Episode 15 - The Master P Breakdown

Nicky Saunders: 0:00

What's poppin' What's poppin'? What's poppi '? Welcome to Nicky and Moose I'm Nicky! That's Moose! What'

Mostafa Ghonim: 0:07

What up, y'all? up Moose?

Nicky Saunders: 0:08

And we're bringing back the breakdowns! Yes, we are! And with somebody very special to start the year off. You may have heard in the news, they're gonna buy Reebok. He was an NBA player, an entrepreneur, a rapper. It's too much, it's too much. But if you don't have any idea, we're talking about Master P! Moose, what's your thoughts?

Mostafa Ghonim: 0:34

I love it. I love it. Again, I always talk about when any, anybody starts before social media era, you know, maybe on the verge of the internet era, that means they really had to hit the ground running and build it from the bottom. So I think it's always fun to show and give props to you know, to those people so yeah this gonna be special.

Nicky Saunders: 0:54

Let's get into the intro.

Jaymie Jordan: 0:57

Two kids from Queens, cut from a different cloth. Now joining forces helping you to elevate your personal brand. Yeah, I'm talking about Nicky and Moose! Bringing you a never before seen perspective into the mindset, the mentality, the behaviors, the driving force, but more importantly, the stories behind the people and brands that you know and love the most.

Nicky Saunders: 1:27

So I'm really excited about bringing back the breakdowns low key. I'm not gonna hold you.

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:33

First one of the year, you know what I'm saying? First one... it's been a minute since we've done like a real a real breakdown. Yeah.

Nicky Saunders: 1:41

And I learned so much from these breakdowns because we're doing all the research and everything. So I felt like, I don't know, like recharged. I was like, oh, we're back! We're back!

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:52

It's official.

Nicky Saunders: 1:52

No, for no offense to all the interviews. We love all the interviews and everything like that, but this is my selfish side of like, we get to learn and teach at the same time. I really appreciate that.

Mostafa Ghonim: 2:06

Indeed, I've learned a lot throughout this through that this format, man, you know, I talked about the whole Mav Carter situation. We had a little a little in house communication yesterday. And I was like, oh, are we are we... are we making the connection officially? But you know, it's still in the works. So it's been...

Nicky Saunders: 2:22

Words are powerful! Words are powerful. I'm just saying.

Mostafa Ghonim: 2:26

Indeed man, indeed!

Nicky Saunders: 2:28

Moose said he wanted to have Mav Carter kind of vibes. And all of a sudden, we're like one person away. It's a great feeling, it's a great feeling. We can't get too much into it. It's too much. It's too much. But you know, we gotta go with the review of the week. And I've gotten comments that I butcher each...

Mostafa Ghonim: 2:51

Yo, your...read outs have been hilarious.

Nicky Saunders: 2:52

Yo, I butcher each one.

Mostafa Ghonim: 2:56

Yeah these read outs have been hilarious. I saw I saw the clip that was posted. I'm like, Oh, I love it. I love it. I butcher each one. So this one comes from lvlolv. I think or Start over. Start over. hat's a why somebody? I don't now. But the title is QGTM. hat does that stand for? What oes that mean? I don't know. ut "Real people from the real orrow in the world, the realest h, see... the realest borro up..

Nicky Saunders: 3:27

Okay, I gotta start over. I gotta start over." Real people from the realest borrow" I can't even talk "in the world. Great and valuable content, don't sleep on Nicky and Moose if you want knowledge, and gain." So I think it's almost an official segment where it's just Nicky messing up the review of the week. I think that's just what it is become.

Mostafa Ghonim: 3:52

It's a good vibe. It's a good vibe. I'm with it.

Nicky Saunders: 3:55

I guess whatever.

Mostafa Ghonim: 3:56

I'm with it. I'm with it.

Nicky Saunders: 3:59

But the good part is that we also do get to bring back the flight assessment. We haven't been talking about the flight assessment lately. I don't know. It...

Mostafa Ghonim: 4:11

Because of the interviews, you know? But if if ever there's a time to bring it back, top of the year is probably the best time. Right? This is like, this is the time to get rolling with it again. So yeah.

Nicky Saunders: 4:24

So so for those who may... all are brand new people, all our day one people, we do these breakdowns based off the flight assessment. "Nicky what's the flight assessment?" Don't worry, we got you. Right? So the flight assessment is an assessment that we both have taken that has changed our lives but helps us kind of not I wouldn't say categorize do we, do we want to say categorize?

Mostafa Ghonim: 4:50

Not necessarily categorize, but we draw references, you know? Like we make connections. Were able to help people be or say, Oh, I I score or I feel that I can resonate with this person, maybe I can follow their blueprint to repeat that or regenerate that success in my own business or brand.

Nicky Saunders: 5:08

See, this is why I go to Moose. So Moose, in

1: 5:11

30, I don't know, you may want to go longer, because we haven't talked about it for a minute, can you talk about what are the characters of the flight assessment?

Mostafa Ghonim: 5:22

Absolutely, man. So let me just tell you real quick the flight assessment, summarized in a quick, you know, a couple little minutes. First off, this is just based off of the four dominant personality types that we know exist in the world. Now, off the bat, all of us have a little bit of each of these. But we also have one that we're very strong and one that we lead with and dominate with. So to help you make those connections, we use the flight theme or the airport theme, because this is a specific area where all four of these are present. So first, you have the pilot. What do you notice about the pilot? The pilot, as soon as they get on the plane, they go straight to the cockpit. So those who score like a flight attendant, when we look at their personality, we know that they're very bottom line, goal oriented type of people. They literally only worry about getting the plane from where it is, to its final destination. But as you are finding your seat, you come across some flight attendants. Now the flight attendants have a different type of swag, right? The flight attendants are more about the people, right? They want to make sure that you're having a pleasurable experience, they want to get you a drink, or help you find your seat, get your bags on the plane. So they're all about using their charisma, their, their, their charm to help you again, connect and just build relationship. When you're in your seat. If you're sitting in a window seat, you gonna look out the window, you're gonna see some people in orange, blue, or green vest, those are your grounds crew. Now, these are really the stabilizers. They're like the linchpin in a way, and they help the entire operation continue to flow. So they're getting bags on the plane, they do a lot of different things. But again, they keep everything organized and flowing smoothly. Last but not least, you got your air traffic control, you don't hear these people, you don't see them, but you hear of them, right? Pilots always coming on the intercom, like aye, air traffic control said we next in line to take off. So these people are in the backend somewhere, but they're really strategic, right? They're analytical, they think about how do my decisions today impact our future tomorrow, but you bring them all together and there you go. Flight assessment.

