Episode 1664: Interview with Kevin Thompson About Creating Real Million Dollar Relationships

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Scott Maderer: [00:00:00] Thanks for joining us on episode 1,664 of the Inspired Stewardship Podcast.

Kevin Thompson: I'm Kevin Thompson, and I challenge you to invest in yourself, invest in others, develop your influence, and impact the world by using your time, your talent, and your treasures to live out your calling. Having the ability to realize that building relationships is key, and one way to be inspired to do that is to listen to this, the Inspired Stewardship Podcast with my friend Scott Maderer.

And we went down there and, uh, you know, it, we, I've got pictures of all that stuff and, you know, he's the only white kid in the bunch and he's completely oblivious to [00:01:00] that fact. He's just like, "Wow, look at all these kids, man. This is awesome", you know? And, uh, but we have had, we had such an amazing experience.

Scott Maderer: Welcome, and thank you for joining us on the Inspired Stewardship Podcast. If you truly desire to become the person who God wants you to be, then you must learn to use your time, your talent, and your treasures for your true calling. In the Inspired Stewardship Podcast, you will learn to invest in yourself, invest in others, and develop your influence so that you can impact the world.

In today's podcast episode, I interview Kevin Thompson. I ask Kevin to share why he learned that money isn't the real key to million-dollar relationships. Kevin also shares with you how his ability to curate real relationship [00:02:00] is his calling that he stewards. And I also ask Kevin about how being a conduit of trust is his real key.

I have a great book that's been out for a while now called Inspired Living: Assemble the Puzzle of Your Calling by Mastering Your Time, Your Talent, and Your Treasures. You can find out more about that book over at inspiredlivingbook.com. It'll take you to a page where there's information and you can sign up to get some mailings about it, as well as purchase a copy there.

I'd love to see you get a copy and share with me how it impacted your world Kevin Tompsett is founder of the Impact and Legacy Collective and host of the Million Dollar Relationships podcast. As a strategic partnership expert, he personally created over $16 million in revenue exclusively through curating high-value relationships.

After building a million-dollar one-person business, Kevin now focuses on helping [00:03:00] entrepreneurs unlock new opportunities for themselves. Featured in Forbes and other top publications, Kevin's philosophy centers on generosity, authenticity, and integrity. He makes high-trust, high-impact introductions that lead to five, six, and seven-figure collaborations and significant value in their client and partner relationships.

So much so that they gladly invest for the opportunity to have him make these introductions because they're confident in the value they have to offer. They're also confident in their ability to communicate that value so that their ideal clients can buy from them. They know that developing relationships is not easy to do, especially in this digital AI world.

Getting through the superficial is not easy. Getting to where you can actually have a conversation to connect and see if you can offer someone a solution to their problem is not easy. These entrepreneurs want to accelerate that process, and that's what Kevin does. He accelerates the relationship for them.[00:04:00]

He becomes their conduit of trust. Welcome to the show, Kevin.

Kevin Thompson: Hey, great to be here, Scott. I'm looking forward to this, man.

Scott Maderer: Absolutely. I'm looking forward to it, too. We, you know, we've had a few conversations now ourselves, uh about, with your podcast and, and then just- Yep ... turns out we got a lot of personal people in common and that kind of thing as well.

So- I, I've loved connecting with you, and I shared the intro and all of that, but I always think about intros and bios as sort of where we are today- Sure ... but they don't ever really tell people how we got here. You know, they're just the end of the journey, not the journey. So take us back in time a little bit and unpack a little bit about your journey and, and what has brought you to the point where this is what you feel called to do in the world?

Kevin Thompson: Yeah. Wow. So I I used, my very first business ever I started in 1995, a [00:05:00] cleaning and restoration business. Carpet cleaning and water damage restoration. And I had worked for seven years as a commercial fisherman on Alaska's Bering Sea in order to save up money to start that business. And, uh, uh, I blew through about 300,000 in the first year, and I still wasn't showing a profit in that business 'cause I just didn't know what I didn't know.

And ended up meeting this guy, Joe Polish, through a trade magazine for the industry and, and ended up getting his help with some marketing. And over the course of the next three years, we completely transformed that business into a by referral only, high-end cleaning and servicing company. And, uh, and in 1999 I added a website component 'cause I went to this seminar and I s- heard these guys doing stuff, really cool stuff online, and I'm like, "Gosh, wouldn't it be cool if I could use the internet and have maybe even a, [00:06:00] you know, a w- a, a nationwide reach instead of just a local reach?"

And we ended up starting one of the, probably one of the ugliest websites ever on the internet. It was called Get Mold Solutions. But I just took what I knew. I, I knew about water damage and how to deal with mold in a home, and all of that kind of stuff, and we just started offering help to people. And, uh, over the course of the next few years, I built a subscriber list of about 35,000 people.

