Be There

JoBen Barkey grew up in the Amazon rainforest and arrived in North America at eighteen with fifteen dollars and a borrowed pair of shoes. What followed is hard to believe: a six-location business, a kidney given to a dying stranger, and schools, wells, and an underground ambulance built in a West African war zone — all while surviving homelessness and a COVID collapse. This is part one: the cost, the calling, and the people who carried him.
Chapters
 
00:00 Cold Open
02:26 $15 and Borrowed Shoes — Leaving the Amazon
05:33 Growing Up in the Jungle
17:14 Brett's Box of Clothes
24:46 Rwanda — “You Just Loved Me”
27:29 Cameroon: Wells, Farming, Taxis
34:45 Innocent, the Freed Prisoner
42:45 The Physical Rock Bottom
54:32 Two Rock Bottoms — What to Take Away
01:01:13 How to Help / Close
About the Guest
JoBen Barkey is an entrepreneur and philanthropist who spent his first 18 years in the Amazon. Through his B7 nonprofit, funded by his businesses, he supports schools, wells, agriculture, a pharmacy, a taxi service, and a prison ministry across nine villages in Cameroon, and projects in Peru.
Connect with the Guest
Give / learn more: b7family.com (100% of donations go overseas)
YouTube: Better Together B7
Instagram: @onekidneyadventures

Mkristo Bruce made it to the NFL — and still found himself broke on the side of the road, walking home to a son who was hungry. In this episode, he takes us into the night that became his compass, and the vow that built everything after it: a thriving business, a cockpit of his own, and a son now in flight school. Will, grit, desire, love — made real, scene by scene.
ABOUT THE GUEST
Mkristo “MK” Bruce was an All-American defensive end at Washington State (29.5 career sacks, third in school history) who went on to the Miami Dolphins, Oakland Raiders, and Jacksonville Jaguars. After football he managed the #1 Cadillac-Buick-GMC store in Washington, then became Branch Manager at Guild Mortgage in Maple Valley — producing $24M and earning President’s Club in his first year. He’s also a private pilot with roughly 620 hours, a Beech Bonanza owner, and the father of a son now in flight school.
CHAPTERS
0:00 - "Daddy, I'm hungry": the night on the side of the road
3:14 - One NFL game, and the cost of the dream
10:37 - Jacksonville: "Always be ready"
14:51 - When is enough, enough?
22:23 - The coach who refused to give up
27:24 - The pivot: cars to mortgage, and his wife's trust
40:03 - Aviation, his son, and flying together
50:02 - Attitude, effort, and the legacy he's building
CONNECT WITH THE GUEST
Guild Mortgage: branches.guildmortgage.com/wa/maplevalley/mkristo-bruce-654-tcmbr.html
Team Bruce: teambrucemortgage.com
Instagram: @mkristo.bruce
 

Trevor McGregor had it all on the line — his savings, his retirement, even the second mortgage his parents took out on their family home. Then the business imploded, and he lost everything. In this episode, Trevor takes Alan inside rock bottom, the friend who told him “the inside of the jar can’t read the outside of the label,” the coach whose single question rebuilt his life, and the road from the edge of foreclosure to more than 45,000 coaching sessions.
Chapters 
00:00 The Comeback Begins02:12 Trevor's Early Journey04:10 Losing Everything08:23 Rock Bottom09:20 The Power of Mentorship11:15 Real Estate Breakthrough14:29 Paying Back Family15:47 Hard Lessons Learned16:43 The Butterfly Effect17:39 Beating Imposter Syndrome22:12 Coaching with Tony Robbins23:08 From Self Doubt to Confidence26:48 One Question That Changes Everything33:17 Lisa Changed Everything37:44 Winning Through Crisis38:48 The Law of Polarity40:15 Never Give Up42:13 From Broke to Billions46:04 Becoming Your Best Self49:40 Start Your Hero's Journey
About the guest
Trevor McGregor, known as “Coach T.,” is the founder of Trevor McGregor International and one of the most-booked high-performance coaches in the world. A former Master Platinum Coach inside Tony Robbins’ organization, he has completed more than 45,000 one-to-one coaching sessions with clients across the globe, including investors whose portfolios total billions. He lives a life of travel and family with his wife Leesa and their three sons.
Connect with the guest
Website: TrevorMcGregor.com
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/trevor-mcgregor-93375862
Instagram: @iamcoachtrevor
YouTube: @TrevorMcGregor

