Dev Sim: Workplace Longevity, Cambodian Heritage, & Bodybuilding | BJT03

In this episode, we embark on a journey of resilience and transformation. Join us as we unlock the secrets to workplace longevity, exploring Dev's invaluable insights from his 10+ years at Metro North and the most unexpected lessons he learned along the way. Delve into the thought-provoking cost-benefit analysis of high-paying jobs, discovering the complexities and considerations of pursuing financial success. Prepare to be moved as we delve into Dev's parents' incredible journey from Cambodia to the USA, unveiling their inspiring love story and the responsibilities immigrant children bear in caring for their parents' health. Shift gears as we explore Dev's personal odyssey into the world of bodybuilding, including the captivating tale of how he persuaded his mother to invest in a workout bench. Discover the transformative power of negative emotions, learning how they can ignite positive change and drive personal growth. Gain practical advice and recommendations from Dev to kickstart your own fitness journey and much more. Get ready for a powerful episode that will ignite your resilience and inspire you to embrace personal transformation. Tune in and join us on this extraordinary quest of self-discovery and empowerment.

In this episode, we cover:

• (00:00) - Intro
• (01:24) - The secret to workplace longevity
• (04:35) - Most unexpected lesson from working at Metro North for 10+ years
• (06:42) - The cost-benefit analysis of a high-paying job
• (07:30) - From Cambodia to the USA: Dev's parents journey
• (12:12) - How Dev's parents met in the USA
• (15:02) - Dev's dad health and the duty of immigrant children
• (19:40) - Dev's journey into bodybuilding
• (20:43) - How Dev convinced his mother to buy a workout bench
• (21:56) - Using negative emotion as a driver to spark change
• (24:32) - Dev's recommendations to kickstart your own fitness journey
• (29:44) - Rapid-fire episode closing
• (34:48) - Dev's advice to his younger self
• (36:43) - Outro

Referenced:

• Metro-North Railroad: https://new.mta.info/agency/metro-north-railroad
• Homo homini lupus, or in its unabridged form Homo homini lupus est, is a Latin proverb meaning "A man is a wolf to another man,"
• Time will inevitably uncover dishonesty and lies; history has no place for them. -Norodom Sihanouk
• Edmund Morris's Theodore Roosevelt Trilogy Bundle: The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt, Theodore Rex, and Colonel Roosevelt: https://www.amazon.com/Edmund-Morriss-Theodore-Roosevelt-Trilogy/dp/0812958632

Where to find Dev:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/devalerasim/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/devasaurus/?hl=en

Where to find Cesar

• Twitter: https://twitter.com/iamcesarromero
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/iamcesarromero/

Creators & Guests

Host

Cesar Romero

Helping startups and SMBs build strong customer relationships that drive product adoption, reduce churn, and increase revenue | Community-Driven | Podcast Host