I, I, as a result of technology and that website, I spoke with more people on the subject of water damage and mold and all that than anybody else in the industry, all because of that website. And we got that website where it was producing about 15, 16,000 a month in revenue for the company. And in 2003, Joe invites me to come down there, and he hosted this annual event for the cleaning and restoration industry.

He's like, "Kev, why don't you come down here and show everybody what [00:07:00] you're doing with your website?" And I'm like, "All right." and he's like, "And before you come-" He's like, "Make sure you document what you do and how you do it. Put it into a course, because once people hear from you, a certain percentage of them, they're gonna want your help, and just make sure that you're ready to offer that to them."

And I'm like, "All right." And so we did that. And when I spoke at that event, uh, long story short, we ended up selling $35,000 worth of that training that I had created, and I'm just like, "Wow." And, uh, the following year, uh, 2004, April 19th of '04, I sold the cleaning and restoration business. We moved into the publishing company full time.

Uh, and over the course of the next 12 years, I'd sold $16.1 million worth of that training. And, uh, the way that we did that was I partnered with other entrepreneurs to help get my message out into the marketplace. So I did strategic [00:08:00] partnerships, almost 600 of them in 12 years. And, uh, through that process, I also really kind of discovered that I was, like, really good at being this connector and conduit of trust, making introductions for entrepreneurs.

Uh, because I would just... They would just tell me what they're working on or what challenges they're dealing with, and I'd just always default to, "Well, who do I know who might be able to help?" And so I just started making those introductions. And, uh, I didn't know it at the time, but that 12 years of running that business was totally laying the groundwork for the work that I get to do today, and I get to be this connector, this conduit of trust for some amazing entrepreneurs.

Uh, we regularly make introductions that lead to five-figure, six-figure, seven-figure opportunities, and, and heck, uh, we're gonna be making eight and nine-figure impact soon. And, and it all just kind of came through that process of, of, you know, starting my first business, then getting into the [00:09:00] publishing company for 12 years and, and, and, and doing almost 600 strategic partnerships.

Scott Maderer: So that's one of the things I kind of want to pull on that thread a little bit, 'cause, you know, we talk a lot about calling, and I get asked about that because that's something that I, I work on with people. And a lot of times people think of of calling as sort of, you know, "Oh, it's the thing that I want to be when I grow up."

You know, it, it's the thing that I wanna do. But you just talked about the fact that where you're at today and where you started, wildly different. Did you have a picture that this is what you'd be doing later in life when you started out? Oh, my goodness.

Kevin Thompson: No. Heck no. Heck no. I, I'm, I'm really grateful that it worked out this way.

I'm having the time of my life. I, I, I really enjoy it, but no, I could have never imagined that we'd be here right now doing what I get to do now.

Scott Maderer: So how do you recognize it when those things come up in front of you [00:10:00] that's, you know, that's really something that you should lean into rather than a distraction?

Kevin Thompson: So the first, like, really what in I perceived in my mind was this big introduction I made. It was 16 years ago. These two guys, Brian and Perry, uh, I introduced them, and within eight months they were hosting this big event together back near Washington, DC, and there was about 300 people in attendance at that event, and I know they charged several thousand dollars a person for people to attend that event.

And I'm just like, "Wow, look at what these guys accomplished here." And of course now, all these years later, uh, those two guys have become great friends. They've done so much stuff together. They've, they've, uh, impacted millions and millions of lives and created millions and millions of dollars in revenue.

But it was that introduction that first got me thinking 16 years ago, wouldn't it be cool if I had a business where I could just do that all the time? [00:11:00] And, uh, and it, and it took some time for that idea to, to germinate and like, you know, how do you make it happen? It had a lot of conversations, uh, and some real highs and lows through that whole process, too, and stuff, yeah. And, uh, it did- it didn't just happen overnight. Yeah.

Scott Maderer: Yeah. So one of the things I like to highlight on the show is what I call the intersection between our faith journey, whatever that is for us, and our life journey, and how those kind of... how there's a feedback loop, I think, between how we see our, our relationship with faith, and how we see our relationship with others and with the world.

So for you, how has that played out through these various phases of your journey?

Kevin Thompson: Oh, my goodness. Well Man, s- sometimes we just have to have faith that we're, we're, we're doing the right thing, that we're gonna [00:12:00] figure it out. Because, you know, there, there can be some dark times along the way, for sure, where, uh, man, if if we don't have faith, I mean, man, I, that is totally what's carried me through in some of those spots, for sure.

And even now, you know, I mean, so one of the things I do is I host these little Zoom get-togethers for small groups of entrepreneurs for, like, you know, three to six entrepreneurs at a time. And when I started doing them years ago, uh, I tried to be, like, really intentional about who I'd invite. And well, I mean, I'll...

