Breaking the Mold From the Military to Business Owner with AF Veteran Joelle Choe

KP: 0:29

This episode is powered by act now education, go to www dot ATT now education.com For free comprehensive educational resources and opportunities for active duty veterans, military spouses, and children.

Joelle Choe: 0:46

Because I wish I had this connection or actually reached out to somebody without feeling the fear of being vulnerable. Because the veteran community is so great, but we just have a difficulty of reaching out to one another until time permits later on in our journey.

KP: 1:08

Warriors fall in it's time for formation. So today I'm joined with the United States Air Force veteran who has turned into a business consultant and has multiple businesses. Today's guest I'm very fortunate to have her on the show because at the end of the day, she is the perfect fit for the morning formation since since we focus on career transition. And also we tend to dabble into the mental health aspect of transition as well. So today, I'm joined with Joelle Cho, who is the United States Air Force veteran. Joelle, just want to say thank you for giving me the time the opportunity today.

Joelle Choe: 1:40

Oh, thank you so much for having me. I sincerely appreciate you and your podcast.

KP: 1:45

Now the honor is all ours, as I always say and Joelle. Can you take us back to where it all started for you? Where are you originally from?

Joelle Choe: 1:55

So I was born in South Korea, and I came to the United States when I was three months old. So I was raised in North Jersey. And I was living there all my life until I made the big move to the Big Apple, New York City. After going through a lot of different career changes, I was so determined to make another change. And that was going to the Air Force back at 2070 when I was 22 years old. Now fast forward is 2022. I'm 27 years old, and I'm here on this podcast with you and the guests are listening. And and I have a lot to share based on my experiences ever since I was out since last June.

KP: 2:44

Well, that's awesome. Joelle and so can you tell me why you decided to go into the Air Force? Did you have family members that helped guide you that in that direction? Or was it something that you just decided to go on your own?

Joelle Choe: 2:57

Oh, my goodness. So I grew up with a tiger mom, I'm not sure if you know that reference?

KP: 3:02

No, not really. I've heard it before, though.

Joelle Choe: 3:06

So Tiger Mom is basically an Asian mother that wants the child to do everything that she or he is told. So I'm a daughter and I was the only child between two parents. And she wanted me to go to the good school and marry and be as elegant and feminine as much as possible. But in South Korean culture, all the men that are citizens of South Korea has to be enlisted or drafted to the military for 18 months. But for me, nobody guided me, because they didn't expect a female to be in the military. But for me ever since 911 happen in front of my eyes and the TV screen, I was like, wow, that is something that changed my life completely as a seven year old. And that really impacted me and the back of my mind saying I need to do something to my country. And I wanted to change. Like I wanted to become fearless because I always live in that dwell of fear from my mother saying you need to be scared of this, this this. And I didn't want to feel bad anymore.

KP: 4:26

Yeah, it's amazing that, you know, we're 20 years beyond September 11. Now, it's to me like I was in college when that happened. And you were seven years old. And for me, it impacted me as well, because at the time I was in the Army National Guard enlisted. And I can't imagine for you, it probably felt like sort of a movie, but at the same time you North Jersey, you were right there. So you could definitely feel the impact of that much, much greater than folks living, you know, on the west coast or anywhere else and at your age. That's a very formidable age to experience something like that as well. And when you joined the Air Force, you went in active duty Correct?

Joelle Choe: 5:09

Yes, I went to active duty as enlisted as security forces actually.

KP: 5:14

Oh, right on that's that's hardcore. So what was your time like while you were in the Air Force?

Joelle Choe: 5:21

Wow. There's a lot to be honest. When I was in BMT, I cried almost every single day and for the In, like three weeks I was in, I was wondering to myself, Why did I put myself in this situation? I

KP: 5:38

gave you the warning.