Guest

Dev Sim

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Dev Sim | BJT03
[00:00:00] Hey friends, this is your host Cesar Romero, and you're listening to beyond the job title podcast, the show that explores the human experiences that shape our professional and personal lives. My guest for this episode is Dev SIM. Def and I meant. While in Costa Rica. Wayne. I was working for a trouble startup called
[00:00:28] Under30Experiences
[00:00:30] We've been friends ever since. And I think he's, his story is very interesting. Um, in this episode, we're going to dive deeper into. His journey, working at Metro north for 10 years. And what has led him to. Be there for 10 years, right? Which in this day and age, it's, it's unheard of. We're also going to have to be diving into devs, Cambodian heritage, what it means to be.
[00:00:56] An immigrant child and taking care of your [00:01:00] parents. Uh, we also going to be hearing about, uh, Deaf parents journey into the U S and you know, what has stuck with him the most from that journey? Also what inspired them to kickstart his bodybuilding journey and much, much more.
[00:01:16] Again, thanks so much for joining and I hope you enjoyed the episode.
[00:01:24] Cesar: The first question Deb, is, so you've been working at the. Metro, right. Transportation.
[00:01:32] Dev: Yeah. I've been at, I've been at Metro for 10 years now. 10 years?
[00:01:35] A little over 10 years.
[00:01:36] Cesar: Yeah. What, that's unheard of these days. Right? Especially for our generation. So how did you get there, right? And what's kept you there for so long?
[00:01:46] Dev: Well, I mean, odd enough, I went to school to become an educator. I have a master's in teaching, which I'm not getting the good use.
[00:01:52] But I came, we, I think our age group, we all kind of came out of college right after that big housing collapse. Yeah, 2008, right. [00:02:00] Yeah, so, I got outta school, outta grad school 2011, and the market was still topsy-turvy, teaching in a weird spot because a lot of schools had to make budget cuts and they fired a lot of teachers.
[00:02:15] But they did tell the teachers that they fired that they would hire them back. When they do open hiring, Legally, they have to open hiring to everybody. So the issue was that they knew who they were gonna hire, but they had to go through the motion of the interview process in a way. And so I think a lot of interviews, full well knowing that someone else was gonna get the job, because they had someone that they let go, that they had to bring back.
[00:02:43] Yeah. And I kind of got tired of interviewing, for teaching and then I started to put feelers out to different careers. I think, I would come home every day from my grocery store job and apply to like, anywhere from like eight to 15 jobs a day, which is, as it's a lot.
[00:02:58] It's a lot. It's
[00:02:58] Cesar: amazing. And it's so [00:03:00] relevant to these days. Cause I feel like a lot of people are in those same
[00:03:02] Dev: shoes right now. Yeah. And I want to tell those folks that it's a hundred percent, upsetting nervewracking and stressful to interview and, fill out the. They're things that need to be done.
[00:03:15] And so if you take your time outta your day to apply to two, three jobs a day, eventually someone is gonna reach out to you. And that's where I was at. Two things kind of happened to me. One of my friends was leaving a job at Nabisco. He was doing sales. He went to, I believe he went to KRA Foods.
[00:03:35] And he more or less gave me, a job at Nabisco. Before that, I did apply to Metro North, but I didn't know how long that was gonna take, and I only applied because one of my friends told me to apply. I, I didn't know right, what the job had failed, what conducting would be. But you know, from my understanding, it was, a safe job.
[00:03:53] And sometimes I'm working at Nabisco. I get a call from Metro North. I show up, I interview well, I get a job. [00:04:00] I really didn't know, what the pay was like. I kind of walked into it kind of blind and, come to find out in class, we were making a good chunk of change. And so to your question of why I'm still there after 10 years, what's keeping me there is, There is a pension.
[00:04:19] It's very rare that jobs nowadays have pensions. And so all I have to do is commit 30 years of my life to this company. And I will be making 60% of my top wage, for the rest of my life until, until God wants to take me. But you know, that's a pretty good deal.
[00:04:35] Cesar: Yeah, it's a very good deal.
[00:04:35] And you know what's been. The most unexpected thing that you have learned, from working there for, for 10
[00:04:40] Dev: years? I think that people poo away, government jobs or jobs that are. Blue collar in nature. Cause, I'm, I went to college as well and then so do my colleagues.
[00:04:53] And, I think there's a great importance in going to school and becoming educated, but at the same time, there are a lot of careers out there that.[00:05:00] Some of them do require college degree, some of 'em don't, and I am at a place where, isn't necessary. It does help, but it's not necessary.
[00:05:09] And, it's surprising that for me being there, that like I could work at, a company or a workplace that, for the most part day to day is low stress. I'm having enough free time to myself. And pays quite well. I think that's the most surprising thing. And I think a lot more people, if they just kind of, I think people have a very, Blinders mindset.
[00:05:32] Like they come outta school and then they have a career to have their mindset on. Like, if you go to school, become a pharmacist, that's a whole different story. You're gonna become a pharmacist, right? Yeah. But if you're going to school and you have a, a very open-ended liberal arts degree or a business degree, you can really go anywhere.
[00:05:46] And I think sometimes it, it takes biting the bullet and just strengthening out for a little bit. And I'm not saying that people who come work in Metro Norfolk, like. Absolutely wanna stay. Some people end up leaving. I've had some colleagues leave. But, I think 90% of the people that [00:06:00] come decide that it's a well paying job.
