Follow The Brand Podcast with Host Grant McGaugh

Why 70% of AI Transformations Fail—and the B.R.A.V.E. Playbook That Beats the Odds

• Grant McGaugh CEO 5 STAR BDM • Season 3 • Episode 36

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The moment Aaron Plush was pulled from his second-grade classroom to test early Macintosh computers, his path in technology was set. This formative experience sparked a journey that would lead him through global program management roles and transformational leadership positions at major corporations like Citrix.

Aaron brings a refreshingly authentic approach to the complex world of project management and organizational transformation. His methodology begins with something surprisingly simple yet often overlooked: listening. "There's no bigger mistake any leader can make than implementing change without understanding the organization's landscape," he explains. This people-centric philosophy has become his hallmark in an industry often dominated by technical solutions seeking problems.

What makes Aaron's approach particularly powerful is his integrated leadership style that seamlessly blends faith, discipline, and business acumen. When managing high-stakes initiatives, he maintains perspective through methodical execution: "We don't take the entire plate and throw it in our face. We do it bite-sized pieces." This calm, measured approach, combined with radical accountability, has proven effective across Fortune 500 companies and complex technology implementations.

His perspective on emerging technologies like AI is equally thoughtful. Rather than focusing on the technology itself, Aaron emphasizes understanding the problem first, then leveraging AI as an enhancement tool. "It's about using technology for the purposes of what you need it for," he advises, encouraging adoption without fear.

Perhaps most compelling is Aaron's commitment to developing others. When asked what qualities he looks for in mentees, his answer is striking: "I don't." Anyone expressing a desire to grow receives his support, regardless of their current position or potential. This generosity of spirit extends to his view of success itself—"my journey is about bringing others along with me."

Connect with Aaron at www.aaronrplush.com or through his Authentic Realness podcast to learn more about his approach to leadership, technology, and personal development. His story reminds us that even in our increasingly digital world, authentic human connection remains the foundation of meaningful transformation.

Thanks for tuning in to this episode of Follow The Brand! We hope you enjoyed learning about the latest marketing trends and strategies in Personal Branding, Business and Career Development, Financial Empowerment, Technology Innovation, and Executive Presence. To keep up with the latest insights and updates from us, be sure to follow us at 5starbdm.com. See you next time on Follow The Brand!

Speaker 1:

Welcome everybody to the Final Brand Podcast. This is your host, grant McGaugh, and I get an opportunity to interview a very, very interesting individual who I met down there in the Miami, fort Lauderdale area not too long ago and I found him intriguing because of his world. His world and my world kind of intersect in the world in technology and he's been doing a lot in program project management. I mean, anytime you get involved with high tech, people don't realize this, but they see the outcome. But the internal thing that you have to get done a lot of I's have to be dotted, a lot of T's have to be crossed. There's a lot of coordination and orchestration in the background that has to be dotted. A lot of T's have to be crossed. There's a lot of coordination and orchestration in the background that has to be done by individuals such as Aaron.

Speaker 1:

I'm going to let Aaron introduce himself and we're going to really get into this because I don't see a lot of conversations around these areas and really showcase his expertise in what he does. So, aaron, you'd like to introduce yourself?

Speaker 2:

Absolutely. Thank you, grant, for the opportunity to be here on your podcast. Always welcome the opportunity to share in a good dialogue and looking forward to the discussion. To the point of what Grant mentioned, I am Aaron Plush and I live here in South Florida. I have been here roughly eight years, originally from South Carolina, and I've lived around the globe. Certainly I can tell you, grant, as you've kind of set me up, that IT really found me, that one of the most significant stories that I have is I remember and I don't want to age myself because I am only 21, but I remember being pulled out of a classroom in the second grade and was really used as a tester Didn't realize it at that point for some of the first Macintosh computers and literally our librarian at the time she had taken an affinity in me. Her name was Mrs Hubbard. I remember her very well, just a lovely woman, and in hindsight I recognize that that's where my affinity for computers came about and have been chugging along ever since.

Speaker 1:

Well, I tell you that's how I got my start in technology. It was definitely in high school and I had the opportunity to attend the DeVry Institute of Technology school and had the opportunity to attend the DeVry Institute of Technology. But those are the things that you know by chance and we think it's by chance. But it gives an opportunity, right, I think, with everybody where you get an opportunity, it's a matter of how you're going to take it forward. Now, first question I want to ask you and this is curiosity for me and probably the audience as well is that you have worked at the intersection of operations and also people leadership, which is very important. I would understand. When you enter a new organization, yes, what is your process for quickly diagnosing where transformation, or those those gaps, is needed?