Nicky Saunders: 7:18

Shoutout to Moose with that breakdown. So we're gonna try to figure out what master P is. So keep in mind with what Moose said, because we're gonna always reference here and there, what we may think. And at the end, we're going to kind of give our perspectives of what we think Master P is. But getting right into it, right? Um, I realized that I have so much more respect, because for one, he's talking a lot about ownership. I don't know if you notice that. He's talking a lot about ownership. And that always gets me excited, because now I'm like, Yay, 2021, I got to get real back on that whole vibe. So first, first clip, it's a little bit about ownership, that first two is going to be about that. So let's get right into it.

Master P: 8:10

Instead of me goin' sayin', I'm gonna spend $1,000 with a shoe with a shoe company like Nike or Gucci whatever. I'm going to invest maybe 10 grand into creating my own. And then if I sell enough, I don't have to sell a lot. I already made my money back. I created a brand, now I have something to market. Besides even if you're in the music business, besides just the music, because I tell people all the time, product outweighs talent.

Nicky Saunders: 8:44

Let's talk about that.

Mostafa Ghonim: 8:46

Interesting. Interesting. Interesting.

Nicky Saunders: 8:48

You gonna go first? You gonna go?

Mostafa Ghonim: 8:50

Nah I'll let you take it because I, you know, I may have to take a devil's advocate approach on this one, but I'm curious to know what you got to say about it.

Nicky Saunders: 8:57

Okay, so... that wow, you may have a devil's advocate. All right. That's interesting. So first off, I love the topic of ownership. Right. And I love what he said as far as like we spend, the topic before if you haven't seen that TI podcast episode was, you know how to spend money. Right? And some, some of us have a hard time figuring out smartly how to spend. We'll spend money in, like he said, the luxury brands, but are we spending money that's going to put money back in our pockets somehow, some way? Right? So he, he was showing his sneaker that he made and was like instead of me investing in Nike, right? I can make my own shoe. Have my tribe buy it so I can make My money back and maybe then some. So I'm still rocking sneakers that I would want anyways, while making money about it. So thinking about from just that standpoint, without going into the last bar just yet, I think that's genius. And I think we've had a conversation about it, where I even was like,

Mostafa Ghonim: 10:17

Yeah it's a great debate. It's an whooo, I just spend this amount of money on Black Friday, this amount on a random sale this that, and nothing's coming back to me or truly is any kind of ownership towards me, but I'm rocking their brand. I'm rocking it over and over again, and promoting them freely. Not only did I give you your money, but then I'm promoting you on a reg. Like, so on that note, I'm like, Okay, I'm switching my hat up now, right? I may get different merch. And we'll possibly get into that later or another episode. But I'm seeing like, if you were going to wear this anyways, if you were going to do this anyways, why not have some, some skin in it? Why doesn't it not be owned by you? Now granted, then that comes into a business, right? Then there comes work and everything like that and I can understand why may, some people may shy away from that because they're like, Yo, I don't want to get into the fashion brand. I don't want to get into this, I don't want to get into that. Right? From their standpoint, maybe not even make it into a business just have paid for the customization. Have it to be yours, and not necessarily another person's brand. But the reason why I picked that clip out in particular, because I liked what he said at the end where it was like product last longer than talent or something, right? And it got me thinking like, Oh, my God, because when we die, there goes the talent. But if we was to put it in some way, shape, or form or physical or digital product that could last longer than anything, right? I'm thinking from that standpoint. Product can weather through multiple storms or, health issues, and things like that. And you have to look at it. Now granted, with Master P, and I'll let you get into those kinds of things. But he has multiple products. I mean, he got into rap snacks, and noodles, and cereal. And he really believes in the same thing where if I'm going to eat it or do anything with it, I might as well put my name on it, as well as providing back for a good community. But also having product because the product will work itself with correct marketing and things like that. And I'm looking at all the different businesses and products from even like a chicken spot. I think he has like a chicken and burger spot. He has a sneaker a clothing line, he has multiple things. So he really believes in that. Now I know a whole bunch of other people that believe in I'm the talent, I can control what I make because I am the talent. There's nothing wrong with that. I don't think either model is wrong. I can understand Master P's model, I can understand where in your sleep the product is making money. Where in your sleep is the talent unless you created product. Is it really making money? That's where I'm like I could see it. Because... interesting topic. That's why I said I think I may have more of a devil's advocate kind of approach to this one. And and only because it's like there are two different business models or two different frameworks, but in a way still connected. But let me let me start here first, right because I love I love what he said in terms of the ownership mentality because it really shows the true entrepreneurship spirit in him. And it all stems from even how he got started in the game, right? Like you think about how he started with his story. He He's growing up, he wants to be a basketball player gets an opportunity to go to college to play basketball and knee injury wipes him out. But within a year or two, he takes all his business experience. And after he gets a settlement money and settlement money we're not alking about he got hande over a million dollars. It w s a $10,000 check, because his grandfather got hur or unfortunately lost his lif on the job. So he takes hat settlement money, and automatically opens up a re ord store. So you can see how hat $10,000 was really the star of his journey. And it's now led him to where he is now. Or ven at the time of that c ip, thinking about that same mo el, hey, instead of me taking his money, and I can go buy something, why don't I take his money, and invest so whe her whatever my clothing budget is, as a as a, as a rapper, a an entrepreneur, who prob bly spends a good amount of mo ey, with every public appeara ce, why don't I start flipping the coin a little bit and find a way to reinvest back in myself, all that money that I wil be spending anyway. So that' my favorite part of it, right? hat entrepreneurship spirit of l ke, hey, if that's one of t ose things, and I'm building som one else's community, that's not necessarily going to pour ack into me, or I can see hat there's a disconnect somewh re, that it makes sense for me t go out there and really make my own thing happen. So I'm with yo on that 100%, the ownership p ece we'll always gonna love it And we're going to mention it over and over and over again. Now, the other side of it now, when he talks about the pr duct versus talent, I can under tand if it's a if it's something that is automated, righ , an automated product. I don't have to worry about talent at that point me gro

Nicky Saunders: 16:29

I see where you're going,okay.