[00:06:02] They can take care of their families and they'll have the free time to do what they wanna do.
[00:06:06] Cesar: I think what you said there is, the, I think that's the ultimate flex, low stress, decent pay, and you have time for yourself and. There's a lot of people I know that they're in high stress jobs.
[00:06:17] Sure. The pay is good, but men, they don't have time for themselves. They don't have time for their families. They're burned out. And if they're honest with themselves, they probably, if given the opportunity, they're, they will probably just quit that job. Right. Even though it's high pay, With that.
[00:06:32] So I think, yeah, that's a good deal, man. Sounds like a good deal to
[00:06:35] Dev: me. Yeah, I mean, a hundred percent. I mean, like, I'm not gonna lie there, there're a job like, so, I work, a very like relaxed conducted job. There are conducted jobs at work. I was just looking at the book, yesterday, there's a job that works 14 hours, four hours art.
[00:06:42] A break swing time in the city. But 14 hours away from home is 14 hours away from home. And I think that job, I don't wanna go in, in a high detail, but it's close to 200 K. But you know, I tell people all the time, I was like, there, there is, there're a cost benefit analysis to this, right?
[00:06:56] You can make a ton of money, but you're not gonna see your [00:07:00] wife. Yeah, and I work with a lot of guys who just, who've been cheated on and this and that and like, I'm not, listen, I'm not one to sit here and, make an argument that if you don't see someone that you should go stray. But I don't also, I also feel for those women, like I kind of get why they did what they did.
[00:07:16] They want their homes home. I'm not blind to that, so there has to be a balance. You have to balance your life out and there are consequences not balancing your life out.
[00:07:25] Cesar: Yeah. Right. At the end of the day, what does matter? What matters more to you? Right. I think that's an important question.
[00:07:30] Now I want to unpack, for those in the audience that, don't know you, you have a, Cambodian heritage, right? And your parents migrated right from Cambodia to the United States. What do you remember the most? Or, what's been the story that your parents have shared about their journey to the US that has, stuck with
[00:07:48] Dev: you the most?
[00:07:49] I think a lot of, Asian folks in this country is, second gen or even third gen, have a lot of, stories that have been passed on to them. I know [00:08:00] that the, Cambodians, the Vietnamese, the La Asian, There are, we consider ourselves, people who have survived a lot of conflict.
[00:08:09] And a lot of people, you look at other Asian groups that come to America, like the Chinese or Koreans or Japanese, they, for the most part, those folks came here under peaceful pro, pretext and they had some change, with them when they came. Yeah, for the Cambodians, the Vietnamese and the Laotians.
[00:08:27] We came here after a conflict, kind of stemming from the Vietnam War, the internal conflicts in Laos, internal conflicts in Cambodia. And, a lot of folks came here with really just the clothes on their backs. And, Pretty much painless. So, my, my parents, they came here in the early eighties.
[00:08:47] They, survived the communist regime of, the KH Rouge that, lasted from 75 to 78. 78 and the Vietnamese invaded, which sounds like a bad thing, but it was actually a good thing that Vietnamese [00:09:00] invaded. They, they freed, the Cambodians from the communist rule. But that was just part of it.
[00:09:04] A lot of people had to, in order to flee, they had to go into Thailand to find, refuge. And the journey there was, was kind of crazy. My dad told me, there was a very small path that you had to take from Cambodia to Thailand, maybe three feet wide. And wow, you had a time to run because there would be communists patrolling the area.
[00:09:25] It'd be landmines. And so you had a kind of like time when the communist troops would not be watching. And then you, when you ran, you had to watch each other's footsteps because you kind of had to put your feet where the other person put their feet and it, and like, it's not like you just ran, it was a clear feel and you could just kind of see where their landmines are.
[00:09:44] There are dead people laying around too, that kind of, that stepped on the wrong spot. So, you're trying to jump over bodies and touch and go and watch everyone else's feet. My, my mom, she made the journey with my grandfather. I. Cuz when the Communist took over, it kind of spread.[00:10:00]
[00:10:00] They didn't allow the families to stay together. So families were broken up into different camps. My grandfather found my mother first, and made the journey with her to Thailand. And, one of the stories that sticks with me is that, She was walking with my grandfather, and they only had one pair of sandals.
[00:10:17] And the sandals were, made from, old tires. Kinda like, like in old country, like I, I know a lot of folks South America do the same thing. They'll take old tires and cut sandals out of them. Yeah. And they were, they would split the shoes. Like they would like, have, like, she would wear 'em, then he would wear 'em.
[00:10:30] She would wear 'em and he would wear 'em. But on that journey, She saw a puny pit, and I don't know if everyone knows what a puny pit is. It's a trap. And so what you do, you dig a big hole, you put bamboo down, you turn 'em to spikes and if you really wanna get gnarly, you'll throw like feces on them.
[00:10:46] So if you fall in, you might not die initially, but you'll get infection and die. Wow. Yeah. Yeah. So my grandfather was walking in front of my mom and I think she spotted it before him, and she grabbed his shirt and [00:11:00] pulled him back. And had she not done that, he would've fell into the pit. Wow. Yeah. So these are the journeys, that my, my parents went through.