Speaker 2:

most. Yes, I tell you, Grant, in very certain terms that's a great question and for me my mindset is one of a consultant, so I'm a big listener that one of the key things and I say this to all leaders the first thing that you want to do is you want to go on that listening tour. You truly want to understand what's happening. There's no bigger mistake that any leader can make than going in implementing change with no regard to an understanding of the landscape of the organization that they're going into. The reason why that's so dangerous is because so often you'll find some of these great and amazing and wonderful ideas that you think that you're having they've already been tried and, for whatever reason within this organization, they didn't work. So, to answer your question very specifically, after going on that listening tour, it's about truly understanding from the individuals who've been there as to what things have been working, what things aren't working, what gaps are there, and then in turn, we can collectively look at how transformation can happen.

Speaker 2:

Because what I think about transformation, it's not about being the smartest guy in the room all the time. It's about how do we collaborate as a cohesive unit. How do we go about looking at a people-centric approach that so many of us say that we have. But we have to question ourselves and ask is that truly what drives us? I practice what I preach, and I practice what I preach because I love God and I love God first. So in turn, I have to honor him in all things that I do, be it work, be it personally, be it wherever. So with that, that's what my approach is is that listening tour? It's going in and understanding what has worked, what isn't working, what will work, what isn't working, what will work, and then, together, taking that people-centric approach, is how we go about charging forward and identifying what transformation needs to happen and how do we get there.

Speaker 1:

I love the viewpoint, I love the authenticity in bringing your true self to the table and being who you are and allowing others to be who they are. I think it's so, so important, absolutely. You were at Citrix. Yes, when you were at Citrix, you helped establish supplier management and contingent workforce programs that became some industry standards. If you don't mind, I'd like for you to let us know what specific principles made those particular programs so enduring and scalable.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, great question and I have a great story. The story around me, even landing in South Florida, was because of Citrix Systems Inc. That specifically, I came into Citrix to be the global contingent labor manager and, to your point, what separated me from all of the other applicants was that I was the only one who had the global experience. Citrix at the time identified that it wanted to look at how it could bring some management structure to its contingent labor program and because I had that global experience to allow the company to bring that in-house where I created what was called the Flexworks office at that time and it was amazing to be able to build something from the ground up based upon my experiences with several other companies. So that's what led me into Citrix to be able to manage all non-employees of the company globally and to have a system where we could manage them through a vendor management system that allowed us at real time to be able to see how many consultants and contractors that we had, what was our spend with them, to really be able to have some true usage of that intersection, as you mentioned, of the operational piece of managing that, but using technology to be how we're managing it. So that intersection was amazing.

Speaker 2:

The second component of that was I moved on from that contingent labor space to managing all suppliers, and that was the supplier value optimization program All suppliers within the organization. I worked to ensure that we had supplier inclusion, to ensure that we had supplier inclusion to ensure that diverse suppliers were getting opportunities with this large corporation in the tech space, also ensuring that we were managing our suppliers in a way that they felt that they were truly partners and truly having that connection of we were all working together. And then, lastly, the piece that you did not mention is that I left Citrix as the chief of staff of HR, working directly with our C-suite under our chief people officer, which afforded me the opportunity to be that vault for Donna Kimmel at the time, as well as to guide and drive the strategic guides of Citrix specific to HR as well as the overall corporation.

Speaker 1:

I think all this is important to note that your experience speaks for itself and because of that experience, that global experience, people like to tap you for your knowledge, your expertise and your intelligence. Now you've managed some pretty large and complex projects for a lot of fortune 500s, even outside of Citrix, absolutely Some other niche clients alike. But what? What is your approach to keeping high stakes initiatives on track? Cause I see these things get away from people all the time, especially when they're challenging and there are other competing priorities.

Speaker 2:

I tell you the key thing, Grant, is remaining calm, cool and collected that what you will find in very certain terms is that, yes, this work is important, but a dear friend said to me years ago, the work that I do is not cancer research. No one is going to live or die based upon the work that I'm doing. So being able to understand that, yes, it's important, but it's not the do all be all that tomorrow will still get come in that. That allows my program project management mind to come to play, which says to me in very certain terms it's piece by piece, bit by bit, looking overarching, seeing big picture. But when we sit down to eat a plate of food, what do we do? We get our fork, we get our knife and we do it bite-sized pieces. We don't take the entire plate and throw it in our face and try to eat it all at one time. Use the same example. To be at high file clients Does not matter. The approach is always the same. Objective is to go from A to Z, letter by letter. Any skipping letters, anything of that nature, is going to put us in a position that we don't want to be in. So it's that very methodical, piece by piece, using that program, project management mindset, but also understanding and certainty that tomorrow will still yet come.