Joelle Choe: 5:40

Nobody did. And I didn't do the due diligence of doing the research beforehand on Reddit, you know, or on YouTube. So folks, if you have your children out there wanting to list, please look at Reddit. But during my time, it was very difficult on my end, personally, because it was a big change, a girl that was dressed head to toe and like designers and wearing blue baton, she changed drastically wearing the same kind of clothing every single day and booth and marching around for eight hours under the sun in San Antonio. So it was a big change for me, and it was a hardship for me. But many of people that were accustomed to that kind of scenery or to those customs, they were fine with it. Right. So for me, I believe that it was a very delicate and very big transition for me. And it was very hard for me initially. But once I graduated, BMT I heard it from my MTI shows I, you made so much progress during this time, and I didn't want to say anything, but I know that you are capable of being more connecting with other people on your team, because you're such a good communicator and a good connector. And that was I thought, I didn't understand what that meant. Right. But then as years went on, I was like, wow, I truly understand where she was coming from. And I really think her till this day.

KP: 7:17

Yeah, it's, it's, I actually have had the same thing happen to me before where folks have given me feedback about my character, my personality, my workmanship. And I don't quite understand what they're talking about until much later, when I hear a second and third person say the same thing. And I can identify with what you're saying with that specifically, and don't feel too bad about not knowing what you were getting into when you joined the Air Force. And you went to basic training, because same thing happened to me. But the difference is, is my old man was a he was a 20 year veteran Army veteran. Matter of fact, he spent five years as a drill sergeant. So you think that I would know better? And I didn't, I went to Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri for my basic training. And I don't know what I was thinking like three days after high school. All of a sudden, I'm getting yelled at by these drill sergeants, which my dad was one and I had, I wasn't expecting it. I don't know why. But I'm glad that I didn't, because I probably would have psyched myself out prior to going versus just going into the deep end and experiencing it for the first time. So, Joelle, you just recently transitioned. It sounds like within the last year or so correct?

Joelle Choe: 8:28

Yes, that's correct. Yeah. So

KP: 8:30

when you transitioned out of the military, I understand now that you work as a business consultant, can you talk to us about your your transition and how that how that happened? And what was your experiences like?

Joelle Choe: 8:43

Oh, my goodness, I just got the goosebumps when you're just mentioning that to me, because I'm coming up to a year. So last June was the last month I was in the Air Force. And I transitioned out. And for most people that I know and that I worked with, once they got out, they went back home. For me. I wanted something different. So I put seven cities in a hat. And the first one that I picked was Houston, Texas, believe it or not. So I ended up coming to Houston, Texas, not knowing what I was going to do. And the reason being that I was so unprepared for this was the most unfortunate thing happened, which was COVID. And during the time of transition, there were so many opportunities when you're transitioning like skill bridge and all of these on the job training programs. And since I was part of the Wounded Warrior program at Walter Reed, I had much more opportunities. However, a lot of these opportunities were closed due to COVID 19 restrictions. So I needed a backup plan. And for me, I didn't have a college degree. And I was like, What am I going to do next? For a month I struggled. I didn't know what I was going to do. But the one thing that I knew I did in the past before joining was having my own social media agency which I did social media management and content creation. So I ended up doing that all over again making some phone calls emailing non stop and putting myself out there On Freelancer platforms, and getting these freelance and contract opportunities, and after I was picking up a gig or two in these areas, I was able to incorporate it into a company last year. And for me, I just didn't really expect myself to become a business consultant. But once I saw a need, based on how I developed my systems, and how I incorporated different kinds of digital methods and tools in today's society, a lot of people were like, Hey, do you do mentorships? Can I get a one on one consultation for you? And for me, I started from the bottom, I did free labor at first. And then it gradually progressed into more private and should group and I just said, Hey, I'm not doing these anymore. And there were times and there are periods where I just put a pause on those consultation periods as well.

KP: 11:31

Wow, that's a that's quite the experience. I mean, it sounded like your parents wanted you to have a very calculated, calculated life. And here you are putting seven cities into a hat and pulling whichever one first and then figure it out as I go. It sounds like you came from a very cookie cutter situation growing up and you decided to kind of break the mold with that. Would you mind talking about what that's like being part of Gen Z? And then just overall being a Korean, a Korean American female in the military?