At twenty-three, Jason Cheperdak was driving a forklift overnight at Walmart, a year into marriage and a few months removed from life as a national-medalist athlete. He couldn’t see the way out. So he stopped waiting for a door to open and started finding the next handle. This is the story of ninety-nine slammed doors, a first million at thirty, and the two questions that rebuilt a life.
About the Guest
Jason Cheperdak is the founder of Shepherd Homes Group, the #1 real estate team in the DMV, with seven companies, a team of 80, and more than 1,100 properties under management. A former Canadian junior national bronze-medalist ice dancer, he arrived in the U.S. with $5,000, drove a forklift overnight at Walmart, became the youngest Target store manager in the country at 24, and built his first million by 30.
Chapters
00:00 Introduction: From Walmart to Real Estate Success
02:19 Building Resilience Through Hard Work
04:46 The Power of Mentorship and Mindset
09:03 Leading a $120 Million Business
12:44 Taking the Leap into Real Estate
16:33 Becoming a Millionaire at 30
17:28 Quitting During COVID and Betting on Himself
18:18 The Value of Coaching and the Right Circle
20:33 Family's Role in Entrepreneurial Success
25:07 Leaving Corporate to Build Multiple Businesses
27:01 Financial Lessons from Growth and Tax Challenges
30:07 Leading with Abundance and Purpose
32:24 Creating a Scalable Business and Lasting Legacy
36:11 Personal Growth Through Relationships
38:58 Advice for Anyone Feeling Stuck
40:17 Curiosity, Persistence, and Better Decisions
44:43 The Questions That Transform Your Life
46:38 How to Connect with Jason
In this conversation
The overnight forklift shift and the breaking point that started everything
Reverse-engineering 25 years of his life and walking away from the ladder
Fifteen feet of fire, a coach, and the decision to go all in
Fear, scarcity, and learning to bet on himself
The two questions he runs every decision through
Connect with the Guest
Instagram: @jasoncheperdak
Website: shepherdhomesgroup.com

Kylee Leota spent years inside an abusive marriage telling herself it wasn't that bad. Then a police officer sat across from her and said one word. Enough. The first time in years she had been seen accurately. In this conversation: the cost of self-deception, the moment of being seen, and how to stop being the character in someone else's story long enough to pick up the pen yourself.
About the Guest
Kylee Leota is the founder of Elements 4 Success, creator of the INFINITE Leadership framework, author of INFINITE Leadership (2024), and TEDx speaker ("From Survivor to Thriver"). She built her leadership methodology from personal traumatic experience, not from theory. Single mother of three. Brisbane-based.
Chapters
0:00 Cold Open 0:27 Episode Open 1:39 We Always Have a Choice 7:44 Doing It for the Children 11:12 Author of Her Own Story 12:36 The Police Officer Said One Word 18:59 The Ghostwriter Section 28:43 Selfless Self-Promotion 40:41 Conversations with the Kids 49:14 A Message to the Woman Still Inside 58:49 Gratitude and Recommendations 1:05:04 Outro
Connect with Kylee
Website:  elements4success.com.au
LinkedIn:  linkedin.com/in/kylee-leota-leadershipexpert
Connect with Alan
Website:  thealanunderwood.com
LinkedIn:  linkedin.com/in/the-alan-underwood

At twenty-nine, with four kids, a mortgage, and everything on the line, Alan sat on a boat at Lake Powell while his father asked him one question. It didn’t tell him what to do. It changed who he decided to become. In this solo episode, Alan reframes how you make decisions, from weighing options to deciding as your future self, and leaves you with a simple practice to start today.
In this episode
The question Alan’s father asked him on a boat at Lake Powell
Why deciding from your future self changes everything
The difference between “what should I do” and “who do I want to be”
A simple daily practice: the five “I Choose” statements
Chapters:
00:00 — Every life has a moment that changes everything
02:34 — On paper, I had made it — but something was missing
03:41 — "Comfortable had become his ceiling"
04:51 — The real stakes — betting everything on a dream
05:28 — The question that changed everything: "Who do you want to be?"
05:58 — Stop asking WHAT — start asking WHO
06:53 — The most selfless thing a father ever did
07:42 — "An invitation he'd never given himself"
08:40 — $1M/year growth for 13 years — proof of the decision
09:52 — Why your present self is sabotaging you
10:54 — How to escape the noise and make clear decisions
11:31 — Viktor Frankl's lesson from a concentration camp
15:42 — You don't have to face it alone
Reflective questions for the listener
What decision are you circling right now?
Are you deciding from your present self or your future self?
Who do you want to be in twenty years?
Connect with Alan: thealanunderwood.com
Be Present. Be Powerful. Be There.