Mostafa Ghonim: 16:30

See what I'm saying? Yeah, because because at that point, I'm strictly relying on no human, like, no human has to touch it at that point for the product to continue to filter to to penetrate and allow me to make money in my sleep, as you mentioned. But if I'm talking specifically to the model that he's speaking to, which is a clothing line, a physical product, now, physical product require talent, right? Like it requires designers, it requires marketers, it requires people who can go out there and sell and also place the product in a way, like, you know, how much people fight, when, when in malls and like even the supermarket, the positioning of product, like there's a that's a big business in terms of what product you see first when you come in the store, right? Because there's always hundreds of different selections, but the way they're positioned throughout the store, whatever catches your eye, there's a science to that. So when it comes to a physical product, I think you can't just completely overlook your talent, because it makes the big difference. Now, lastly, I got to make reference to my guys, because I'm gonna call them my guys, I'm gonna continue to speak it, like you said, because I feel like you know, hopefully something happens in the future. I'm feeling it. But but they Mav and LeBron, we're talking about acquisitions, right, like acquiring companies and and literally one of the things that determine their decision with one of the investments that they made was that one company had better mid level managers then the other. Because they said, Look, we're not going to be on the on the forefront, whatever, whatever the business is, we're not going to be out there actually working the business. We're putting our money there. But there's a there's human capital right there like that's, that's a form of capital that's just as important as monetary capital. So they were they were kind of speaking to the importance of having a talented management system as well as human capital that can carry out and make sure that your investment is protected. So yeah, that's my piece that I was like, Okay, I'm with you on that. But I can't completely give you the checkoff like yeah, that's, that's the way to go.

Nicky Saunders: 18:38

So devil's advocate to your devil's advocate, right?

Mostafa Ghonim: 18:43

Double double.

Nicky Saunders: 18:44

So not saying they're not talent, because I don't want to downplay any human. But if a CEO doesn't necessarily have to be the face of the product, right, doesn't necessarily push out, ship package, any of that, that the employee employees are the people put in those positions to work those titles are technically the system. Right? Is that not semi automated? Like clearly automation, from a digital standpoint is literally a press of a button. And we're done. Right? But to say you're not pressing a push of a button for some of the packaging or push of a button for UPS and every other Postal Service to come pick it up. You know, is that not a sense of system an automated system, even though it is a physical product?

Mostafa Ghonim: 19:59

Yeah. So in the business world, it really breaks down to two areas that the the part that you're speaking to that follows more into the delivery of service or in this case you will call the delivery of product, right. So that's, that's the the manpower that is tied to the delivery of product. Or in that case, yeah, it can almost seem automated, as long as you have people who are proficient enough to just print labels package, ship them out, drop them in the bin, and for the most part, you know, it can run efficiently. But from a CEO standpoint, again, when I'm talking about product placement, you know, agreements, or just like working with whichever stores are going to carry your products, you need a talented person, like, you know, like that matters, I would want you on my negotiation team in terms of like, who do we collaborate with? How do we position our products,

Nicky Saunders: 20:51

But once I put it in Walmart, that's almost automated, because Walmart has its own system. Right?

Mostafa Ghonim: 20:59

Indeed.

Nicky Saunders: 21:00

So all I have to do is get maybe somebody super talented...

Mostafa Ghonim: 21:04

Nicky

Nicky Saunders: 21:05

Huh?

Mostafa Ghonim: 21:05

Nicky's getting spicy. I felt the voice. Nicky's like, "Aye but if I put it in Walmart though..."

Nicky Saunders: 21:13

But if I find a person who can get it placed in Walmart, or I'm doing all the...I can't even say it. If I'm doing that to get it in Walmart, right, is that not its own system? That's all I'm saying. Like, I don't have to touch it after. I have to make sure it's fulfilled. But it's doing the sales on its own. Because once it's in a Walmart, right, or some of these top stores and things like that, it's a wrap.

Mostafa Ghonim: 21:48

Yeah, man. And I guess this is where at this point is where we can agree to disagree, in a sense, just because I'm always of the belief that whatever, like I believe in universal laws, right? We talked about this before, whatever you stop caring for it automatically decreases in quality. Like it's just not as sharp. I'm not saying that's gonna stop, but it's gonna decrease in quality, right? Maybe someone else is a little bit, just a little bit more careful, they put a little bit more energy into nurturing that relationship with Walmart, they're just not going to leave it alone. All right, and that can continue to keep your product on the forefront. Go for it. I know you gonna say something.

Nicky Saunders: 22:22

I got one more. So is even a digital product deemed automated or not if you have to find somebody to maybe set up the system, find somebody to promote it, a marketing team with ads and stuff like that, like, is that the same kind of vibe?

Mostafa Ghonim: 22:47

I would say yes, to be honest with you. And you could probably speak to this better. And I think this is great information for everyone listening or even those who are watching on YouTube. Because you think about even with a digital product, there have been plenty of times where you have to be in conversation with even like our ads person to turn on and turn off ads based on you know, certain holidays or when things are coming up. So so to say that something can be like truly evergreen or completely automated, I think, is almost a myth, I want to just go out and flat out say that, because it's gonna require some level of maintenance, you may not have to show up for it nine to five, and commit a whole amount of time to it. You know, for some people, it can be an hour a week. For others, it can be an hour a day. But if you think about it from a trade, like a trade for ownership for your own product, I'll trade an hour a day to keep mine you know, my product, either physical or digital at the top of the charts.

Nicky Saunders: 23:48

I'm not really disagreeing with Moose. I just felt like it was a good conversation to have.

Mostafa Ghonim: 23:53

It was great. I like that.

Nicky Saunders: 23:56

Let's go into the second one. So um, shout out to all the YouTube people. You saw in the clip that he was holding his sneaker I think, what is it called? Like money...