Speaker 2:

There may be those times that we have to take steps backwards. There may be times that we even make some mistakes on them, because accountability is one of those things that is paramount in the success that I've seen Knowing for certain things that fail. Raising my hand yes, me, Aaron Clush, that's on me. Now. How do we work together to fix that? Not as Grant's fault, not as the supplier's fault. It's mine, I own it. Now let's work together to fix it and get to that point where we need to be, because that's a significant lesson learned.

Speaker 1:

Accountability is king, especially in the work that you're doing. You have to have accountability and the stakeholders in the room have to be accountable, right, no doubt? All that together and, as you mentioned, your career has spanned being the chief of staff, yes, and program direction consulting. The question I want to know is and you've got a story, a story career over a long period of time Absolutely, I want to understand which role has stretched you the most and what did you take from it that shapes how you lead, even today?

Speaker 2:

I'll reframe your question because it's less about an individual role and it's my entire career and the way that I look at my career. It's been building blocks that going back to that affinity with God and understanding that I saw clearly career at second grade. Not many people can have that exact moment where they're saying, hey, I can pinpoint my professional career back to the second grade, sitting in front of a Macintosh computer, knowing that that was going to be the direction I was going to go. I have that vantage point. So those building blocks of my career has allowed me, piece by piece, block by block, to build in a way where every role, technically, was a stretch, because there were so many uncertainties within each role.

Speaker 2:

However, being blessed with a methodical mind, being one who operates from the spirit of excellence in all things if I'm walking to the store I'm going to walk to the store with the spirit of excellence Translating that to being stretched afforded me the opportunity that, although I didn't always have the answers, sometimes I didn't have a clue, but I also knew the importance of tapping into my resources, tapping into those people who did know, tapping into that collective experience of what we all could learn together and then using that to gain success.

Speaker 2:

So you go second grade to where I am today, serving as a consultant, and I do have to put the plug in for my own podcast, which is the Authentic Realness podcast, because you mentioned authenticity, because that's at the core of who I am.

Speaker 2:

I don't know how to be anyone else other than Aaron R Plush, because that's who God created me to be. So, in knowing that I'm one of one, it affords me the opportunity to know that I will continue to be stretched, grant that I know, for certain terms, that there are going to be future roles as long as God so sees fit for me to be here on his green earth, that I'm going to be stretched each and every time. But what I do have is the ability to look back that every time that I was stretched, even second grade, I was able to overcome. So, just as I'm sitting here with you right now and being able to have this conversation when I had that next stretch moment, I am certain in faith now that I'm going to be OK on the other side, because I've gotten through every time before and I will get through this time as well.

Speaker 1:

Absolutely. There's a pivot point in everyone's life. Sometimes we don't like to acknowledge that. You may be comfortable in your particular role and what you're doing from a career, business standpoint, but a pivot always comes, absolutely. It comes without knowledge, but the smart person knows that he has to prepare himself or herself for potential change. Yes, it happens to the best of us.

Speaker 1:

One thing I love about you is that you understand the power of presence. You've developed your brand. You have a great LinkedIn presence. You have your own website. You've got a podcast If anyone wants to know more about you, your philosophy, how you think, how you interact, the kind of company that you keep. You've got a library of knowledge out there for people to tap into. So by the time that you come to the table, let's say for an interview or a business opportunity, you can already almost cut to the chase, like okay, we understand what you're about. We don't need to ask the preliminary questions. We need to know how you're going to interact with the current situation. How did you begin to cultivate that type of brand for yourself?

Speaker 2:

It's one of those ones where I just know the importance Grant of how I view others. So I use my worldview to be able to define the standard of how I'm going to live my life. And, in turn, I look at those brands of organizations that are branded really well and we can name them. You go to this particular brand, you know what you're going to get. It was paramount for me, as I talked about that whole spirit of excellence, that in all things that I do be it LinkedIn, be it my podcast, be it my website it all had to be aligned with who I am am. Because I understand that those things are speaking before me and, in turn, because they're speaking before I even open my mouth, I need to make sure that they're representing me in the way that I want to be represented. So it goes back to some parents who always stressed that you're no better than anyone, but you're certainly no less. And in understanding that, in whatever you do, son, we want you to do it with the spirit of excellence.