For twelve years, Mike Tenney carried other people's worst days as a law enforcement officer. Then his own arrived — first in a patrol car with a gun to his head, then three years later in a closet with a plan to end his life. In this conversation, Mike shares the voice that stopped him, the wife who took the wrong exit, and the long walk back to the man he was always meant to be.
About the Guest
Mike Tenney is a former law enforcement officer, medically retired with PTSD and major depression after twelve years on the job. He lives in Hawaii with his wife and family, where he is a soon-to-be grandfather and helps small businesses understand their financial potential. This is the first time Mike has publicly told this story.
Chapters
0:00 Introduction - A Moment That Changes Everything
2:21 The Train Accident - October 15, 2015
3:05 Arriving First on Scene
6:54 The Breaking Point - Gun to His Head
9:14 The Voice That Saved His Life
10:15 Medically Retired - Identity in Crisis
12:20 The Red Flags He Missed
13:05 Skipping the Debriefs - How It All Piled Up
15:40 Hidden Addictions as Coping Mechanisms
16:59 Anger, Shame, and the Weight of It All
18:18 Psychache - When Everything Collapses
19:38 December 8, 2018 - The Second Crisis
21:34 Locked Out of His Own Safe
24:59 God Told Me To - Wife Saves His Life on the Freeway
28:44 Hope Returns - A Dream and a New Beginning
31:09 What He Was Hiding from His Wife
33:45 Why We Hide Our Hearts - The Fear of Vulnerability
36:37 The Shocking Truth About First Responder Suicide
45:15 You Are Not Alone - Message to Those Still Struggling
49:10 Being a Cop Is Not Who I Was, It's What I Did
50:26 Choosing a Life Around What Matters
51:34 Be There - The Whole Point of the Podcast
52:22 Gratitude and Closing Thoughts
52:56 Mike Calls Alan an Earth Angel
53:32 Final Message - You Are Not Alone, You Are Loved
54:53 Exalt - A Brotherhood for High Performers
 
Resources Mentioned
West Coast Post-trauma Retreat (WCPR) — frsn.org/west-coast-post-trauma-retreat.html
Warrior Heart — warriorsheart.com
Wild at Heart by John Eldredge — Mike's #1 book
The Shack by Wm. Paul Young
Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl
If You or Someone You Love is Struggling
988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline — call or text 988 in the US, or visit 988lifeline.org.

Two people can face the same loss and walk away with completely different lives. The variable was never the circumstance. It's the innerstance. In this solo episode, Alan tells the story of the 17 minutes between learning his mentor Jim Hesseman had passed and sitting down to coach a couple who were counting on him — and the two reframes that turned him from a man owned by grief into one who could choose his way through it.
Reflective questions for the listener
What emotion have you been waiting on your circumstances to give you permission to feel?
Is there a grief, or a hard feeling, you've been bracing against instead of giving an appointment to?
Which of the three levers — what you see, what you say, what you do — is easiest for you to reach for first?
Chapters 
00:00 The text at 3:4300:29 Who Jim was04:41 When grief used to own me07:13 Schedule your grief08:27 Choose your emotion09:42 The 17 minutes14:04 Innerstance over circumstance15:32 You are what you feel15:47 Feel it first (Dispenza)17:41 The Triad (Robbins)22:11 Tribute to Jim and how to help
 
Frameworks and sources credited
Jim Hesseman — Air Care Alliance President, founder of White Feather Flight, 2023 National Aeronautic Association honoree.
Vincent Van Gogh — letter to Theo (“the little emotions are the great captains of our lives”).
Dr. Joe Dispenza — Becoming Supernatural.
Tony Robbins — Awaken the Giant Within (The Triad).
Call to action
Honor Jim's legacy. Volunteer as a pilot or refer someone who needs a free flight to medical care at angelflightwest.org.