Mostafa Ghonim: 24:07

Moneyatti

Nicky Saunders: 24:08

Moneyatti ok. I know it was like the Bugatti of sneakers or something like that. That's why he called it that. But we're going to talk about him bidding to buy Reebok. That is interesting. The reason why we're doing this episode is because...buying Reebok? That's crazy. That's but let's get into it.

Master P: 24:34

Opportunity to get a brand that we can that has some equity value still left in it and that's out there that we can...refurbish and give it a makeover to make it cool and make it black. I feel like Reebok is about to go black. It's the only way it can be successful. And if they don't take the deal from us, then we're going to create more brands and we're going to help other people create brands. So we're gonna invest into us and this is only the beginning.

Nicky Saunders: 25:03

So you won't get this one first? Sure, sure.

Mostafa Ghonim: 25:07

Yeah, yeah. So it's interesting, right, because I was reading up on the numbers, the first thing you hear him talk about, there's still value left in the company. Right? And I think that's important because for anybody who is acquiring a business, it shows just how his mind works, that he's not just going out for the sake of an ego driven mission, although very, like, it's a very credible thing to say, like, we want to purchase this company or this brand, so they can be black owned, that's a credible thing. But it's not, it's not an ego driven mission to the point that I'm willing to overpay. Alright, and I think some entrepreneurs out there will often allow their ego to get the best of them, that they're now overspending, right. And in a way, cutting their selves cutting their margins or driving themselves out of positions where they can really turn the dial, because it's that it's that power flex. So I like that he speaks to, which clearly is shows his knowledge of the of the business that there's still value in it. So the backstory to that just for those who are interested in numbers, is Adidas owns the brand, they paid a little bit over 3 billion for it, and now they're selling it at right around that 2.3 position. So they know that they're going to sell it at a loss, right? They're kind of just, they've accepted that. And now this is where he's creating that buffer or kind of doing the math and say, Okay, well, if they bought it for three and sold it for two, I have an opportunity to kind of catch that 1 billion in an evaluation marketplace. So yeah, I think that when I listen to someone speaking, in that way, it shows that his heart's in the right place, I want to bring it back for the community. But simultaneously, I'm not just gonna be out here, you know, doing it for the good. I know that the numbers match to.

Nicky Saunders: 26:46

So I got a semi different view. Agreeing still agreeing with you, however. Do you feel that maybe he is trying to be the Yeezy of Reebok?

Mostafa Ghonim: 27:04

I hope not.

Nicky Saunders: 27:06

So, so bear with me with this, right. So he talks about his sneaker. Right? And in that same interview, he did bring up Yeezy, with Adidas and everything like that, but not from the standpoint of like ownership. But that, you know, he wants to open it up for other designers to come in, like, big name people to be a part of Reebok. If you've seen lately, Reebok has a deal with Cardi. And everybody has been knowing that Allen Iverson has been on Reebok forever. Now, one of the points that he was trying to make was that Allen Iverson should have been way bigger in the sneaker game than he is or was right? To be the top player at the time. And like we were still been buying AI's but not not the marketing that it should have had. Right? So he's seeing all the mistakes. And he's like, Look, let's look at just history when it comes to sneakers in itself, right? Black people, the minorities, we buy them, it would only make sense. For that to happen. I think Puma was...I think Jay Z has a part of Puma is associated with Puma somehow, some way for that same reason, like, you know, minorities just buy sneakers, this is it's part of our culture. And so if you're really trying to save Reebok, it would only make sense for it to be black owned. Now, what I did love is how you said, he understands the downfall of Reebok. And so yes, they're bidding at a 2.3 billion, but he's not going to pay it. He's not going to pay that he understands that without the culture and without certain connections, it's going to flop even more. Reebok has not been on the top of the game for the longest, right? And to have not only one of the most respected hip hop, you know moguls owning it, as well as an NBA player, which will now bring hip hop and players together. For Reebok, we can only imagine what sneakers are going to come out of it or who will be rocking that, but I say the whole Yeezy thing is because is he going to put his brand now part of Reebok? Because using the machine that Reebok already has, regardless of how strong or weak it is, it's still more than what he maybe could possibly do on his own, at least from a shorter standpoint, right? This is a machine that's already there that knows how to distribute from a large scale. Right? Even though his brand is a luxury brand. Let's combine it. Let's look at the model of what Kanye did. And how can we make Reebok all all into a whole new level. So when I saw that, I was like, he's not slick. He's not slick, he's buying the machine. He's not waiting to get picked up, he's going to buy the machine. Like the same way how he created No Limit, he's not gonna wait for somebody to sign him. He created a record, a record label. And that hands down his genius, the fact that you were even talking about a billion dollar acquisition like What?

Mostafa Ghonim: 31:21

Right. Yeah no for sure.

Nicky Saunders: 31:23

That's why it's got CNN it got all the the media stations that probably wouldn't have covered it, if it was not a billion.

Mostafa Ghonim: 31:33

Yeah, that is true. That's real, to give them the platform to do so I think it is, it's showing his wit to say, you know what, let's do a reverse acquisition, to your point, because we win the distribution channels, right, we automatically are going to put whatever our sneakers are into a global market because of where they are. That makes sense. It

Nicky Saunders: 31:52

And, and let's think about it now that there's makes sense. media coverage on it, right? If the deal does not work out, that's okay because now it brings awareness to his brand.

Mostafa Ghonim: 32:01

That's a great point Nicks. That's a great It brings awareness to whatever because now people are like, man, we wanted you to buy Reebok, whatever you're doing, because you already planted the seed like, yo, if they're not gonna do it, we're still going to move we're still going to create our own. And there's going to be a whole bunch of people that are now may have not known about Master P's brand and all the snacks and fashion and sneaker wear that he has. Now they're gonna be like, I could only respect the move that you just did to try to buy Reebok. Now let's go support you. point because to talk about now think of the attention and we talked about how expensive attention is. But for him to get that free attention now you never know whose radar he's falling under. Maybe the Reebok deal doesn't work out. But what if Nike says Yo, we'll give you 100 million for your brand, right? Like that's, that might still be a come up? You know? So you're absolutely right. There's something behind here that we might not know. But let's just say we're predicting it here on Nicky and Moose. I mean, h y, if this actually happens, I don't know. We might just nee some some credentials on I don't know, CNBC or something like, yeah, they called it

Nicky Saunders: 33:19

I'm just saying. I'm just saying. I wouldn't be surprised, I really would not be surprised. But let's go into this third clip, um, it was talking about investment. But this, what he said could be flipped in so many different ways. So I had to pick this one. So let's go into it.