[00:11:09] And so, I know that it took a little bit of paperwork and time to, to leave from Thailand, to the states. But you know, they settled. It's funny, when you settle in America and you're a refugee, they don't put you in a nice spot, so, my dad was settled in, somewhere in, Rhode Island, I believe, like around Providence.
[00:11:25] It was a hood. And then, a lot of refugees, My mom's family ended up in, Revere, Massachusetts. And it's funny too, cause growing up I used to play with my cousins in Revere and you would see immigrants show up, right? So I saw Did you shop one day? Yeah, I saw the Albanians come through.
[00:11:38] And then, as we got older, we saw like, Pakistanis and Afghanis come through. But it's it's a, almost like a refugee dumping ground, right? It's like, if you can make it here, you'll figure it out, yeah. But it is, it's weird to see like, cuz the community started to move away from there when you see new C communities spr up.
[00:11:55] So that, that's, that, that's, that was kind of crazy to see. That's amazing.
[00:11:55] Cesar: And it's wild to think that, because of. How things [00:12:00] played out and the courage that your parents had. You are able to have the opportunities that, that you have now, right? It just puts everything into perspective.
[00:12:09] And, so your parents came here separately. How do they meet?
[00:12:12] Dev: So it's a funny story. So, the one thing is that my dad wasn't, Single technically. So the communist regime, when you were, when they were running in a country, they had a few, they had, they wanted young people to either enter the military or get married and have a family.
[00:12:32] I, I guess just to, to increase the population size. And so my dad was forced to marry a lady. I believe in his hometown. And, they did it because they had to do it. He had a few kids, But I think when he was escaping, he tried to get her to come to the US with him. But she didn't want to go.
[00:12:49] And he, I guess he came, he went back and forth for her a couple times and she didn't wanna leave. And he was like, listen, I'm, my, my life is not very safe in his country. Right. And so, he had to leave [00:13:00] and, I believe he did the right thing and try to get her to leave with him.
[00:13:02] But she wouldn't go. So when he came to, to America. He wanted to, to get married. And so he asked a few friends if he knew any good families and, ask around. Right. That's the, yeah. And then so one of his buddies, like, we actually know a family how at Massachusetts, they're a nice family.
[00:13:16] If you want, we can set up a meeting. And so here's a funnier story is that my dad wasn't supposed to marry my mom. My, My grandparents had, 1, 2, 3, 4 daughters and two sons. And so they were gonna pair my dad up with the oldest one, with my aunt. And my aunt would not leave her room.
[00:13:35] She's like, no, this is absolutely crazy. I'm not doing this. I'm not doing this. And so my grandparents were like, Hey, all right, you. Mallory, the next one, go out there. And so, my, my dad describes her, as this little dark girl that came out of the room, because my mom used to go, cuz Rivera is like pretty close to the beach.
[00:13:57] It is the ocean. So she used to go out to the [00:14:00] beach and. Like pick up clams and crabs and just like, bring them home to harvest and then everything else. And so she got really dark. And so he would call this little dark girl. And so she made lunch that day and he was like, that's the one.
[00:14:15] Yeah, that, that's it. And so if you see my parents, Wedding video is just this very disgruntled little lady and this very happy man. And, it was an arranged marriage through and they're, 38 years, like I think June of July. But yeah, so I guess it worked out,
[00:14:33] Cesar: I would say worked out.
[00:14:33] And one last thing here, and then I wanna switch into one of your passions and hobbies. And I know recently your dad went through, health experience, and from what I understand, he's in a better place now. He's recovering.
[00:14:47] And I wanted to ask you right, if that, shifted your perspective or any insights that you got, from helping your dad, through that experience right. Of,[00:15:00] of going through that health experience?
[00:15:02] Dev: Yeah, so, my dad just came out of a double bypass. I think it's one of those things where like, Your parents get older?
[00:15:10] I think it's been ingrained in me that it's your duty to, to help your parents. So, like it or not, or begrudge it or what have you. Some people might, for me it's just duty, right? I don't know. It's, I don't know any better. Like even if I was like a more horrible person or even a better person, it wouldn't matter.
[00:15:23] It's just duty. I have to do it. Right. It's like part of being an immigrant. Yeah. I mean, I think that's part of immigrant experience, right? Is that we're taught certain cultural values. For better or for worse, and, we kind of have to ad a adhere to them. Yeah. Know, and my, the one thing, my dad, me and my dad got into a fight maybe a couple years ago, and he looked at me and without, like, without raising his voice, he was like, I used to change your diapers.
[00:15:45] And I was like, fuck, that's true. Right, right. So I was like, like, whatcha are gonna say to that? That's a pretty good comeback. I got nothing. I got nothing. I got nothing. And so, it's, my dad's pretty independent. It's weird to see him in such a vulnerable state. Yeah.
[00:15:57] But, I don't mind taking care of [00:16:00] him. And I know that he appreciates it. And, I think that people should do the right thing and take care of their parents. Yeah. I think for me, the biggest thing that, that I got out of it is just, that.
[00:16:11] We, we should do our best to take care of the people that, that we care about, right?
[00:16:16] Cesar: Yeah. Which is nuts cuz in the states, the culture is, you send them to a, what do you call those, retirement? Yeah.