Let me rephrase that. I was always, been really intentional about who I invite, but I would be like, "Oh, I wanna try to get this person with this person," and, and, and really just almost, like, micromanage it and stuff, you know? And, uh, along the way, the, I hosted one of these ev- events. I call it a virtual roundtable.

And these two guys that were there made a connection on something that I would've never imagined that I, the, because I [00:13:00] didn't know that there was a connection for them on that thing. But it was so doggone powerful, and it was, I was just like, "Wow, look at what happened right there." And I never knew that about either one of those guys.

And that's when I'm like, "You know what? Man, maybe, you know, I don't need to be so doggone trying to control all of this, but just do what I do. You know, curate the right people, invite the right people, but then let God and the universe play their role in this, too, and then, and look at what just happened right there.

And let, let me just be the conduit. Let me just be that steward, if you will, and let that happen." And I'll tell you, man now that kind of conversation, it happens all the time in my world. I, I set up conversations like that all the way. And it, and it's really kinda cool 'cause now I'm just like, " of course that happened," because you are just being the best steward you can of relationships, of of [00:14:00] relationship capital, and all of that.

And God and the universe are just working through you, allowing you to use your God-given gifts and abilities to serve the right people. So kind of on talking about that a little bit more, I know that one of the things that you talk about you know, from our earlier conversations, and I wanna give you a chance to share it 'cause I think it's really powerful, is, you know, that when you're looking at people, you're looking about them in terms of how their interests align, how their values align- Yeah

Scott Maderer: their character, your, their competence. But I, and I think a lot of times as entrepreneurs, we we think about those things, but we don't necessarily think about all of them or think about them fully.

Kevin Thompson: Yeah. Yeah.

Scott Maderer: Where do you see some of the, the gaps that we run into as, as leaders, as businesspeople, as entrepreneurs when we're thinking about connecting what, you know, whether it's doing a partnership with somebody, whether it's bringing a new employee on board, you know, those- Yeah

[00:15:00] those sorts of relationship-driven connections that we all do. Yeah.

Kevin Thompson: Yeah. So, so many entrepreneurs, especially, especially, you know, when we find ourselves in a networking situation, whatever that might look like. It could be a local mixer that we just, maybe it's at a local restaurant somewhere or, or some- somebody's bus- place of business, in their boardroom or what have you.

Or maybe we're investing, you know, to be a group being part of a group where we might invest 12,000, 25,000, 70,000 a year to be in that group. And so many people that are in those groups, they, they, they mistakenly believe that, "Well, I gotta make hay while the sun is shining. I gotta connect with as many people as I possibly can."

And it's kind of the wrong thinking because, you know, I, I go into those situations and, you know, I, I have invested well over seven figures over the last 22 years putting myself in the right rooms to meet the right people and have the right conversations. [00:16:00] But I, I, I, it, when I go, if I'm, if I'm going to a two or a two and a half day event, if I can make deep, meaningful connection with three or four people over the course of those couple days and stuff, man, I'm m- that's a huge win right there.

And, and so, you know, and, and the thing is, is like everybody wants to, you know, they, you, you got a lot of people like- Saying, "Okay, well, if somebody were to send me business, I will pay for that. I will pay a percentage of that business," or whether it's- Mm-hmm ... you know, 10%, 20%, whatever. And, and the thing is, is this is completely the wrong messaging.

Because we think it sounds great, and we think, "Oh, I'm being really generous." And, you know, the thing is like that's a message that everybody hears all the time. And for the really successful entrepreneur who is, you know, and, and the way I describe a successful entrepreneur is an entrepreneur who is using their business [00:17:00] as the vehicle to make their biggest impact.

It's not just about making money, it's about making impact, and then revenue is the natural, organic byproduct of impact. The more impact we make, the more revenue that gets created. And so that entrepreneur, you reach out to them with a message of, "Hey, if you send me business, I'll pay you." They do not care about that.

They wanna talk about impact. What kind of impact c- you know, how can we co-create and collaborate together and create a far bigger impact together than either one of us could possibly do on our own? That's the conversation they wanna have. Mm-hmm. And so when we reach out with this other message, we're immediately losing trust.

And, uh, you know, and, and there's, you know, you brought, you mentioned it. There's, there's four things that need to be present in order for a collaborative conversation to just easily and organically move forward. There [00:18:00] has to be trust in character, there has to be trust in competence, and there also has to be an alignment of interests and values.

And when those four come together right there, it's that sweet spot. It's that intersection right there. That's where the magic happens, when those four things are present. Because now we're just having a heart-to-heart conversation of, how can we make our biggest impact together, you know? Mm-hmm. And that's a whole different conversation right there.