Master P: 33:44

And also find stuff where there's a problem. So I always look for a business with a problem. So if I find a problem, I have the solution. You want to fix it, you want to fix that house, everybody wants a nice looking house. But the person that fix the house is where the value come in at.

Nicky Saunders: 34:02

Very simple, right? But at the same time, the the money is always in the solution. So I didn't want to focus on like, what the question was, and he was talking about investments, because that doesn't really go with our audience. But at the same time, the fact that he looks for a problem and tries to solve it, he already understands that people pay whatever amount of money for a solution, instead of trying to do what everybody else is doing and try to get the quickest money grab and what's already working and things like that. He's trying to find a problem that no one else probably is even paying attention to the way he was referring to it was Like a house, for me, I'm never buying a fixer house again, tell you this straight out, never doing it is annoying, you have to fix everything. It's..I hate it, however, I get it, the value is going to go up, it's going to be worth so much more. And blah blah blah blah, I get it, I get it. So I understood when he said that, right? But even with our brands and businesses, are we positioning ourselves to solve a problem? Or just kind of be with the trends or what's already being worked on? Like that's, for me, even when I'm creating content or giving advice for branding. I'm always like, what isn't being done? Like, what is the problem that's still out there that people are really not talking about, or really not addressing in some way, shape or form? Because not only does that make you different, but that also puts you in a different money scale. Like you could charge whatever because no one else is doing it. So I love that. That advice that he was giving.

Mostafa Ghonim: 36:14

I really, I really, I think that's great. And I really see this as a mindset point too. Like it more than anything it's a mindset, because, you know, and shout out to one of my girlfriends, Nick, I was on his podcast a couple weeks back. And we were talking about the Nicky and Moose you know, our podcast as well. And one thing led to another and I was telling him that a lot of people get so caught up in complaining about the problem or talking about the problem. But there's a few people who notice that a problem is a good thing. Yeah. And he kind of asked the question like, well, what's the difference between someone who is stuck in a problem and someone who's on the way to a solution. And as someone who's willing to do the work. I was like you notice that those who are happy in a problem, they all they do is just talk about it. But then the mindset is a problem. And as someone who doesn't mind them do the work, a problem is actually an opportunity, the problem is an opportunity to work and build a solution that can then turns into a tangible business. So I've always looked at that, like, yeah, that's a that's a unique mindset that most entrepreneurs have, that they go to where most people are running away from, or where most people are sitting on their hands. And the other side of it is we we've talked a lot about supply and demand supply and demand on this podcast, and I brought it up and not from an economic standpoint, but I just wanted to talk to the difference of ideas come a dime a dozen, right ideas, that's your supply. But the problem to your point, that's the demand, that's the market saying hey, I need help, you know, I need help with this specific area. So if your idea the supply doesn't have a direct person or problem that it meets in the marketplace, you got to not you know, like because I do see like in today's era, especially with how cool entrepreneurship is branded, people just want to do it. And they they're starting companies or brands just for the affiliation, like just to the association say Yo, I can I could give myself the title of CEO of XYZ brand. It says like, I'm just gonna, I'm just gonna get incorporated for the sake of a title but it's like, man do it right. You know, do it for the right reasons. And and I think that's what you're seeing here for Master P.

Nicky Saunders: 38:24

Yeah, that's, that's good. That's good. This next one, though. I'm really excited about so to set it up. This one was done in one of the interviews that Sway did and we're talking about investing in yourself, right? We've talked about products and services and blah, blah, blah, but the way he I'm gonna just play it. You'll understand.

Master P: 38:57

Knowledge is money. So I'm gonna give y'all the blueprint. Just got to take some time to go. I spent $25,000 with Michael Jackson attorney in the 1990s just to get some game. The man said look P, if you want to come up here and talk to me, it'll cost you 25 grand. I said, Man, that's a lot but here it go. I'll be up there. I went up there. That's how I got the distribution deal. He said the only deal you could get is an 85/15 deal distribution deal, but you don't need $200,000 I'm like, Damn, I just spent 25K, to know I need 200 more grand. So you got to realize we have to educate ourselves.

Mostafa Ghonim: 39:34

Man.

Nicky Saunders: 39:38

So, let me start this one, right. So first off 25K is not light. Okay? Just to talk to somebody. It's not even...so backstory real quick. Master P wanted to know how did Michael Jackson make so much money in the music industry, right? So what he did was look up everything about Michael Jackson and went to find his lawyer. Right, who was making the deals for him. After the research and found out who it was, he contacted him and he was like, Yo, I would love to just sit down with you. My man said, Yeah, sure, 25K to even have a conversation. Like, I'm looking at my whole life first and foremost, like, I'm about to charge you for every word that I say! This is crazy! But neither here nor there, right? So the, the great thing about paying for that is the results that it had. Right? He was able to have access to something that lasted, like that created generational wealth. He was able to figure out everything he needed to know about the music industry that was able to create No Limit Records, right? Able to have the distribution deals that nobody else was getting or demanding, because they didn't have the knowledge. Right? So once he got the knowledge he executed, of course, once you spend a certain amount, definitely 25K, you're probably going to have a little bit more action, a little bit more fire under your butt, then if you was to have that person just tell you the information for free, or you pick their brain and all that great stuff. And you do nothing with that information. So he took that spend whatever how much more that the guy did suggest, and created millions. So though, he may have thought at the time, yo 25K plus maybe 200K, that's a lot. But the results that it produced, because he invested in himself, because he invested in the knowledge of, of duplicating certain things as far as the distribution deal. It was worth so much more, that he would do it again, times five, you know. And so I look at that on, like, what are we educating ourselves on a regular day basis. The thing with Master P is that he's really big on teaching people about finances, about the economic side of things, right? Because I believe that our culture is just not well versed in it compared to others. Right? So he's really big on that he was challenging people like look, once a week, read about economics, one hour, one hour. Buy something, invest in that, and and you can see how much money you would be saving and making if you just understood how to manage your money, right. What to do, what different accounts, stocks, all that great stuff. And that's stuff, you wouldn't expect to hear from like a hip hop mogul like him. But he's really big on that. Why? Because he's received the information, he you know, studied, and he isn't ashamed to put money up to get the information that is going to be able to create more. So yes, there is a lot of free information out there that can help us start certain things. But to get to millionaire status, that's going to cost that's going to cause or it's going to take you a very long time. I'm not going to sit here say that is not possible. But it's going to take a very long time. If you haven't invested in education. Not in systems not in all that just yet. You have to educate yourself first and foremost, to know what systems you need to know what people you need to connect with, to understand if certain people are in the right place or not. Or if this deal is good for you or not...the lawyers that you may need, right? Just like I want... don't make me. I had to