Speaker 2:

One of the things that I'd share with you and your audience is that my brother unfortunately passed away on December 12th of 2024. And there's so many lessons that I learned from him, but the biggest one that I'm really pulling into my own life is understanding the need for having a level of humility and humbleness, Like he really was such a talented guy but really always cared so much about others, cared so much about he didn't need the credit, he just did things for the sake of doing it. And I'm really tapping into that as I continue to grow and to be able to now represent both of us, because it's so important to align with what you're saying. So I use all of that to comprehensively say that it goes right back to those building blocks that I know in certain terms, that the building of my brand and how I'm represented has to be aligned with the authentic truth of who I am, because I am big on reality is reality, truth is truth. No perception is reality for me. Reality is reality, truth is truth.

Speaker 1:

So a thing is what it is and in turn, I want to make sure that Aaron R Plush is represented as Aaron R Plush in all facets of how I present myself, be it me or any of those things that represent me and we, unfortunately we do have that in common as far as a brother recently passing and I totally get that and that you really start to see at least for myself, start to see that legacy that he left behind Absolutely you, at least for me, it changes my perception. Okay, what's important? Time is important, because you can't get that time back. So spend time wisely with people that are worthy of that type of time. And then again, you've already put the information out there. You've got all kinds of content that shows what Aaron Plush is about, so there'll be no surprises. A price of reality is reality, and you live in your authentic self. I love how you blend philosophy with your faith, your discipline, your business acumen. My question would be how does that integrated approach give you an edge in driving organizational and cultural?

Speaker 2:

change, because I take the same approach that when I'm working with organizations, it's all about being inclusive and ensuring that as that journey is happening, it goes back to those listening tours. That any time that I'm in any settings or anything, it's all about having two ears and one mouth and if we more focused on that and understanding that there's just so much more that we can gain by listening and then processing and then governing ourselves accordingly. I'm all about holding me accountable, as I said. So in holding me accountable, I would find it complete robbery for me to go into an organization and not bring my authentic self, those philosophies and all the comprehensive pieces of who I am, into the role, which translates itself into your question.

Speaker 2:

I look at any type operational component that's being developed, that it's important that all of the components are considered. It's not let's throw out these puzzle pieces because they don't fit anymore. It's how does this all fit together? How do we make this beautiful piece of work that we all can be proud of? And I don't care anything about level. You could be at the C-suite, you could be mopping the floor. There's something that all bring to the table and being able to be in a position to recognize that and to be the voice of everyone just presents me in a way that I'm able to really separate myself in what my offering is across the board, in all that I do as a professional.

Speaker 1:

I love that. You know you've got a process, you've got a framework in which you operate and that helps you. Whatever endeavor that you come across, I use the BRAVE framework across. I use the BRAVE framework. You know I feel you've got to have.

Speaker 1:

Everybody comes across challenges and situations that can either create, you know, different fears within yourself inconsistency, uncertainty, things of that nature. So I lead from a BRAVE framework and I want to understand the identity. I want to do my research. One thing I love about you I can already tell before you involve yourself in a situation, you're going to do extensive research around that, because if you give them your research, you're going to get resilient, because you know the path forward. Even though it might be difficult, there might be storms ahead, you understand that this is the best path forward. You kind of alluded to that when you said if I go to the grocery store, I'm going to do it in the most excellent way that I can, which is very authentic. You have a vision and you execute. It's part of the brave framework. I want to understand also because what you also do, you give back. You've mentored many professionals who went on to lead successfully on their own. I want to understand. What qualities do you look for in someone before you invest in their development?

Speaker 2:

That's the thing, grant. I don't. If someone raises their hand and says that they need help or that they're looking to grow and develop, that's all that I need. It's not an assessment, because it's not that I'm trying to see where you are to be able to get you to where I think you need to be. It's you. You are the one that has to identify that. I'd like to see change. So anyone that I encounter that they identify that they are ready to develop and grow, I'm there for them and that's at any level, to your point. I do have a lot of mentees and they are on every level, from the youngest to. I have some that are even older than me.

Speaker 2:

I do a lot of coaching as well, and understanding that there is a distinct difference between mentees and mentorship and coaching and consulting. They blur a lot. They have similarities but they are different.