Joelle Choe: 12:06

Yes, so I'm a millennial, but I really advocate for millennial and Gen Z. And my parents were an arranged marriage in South Korea. And they didn't marry of love. So it's very atypical. So I didn't see that image of what a loving family is. Growing up, I always have nannies or housekeepers around and I would never see my parents around. Once a week, my dad would do the due diligence after he's running his businesses or coming back home, he would just take me to a soup kitchen. And that's a reminder for me to always be humble and give back no matter what my status is. And that kind of grew up on me till this day. But my mom, she wanted me to become that perfect female, that stereotypical woman of taking the things taking care of the home, taking care of the kids getting buried well, and all of these housewife traditional things. But I was so against that, once I was younger. And growing up, it was very difficult. Once we went through a lot of difficult financial transitions. I'm not sure if you know, when the financial crash happened at 2008. A lot of families suffered. And we were one of them. So we were doing really well in the suburbs of New Jersey. And then all of a sudden, I had to move into an apartment, like with rats crawling around. So it was scary for me as a 13 year old. I was like, Oh, my God, what happened to my two bedrooms? Like one is my bedroom. And another one is like gamer like, where is it? I don't have a bedroom anymore. So then I started to work at 13 years old, and I had to start from somewhere around and at 13, I would just make money. So I could buy the school supplies and school supplies isn't cheap, right. And that's the least I could do to help wipe out my mom because my dad wasn't around anymore. And then my mom, she wanted the best for me. She didn't want me to go to the military. She just wanted me to be this cookie cutter image this female to be a housewife to marry well. So she doesn't want this same thing to happen to me like what happened to her. But I understood that but I felt like it wasn't right for me. So luckily, when I was working, I was able to get a lot of opportunities in the hospitality, it made my way up. And then I was really well connected in the New Jersey and New York hospitality where I was able to get a lot of opportunities for myself. And one of the opportunities that I made for myself when I was 20 is having a small team of amazing people in a social media agency that I've created right before joining the Air Force.

KP: 15:13

Wow, that's absolutely amazing. And when you're speaking about your Asian culture, I grew up in Hawaii myself and I'm part Asian as well and Filipino and Chinese and a bunch of other things mix plate as we call it in Hawaii. But you know and then you talked about your your young son off and building that work ethic. And that's something that I can also relate to because I moved to Ohio when I was 13. And I started baling hay. So literally went from the islands to the Midwest and got a lot of that, that character and work ethic. underneath me. It sounds like what you also experienced as well, when you went through that difficult time when you were 13 years old. And I guess this is a great time for me to ask you, like I noticed on your social media on your Instagram, your you described yourself as an imperfect founder. Can you dig into that a little bit and tell us about why or what that means to you?

Joelle Choe: 16:07

To be honest, I realized how much I screwed up on my first business when I was 20 years old, having a social media agency, I realized that I didn't own up to my mistakes and coming from the military, that you have to be perfect to the tee, no mistakes, and everything has to be all good to go. That kind of stuck to me. And once I incorporate that to my business last year, I just really didn't know how to manage a team, I didn't know how to deal with clients, I didn't know all of these technicalities and functions of a business. And till this day, I am still learning. And the reason why I say imperfect founder is that most of the founders that I talked to, they're like, Oh, we were focused on perfectionism all the time when we first started, and I was like, oh, geez, that was a light bulb to my brain. I was like, That is so true. I was so focused on being perfect, I was so focused on seeing the big picture of rainbows, unicorns, like lots of money. But that was a wrong way of doing it. For me, being imperfect, is more greater than being a perfect founder. And the reason being is that you own up to your mistakes, and you are loyal to yourself. And that loyalty that you give to yourself could inspire others to do the same. And for me, till this day, I make mistakes as a founder, don't get me wrong. I just made a mistake during one of my meetings today. So I'm all good, right? At least I move on from it and try to make it better. And as an imperfect founder, I thought this was like, Oh, it resonates with me. And a lot of people could understand who I am as a person.