Mostafa Ghonim: 44:39

Talk about it! give the whole bag to certain lawyers this year. Ya mean? Listen, listen. Any really great lawyers out there, come holla at us. We may have a conversation. Whether it's you know trademarking. You know, dealing with our IP, contracts for sure. For sure. Come holla at Nic y and Moose. DM us on ll our platforms, whatever yo which one you want to prefer, w would appreciate it. But anywa . Moose, what did y You know, it's funny I had, I remember, again, this is this is when a friend, a friend of mine who jokes around a lot, right? He was like, yo, why don't you come interview me, I'll let you interview me for free. And, and I responded, I don't want to say in a petty way, but I really meant what I said, right? And I was like, I'm good, because free is too expensive. Free is too expensive.

Nicky Saunders: 45:53

Break that down.

Mostafa Ghonim: 45:54

Free is too expensive. So if we're constantly just relying on the free information that's being spilled out, the one thing that people don't realize is that that free information isn't tailor made to your situation. So so you're going to try and be cheap, and shortcut the process and take whatever information is being given to you and just flip it into your business. And a couple months go by and you're like dang it didn't work out. Yo you don't know what you're talking about. No. You try doing what I do at a mastery level on your own. And you're not me. So free is too expensive. And for some of us, we just can't afford to keep making the same mistakes to be told. Yeah, yeah, we got turned up on the first one of the year. Welcome to Episode 15 y'all!

Nicky Saunders: 46:50

Yo, yeah, shout out to episode... Moose just made me want to spend a whole lot of money. Between Master P and Moose with that right there, I'm about to spend a lot of money in 2021. About to spend a lot. It's crazy!

Mostafa Ghonim: 47:13

For real man. For real. Nah but I will say this at the end of the day, you know what I...and for those who didn't listen to our last episode, man, I love what Inky said, you know, and we gave so much credit to him because this is somebody who is one of the best in the industry, but still walks off the stage and takes notes. And you know, when we asked him about it, he talked about the importance of continuing to be a student. And that's what exactly Master P saying here. It's like Yo, continue to learn, educate yourself. You're a student of the game. Let me give you the numbers behind this Nicks, jus because I want people to se that $25,000 investment and al the 90s you could be lik $25,000 investment o information is expensive today But imagine what that was wort in the 90s.

Nicky Saunders: 47:56

Yes! Oh my God! Thats...

Mostafa Ghonim: 48:01

Let's not forget about that! That's nearly 25 years ago, yeah, that's nearly 25 years ago. But check this out right? So let's say he spent that 25 grand. So here's what he did. Between '92 and '98. alone, in those six years, No Limit Records sold $120 million worth of albums. All right. 80 million albums $120 million in six years through that record. So you could you could easily just start let's just start estimating. He turned 25 grand into 100 million. Fair to say, not to mention, not to mention the deal that he got when another record label actually, they kind of merged together, right? So at the time, we were we've talked about this before, most artists weren't keeping their masters. Right labels were taking their masters. And if you did have some deal in place, Madonna who we know in the 90's was booming, her deal was 25 /25 /50, of course in favor of the record label. Master P negotiated a 75/25 deal in his favor, and he keeps his masters. So now I get the knowledge of the of the power house like you call it right the distribution with the platform, but it's in my favor. And my knowledge helps me to protect my assets, because I have the right information from the experts. So yeah, I just wanted to kind of, you know, help the people make the connection. And sometimes Yo, when you really go to the right places, and you trust those who you hire, trust the experts that are masters in the space. It can it can turn the dial man that makes a big difference. Yeah.

Nicky Saunders: 49:42

And what's crazy is that, like you see all the things that Master P is doing with going into like food, going into movies, going into music, things like that. And I think from a person who's not knowledgeable enough will look at his, you know, career and be like, Ah, you either fell off, or you would never reach a Lay's potato chips, you will never reach a Nike, you will never reach some of the things. But in all honesty, he owns all that. So you don't need that many people to be successful in your own eyes. And he's a highly respected human being to the culture. So is he the top of the chips and snack situation right now? Maybe not right now. But the equity he has in that the skin in the game he has in that the impact that he created in hip hop, regardless of all the other record labels, he is still a huge staple. And we do have to recognize what No Limit and Master P has done. I think that's huge. I think, if you look at it from the standpoint of, yes, there are other artists, there are other entrepreneurs that have made more than me, that may have gotten way more recognition than me, but I own everything. It cannot be taken away from me It cannot be sold to somebody else. A lot of the artists right now. their masters are being sold. Not by them. So and it's it's a it's a huge situation, like Master P can can hold on to that for as long as he wants and sells it, sell it if he wants to, or pass it down to his kids, or pass it down to his grandkids. He could do whatever he wants. I think that alone... like, you have to switch up your thought of maybe being competitive. But what is your definition of competition? Just to be on the charts, and say I'm number one, or to own everything and say I'm good? I think that's like that got my mind like, Huh, huh? Do you really need the machine? Do you really? And then down the line, could I buy a machine? Thinking.

Mostafa Ghonim: 52:54

Big boss talk right there. Yeah I see it.