Speaker 2:

But the beautiful thing is that God has been very clear with me that my journey is about bringing others along with me, that my success is predicated upon being able to help others. So that's where my heartstring is, in knowing that any success that I have, that I must bring others along with me, that this is a journey for all of us and that anything that I know it's not a secret. Like those people who box their success up, and like I am one who is open to sharing in anything that I know professionally, because my mind said it's not that it's ever a secret. A lot of times it's just not your business. So those are two totally different things. But in that holistic approach of your question around that giving back and that mentorship, that coaching, even pro bono consulting, all of that comes from a place of wanting to see everyone reach their maximum total capacity of being where it is that they choose to be, and if there's anything that I can do to help them on that journey, I'm more than happy to do it.

Speaker 1:

I love that. I love that. I'm going to pivot just a little bit now and go back to and this is a business challenge right now for a lot of organizations. I know you've been recognized for your ability to bring clarity in order to a complex work stream. We've got AI artificial intelligence. You've got agentic AI. We've got emerging technology that is on the table now where people can no longer wait. Well, let's see how this works out. We've been in an AI world enabled world now, I think, probably since 2022, 2023. It's been about two, three years. Everyone knows that AI is not going away. This is not just a fad. This is something that, if we don't AI enable our environment, we are going to be behind. What is your secret to creating alignment among and there's a lot of stakeholders in what I just described, with different agendas of how we're going to get this done?

Speaker 2:

Yeah, I think the key thing there, grant, is understanding your problem, because certainly we know that all things that we do is predicated and based upon a problem. So once you know your problem and your problem statement, that then allows you the ability to understand how do I now tackle this? What is going to be my approach? Tackle this, what is going to be my approach To your point when it comes to AI and, being a technology guy, I had been a very early adopter that I understand and I see how AI in a very simple terms of stuff like this, where we're able to now have a full transcript that's generated that gives you and I both a quick recap of everything that we've talked about in this particular discussion. You think about how much time before it took with us taking notes or having someone that was specifically here just to take notes and those type things.

Speaker 2:

That's now something that is enhanced, that provides us the opportunity to spend less time on tracking and more time on well, here are the things based upon this session that you and I both agreed that we would do after the session. That's an amazing thing. So that's at a very baseline, simple level of using AI, but there are definitely more complex things that you can do in your business operations. The build out of your project plan that typically would take some people weeks to do can now be done in a matter of a couple of seconds based upon using certain technology. So it's more so about the leveraging of AI and the technology for the purposes of what you need it for, that there's nothing to be afraid of, that there's nothing that you're going to break and, in turn, embracing and identifying how it can work best for you.

Speaker 1:

We've got to take that food to heart, because this is important. We are at a critical juncture for a lot of different people or organizations of where they're going to move forward, where they're going to double down on. You know, that's very important and I think it goes back to some of the things that you talked about earlier. What do you really stand for? What is your true brand? And what you're saying is and I talk to people all the time about technology and I think it does two things super well and that is communication and speed, and if you can communicate very, very quickly, that's a big thing. But you're applying that to an operation or a business that you have. Think refinement, right, and think amplification. What business application do you have that needs to be amplified to really, really show the world what you do and what you do best when it comes to deploying something like an AI?

Speaker 1:

Now, as I said in the very, very, very, very beginning of this podcast, is that you work on super complex infrastructures, projects that have a lot of moving parts that are not easily integrated. Sometimes you have competing departments that have to use the same platforms, and then how do you get them to all work together? You've got to be that voice in the room, that voice of reason, that voice of clarity, that voice of clarity which I think you have a very good ability of doing that in a complex situation. If I were to hire you today to do a job for me at a corporation and a department that we need to implement a very, very highly visible project, why would I want to hire you?

Speaker 2:

It's real simple, grant, and it starts with what I've been saying almost as a broken record. Being people centric is at the core of who I am, and I understand that. How small, how large or how complex of the problem or the project is totally irrelevant. What is important is understanding that there will always be people at the core of these projects. So for me, the first step is in understanding the people. It's the understanding of the dynamics of the team and who's at the table.