KP: 18:01

Right, right. And as a business consultant yourself and understand that you have multiple businesses as well. Would you mind talking to us a little bit about what is your main business and some of the other businesses that you have? I mean, you just talked about being a founder and imperfect founder, which is, I think, is outstanding, because that's who you are like it don't try to be someone that you're not be who you are, be genuine and authentic. And I think that's what I love most about interviewing you. And talking to you is the fact that you possess both those things. So would you mind talking about your main business and your multiple businesses that you currently run?

Joelle Choe: 18:37

Yes. So my main business is actually social media and digital media based. One of my business that I started last year was a boutique digital agency, but we completely rebranded into an ad buying agency. So we focus on digital ads and non digital and which is your traditional ads, such as your newsletters, and your billboards. The second brand that derived from that digital agency is basically the service is based on content creation, social media, website design. So that's a new company itself. But then I'm trying to rebranded into an agency where I focus on brands in Asia to come into the US market. So basically, we are pitching to these Asian brands to utilize us to help them with their marketing in the US. So that was my second business. And my third business is a company that I am so happy to be part of. This is with my sister back in New Jersey. She helped me so much during my transition, I can't thank her enough, her and a boyfriend. Well now fiance have helped me so much and till this day, they've been so helpful that I, I just can't express my gratitude, but that business is called REO borrow pet company and we focus on single ingredient natural organic pet treats that are freeze dried and dehydrated. We want to educate people want to feed their pets for a very healthy life. And this IBI derived from her because she has to Boston terriers back at home. And they suffer. So from so many allergies from all of these treats that they were selling at, like, certain pet markets. So we just wanted to shift that market. And we've been doing well ever since our launch last November.

KP: 20:54

That's outstanding. And I've noticed on your social media that you've been advertising that a lot, and I was kind of wondering like where that came from. But now I understand that you are truly multi talented when it comes to running more than one thing at once. And a lot of veterans are that way, when it comes to multitasking in general, I like to think that even myself included, I tend to get into one thing started another thing, do another thing, but to get it all accomplished at the same time. And for any service members or veterans out there that might be listening right now. What are probably the top two or three things, if they were to get into doing what you're doing? What are the top two or three things that you would advise them to take into consideration before starting is a business consultation or any type of online business is there like maybe two or three things that kind of stand out for you that happened that you thought, Well, I wasn't expecting that or lesson learned? Is there anything that you can provide advice wise for them?

Joelle Choe: 22:00

For me, I'm not a good person to give advice. However, the tools that I would recommend is look at your state benefits. Look what your state offers to you. Because there are so many educational and technical and even real estate opportunities for you, or your spouse, or even your children, for the matter of fact. And that's something that I wish I learned a little bit better. So I could plan out my taxes and plan out my real estate. And second thing that I would love for people who are listening is to educate yourself on passive income, you need to be able to make money in your sleep. So you could buy things that you want and for your family and be passive income streams could be anything that you guys could be educated from. And these are the tools that the Air Force gives you but doesn't really promote. And these tools could be your, for me from the Air Force was Air Force, cool, which is a certification programs. And within the certification programs, there's like real estate mortgage, there's PMP, and a lot of these different programs and certifications that are offered to you. And you could take a full advantage to them. Just go to the education office and ask, it doesn't require anything, you don't get trouble from it from leadership just by asking, Okay. The second major thing is Google, look on Google and see bet organizations or bet transition programs, because you never know if that will be handy for you the next day. But if you're not transitioning, or you don't plan on transitioning, it doesn't hurt for you to reach out to the support or a team member. They're saying, hey, I'm interested in this, but I'm an active duty, you never know that. There'll be like, Hey, you could come on board, and listen to these conferences or networking events. And these could actually inspire you to learn something from these specialists.