Nicky Saunders: 53:00

Ya mean? Ya mean? Oh, and side note, for everyone who listened to last week's episode, episode 14, I'm

Mostafa Ghonim: 53:10

What a sincere apology that was. sorry for all the air horns.

Nicky Saunders: 53:17

Yeah, I'm sorry. Somebody text me it was like, man, you dropped mad air horns. I was like, I didn't know what else to do when Inky says something deep. I just don't..it was too many of them. I apologize. So I'm sorry for doing them. They're not going away though. But I'm sorry. Okay. But anyways, let's get into this last one. You know, I always try to end the breakdowns with something deep to impress Moose and everything like that. Hopefully I did it. But I think everything that Master P has been saying is like, deep so it's like, it's weird to me. So but I'm gonna try.

Master P: 54:01

When you have a million dollar, you know, mindset, you have to turn down money. It's not about the money, you can't work for the money. The first deal I got, they offered me a million dollars. And I had to realize what my value was. So my value was more. I thought back in the 90s. If I take this record deal, and they give me a million dollars, how much am I worth?

Nicky Saunders: 54:31

So, I wanted to bring this up for one reason. Well, we talked about this on our Facebook Live Show with LeBron, right? When he turned down a deal, because he knew his worth. And I'm gonna bring back kind of that same thought process to the podcast where you would turn down a million dollars? You would...like, it's like, I want to get ready for that. Because it's going to happen. Like, I want to get ready to be like, yo, the second you give me a million dollars, I know I'm worth so much more because the fact that you even offered that that means I gotta be worth more. Right? But that's a lie. That's a lie. Now granted for some of the, the one percenters in in our circles like Nicky, no it's not. Moose, it's not. Okay. Well, to us it is Hello. Okay. All right. It is. Sorry. But I do. Like I do like the fact that if you already have that kind of mindset, you already know that you're way more worth than a dollar amount, period. Right? You have to now it could allow you to look at certain deals and negotiations with a clearer mind instead of just the number. I think when your approach was something like that, and you've never touched that never even heard that, you could get very clouded by the number, but what does it take to make that? Why are they so quick to give you that as the first number? You know, because everything can be negotiated. So that doesn't mean you have to take it. That means they see that they could probably make way more than a mil if they're offering you that. And that's like, I pray to have that clarity when it comes like I pray to be like, Okay, so what is this all? What does this mean? Like, what? What am I getting? Besides the money? What are the deliverables, all that great stuff like what? I would love to have that clarity. I know at this moment, I may be a little clouded. I may need somebody else.

Mostafa Ghonim: 57:31

She said I don't know I might just take the milli.

Nicky Saunders: 57:34

I may need some... but that's the great thing about being aware is that I know if something like that was to happen, I would need somebody else. I would need somebody else, especially depending on who does it. Like who gives me that deal. The name alone, I might be like, Yes, here. You want to lower it down. Like it doesn't even it doesn't even need to be...I don't want you to spend that much.

Mostafa Ghonim: 58:01

Right, right! Looking out for your pockets.

Nicky Saunders: 58:03

Like if Jay Z was the hit me like Nicky, Nicky and Moose needs to come through here.

Mostafa Ghonim: 58:14

You sure?

Nicky Saunders: 58:20

Let's just have the conversation. Moose, I'll get right back. Let's just have the...like, but I know that right now, at this moment. I would need somebody else. But I pray to have that clarity, because it's going to happen. So if you don't have that clarity of, of having that mindset that you're way more worth than any amount of money like yeah, I could say that. By all means I could say that. And I could believe it. But when when you get hit in the mouth.

Mostafa Ghonim: 58:56

Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah.

Nicky Saunders: 58:58

Things get real. Ya mean? Let me let me get hit in the mouth with a mil! Moose, go say your piece. I don't know.

Mostafa Ghonim: 59:14

Yeah. Yeah. Not real quick, though. I mean, shout out to Nicky's confidence in that because that, like it's going to happen, that wasn't an optimistic thing. There was conviction in that.

Nicky Saunders: 59:23

Oh, absolutely. Yeah!

Mostafa Ghonim: 59:23

Going to happen, right. So y'all might need to borrow a page out of that right there. There was some level of like, Oh, it's going to happen. No, but I think there's so many ways to look at this man, right? Like chances are if you're getting a million dollar offer, it is likely that you can produce a million on your own. All right, and it's like...chances are if you're given a million dollar offer than it is likely that you can produce a million on your own right? And and you really have to get your focus away from the money and know what exactly are you signing for. What they're offering you has to be worth more than the million itself like, yeah, I'll take the million. Like, right, like, we talked about that point, like, yeah, I'll take that million check for sure. But what you're bringing has to be worth more than a million? Because chances are, if you see me as worth, you know, if I'm worth a million, then chances are I can produce the million on my own. So, yeah, I definitely would look beyond the money. And I loved it, because the book that we're reading now says, money is a byproduct of excellence, not a goal.

Nicky Saunders: 1:00:28

Mm hmm.

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:00:29

Alright? So it's like, when you focus on being excellent at what you do, the money comes with it. And we talked about it, right? We've all been there. And and, and, and we know what it's like to, in a way, you need money, like what do you mean, most of the problems that I'm faced with can be resolved by money. So it's difficult to say, Well, what else outside of money am I getting? Okay, I can, I can almost guarantee and Nicky, I won't speak for you but I'll let you kind of share your experience if you'd like that when you get on the other side, or as you edge closer, you start to see more clearly. And you're like, oh, there really is more to this than just money. Because money then just becomes a part of the process. So yeah, yeah, that's, that's, that's a good word from him to, you know, tie the education piece into it. And then also encouraging others to look outside to the money because it's true is like, Yeah, what am I worth to them, if they're willing to give me a million, of course, they're looking to make a profit, they're not just about to give a million because they like me or feel bad for me. Right, they're looking to turn, they're looking to turn a profit on that.

