On today’s episode, host Brett Freeman welcomes Jonathan Schneider of Mahopac, NY. Before beginning his career as an accountant, Schneider was a Sergeant in the United States Marine Corps, instructing Marines in hand-to-hand combat before leaving for overseas combat zones. He did a tour in Iraq in 2003 and returned to Mahopac when his military duty concluded. Schneider and Freeman have been friends for many years and even share a birthday. Schneider has a heart of gold, the sincerity of a Boy Scout, the bravery of a Marine, and he’s the only politician you’ll find who picks up trash without any cameras nearby. 

Today Schneider joins Freeman to discuss his professional trajectory, beginning with his service in the military and aspirations to join the NYPD before sustaining injury in Iraq in 2003. From there, he joined Schneider Financial Group, Ltd. He talks about the trying times following his injury, and struggling as nothing was going according to plan. He tells Freeman about finding his true strength through life’s difficult moments, and using them as an opportunity to re-evaluate his priorities. Schneider answers questions about his softer side, his journey through parenthood, and the importance of civility, even in moments of conflict or misunderstanding. He shares his experience taking horticultural classes following his father’s passing, and moving offices for a fresh start. 

Schneider recounts the experience of helping many businesses through the COVID-19 shutdown in March 2020, and discusses the huge professional and personal challenges people have had to juggle during the pandemic, as well as the possible long-term repercussions yet to unfold in the business world, such as inflation, factory closures, and worker shortages. He offers his perspective on the future of automation across all industries, changes to the government, and the war of economics and race in our country. Freeman asks Schneider about his position to allow marijuana dispensaries in the town of Carmel, NY, as well as his passion for serving veterans, starting his own non-profit organization, and whether he sees a future in politics. Finally, they chat about Schneider’s admiration for Elon Musk, Teslas, and engineering, and where he believes forward-thinking leaders like Musk, Sir Richard Branson, and Jeff Bezos are going to take the future of humanity.

Episode Highlights:

• Jonathan Schneider is the managing partner in Schneider Financial Group, Ltd.
• He is passionate about discussing differences of opinions and learning about new beliefs or facts he has never been exposed to before
• He tries to listen twice as much as he speaks
• After his freshman year of college, he joined the military
• He intended to complete police academy training with the NYPD as well, but his unit for the Marine Corps Reserves was activated after September 11, 2001
• He was deployed overseas to Iraq in 2003, and sustained an injury while training
• This put an end to both his military and NYPD careers
• He was living in North California at the time, and decided to return to New York to join his father’s Accounting practice
• The first few months after his injury were quite tough, and he struggled as nothing was going according to plan
• Schneider feels that it’s during these difficult times in life that you’re able to find true strength and reevaluate your priorities - trying times make us who we are
• He met Billy Joel during Fleet Week in Manhattan in 2002
• They had a great conversation over drinks and even got to discuss Billy Joel’s song, “Goodnight Saigon”
• Schneider is a “tough guy,” but he also has plenty of softer traits, with a heart of gold and infinite patience, particularly in his journey through parenthood
• Self-reflection has been very important
• He realized early on that not losing his temper would make him a...