[00:16:24] Dev: A home, a a nursing home. Yeah. Right. And
[00:16:26] Cesar: I don't know, that never sat well with me.
[00:16:29] Dev: No. And I mean, like, I've seen it, I've seen it done in a positive fashion and I've seen it done in a negative fashion. Right. So my mom, I used to work in nursing home, and when I was a kid, because it was close to like where we lived, I would always just be there at my mom because like, I would get off the bus and, she would come to school real quick. And then I spent a few hours there while her shift ended. And when I was in high school, I worked in a nursing home for a year or two as well. Doing dietary, making sure the folks got into food. And so I've spent a lot of time in nursing homes with people that weren't my kin.
[00:16:59] Right? Yeah. [00:17:00] And my mom, when she worked in nursing homes, she took really good care of people. And when I was there, I tried to do my best at the cheer, those folks up. And, there was one woman, and this is the only person that I saw that was, cared for in, in the right way. Excuse me, older Asian lady.
[00:17:14] I, she might have been Korean or Chinese, but her family used to pick her up every weekend, so she would never be there Sunday. But she would be there Monday through Friday and only because they had to go to work so they couldn't take care of her while they were at work. And so, for me it was like, oh sure, it's still five days in a nursing home.
[00:17:33] But she had someone to, something to look forward to. Right? She always went home on the weekend with her family and, I think that was, if you're gonna do something in, in that way, I think that's the most positive way you could do it, because at least she's home with her family, and at least every week she has something to look forward to.
[00:17:49] Yeah. She's not stuck there like, like a prisoner. Yeah. I, you see people rotting there and like, I don't want to be in a nursing home. God forbid,
[00:17:57] Cesar: no, it, I've heard stories of. People [00:18:00] die more of loneliness than anything else,
[00:18:02] Dev: Yeah, no, a hundred percent.
[00:18:02] And I, I've watched people just in there, just older woman I used, she used to be one of my, my patients that I used to like, when I was dietary, she was at one of my tables. So I, you'd have, I would have to, bring food to her. And. She would just cry and she just wouldn't eat.
[00:18:15] And I would sit down with her and try to get her to eat. And sometimes it works. And a lot of times it didn't. But she just, she missed her husband and she had no one else. And, it's sad. The reason why I sat with her too was because of like, this is, I felt bad for this woman.
[00:18:29] I didn't want this woman to sit there at a table by yourself. Yeah. A lot
[00:18:33] Cesar: of people. Talk about how, working at nursing homes, is gives you a lot of perspective into, things that, to look ahead, but also things that you wanna avoid. Right? In terms of regret, in terms of, this is not how I wanna spend the last few years of my life, right?
[00:18:51] So, did you find that, to be the case for you?
[00:18:54] Dev: Yeah, a hundred percent. I, I think, part of my, planning financially and part of [00:19:00] my, fitness journey is to make sure that I'm capable and wealthy enough to take care of myself and my family. When I'm at that age, right?
[00:19:10] And I think that like it. It's twofold that one, you should be able to take care of yourself, and take care of your body so that nothing like that can happen. And I think that takes a little bit of, foresight and planning. And then I think two people around you should care about you enough to never wanna see you like that, so.
[00:19:32] Right. Right. I'm always gonna put onus on an individual. I think always people should do better and take care of their bodies and drink less, and exercise more. And, all the good things. I've been drinking a lot lately, so I gotta stop.
[00:19:40] Cesar: So that's, this is a good segue.
[00:19:40] So, at what point in your journey, you realize, hey, working out, lifting weight, body building, this could be a thing. And the second part of that question is, similar to when we started this interview about the longevity, right? What's kept you so disciplined, with working out?
[00:19:59] Dev: [00:20:00] It's funny cause I think a lot of people have very, Positive, feelings on why they're doing what they're doing. And I'm not gonna like sugarcoat and lie of people about why I do what I do. Right. I grew up, pretty obese as a kid. Yeah. And I was picked on and everything else.
[00:20:12] And I think I, I had a conversation with myself and, and I was quite upset. And how it looked and how people treated me. And I decided at an early age to. To start losing weight, and it wasn't like the best way of losing weight. I had an eating disorder for about a year.
[00:20:29] Yeah. I wasn't eating well. You know what kicked it too was I was too skinny and then I started losing hair and I was like, all right, I gotta figure out how to actually like do this, right? And then, so, my mom bought me a bench and everything else, and that's what kind of like, made me, Hey, how do, how
[00:20:43] Cesar: do you convince your mom to buy you a bench?
[00:20:45] I think,
[00:20:45] Dev: well, I think my mom also, I think it was during the same time I was trying to lose weight. Right? Yeah. Yeah. So my mom knew I needed to lose weight. Uhhuh, she was also worried about my health. Yeah. And so, she didn't know what to do. So she was like, Hey, listen, I'm gonna, I'm gonna buy you a bench.
[00:20:56] And then maybe you can work out, maybe you lose weight. She didn't know what she was doing [00:21:00] either. Right. That's amazing though. Her, yeah. Her fix is, Hey, here's a bitch and here's a weight, here's a bitch. And, I think I fell in love with it because It was like, I did overeat, but as I started to figure out my diet, I started to eat, more, more normal.