Nicky Saunders: 1:01:27

Yeah. And like, my thought process with money is always different, just because I never put any kind of real weight on it. Because it's supposed to create opportunities, not necessarily make or break you, or even tell you how much you're worth. Right. And so, I think with, when you love, what you do, and the passion and the work ethic that you have, like the money will reflect that. It will now maybe not in the time that you've hoped or even needed. But it always comes in, but it always determines is determined by what you put out. So and what you and who you're impacting, and everything like that, and clearly the problems that you are solving. Like people, we said it earlier, people will pay for you to solve a problem. Regardless if it is within a nine to five, or if you're doing this on your own kind of thing people pay for you to solve a problem. So if you can figure out how to do something without money being the number one motive, you're going to get a gwap of it. And you're still not going to like flinch. If you look at most of these millionaires and billionaires, they don't stress about money. There's maybe a few that, like all they do is talk about it. But like the ones that are highly respected. It's like, it's easy to them. They make a gwap a second. Not. Not a day, not, you know, a week a second. Because, and even let's go back to even the talent kind of vibes and I'll bring up Floyd Mayweather, where everything from a fight off of what he loves to do and what he's mastered, was broken down from seconds of him being in the ring from how many punches he gets, this is how much he makes. That that's the like, based off what he loves to do anyways.

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:04:06

Yeah, it's crazy. That's crazy. You know, you're thinking it's like, yo, in a way money, clouds your judgment.

Nicky Saunders: 1:04:12

Yes!

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:04:12

If that's what you're all in it for. It begins to cloud your judgment. And it can actually, you know, put you in positions where you're making the wrong moves or the wrong calls. Because you're thinking about the dollar sign on the back end of that instead of actually thinking about like you said, you know, like doing something because you love it, you're putting it out because it matters, because you want to deliver a high quality product or service or solve a problem. And it's like if you just tie that or trust that process. Eventually it turns the dial but yeah, no, I just felt that my Oh yeah, I think you know, in a big way it clouds your judgment.

Nicky Saunders: 1:04:48

That's why I say I gotta pray for like, I think I'm good. Like, like, I could say, I think I can feel confident with maybe like a 700K deal and under. There's clarity.

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:05:07

Let me ask you this question.

Nicky Saunders: 1:05:07

Go.

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:05:08

How much, because I want to show the other side of it real quick. How much would you look to make back if you were about to invest a million? So like, just zoom out a little bit for a second. All right? If you're investing a million, okay, what would you like to make back? What's the return on that?

Nicky Saunders: 1:05:26

At least three mil? At least.

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:05:31

Boom! Boom! And I just wanted to show like, but that's what it's like, for the other person who's throwing that million. I'm sure in their mind, they're thinking the same thing. Like if they're, if they have a million to give or invest, chances are they've got plenty more. But in their mind, they're like, Yo, what do I want to make back on that million? And to your point, you know, 3 million sounds about right, right.

Nicky Saunders: 1:05:53

Minimum for me.

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:05:53

Yeah minimum. There you go. There you go. So that if you're just evaluating that number from the other person's perspective, to know your worth, if that's what it's coming down to, at least for the deal. It's like sometimes I think it'd be cool to ask ourselves that question, you know, how much would I look to make back on the money that's being offered to me right now, as a way to kind of see what the value of the worth is?

Nicky Saunders: 1:06:15

Straight facts. Sheesh! Let's get into the flight assessment. Let's figure out what my man is. I don't know whose turn is it. We haven't done this in a while. New Year. New flight assessment ya mean? Alright, so I'll go. How do we do this? How do we do this? I'm going to go with the non typical one. I'm going to go with he is not an air traffic controller. No.

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:07:04

Even even though he went out to seek knowledge, like my boy was on the yo I'm about to pay this money to get the lawyer.

Nicky Saunders: 1:07:10

To flip it. To flip it, that was pure move. That's that means his uh, if we're talking on values, his economics is very high. That does not necessarily mean he is super strategic.

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:07:27

Okay, okay. I see what you're doing. I see what you're doing. I like it. I like it. All right. I'm gonna say he is not a grounds crew.

Nicky Saunders: 1:07:48

You didn't feel warm and fuzzy and feel like he's... he does a lot of community stuff. He does a lot. And he, everything he does now is to teach other people. That didn't give you a ground crew vibes? No?

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:08:03

Well, I wouldn't say right...I mean, maybe now but based on the majority of his startup, yeah, nah. Not a grounds crew.

Nicky Saunders: 1:08:10

All right. All right. Um, so, top two, depending on if you're watching this on YouTube, or podcasts or whatever, top two that we have is clearly the pilot and the flight attendant. I already know what I feel in my heart what he is, however, he does have a lot of flight attendant vibes as well. Meaning from the flashiness. As far as when he first started rapping, he realized that everybody was dark, like, NWA and all that great stuff. So he was like, yo, can you create a logo, like my Rolex, which was all diamond out, and his whole thing was I'm gonna be very big and flashy, because I want to make myself different. So that alone was like, Oh, yeah, you got those vibes. However, however, based off this whole thing, and how he moves and everything like that. I'm going to say my man is a pilot.

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:09:34

Yeah, it's been a business heavy lesson, where a lot of the moves date back to some sort of, you know, business move where you can really say, okay, yep, I see the way of a pilot for much of this. Yeah, .

Nicky Saunders: 1:09:47

Yep. Yep. And if you agree or disagree, hit...can't even talk. Hit us up on social media. Nicky and Moose on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. We're all there and it's because of y'all. But this was great. I feel so recharged. I love these things. We're gonna we're going to bring more people don't get it twisted, we all...Ihave a few people in the tuck ready. But we're gonna do some more breakdowns we may do one more of like relevant and current things we kind of tied it in today with the Reebok situation depending on when you hear it, it could be relevant, it could not. But Moose, how you feel about it?

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:10:40

I like this, I always enjoy the dialogue, you know, between us and and of course, the the information that comes out of this man is always priceless it's like, still relevant, you know, like just to the business fundamentals and all of it so yeah, it's good stuff.

Nicky Saunders: 1:10:55

So you already know what, this means Moose final words.

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:11:02

Man, I'm gonna go back to that one that I said earlier, man, free is too expensive. For real, right? Free is too expensive, it's a new year. And it's gonna, it's gonna cost you too much to hire somebody to learn from them or whatever it is, and do the work that you hired them to do. Alright that just cost too much. So, go out there, get the information that you need, and level up.