KP: 24:12

You know, I kind of smiled when you talked about, you know, go into your education center and utilizing your resources because that is some outstanding advice. Because guess what, that's not what I did. I was enlisted in the National Guard. And then I went active duty as a commissioned officer. And even as a captain, when I was getting out. I was very hard headed. And I did not go to the Education Center, I did not utilize any help for my resume. I thought I got this I can do it myself. And that ended up ended up biting me later on. I ended up you know, having a struggle when I did my career transition. So that is some very sound advice to well, that you're that you're offering. And for anyone listening out there, definitely check out all your resources. You know, I transitioned out in 2007. And I've said this before 2007. The hottest thing on the internet was MySpace. I don't know if you remember that or not. But that's how old I am. Now we have LinkedIn we have like you said, Google, we have all these different things out there that that's available to you. So that is some outstanding advice to well. And just to round things out, you know, I want to talk to you about being a mental health advocate. What what does that exactly mean to you? And or what have you done to be a mental health advocate? Or would you mind sharing some of your own experiences?

Joelle Choe: 25:41

I'm gonna be very vulnerable, but raw, because I feel like a lot of people need to hear this. I'm not sure if they're going to feel the same way how I felt, or going through something because they're scared, scared of leadership. But I was in security forces where Manny is always needed. They're always unmanned. And also, if you're the youngest and does, you're the single and you don't have any family at all. You're at the low of the priority list when you're stationed overseas to go on leave. I'm not bullshitting here. And that took a toll on me, I was trying to be positive as much as I can. But I couldn't because my mental health was failing after my deployment. During my deployment, there was something that bothered me. But I knew that I had to finish my deployment and go home, because I didn't want to become another embarrassment to my unit. But that was the worst mistake I ever made. I should have taken care of myself better and ask for help outside of going to the chaplain, and those you know, organizations where they make things confidential. I went back home on base, and I didn't realize how bad it impacted me. I was never much of a heavy drinker before I got into the Air Force, but my drinking escalated to the point that I needed to drink. Like at least a bottle of Jameson. That's a lot, right. Every bottle of wine or Jameson? Oh, my goodness, yeah. Yeah, in order to sleep. You know, because I have to work the next day, like I have to arm up the next day, like I needed to sleep and that would not be out. And it just felt so disgusting, living off of alcohol and then sobering up with monster like that repetition of the lifestyle is not healthy, right? And God damn know what's going to happen next. And for me, I got to a breaking point when I was on shift and mind you that I was all armed up. And I just wanted to end it all. I simply wanted to end it all. And I'm so thankful for my friend who I was posted with his wife actually convinced me saying, Go to mental health, you need to get the care that you needed. And I was like, Okay, I'll just go. And then I ended up going to a mental health facility inpatient in England, and I had no contact with the base. And I was stuck there for a month and a half. It was a very difficult time for me, because I just didn't understand what was happening to me. And when I looked back, I was like, wow, I was kind of crazy. But it was it the way of let me rephrase it. It's more of the way I was not healthy. And I was not taking care of myself I needed to, but then my pass supervisor called me saying, hey, you need to take care of yourself. Now. You're so young, and outside of the Air Force, there are going to be good opportunities. But I don't know what opportunities are going to be there for you. Because you need to make those opportunities happen. That's the best advice that helped me. And that made me live. She escorted me back to Walter Reed, and I was able to meet with the medical transition unit there. And I was able to get my continued treatment there. It became an inpatient treatment. And that inpatient treatment was the scariest experience of my life. It was like those old movies where they show lobotomy like those mental health Institute's It was really scary like that to me. And I compare it to that because all of your connection is gone. And I was on my fifth different kind of prescription, my medical prescription at that time. If you're in your early 20s, and scientific studies based on this, if you're in your early 20s, and you have that so many changes of different mental health medications, there's a higher chance you get the blackbox effect, which means that you have these different like, mentally challenged issues or different kinds of things that don't happen to other people. And that happened to me I'm, and I thought that I was going to get a general discharge under honorable conditions. And that's one of the facilitators told me that say, you're never going to be good enough, you should just get kicked out now. And when I heard that I was like, Whoa, but my medical transition unit at Walter Reed was phenomenal. They backed me up, and I was able to stay and get in outpatient treatment. And then, during outpatient treatment, this was like six months in at Walter Reed, I met the best providers possible that I was able to start healing and the leadership that I was there was non toxic, so helpful, and helped me and encouraged me throughout the way to better myself, and I never felt that much positivity, or what a leadership should be, like, ever in my military life until I got there. Wow,