Scott Maderer: Yeah, I work a lot with, uh, financial coaches. You know, e- even though I coach in that area myself, I actually collaborate and train and, and, you know, help other people get into that, that field and that business. And one of the things that, uh, I, I've talked to a lot of coaches about is immediately when they're thinking about referral partners or connections or people who could, you know, potentially send them clients, they're like, "Well, but I can't send them back a client for every client they send me."

And I'm like, "That's a [00:19:00] transactional relationship." That's right. That's not what they're looking for if they're a good referral partner. No, no. They're, they're looking for y- they send you somebody, and you take such great care of them that they look like a rock star for inter- making the introduction.

Exactly. You know? Yeah. If you can do that, they don't care if you send them a client back. That's right. That's not the point, you know?

Kevin Thompson: That's right. Yes. '

Scott Maderer: Cause guess what? The reason

Kevin Thompson: they refer is because they want you to help them further the relationship that they already have with the person- With that person

they're sending you. It is not about money. It is not about, oh, because they sent s- me somebody, I need to send somebody back. That is not it. If you do your job right, you've already provided value for them by letting them refer people to you that they care about.

Scott Maderer: Cause it rubs off. It, if- Absolutely

if you're really doing a good job and treating people well and serving them great and they have a fantastic experience, not only do they talk about, "Oh, you know, Kevin was so great," but they say, "And Bob is the one who [00:20:00] introduced us." And, you know- Yeah ... "And I love Bob because Bob introduced us." So-

Kevin Thompson: That's right

Scott Maderer: it, it helps everybody. It, everybody wins, but-

Kevin Thompson: Yeah ...

Scott Maderer: But it's so easy to get into that transactional kind of modality.

Kevin Thompson: Uh-huh, yeah.

Scott Maderer: How do you help people break free from that mindset? when you're making these connections?

Kevin Thompson: I, I, I start with tr- well, I start with just trying to serve people who are already in that mindset.

Who are already, you know, they- That's always

Scott Maderer: easier, yeah.

Kevin Thompson: Because candidly, if they're not of that mindset already, I'm not gonna be able to be much use or of service to them. Uh, I, I just can't, because, you know, I, I have spent over 22 years creating the relationships that I have in my life. And so if I bring the wrong people into the people's lives that I know, that would be really detrimental and stuff.

That would damage the relationship we've already got. And I will tell you, I will not [00:21:00] intentionally ever do anything to damage the relationships that I've already got with people. I always, everything I wanna do, I wanna further that relationship. I want them coming back to me going, "Wow, Kev, thanks so much.

Bob was amazing," or, "You were so right, man. Scott, man, I, y- I'm so glad you suggested that we talk." and, and that's what we want. And so, you know, and, and so to really get in with, in these circles, and I'll tell you, when we get this right, my goodness. I mean, you know, uh the, the CEOs and founders of companies are, a lot of times they're very difficult to reach because they insulate themselves intentionally.

They put people in place, secretaries, assistants, what have you- Gatekeeper ... to gatekeep for them. And but when we get this right and we understand the value of the right relationships, [00:22:00] we can get a total front door entrance to that person through somebody that already has a trusted relationship with them.

But in order to get that, we've got to, that person has to know we're gonna further that relationship that they already have and stuff. Mm-hmm. They're not gonna open that door for us if they don't think that's gonna happen, you know? So the first thing is just, you know, show up and be that person. Be that person who wants to be of service.

You know, let the transactional piece go, because when we focus on impact the, the revenue comes.

Scott Maderer: Yeah. You, you used the phrase, you know, conduit of trust, and you used that earlier. Tell people what you mean by

Kevin Thompson: that. I have a good friend of mine that I've known for 15 years. Uh, he is a billionaire.

I met him in one of these mastermind groups that I was in years ago, that we were in years ago. And [00:23:00] him and I just made this... So I, I had shared some stuff in that group that first morning of that mastermind, it was a two-day thing, that just really resonated with him. And so on the first break, he just came and introduced himself to me, and over the course of that next two days, him and I spent a ton of time together.

And, uh, and in fact, I don't even remember what all I shared with him, but at the end of those two days, he hands me a piece of paper with a phone number on it, and he's like, "Kev, I know you live in the Seattle area." And he's like, "I have a condo right downtown Seattle at the top, on the top floor at the Harbor Steps."

He's like, "It's got a 360-degree view of the city and the water and, and all of that." And he's like, "It only gets used about three days a month when I'm in town over there. Other than that, it's never used." He's like, "You call this number, and you make arrangements, and you take your family down there, and you just go enjoy that space.[00:24:00]

And they'll take care of everything you need. In fact, all the restaurants in the area, there's menus for every one of them right there in, in, in the place. Whatever food you want, you just call that number, you let them know, they'll take care of it." And, uh and I'm just like, "Wow." I was like, "Why are you doing this?"