[00:21:13] Yeah. More of a normal diet. And when I started to lift weights, I was like, okay, I'm getting stronger and I'm. Actually putting on muscle. Maybe I, I can keep doing this and it just kind of stuck, right? Like, I'm not gonna say that body dysmorphia doesn't play into it and that I don't have it, cuz I still do.
[00:21:29] But not to the extent where like, I never like move towards steroids, right? It's, and it's not a thought that I didn't have, it's not that I didn't weigh out the option and. I think there were at times where I was like, something that I really considered.
[00:21:42] But, I am, as someone who's kind of educated, I looked at all the, the pros and cons and there's a lot more con than pros. So I never went there, but, I, I kind of stick to it just because I really do value, Aesthetically how I look and, how I feel, yeah.
[00:21:56] Cesar: So, you use a negative [00:22:00] emotion as a driver to spark that change, right? Pe people were calling you names were bullying you, and you had a conversation with yourself where you were like, you know what? I don't want people to be mean to me. Right? So you be, you used that as your driver. And, do you still have the bench?
[00:22:17] I,
[00:22:17] Dev: I, I'll be honest, I think we threw it out a while ago. It was kinda rusty. I would've kept it, yeah. I think I still have weights from that bench somewhere. Yeah. But I don't have that bench, that exact bench actually. And,
[00:22:27] Cesar: and for those in the audience, I guess, just to them to have a picture.
[00:22:32] How would you describe yourself physically? Like, so they can picture how jacked you are and,
[00:22:37] Dev: I don't, I don't how much your badge, it's so fu I'll throw numbers out there, but, it's so funny because like, For me, when I see other people in the gym who were quite strong or like, I, you go on Instagram, you see these pros lifting crazy weight and how big they are, right?
[00:22:52] Yeah. I'm nowhere near that, right? But I think I'm muscular for an average person, right? Yeah, I, yeah. But like, I'm [00:23:00] only like five six, in height. Right now, this morning I weigh myself. I'm only 180 3, but, my max bench is 3 35.
[00:23:08] My max deadlift with straps is five 50 and I just pulled that a couple weeks ago. My squat, squatting freaks me out. I don't think I've ever gone past a 3 85 range. Yeah. I'm pretty sure I could do 4 0 5, but it just really freaks me out. I'm gonna work my way up to it, probably next year or the year after, I'll probably hit 4 0 5 easy.
[00:23:27] But I don't, I, it's, it's weird because like, when you lift weights, you. All at the same time, think you're a Greek God and think you're a piece of shit at the same time. So it's, it's always, it's always a balance, right. I love it. You,
[00:23:38] Cesar: you keep yourself in check.
[00:23:40] Dev: Right. It's kinda like, like David Goggins to me is like this crazy wild st hard, yeah. St. Hards this crazy wild, like running God, but at the same time, David Goggins had the real problem with himself the entire time. Right. And that's just, I feel like I wouldn't compare myself, David Goggins, I know David Goggins, but I feel like I have a little bit of a same mentality where, it's never enough.
[00:23:58] Right. I always want more. [00:24:00] Yeah. But. As I age, I like, and I'm not saying like 37 is super old, cuz it's not. But there are things that I won't be able to do in a couple years. Like, I shouldn't be lifting heavy, I'm gonna hurt myself. I should be like doing more calisthenics and as I get older, the journey will change and I will do different things.
[00:24:16] And that's just part of
[00:24:17] Cesar: it. And that's important, right? As you a, as you get older, your fitness journey. Evolves and changes, right? It's not the same. And I think that's important for people, right? It's not to understand that your body is gonna have a peak and then you know, it's gonna change as you get older.
[00:24:32] So at adapting your fitness routine, I think it's important. So for, for someone that, that wants to, let's say, Get started with, their 15th journey, either loose weight or gain some muscle. Right. What will be your recommendations in terms of core principles?
[00:24:49] Dev: I think that the thing is really just if you have a plan, you just kind of have to stick to it.
[00:24:53] And so I would say if someone's trying to lose weight, well, kind of figure out what you're weighing right now. And then try to figure out what you [00:25:00] wanna. Way at the end of your journey. Right. And I think, you have to set a goal and if you don't set a goal, then you'll never reach it.
[00:25:07] If you say, I just wanna lose weight, but then you don't really know what weight you want to wanna reach, then you're gonna flounder. So I would tell someone who wants to, Lose weight, just really think about the weight that they want to be and then, figure out how they're gonna approach that weight loss.
[00:25:22] Because, there's, the only way to lose weight is to be in a caloric deficit and you can, meet those two different ways. You can, clean up your diet, which a hundred percent works, but you know, if you do it too hard, you'll get really grumpy and it might not be the best. Yeah. And skinny, which is fine.
[00:25:40] I don't think that's a bad thing. Or you could do cardio and that will also help you lose weight. But then, you can also do too much of that too and then get too skinny. Yeah. So it's kinda like, find your weight and then, try to match the. The calorie cutting with the cardio and slowly bring your [00:26:00] weight down.
[00:26:00] Now I say, if someone who's trying to lose weight, they really shouldn't push more than two pounds a week. Anything over two pounds is kind of an excess unless you're like very big, right? But a pound to do two pounds a week is a very like, normal, easy thing to do. And I think, weightlifting Isn't like it used to be.