KP: 31:29

what a journey that's, you know, everything that you're talking about, a lot of people listening are gonna be able to identify because we tend to internalize a lot of things. It's the suck it up and drive on factor, right? That we all try to deal with while we're in the military. And even while we're out of the military. And I really appreciate you being vulnerable and sharing that story, because a lot of folks are going to be able to hear that and go, Well, that was me too. And that was me, as well. And I, for a lot of years kind of kick the can and didn't want any help. I didn't I didn't want career transition to hope I didn't want mental health. I didn't want anything I just when I got out. Like it kind of makes me sad to think about this now. But just a couple years after getting out, I took all my I took my dress blues, I took my my desert uniform that I wore in Iraq, like all that stuff when I threw it in the dumpster. And I I hate that I did that. But I did that because I just wanted to separate myself, I had a lot of internal issues that I needed to deal with. So thank you for sharing that Joelle and I, man, that's quite a journey to overcome and to where you are today. So I'm extremely proud of you for being the person that you are right now and sharing your story with us here on the morning formation today. Before we finish out the episode today, I just want to ask you, is there anything else that you'd like to add or any advice or anything that you'd like to share with the community with the morning formation community specifically, before finishing up our episode today?

Joelle Choe: 33:02

Yeah, I think for all of us, it doesn't matter where we are or where we came from, or what experience that we have. You really need to take care of yourself. And I just really can't tell you the roadmap, how to do that. That's something that you decide upon yourself, though. But the most rewarding thing that I felt personally was breaking all the walls down and seeing where I needed to start from and starting all over may be daunting. For many people. It was daunting to me for sure. But right now, I feel like it was one of the most rewarding thing that ever happened to me. And many of you guys that are listening to this, you guys might think that, Oh, I'm so late in my time. Oh my goodness, I'm so behind. Never think that way. Because you should never, ever compare yourself to someone else or somebody else's experiences. Because you live and you're born into this role for you. And to be honest, you could do so many great things, and you might not feel fulfilled, right. And in order to feel that fulfillment, it starts with self love and doing the things that makes you smile at the end of the day, and doing the things that you don't curse off at stupid things that pass by the role that upset you. It should be things that say, Hey, oh, that happened. I'm okay, because 20 seconds later. I'm here today, being present. And learning how to be present is one of the most held kept secrets with entrepreneurs. Once you go on and on with all of these different tasks, different kinds of projects, and it's like a nonstop life. It takes a toll on us. And we just realize it until we burn out and being present in the moment and taking some time out of the day to actually meditate and it could be moving meditation or it could just be like, Oh, I don't want to do shit and just putting like meditation music around and sleeping for 20 minutes. That's fine. As long as you could be focused and toned down for some part of the moment that you could just be yourself. I just want to recommend that to others.

KP: 35:30

Yeah. And when you mentioned meditation, that's not necessarily. Meditation is not scrolling on social media. Right? I mean, that, to me, like I would say, when I was at my best was when I was I used to train it at an MMA Brazilian Jiu Jitsu gym. And right next door, there was a hot yoga studio. And I decided to go in and one day, and I ended up doing it for a very long time. And that was when I felt 100%. Like, my body felt great. But then also, too, for that one hour of yoga that I did maybe two, three times a week, it was just me to myself, no phones, no nothing. Me focused on my breathing me focused on my own thoughts. And, you know, I don't know if some people claim to meditate by surfing their phones surfing their social media account. And I don't think that's really meditating man, I really think that meditating is more, you focused on yourself on nature? Am I right on that? Or what are your thoughts on that?

