issue with Patchwork Pricing Models
00:19:09 - Advice on Handling Medical Bills
00:19:57 - Complexity of Medical Billing and Coding
00:20:38 - Data Challenges in Energy and Healthcare
00:21:58 - The Concept of Arbitrage in Healthcare
00:22:22 - Issues with Patient Records and Interoperability
00:23:28 - Opportunities in Solving Interoperability
00:24:47 - The Role of Machine Learning and AI
00:25:16 - Challenges with Data Formats
00:27:45 - Future of AI and Machine Learning in Healthcare
00:28:04 - The Importance of Company Culture in Startups
00:28:43 - Understanding Distribution in Business
00:30:30 - The Power of Content and Audience Building
00:32:02 - Different Strategies for Different Industries
00:35:48 - Maximizing Business Value through Channels
00:36:06 - Exploration of New Business Opportunities
00:36:46 - Theoretical and Practical Approach to Business
00:37:22 - Criteria for Business Interest and Investment
00:39:37 - Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Business
00:41:13 - Reflections on the Framework
00:42:52 - Future Plans and Opportunities
00:43:13 - Perfume Vending Business Case Study
00:46:24 - Conclusion and Contact Information

This episode's guest is Ted Dockrey. Ted left his job during his 20s and bought a HVAC company. Him and his partner took the business from a mid 6 figures revenue to 8 figures of revenue in just a few years and then sold it to private equity.

This episode we discuss Ted's entrepreneurial journey and what it took to take the leap to go out on his own and buy a business. We talk about the importance of culture when leading a large team of people and how Ted took a different approach than the typical HVAC business. Ted discusses the changes they made to the business to ramp up sales, including an early marketing push that added millions in revenue in just a few months. 

Hope you enjoy the show!

Timestamps:
00:01:15 - Introduction
00:13:44 - Discussing HVAC and Refrigeration Businesses
00:16:30 - Challenges of Seasonal Businesses
00:17:02 - Staffing Challenges in HVAC
00:19:03 - Acquiring and Operating a Company
00:20:14 - Understanding Distribution
00:21:33 - The Decision to Buy Suntec
00:25:15 - Growing the Business
00:31:13 - The Power of Simple Marketing
00:33:05 - Challenges in Pricing and Scaling
00:37:14 - Balancing Growth and Pricing
00:41:10 - Ethics in HVAC Industry
00:42:31 - Communication with Customers
00:47:43 - Mistakes and Lessons
00:55:38 - Decision to Sell


#maxgagliardi #hvac #hvacbusiness #business #entrepreneurship

This episode's guest is James Fishback. He recently had a high profile (and highly meme'd) exit from David Einhorn's Greenlight Capital.  He's moved past the 'head of macro" controversy, and is now focused on building his next venture, Azoria Capital.

This episode James shares his insights on the current state of the macro economy, including his thoughts on U.S. inflation and the Federal Reserve's monetary policy. We discuss actionable investment strategies around macro trends and what James has been paying attention to this year. 

We dive into what this year's election means for the economy and the differences between Trump and Biden, highlighting their contrasting economic policies.

Lastly, we discuss Azoria Capital and how James is creating an investment vehicle that targets companies that are using a merit based approach vs the recent trends of embracing ESG and DEI.  

Hope you enjoy the show!

James' Twitter: https://x.com/j_fishback
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Timestamps:
00:00:00 - Intro
00:01:59 - Guest’s Introduction
00:02:04 - James' Social Media Success
00:03:00 - The Importance of Open Debate
00:05:29 - Investing in Macro Themes
00:12:49 - The Impact of Fiscal Stimulus on Inflation
00:18:42 - The Role of the Federal Reserve
00:22:46 - Rate Hikes and Their Effects
00:25:09 - The Fed's Lemonhead Problem
00:27:16 - Rate Hikes and Their Real Impact
00:29:12 - The Impact of Rate Hikes on Wealth
00:32:41 - The Importance of Focusing on Shareholders
00:36:32 - The Process of Assessing Companies
00:37:23 - The Shift in Corporate Priorities
00:41:01 - Energy Transition and Green Investments
00:42:20 - Government Intervention in Energy Transition
00:44:48 - Consumer Choice in Energy Transition
00:45:39 - Free Market and Electric Vehicles
00:48:35 - Policy and Politics Discussion
00:50:04 - Potential Impact of Administration Change
00:56:56 - What is Azoria

#jamesfishback #maxgagliardi #uselections2024 #energy #trump #biden #usinflation

This episode's guest is Clay Brett. Clay is a partner at Baker Botts, and leads a broad transactional practice, representing private equity investors, private credit investors, portfolio companies and financial institutions in M&A, capital formation, financing and joint venture deals. 