[00:26:15] I think it's a lot more mainstream. There's a lot of resources, with YouTube and Instagram and everything else. And I think, I would say if you find a. Fitness person that you, admire or aspire to be? I would just look at their page and see what they're doing and then, if it helps you out or to look at their programs and maybe purchase a program and stick to it.
[00:26:39] Because I think it's kind of hard for me to play coach as somebody who I've never met. And they ask me questions. I'm like, it's kind of hard, I can give 'em a few tips, but I'm not there with them in the gym, so it's kind of hard for me to help them out. Yeah. But I think if you know someone like, Jeff Nipper, I watch him on YouTube.
[00:26:55] He seems to really know what he is doing. He's got pretty good programs. Someone like, Dr. Mike [00:27:00] Tel has a lot of good programs. And he's hilarious to watch too. So if you're bored, he's just, he's a fun guy to watch and laugh. But very serious, very science-based. And I think guys like that will kind of put you on, on, on a good path of, Being real with you, but also teaching you how to gain muscle,
[00:27:15] Cesar: yeah. No, that's, it's so important, and I know what you said right. About, Hey, I don't, I don't have the question in front of me so I can give advice, but, in terms of content and programs, there's a ton out there and I think right, the, at the end of the day, the hardest part is gonna be the consistency.
[00:27:31] Of sticking with a program, which, let's be honest. Yeah. That's where people
[00:27:35] Dev: failed. Hundred percent. And that's the thing. It's I know we all have, busy lives and, children take care of and, jobs. Jobs and wives and hobbies and everything else.
[00:27:45] And I think it's just like, I, for me to compare myself to, to like you, you're a dad, it's a lot, it's a lot more different, right. I don't have children yet. So my time is a lot more, more open. Yeah, exactly. Our own schedules. Yeah, a [00:28:00] hundred percent. But I think that, squeezing in an hour and a half a day, Maybe in the beginning or the tail end of your day?
[00:28:06] I don't think it is impossible for most people to do. I think if you wake up and everyone's still asleep and you can go squeeze in a half mile, like a half hour of running, you should squeeze in a half hour of running. And then, maybe when everyone's wh winding down at night and your kids off to bed.
[00:28:23] Your wife is ready to go to sleep. You sneak out and hit the gym for an hour and come back home. I don't think anybody's gonna miss you during that time too. So, I know the energy level is not always there, but, and an hour of lifting is better than an hour of not lifting. And so, I'm a crazy person and I spend like two hours a day in a gym.
[00:28:41] But not everyone has to do that, yeah, no, exactly. Now
[00:28:43] Cesar: you, basically you adapt your, consistency and routine know based on your schedule, based on your priorities, right? Based on the time that you have. I think that's important. And what kills a other people is that they compare themselves right to TikTok or Instagram.
[00:28:59] [00:29:00] And that's, yeah, that's that good,
[00:29:01] Dev: right? Because yeah. No, it's super not good. So like one of the guys that I go to the gym, with, well, I don't work out with him, but he's there. We're friends. Yeah, this guy, Kyle, he has a pretty big TikTok following. I think he has like half a million followers on TikTok.
[00:29:16] Maybe more to be quite honest. And, I see him at the gym and it's crazy. People are like, oh, these guys are just like built like that and whatever else. I see Kyle, he comes in the morning at eight o'clock, he'll lift till like 9, 10, 11. He'll lift till like 11 and he'll do cardio from like 11 to like 1230.
[00:29:34] Like that's, what is that? Four hours? Four and a half hours of just work like, Yeah. That's not a normal thing, but like if he's a TikTok influencer Yeah. That's not his job. He has to do it. Right. Yeah, exactly.
[00:29:44] Cesar: Oh, man. Awesome, Deb. Well, so I know we're coming towards the end and I would love to do a, what I call rapid fly.
[00:29:50] Rapid fire closing, for the episode. Okay. I basically ask you a question and just gimme the, top of my answer that I come up with. Okay. Ready? Yeah. All right. Let's do it. So, [00:30:00] one book that has greatly influenced your life, and I know this might be a tough one, cuz you're a big reader.
[00:30:06] Yeah,
[00:30:06] Dev: I'm looking right at this right now. One book. One book. Ooh, that's actually gonna be really hard,
[00:30:06] Cesar: oh, one of the books that, that stands out to you the most.
[00:30:06] Dev: One of the books that stands out to me the most? You know what I'm gonna say? Probably in my recent time right now of reading.
[00:30:06] Let me, let me go find that book. Yes. So, I'm also one who thinks about my finances a lot, thinks about how money works. So the Ascent of Money is a, his history book about money. Oh, sweet. Yeah. And the, a advent of money and it's crazy too because it is a history book, but it also like, Talks about how money has changed over time and how it's influenced so many different cultures, and why we have fiat money and everything else. And it is a very good book.
[00:30:35] Cesar: Sweet. I'll make sure to link it up. And, since your, history b what is the one history book or one of the history books that, that you've read that you would recommend to anybody as a, Hey, you have to read this book.
[00:30:46] Dev: I think, the one history book that I really do like is there's a three part series, by, I believe Edmond Morris on Theodore Roosevelt. The last book is kind of, Too much. But you know, if you're gonna read his full life, I would [00:31:00] say it'd be all three books. But the first book, especially about Teddy Roosevelt, I, we're never gonna have a present like that ever again.
[00:31:07] What a monument of a man. Very quirky, but, it, it's just, it's such a weird human being to have done so much in, in one lifetime. I'm gonna check it out. So
[00:31:17] Cesar: Teddy Russell was bios.
[00:31:17] Dev: Yeah, it's a three part series by Emma Morris. I forget the title of all three books, but if you look it up, you'll see it.