And he's like, "Because," he's like, "I just really appreciate the insight that you shared with me over this last couple of days, and I'd just really like to start a relationship. I want to show you my appreciation. And then of course, after you have this experience, I, I want to talk with you." I'm, I'm like, "Tell me, I want you to tell me how great it was, 'cause that's what I want you to have is an amazing experience."

And that's how we started our friendship years ago. And, uh, over the last 15 years, we've had lots of conversations over the years. I've been able to make some connections for him and stuff. And, and about five, six years ago, him and I were talking and he, and he made this comment to me. He's like, "Kevin."

He's like, "Don't ever stop doing what you do," because he's like, "You are [00:25:00] one of only two people who hold the kind of role that you hold in my life." And he's like, "You are my conduit of trust. Anybody that comes through you, they go right to the front of the line and get my immediate attention just because they came through you."

And that's, when he used that term, conduit of trust, I was like You know what? Yeah. Connector, that's one thing. But conduit of trust, that's what I'm really doing here. That's what's really taking place. That's what my real role is. And of course, coming to understand that, I mean, that, you know, that, that puts a big responsibility on my shoulders.

You know, now, that's not a heavy weight or anything, but it's a responsibility that I take very seriously. And, and I did before too, but now I can articulate it better and, and just him making that comment, that was an absolute game changer for sure. Yeah. And again, I think all of these things [00:26:00] are, uh, related to each other in terms of it- it's relationship first, everything else comes later.

Scott Maderer: Yes. Yes. You know? It's, it's connection first, relationship first. How can I serve you first? And not in a, uh... That's the other thing, is it's not in a manipulative way. No, no. It's just sincere. You know? Yeah. It's not, "Because I wanna get something out of this." It's just, "No, I just wanna- Be that way. Yes. Um,

Kevin Thompson: yeah.

Scott Maderer: But- So talk a little bit about your family foundation. I know you started it back in 2008.

Kevin Thompson: Yes, we

Scott Maderer: did. And I know some of the story, so I want to give you a chance to share.

Kevin Thompson: So 2008- Uh, that was when I, I owned the publishing company at that time. And business w- so you know, 2008 was a crazy year for a- Right

lot of people. And, and but 2008, my [00:27:00] publishing business was growing like crazy. And, uh, in fact, that was the first year that we broke a million dollars in revenue and stuff. And, uh, and I knew going into the end of that year that like we, we were gonna have a banner year and stuff, and I also knew I was gonna have a big tax bill too.

And, and a friend of mine had told me, he's like, "You know, Kev, you, you should start a family foundation because, uh, you know, you can get your 5013C, uh, tax-free status," because then he's like, "You can put a bunch of money into that foundation before the end of the year, uh, then you would no taxes on it and then, you know, you can then, you, you still control it through the foundation."

And you know, candidly, I will tell you, Scott you know, starting the foundation, the impetus to start it was because I wanted to save on my tax bill and stuff. That was [00:28:00] it. And, and yet, the, this organization that helped us do that, it's a, it was a place called The Stewardship Institute. I don't know if they're w- if they're still in business now or not, but that's the organization who helped us set it all up, do the paperwork, and get the tax-free status and all that.

And, uh, in the spring of the following year, spring of 2009, uh, they sent us this letter saying that they are, they were gonna be hosting a get-together for family foundation owners so that we could just, you know, come and just share our experiences with running the foundation and all that. And, and my wife, you know, had got that letter, and she's like, "I wanna, I'm gonna go to this workshop and stuff."

And I'm like, "Great." I'm like, "That sounds awesome. You go to that workshop." And she goes, "Oh, no." "No, you, we are going to this workshop." And, uh, and so-

Scott Maderer: You misunderstood what I said.

Kevin Thompson: And, uh, and so we went to this, it was a one-day workshop and, uh, and, uh, and I'll tell you, [00:29:00] Scott, w- that was such an amazing experience.

There was about 35, uh, family foundation owners there, and they were just talking about their experiences in running their foundations, what they were doing, and some of the things in. And I was like, I, f- for one, I felt like such a schmuck. 'Cause I was like, "Man." I'm like, "Look at what these guys are doing."

I'm like, "This is so cool." And the stories they shared and the experiences they were having, and I'm like, "Man," I was like, "I wanna be- doing that kind of stuff. I wanna be causing impact like that. And so while, while I kinda felt like a schmuck, uh, at the same time, I, I got this whole vision now. And so, you know, in fact, uh, so I'm trying to think.

So when was our first big trip? Brock was three. He was born in April of '08. So eight, so '09, '10, '11. So it would've been, it would've been in sometime probably around 2011. So maybe two years later was when we took our first [00:30:00] big trip. And my wife had done the research. She had found this single mom and her two children, uh, that were b- sh- the mom was blogging online.