While Clay has led transactions across sectors as a generalist, Clay is regarded as one of a handful of the most respected names in the private energy investment space.

Clay is uniquely positioned to give legal advice because he has experience in both operating companies as well as doing structured finance deals. 

In this episode, we start with Clay's background and discuss his motivations for leaving corporate law to join a private equity backed E&P company. After a few years of operating upstream assets, his group raised additional private capital to deploy into DrillCos and other structured finance deals. 

Clay is an expert in deal structuring and drops a ton of knowledge in this episode on how to get transactions across the finish line. You don't want to miss this one! 

Enjoy the show!

Timestamps:
00:00 - Intro
00:01:51 - Clay's Introduction
00:02:37 - Clay's Career Journey
00:09:10 - Transition to Law
00:11:36 - Deal Making: A High-Level View
00:13:30 - Key Considerations in Deal Making
00:19:38 - Role of Rep and Warranty Insurance in Transactions
00:21:21 - Framing the Transaction
00:23:12 - Importance of Good Representation
00:24:29 - Understanding the Financial Impact
00:29:02 - Negotiation Tone and Relationship
00:30:23 - Deal Exhaustion and Loss of Trust
00:33:52 - Importance of Detailed Term Sheets
00:35:27 - Evolution of Millennial Phase
00:41:43 - The Investment Process
00:43:15 - Understanding the Drill Code Space
00:44:52 - Transitioning to Advisory and Legal Side
00:45:56 - Private Equity Space for Oil and Gas
00:53:34 - Challenges in Upstream Transactions
00:55:32 - Changes in Private Equity Funding
00:57:12 - Surviving in the Industry
00:58:03 - Opportunities in Lower Middle Market
01:00:58 - Transition and New Role
01:01:40 - Water Situation in Texas
01:03:00 - Interest in Storage and Carbon
01:03:26 - Contact Information

This episode's guest Aleksey Chernobelskiy. Aleksey has a background in managing a $10 billion commercial real estate portfolio at STORE Capital and is currently a principal at Centrio Capital Partners. 

With Centrio, Aleksey focuses on helping LPs in real estate investment funds better understand the investment risks they are making and vetting GP investment presentations for red flags.

This episode we discuss how and why he started Centrio, what he looks for when analyzing real estate deals for LPs, and how he hopes to help the small investor understand the risks they are taking when placing investment capital. 

Hope you enjoy the show! 

Timestamps:
00:01:29 - Aleksey's Introduction
00:05:30 - Red Flags in Deals
00:06:48 - The Role of Social Media in Business
00:08:34 - The Market for the Service
00:12:14 - Surprises in the Business
00:21:45 - Transparency in Deals
00:22:05 - Articulating the Reason for a Raise
00:22:27 - Communication Issues with GPs
00:23:44 - Misleading Investment Decks
00:29:13 - The Role of Alignment and Structure
00:32:36 - Unexpected Capital Calls
00:36:05 - Types of Capital Calls
00:38:58 - The Problem with Reporting
00:43:15 - Deceptive Activities
00:44:13 - Investment in Various Asset Classes
00:45:08 - Investment Outside Real Estate
00:46:12 - Contact Information and Outro

This episode's guest is Chris Koerner. He is a serial entrepreneur and loves the art of building businesses. Chris has founded and built multiple companies across different industries and currently manages them in his holding company. 

This episode we discuss the challenges Chris has faced juggling so many different companies at once. We look at the successes and failures he's had in his career and what keeps him motivated to find the next great deal. 

Chris tells some wild stories about when he started a company with John McAfee and went to his home surrounded by armed guards. We dive into his recent RV Park investments and what his formula is on creating value in that space.