[00:31:22] There are about 700, 800 pages a clip, each book. So it's, I would say it's read a book. Yeah, I would say read it towards winter when it's cold, it's nothing better to do. So I would break it up. I wouldn't read all three series together, but I would say in the winter. Start that book.
[00:31:38] Sweet
[00:31:39] Cesar: man. Alright, next question. One of the most worthwhile investments that you've made recently? And this could be a relationship, could be financially, it could be something
[00:31:50] Dev: physical. To be honest, I think the biggest windfall financially, Investment-wise I've made was when I purchased my condo right before the [00:32:00] pandemic and then sold it and cashed out.
[00:32:02] I got lucky that was something that like, I couldn't have planned. It just kind of happened. And, I would say for anybody, just, think about your options, financially and just kinda if it's there, you just gotta take it. You just can't, you can't leave money sitting on a table.
[00:32:17] Yeah. No,
[00:32:18] Cesar: that's, that won a great timing too,
[00:32:20] Dev: Yeah. Yeah.
[00:32:20] Cesar: Alright. Next question. A quote that you think of often or a model that you live your life by.
[00:32:27] Dev: There are, there are two quotes. Stand out to me. Always. And one quote is, by the King of Cambodia. And his quote, goes, time will inevitably uncover dishonesty and lies. History has no place for them. There, there's no hiding what we have done in the shadows, it will always come to light.
[00:32:50] But I think about that from a historical perspective too. How countries have, Kind of acted towards one another, and, people say it's revisionist history, but it's not. I think some [00:33:00] people, when it all. When all the cards on the table, you kind of see how countries have acted and reacted to each other in a mostly negative fashion, right?
[00:33:09] And so there, there is no, there's no hiding that. And then there is, I always misquote this quote, but it is a Latin quote, and it's, homo lupus. And I believe homo lupus means, and I could be. Misspeaking here, man is a wolf that eats man. That, in, I think men humanity in its most, Brutish form, without governance or without any, anybody to, monitor us will always, fall back to, being unkind to one another and taking advantage of one another.
[00:33:45] And it's something that I remind people that, you know, at base level, hu humans tend to take advantage of one another.
[00:33:53] Cesar: I believe that, right? Yeah. Like we're just humans. It's part of our dna. A and the only reason Yeah, [00:34:00] we're not in chaos, right, is because there are rules, policies, governments, to keep us in check, despite how much hate the government and the regulations get.
[00:34:08] Right. Well, and
[00:34:08] Dev: that, that's thing you can also hate the Levi, but the Levi exists for a reason. Right,
[00:34:13] Cesar: exactly. Awesome. In the last year, right? One belief, mindset or habits outside of working out, that has improved your
[00:34:24] Dev: life. One habit. I've always been a good saver. But I think I am, not just passively saving.
[00:34:32] I'm putting my money into investments and CDs and high yield savings, that will take my money that I'm already saving and, have it bear more fruit. So I think that's one thing that I've gotten better at doing. Well, that's a great thing to get better at.
[00:34:48] Cesar: And last question for you, Deb. If you had in front of you, the 18 year old Deb, what advice would you give him?
[00:34:59] Dev: [00:35:00] It's, I often, Think about that, and it's, it's almost hard too because you might change the trajectory of a human being by giving them too much advice, right? Yeah. But I think without, shifting 18 year old me too much into, A direction that would change his whole personality or persona?
[00:35:18] I think I would clean up his workout routine to be quite honest. I think I would, I would spend a good solid maybe year teaching that, that, that person how to lift and, he would be a more jack less hurt human being.
[00:35:31] Cesar: Yeah. I love that. And or what if it wasn't the devil? What if it was just a kid, 18 year old kid, that comes to you?
[00:35:38] Hey, what advice would you have for me? In terms of the future career or life in general, what advice would you give to this kid?
[00:35:44] Probably still lift weights,
[00:35:46] Dev: Still lift weights. I think a lot of the good habits I have now, I've always had. So it's kind of hard for me to think about that in that aspect.
[00:35:56] I think I was, at 18. Very cocky [00:36:00] and I think. I think I would tell myself to be less cocky, but you know, the world has a good way of, of putting you back in your place. And I think it does. It does. Yeah. And I think when I came outta school, and couldn't find a job, it put me right on my ass and, and showed me that, I had to be a lot less cocky.
[00:36:13] So maybe. I would tell him to be a lot less cocky, a lot less earlier. So
[00:36:18] Cesar: stay, humble and hungry, right?
[00:36:21] Dev: Yes.
[00:36:22] Cesar: Well, Deb, so, thanks so much Vance for coming on the show. Share a little bit more about, your journey, in life and work. And yeah, I know it's great catching up and yeah, man, I'm looking forward to maybe we'll do another episode, where we dive deeper into, One specific aspect, of your life.
[00:36:38] But yeah, for now, thanks so much, man. I appreciate you.
[00:36:42] Dev: Well, thank you for having me. I appreciate it.
[00:36:43] All right. I hope you enjoy this episode and thank you so much for listening all the way through. I appreciate you so much. And I hope that you got [00:37:00] some valuable information. That you can apply to your personal and professional life. If this story resonated with you, please make sure to subscribe. So you don't miss out on any future episodes.
[00:37:13] Thank you so much for the opportunity. I appreciate you. And I look forward to serving you in the next episode.