And she was talking about this trip that her and her two children had taken to Montego Bay, Jamaica to go visit this place, this orphan, uh, uh, Blossom Garden Orphanage. That was the name of the place. And she was blogging all about it, and, and showing pictures and this and that. And my wife found it, and my wife was like, made me come sit at the computer one evening.

She goes, "Honey, I wanna go to that orphanage." And I'm like, "Wow." I started looking at it like, "That looks pretty cool and stuff." And so we ended up making plans, and we did that. And we took our whole family. We've got a large family. We've got seven kids and, and, uh, uh, and so ... And, and my son Brock, he is now getting ready to turn 18.

He was three years old when we took our very first trip to that orphanage and stuff. And we went down there, and, uh, you know, it, we, I've got [00:31:00] pictures of all that and stuff. And, you know, he's the only white kid in the bunch, and he's completely oblivious to that fact. He's just like, "Wow, look at all these kids, man.

This is us." You know? And but we have had, we had such an amazing experience just going out and hanging out at that orphanage, and spending time with those kids, and just ... And we've been supporting them financially ever since, and we've made multiple trips to that orphanage over the years. And now it's got, you know, one of

Somewhere along the line, one of our, our kid's friends wanted to come and stuff. And we were like, "Okay, sure, whatever. Yeah, you can come with us and stuff." And their mom and dad were like, "Well, how much are we gonna owe you?" I'm like, "You know what?" I was like, "You don't owe us anything." I was like, "We'll just, we'll just take him 'cause, you know we'll take care of it."

And, and I was like, "You can give him some spending money or something if you want to, but we'll cover all the expenses from there." And, and, uh, that- That child came home and was telling their parents about it. And of [00:32:00] course, we'd already experienced this b- with our own kids because when kids go to an orphanage in Montego Bay, Jamaica, and they get to see how the kids at the orphanage live compared to how they live at home in Arlington, Washington, it's a whole different thing.

And, and kids come to the conclusion all by themselves. You don't gotta say a word. They come to their own conclusion. They're like, "Man, I got it really good," and so this friend of one of my, one of my kids they came home and just started telling their parents all about this amazing trip and just talk- And they're like, "Wow, look what happened to our son.

He's just like, he's way different now," and so we've, we've been, we've taken lots of people on trips to Jamaica to the orphanage with us over the years and stuff, you know, and, and we've done lots of other stuff through the foundation, too. And, uh, and, uh, you know, my wife is the... just absolutely amazing at planning all the details, making the [00:33:00] travel arrangements, finding the place to stay, booking, uh, flights, doing all that stuff.

And, uh, and, and she loves that part of it, you know, her role in that, too, and stuff I did notice, by the way, that whatever it was the workshop letter And she said she wanted to go. You said- Yeah ... "Fine, you go." But when it was- Yeah ... the orphanage, you said, "Oh, we'll go." Yeah. Your mindset had changed by that time, hadn't it?

Yeah. Totally. Yeah.

Scott Maderer: Yeah. You you went from, "Oh, this is something I can do to save on taxes," to, "This is really cool."

Kevin Thompson: It is. It is really cool, and I, I could tell you so many amazing stories of just stuff that has transpired over the years through the family foundation. And, like, you know, and, and I just, I just, you know, uh, we, we...

I mean, once in a while people find out about it and they'll say, "Oh, well, I'll, I'll write you guys a check and make a donation and stuff," and they do that. But I, w- for the most part, I just fund it myself out of my business and [00:34:00] stuff. That's where most of the funding comes from and stuff. And, uh, but yeah, it has been a really amazing experience, and, uh, I, I'm so grateful to my wife for, uh, you know, just her just putting her foot down and going, "Nope, you're going."

And so...

Scott Maderer: That's often... I often, uh Don't tell my wife this, but she often has some really good ideas, so, you know. Yes. I don't, I don't want her to get a big head, right? Yeah. We'll just keep that between us. Uh- Yeah, yeah ... no- nobody else will hear it. Uh, unfortunately she listens to the podcast, so she's gonna hear this.

But anyway. So I've got a few questions that I like to ask all of our guests, Kevin, but before I go there, is there anything else about the work that you do or this journey that you've been on or curating and being that conduit of trust that you think is really important for the listener to hear?

Kevin Thompson: So there's a, there's a [00:35:00] big discovery that I've definitely made over the years because, you know a- and maybe, you know, people can relate to this, but I know I used to, especially if I would look at an entrepreneur, like, like, you know, like the gentleman that I mentioned that I met, you know, 15 years ago who's a billionaire.

You know, I I, w- when he first introduced himself to me and kinda told me a little about who, I'm just like, "Wow." You know, I'm ... 'Cause when he just told me about who he was and what he did and, and I'm like that, my, my initial thought was, like, "Why is he talking to me? Why, why, why ... " You know, and, and then it came clear what he was looking for and stuff, and I'm like, "Oh, okay."