Joelle Choe: 36:33

100% Even though I'm in the social media, world, I highly recommend it because it can be toxic, and it could be very tolling on somebody, right. And a lot of people that scroll on school social media, and I could really actually say is that a lot of it, it's fake. And people are just looking at all of these things, all of these luxuries or things that most people don't have. And people compare themselves psychologically, right. And for us, in the social media world, it's marketing, it's basically utilizing those psychological hacks from other people or consumers, for them to feel that way. So you need to really understand and bypass those things. And for me, I struggle with meditation, when you're closing your eyes, your deep breath it, I had so many flashbacks when I had those sessions. And for me, I found one thing that worked, and that was actually moving meditation. So I actually did flying yoga, and then hot yoga, and then it became into like, fencing, and it became boxing. And that became like my meditation routine. So it really depends on how you are. It's for me when people are like, I can't deal with my mental health. And I'm just like, bullshit. You need to learn how to maintain it in a way that works for you. So now till this day, I'm learning to maintain it, even though I have my moments. I'm not perfect, right, right. So I just want to encourage others, it's okay to be vulnerable. The quote that I live by is doing one thing that scares me every single day. And that's by Eleanor Roosevelt. I look up to her heavily. And Elon Musk. It's one of those things that keeps me going through the day, and motivates me to do better than next day, even though today was not so much of a great day.

KP: 38:45

That makes a lot of sense, though. Because in a sense, you're you're sort of a journeyman where you have no qualms about stepping out into the new frontier that no one else has gone through before. So you have an Eleanor Roosevelt and Elon Musk as the folks that you kind of look to make sense, because they're both kind of going on their own journey down a new path that no one else has really gone down before. And so, Joel, if anyone else that's interested in contacting you or following you on your social media platforms, what social media platforms are you on?

Joelle Choe: 39:22

Oh, I'm on LinkedIn. I'm on like Twitter, and I'm on Instagram. But if you want to send me a DM or a message, I'm an open book on those platforms. And I just really want to see if I could listen to you or see if I could give you certain tools that will benefit you and your family in any way, shape or form possible. Because I wish I had this connection or actually reached out to somebody without feeling the fear of being vulnerable. Because the veteran community is so great, but we just have a difficulty of reaching out to one another until time permits later on in our journey. Don't you agree?

KP: 40:10

Oh, I totally agree. Totally agree. It took me years and years and years before I even had any interest to step back to the table and find my seat. I tried to separate myself so much just to fit in with the 95% of the population that never serve. I wanted to fit in with them. And it finally came to a point to me where I was like I'm there Never gonna fit in with these folks because I have a different life experience than these people. And so here I am, you know, the one thing that I missed the most about the military was the mentoring was the impact that you could have when I was Lieutenant, a platoon leader when I was a captain, being able to positively affect other people's lives. And just the overall mentorship is the thing that I missed. And that's why I have the more information now and I have great guests like you one. So it's been an absolute pleasure. Joelle, really appreciate everything. And I'm going to make sure that I include all of your social media links in the show notes. So folks listening right now, if you would just scroll down to the bottom of however you're consuming this podcast, whether it's on YouTube, or if it's on Spotify, Apple podcasts, or the 18, other different platforms that I'm on, just scroll to the bottom and you will find how to get in touch with Joelle. And I'm looking forward to possibly doing another interview with you down the stretch, because I know you're going to go beyond the up and up when it comes to business consulting and all the business ventures that you're in.

Joelle Choe: 41:40

Yes, I think we should talk about startups next on how brutal that industry could be.

KP: 41:45

You know, that fits right into the mold of what the morning formation is about because there are veterans out there and service members, military spouses included, that are doing startups. And it can be a very dog eat dog world, when it comes to the civilian side of things when you're getting into it, because a lot of us a lot of the a lot of civilians. In the civilian culture, there is no mentorship, there is no build up. It's kind of hard to find that. But, you know, I always say that the military community is what five to 8% of the entire US population. But when we come together on these platforms, we feel like we're at 100%. So it's really great to have you on the show today and I really appreciate given the opportunity to interview you.

Joelle Choe: 42:29

Thank you so much for having me once again. I sincerely appreciate you and your audience.

KP: 42:35

All right, folks, a s for the morning formation as always, this IS Kp and I want you to stay tuned, stay focused, and stay motivated. Warriors fall out