Chris is the real deal when it comes to entrepreneurship and it awesome to be able to sit down with him and have this conversation. 

Hope you enjoy the show! 

Chris Twitter: https://x.com/mhp_guy
Chris Linktree: https://linktr.ee/mhpguy

My company's short-term rental Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mountainforkresort/?hl=en 
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Timestamps:
00:01:26 - Introduction
00:01:53 - Chris's Background
00:03:19 - Entrepreneurial Journey
00:04:24 - Struggles and Successes
00:10:18 - Importance of a Good Team
00:11:36 - Partnership Struggles
00:14:37 - Choosing the Right Business Idea
00:16:29 - Commitment and Unwinding a Business
00:19:25 - John McAfee Story
00:23:24 - The White Whale Theory
00:26:28 - On Buying vs Starting a Business
00:29:55 - Investing in Mobile Home Parks
00:33:45 - Mobile Home Park Exit Strategy
00:34:31 - Greenfield Development
00:35:49 - The Importance of Marketing
00:38:46 - Marketing and Operations
00:40:08 - Motivation for Growing an Audience
00:42:19 - Challenges of Building an Audience
00:45:08 - Broad vs Niche Content
00:48:06 - Challenges with Twitter Algorithm
00:53:38 - Podcasting Experience
00:55:45 - Advice for Entrepreneurs

This episode's guest is Hans Lorei. I met Hans in the short-term rental space, and have been following him as he's grown a massive interior design brand across social media the last 8 months. 

Interior design has always been one of the most important aspects of building a home. However, it can be very challenging due to the need to balance multiple factors like functionality, aesthetics, budget, and technical requirements, all while accommodating subjective preferences and evolving trends.

In this episode, we decode the formula of how to grow a brand on social media, how Hans grew his account to 500k followers on Instagram (in just 8 months!), how to lean into a niche and ultimately monetize it once you've build out the distribution channels. We also discuss Real Estate development and the subdivide land project Hans and his team is building.

How you enjoy the show!

Hans Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hansloreidesign?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=ZDNlZDc0MzIxNw==

My company's short-term rental Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mountainforkresort/?hl=en 
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Timestamps:
00:01:24 - Introduction
00:01:30 - Hans Instagram Journey
00:02:31 - Idea and Inspiration Behind Hans' Content
00:03:54 - Hans Content Creation Process
00:04:25 - Hans Experience with Instagram Growth
00:07:57 - The Role of Algorithms in Hans' Growth
00:17:17 - Hans Content Strategy and Niche
00:21:40 - Social Media and Business
00:22:04 - Influencer Collaborations
00:24:09 - Influencer Charges and Giveaways
00:26:48 - Monetizing an Audience
00:28:57 - Building an Audience
00:30:26 - Fitness Influencers
00:31:47 - Monetizing a Design Audience
00:36:42 - Consulting and Personal Taste
00:41:31 - Arrington Woods Development
00:42:47 - Challenges with Septic System
00:44:07 - Learning from Development Experience
00:46:23 - Subdividing Land and Its Potential
00:50:03 - Marketing and Sales of Land
00:55:22 - Closing Remarks

This episode's guest is Joey Morris, one of the co-founders and partners of a popular restaurant group based in Oklahoma City. Joey is also my cousin in-law, and every time we get together at family gatherings I've always enjoyed talking business and entrepreneurship with him. His team has put together multiple successful restaurant concepts that have stood the test of time and had continued success. 

This episode and Joey talk about the success of his restaurant chain and the difficulties he faced in the early stages. We also chat about real estate, employee relations, profit margins and numerous other topics you need to know about the hospitality business.

Hope you enjoy the show.

Joey's restaurant here: https://okc.themuleokc.com/

Another one here: https://thepressokc.com/

This episode's guest is Chris Hellgeth the man behind the GasBizGuy Twitter account. I was excited to get Chris on the podcast since we have both made our careers in the hydrocarbon marketing space. 

This episode we discuss the retail gasoline distribution business and how Chris has been able to carve out a profitable business in that niche. We talk about his investments in real estate and the time when he almost lost it all during the great financial crisis in 2008. Lastly we discuss dealing with the highs and lows of entrepreneurship and how Chris has been able to make peace with the process over the years. 

Hope you Enjoy the show!