And, and, uh, and but what I realized through that process and through many conversations since is that, you know what? It does not matter how successful somebody is, it doesn't matter how big of a business they run, it doesn't matter how great things look [00:36:00] from the outside looking in, uh, every single one of us, for one, we're, we're way more alike than we are different, and we're all doing the best we can with what we got and stuff.

And when we realize that, that we can just have, you know, just heart-to-heart, meaningful conversations with people, and just really just get to know them, and it is, this isn't about us carrying a conversation or feeling, "Oh my gosh, what do I talk about?" You know what? All you gotta do, ask somebody a question.

You know, and, and one of the questions I love asking entrepreneurs is, "Hey, what are you working on right now that's got you most jazzed and excited?" Trust me, they're gonna start talking.

Scott Maderer: Yeah. They will

Kevin Thompson: start talking.

Scott Maderer: In fact

You, you might, you might regret asking that question in some cases. '

Kevin Thompson: Cause they will talk a lot, um,

yeah. And, and, uh, when we give them the opportunity to just let us hear them and not waiting, you know, not, not [00:37:00] listening with the intent of like, "Okay, when do I get to talk next, and what am I gonna say next?" But no, listening to them 'cause we genuinely wanna hear them, and then- We ask them clarifying questions about whatever it is that they're telling w- us.

And what happens then is we give them this gift that they so seldom get to receive, which is this gift of feeling seen, heard, and understood. And I will tell you what, that works w- with anybody and everybody. It does not matter. And it, it works with billionaires, it works with millionaires, it works with the, the gal that's at the restaurant serving us our meal and stuff.

It works with anybody and everybody. And, and to just be present and, and ask questions, and just be engaged with them and stuff. And you're gonna just, you're gonna give them an experience that's gonna be like, "Man, I wanna spend more time with this guy," you know? And then then because you just did that, 'cause that's all I did with Isaac [00:38:00] that first two days, was I- we just did that, and then next thing I know he's giving me a phone number on a piece of paper saying, "Hey, call this and go stay at this place of mine," and so-

Scott Maderer: I used to challenge myself at networking meetings to ask as many questions as I could and preferably n- basically do nothing but ask questions, you know- Yeah ... if, if I was talking to people. And what's interesting is more often than not when you do that, you get told what a brilliant conversationalist you are.

Kevin Thompson: Yeah. Yes.

Scott Maderer: And it's like, all I did was listen. That's

Kevin Thompson: right.

Scott Maderer: Ask questions. That's right. Yes. It's like, yeah, but that's rare. Yeah.

Kevin Thompson: Yeah. Totally. Totally.

Scott Maderer: So my brand has inspired stewardship, and I kind of run things through the lens of stewardship, and you've mentioned that word a couple of different times.

But I've also discovered over the years that that's one of those words that can mean a lot of different things to a lot of different people. So for you, what does the word [00:39:00] stewardship mean to you?

Kevin Thompson: For me, it's, you know, I, I just look at it as like I wanna be the best steward. I want to ... So how would I actually describe it?

You know, I, I wanna be the best steward of the relationships that I have, of the resources that I have, of the revenue and money that I have. And, you know, 'cause, 'cause I, I, you know, I realize that for one, uh, we're not gonna leave this world with any of this. This is just ours here while we're here, and we're not leaving with any of it.

And so, uh, you know if we are, if we take good care of the people in our lives, of the resources in our lives, you know, and, and whether you're a Christian or not, you know, uh, when, when we are a good steward, more is [00:40:00] given to us to be a steward of. And- And I mean, e- even something w- as simple as tithing and stuff.

And, you know, and, and people have different takes on it, and I will tell you my personal take on it is, you know, when we tithe, and that, that means I give 10% to whatever. You can give it to a church or to an organization, whatever. But when we are a good steward of that and do that, I will tell you, uh, that I, I've done both in my life.

I, where I didn't do that and where I did do that. And I can tell you, when I did I, I just keep getting more to be a good steward of, because I'm just... And I don't know. I can't tell you why it works, but I just know that my experience has been is it works. Mm-hmm. And, and I j- all, all the, in the simplest of terms, what I do is I'm just hanging [00:41:00] out with my friends doing cool stuff together.

That's what I'm doing in the simplest of terms, and, and I just wanna do more of that, and what- in whatever form that takes, whether it's hosting virtual roundtables on Zoom for people, whether it's getting together in person, whether it's whatever. You know what I mean? I just had one of my clients that was in town this last weekend and stuff, and so we got together for lunch on Saturday and just got to spend some time together in person, you know?

And, and, uh, and like I said, that's, that's what it is, is just being a... Taking care of what we've been given, and when we take good care of what we've been given, we will be given more to be able to take care of and be a steward of.