Speaker 2:

Then that allows us the opportunity to find a middle ground of how we all can work together, because there's nothing worse than having a broken team, a fragmented team, but yet in a day and age where there are not everyone who's authentic. We're playing that, we're all holding hands and singing Kumbaya, but we're technically not. So the separator in working with me is not to repair the wounds, not to say that we're going to have a perfect situation, not to say that we can't have differing opinions, but it's going in with a people-centric approach and letting everyone know that you are at the table as a valuable member of the table and we're looking for everyone to be contributors, and then from there I'm able to tackle the complex situation with them, because now we have that level playing field where we all get back to that innate ability that all humans yearn for, and that's a need to feel special and knowing for certain that my voice is being heard.

Speaker 1:

I love that. That human to human interaction is not going to go away. It's not. And the AI components and I try to help people to understand that it's like a vehicle. It's like a car. It can get you there faster, but it doesn't have the impetus and the understanding of what is happening. It's not a state of right. So the only state of consciousness out there that will that we really uh, interact with a lot of times is another human to human interaction. That's correct. You're dealing with ideas and you're dealing with um agendas and you're dealing with um. What what others feel is is the right direction. You know if we're not all going in the right direction. If you know, if you're in a ship or a boat or something like that, it doesn't go very far or go in a lot of circles, so you're not moving it forward.

Speaker 1:

I want to ask you this because I've been asking this of a lot of my guests here of late, especially toward the end of the podcast. It's a very, very easy question from my perspective. You've done a lot of podcasts. You question, from my perspective You've done a lot of podcasts. You have your own podcast. Now you've gone through the Follow Brand Podcast with myself, grant McGaugh, how'd you feel about this interview?

Speaker 2:

Went exceptionally well and I thank you for the opportunity, grant, to be able to speak about me, because one of the things about my own podcast is that I reflect a lot on stories and situations and examples of things that I've experienced, but seldom is it a platform and an opportunity for me to really share my story in the way that others are consuming it, Whereas I'm used to being on the side of the table where you are in asking the questions and taking the journey and having the concept of where we want to go for the episode.

Speaker 2:

So it definitely feels good to be on the other side and it gives me an appreciation for my guests and the things that I take them through as we go through each of those episodes. But I tell you, this has gone exceptionally well. I'd say to your listeners I hope that they have learned something through this process and, by all means, anyone who'd like to reach out to me, I'd love to hear from them. All my information is on my website. That's the best place to reach me and that's wwwaaronrplushcom, and everything's there. So looking forward to engaging with your audience and thanking you for the opportunity to have this conversation with you.

Speaker 1:

I love it. I love it. Aaron, and I have got to tell people because we have a mutual friend and she would be upset if we did not mention her Absolutely. Erica, I met Aaron. We went to the Janet Jackson concert about a year or two ago over in Hollywood and you know, I hadn't met Aaron before that and we just came together like all of us all of a sudden were old friends. I mean, I'm talking about from the very, very beginning of meeting him. And then I had my friend Erica with me and we all got together, we all enjoyed it. I mean, and hey, Aaron, you got a lot of snow. How big of a Janet Jackson fan are you?

Speaker 2:

Well, those people that know me, they know Like I can't even tell you how many times that I have seen Janet. I even say to folks you know, from an affectionate, funny laughter perspective, that Janet is my wife. So it's just that series for me. But no, I've just always enjoyed the career of the Jackson family in general. I've just always enjoyed the career of the Jackson family in general. And then specifically, janet is who I follow the most. But I will say that even from her being a musical artist, I tap into that from a professional perspective because so much of who she is as an artist is about that spirit of excellence in all things that she does. So I can take something from every life situation. And yes, I do agree with you, it felt as if the three of us had known each other forever. We had a great time. I met Erica through a very good friend of mine, ingrid, and in turn it just turned into just great collaboration which led to this opportunity for me to be here on your podcast.

Speaker 1:

And just for the record, I've been after Aaron for a while to get on. I said, aaron, you got to get on my show, you got to get on my show. And here we are. We finally got an opportunity to do that because, again, I have been in technology for a long time, he's been in technology a long time and coming together.

Speaker 1:

I feel this is so important. There's so many other people that are in the community that feel they've got to have a certain skill set or a certain. You know, I can't get into AI, I can't get into technology. No, that's too big. You just kind of gave us a framework of how we can consume this type of intelligence and understanding and skill set one bite at a time. That is the formula for success. I want to thank you again for being on the Follow Brand Podcast, and you and your entire audience can see all the episodes of Follow Brand and 5 Star BDM. That is the number five, that's star S-T-E-R BDM, b for brand, b for development and for masterscom. I want to thank you again so much, aaron, for being on the show. Thank you, grant, you're.