Scott Maderer: So this is my favorite question that I like to ask everybody. Uh, i- imagine for a moment that I could invent this magic machine and with this machine, I was able to take you from where you are today and transport you into the future maybe 150, maybe 250 years.

And through the power of this machine, you are able to look back and see your [00:42:00] entire life, see all of the connections, see all of the, the ripples, see all of the impacts you've left. What impact do you hope you've left in the world?

Kevin Thompson: Oh, my goodness. I, I would like to see the impact that I left was just a whole lot of, of people co-creating and collaborating together, uh, do- doing just huge things together that they couldn't do on their own, all because I started certain things in motion, and now it just continues to go and go and go through those people.

And who knows? 'Cause the ripple effect of that, uh, we will never know. Uh, but, you know, having the ability to look back on that and see, like, "Wow, look what came from that." And, uh, yeah, that's the kinda impact that I wanna leave.

Scott Maderer: So what's on the roadmap? What's coming next as you continue on your journey?

Kevin Thompson: Well, you know, I had a, I, a couple years ago... Eh, I guess it wasn't. It was about maybe more like 18 months [00:43:00] ago, uh, I had- Introduced these two guys, and, uh, within four mon- four months of those two guys being introduced they had done some stuff together and created $1.2 million in revenue together in just four months and stuff.

And, and another good friend of mine I had gone down to Austin to a seminar of his that he was hosting, and I hadn't seen him in a few years, and this... You know, when he-- So when he asked me, "Kev," you know, "what's what's the most exciting thing that's been happening in your life recently?"

Well, this thing was top of mind. And so I told him about that, and and he's like, "You know, Kev." He's like, " so now, having done that, you know, what, what, what's your vision? Now, now from this new vantage point, what's your vision going forward from here?" And I was like, "Well, you know, Gio," I said, "I can totally see, you know, making $2 million, $5 million introductions and stuff, maybe even $10 million introductions."

And, [00:44:00] and, and he starts chuckling and he's like, "Kevin." He's like, "You are gonna be making introductions so much more valuable than that." And, and as soon as he said that, and I, and I've known Gio for, I don't know, 15, 16 years now, and, and, and just the-- When he said that, I'm just like, "You know what? He is totally right."

And so for about the last eight, 10 months or so, I've been regularly putting it out there, 'cause we do now, we make seven-figure introductions regularly. It happens all the time. And I've been regularly putting out there, I'm gonna be making eight and nine-figure impact. And it has nothing to do with the revenue at all.

It's the impact. And I know in order to make that happen, two things need to take place. I need to be- just become more and more effective at doing what I do, and then I just need to keep having conversations with the right people for the right reasons, and it'll unfold. And right now, I have a couple deals in the [00:45:00] pipeline that have eight and nine-figure possibility.

And, and yet I'm not like, "Oh, this needs to happen," or anything like that. I'm just enjoying being along for the ride. I'm just enjoying being on the journey. I know that absolutely that will happen because that's the direction I'm going. That's the game that I wanna play. That's the impact that I wanna have and stuff.

And I just wanna hang out with entrepreneurs that we have that trusting character, trusting competence, alignment of interests, and alignment of values because that's how that's gonna happen.

Scott Maderer: So you can mi- find out more about Kevin Thompson over at maximum-response.com. That has a hyphen between maximum and response.

Of course, I'll have a link to that. Also, check out his podcast, Million Dollar Relationships. You can look that up anywhere podcasts are found, and I'll have links to that al- as well over in the show notes. [00:46:00] Kevin, is there anything else you'd like to share with the listener?

Kevin Thompson: Well, I'll tell you, you know, if, if you've been listening to this and, and, and some of the stuff that we've talked about, if it really resonates with you and you consider yourself, you know, one of those entrepreneurs who, you know, is using your business as the vehicle to make your biggest impact, and you too, uh, you place a really high value on relationships, definitely check out the Million Dollar Relationships podcast.

You'll find it on Apple, on Spotify, wherever. Uh, but check it out. Listen to an episode or two. And, and if what you see there, if it resonates with you and just really hits with you I would love to hear from you. And, and if it makes sense, man, I'd totally love the opportunity to get to know you a little bit and possibly do an interview with you for the podcast and stuff.

We release two episodes a week, and so I'm doing this really regular. And and I'm always looking for great guests to interview for the podcast. Awesome.[00:47:00]

Scott Maderer: Thanks so much for listening to the Inspired Stewardship podcast. As a subscriber and listener, we challenge you to not just sit back and passively listen, but act on what you've heard and find a way to live your calling. If you enjoyed this episode please do us a favor. Go over to inspiredstewardship.com/itunesrate, all one word, itunesrate.

It'll take you through how to leave a rating and review and how to make sure you're subscribed to the podcast so that you can get every episode as it comes out in your feed. Until next time, invest your time, your talent, and your treasures. Develop your influence and impact the

[00:48:00] world.