Transcript
Auto-generated transcript. Not time-synced to the video.
What was the most holes you played of
golf in one day? 72. Wow. Is that even
possible?
Yes. So, we played 18 18 holes in one
round. We played four different rounds.
Al and I did this before us. Four
different rounds, four different courses
on the same day. Teed off about 7:35. We
played the first round in about 2 hours
and 45 minutes. Then we played the next
round in about 3 hours, then the next
one in 2 hours, and then about 3 hours.
Nice 14-hour day, 72 holes.
And then you died.
None of your business, Oushi. None of
your business, Michael. It's the None of
Your Business Podcast hosted by Michael
and Oushi.
Welcome back to another episode of a
None of Your Business Podcast.
Now, you might notice that this podcast
is missing an essential piece. I kind of
feel a little bit naked here without
him, without my my side piece, Michael
Greenfield.
So, Michael is currently in Israel. So,
he's going to be there for about 3
weeks.
And the show must go on. Just because
Michael leaves doesn't mean that
everything stops.
So, Michael and I actually turned this
into an opportunity.
And what we said was that I'm going to
do a podcast on my own.
I'm going to choose a couple of my
friends. I have some interesting
friends. But I chose the two of you
because I believe that there's a lot of
synergy between the three of us. And I
think that could make for some really,
really good conversation. So, I'm
excited about it. Now, not to put any
pressure on you guys, but this is a
competition.
And this podcast must, by all costs,
outperform Michael's podcasts.
Because like all good partnerships,
potentially partnerships one day can
end.
And we have to know. We have to really,
really know is Michael Greenfield going
to outperform or am I going to
outperform? And we're going to hold this
over each other's heads for a long time.
We're very competitive.
I know you guys are very competitive.
We're all very competitive. All in good
fun. Yes, we're going to touch on that a
little bit today.
But I'm not going to lie. Not having you
here, Michael, certainly feels
doesn't feel the same. Feels a little
bit empty, but I think we're going to
survive. So, Michael, good luck. Do your
thing. I wish you a lot of luck. I have
a sneaky suspicion who you're going to
bring on to your podcast. And I think
it's going to do okay. I think it's
going to do well.
But nobody competes with the two guests
that I have today. And I'm very excited
about it. I want to remind everybody
that this podcast is sponsored by Prime
Source. Want to thank all the partners.
All right, so
our guest today is Al Tenenbaum, aka
Elchanan Tenenbaum. I know some people
call you Al, some people call you
Elchanan. I call you Al. I don't even
like the name Elchanan. I don't think it
suits you. I think you're an Al kind of
guy. And we also have Mayor {slash}
Myer.
He spells it in a very funky way. I
believe you spell it m a i e r. And
Mayor, I'm not going to lie. I actually
think that that spelling does suit you.
Because you're a very unique person. I
think I'm very honored that I get to be
your friend and I get to spend time with
you and I got to know you over the
years. And you are someone that has a
very unique style. And you're like an
undercover secret that not a lot of
people know about. You don't let too
many people in.
You don't let a a big crowd around you.
But those that get to really be a part
of your realm, I think we've come to
appreciate what you bring to the table.
Not to mention your unbelievable fancy
suit that you're wearing here today.
Okay, this was certainly a little bit
overdressed for the occasion. But I'm
not surprised. And And you make anything
look good. So, kudos to you. And it's I
may also mention a little plug for
Finos. Finos custom designer, right? I'm
a big fan. I try to get my suits from
him as well.
So, I thought we we could start by doing
something a little interesting.
I know you guys are big, big, avid golf
not just fans, but golf players.
Hold on. Wait, before that. Mentioned
his suit.
Last year, I believe to the day,
in shul, there was a raffle or bidding
to support the show.
Ah, yes, I remember.
Which was to be taken with Mayor to the
suit place to get a suit.
I paid my bill. I don't see a matching
suit. We're supposed to get an eccentric
matching suit. Where is that matching
suit?
happen. It didn't happen, but I do
remember that. I wanted Yeah, I wanted
to All three of us have a suit.
Yeah. We for the podcast.
Yeah, missed opportunity, for sure. And
we should still do it. It's not too
late. I think the three of us should get
like, you know, matching suits.
Yeah, I know we will. If we win this as
And we should also walk into shul at the
same time. Like
the same time we walk into shul.
very early.
shul. You're going to have to come
early. Yeah, exactly.
Al, you can't run late, you know. You
got to make sure that you're there on
time. So, Mayor, let me ask you
something. You know, a lot of people
that we know
very, very secretive about what they do
for work. Ooh.
Um some more than others. Some are very
extreme. But some
You're generally more of a private
person, but you know, I I don't know a
whole lot about what you do. I do know
that you have an ABA therapy company. I
think I know approximately what that
means. What What exactly does the
company that you own, what does this
company do?
ABA stands for Applied Behavior
Analysis, which is a type of therapy
that is approved by insurance to work
with kids specifically diagnosed with
autism.
And unlike, let's say, physical therapy
or occupational therapy or speech
therapy, which some of those kids may
also get, those are typically 2, 3 hours
a week.
ABA can be up to 40 hours a week. And
they work with something called
board-certified behavior analysts who
creates treatment plans. We submit those
treatment plans to insurance to get
approvals. Um and then they oversee a
behavior technician that works with the
kid one-on-one. And so, we service we
have a clinic in Bloomfield, New Jersey,
and we service kids in daycares or at
home, after school, things like that.
So, we are currently providing services
throughout the state of New Jersey,
mostly in the northeast, and then also
in the Dallas, Texas area. Oh, wow. Very
cool. Interesting. You explained it very
well, by the way. I feel like you really
gave like a nice 60-second overview that
gives the framework of what the company
you own does. How did you get into this?
How did you find this to be a viable
business for you? And how did you get
started? So, I had a son, my second son,
who at the time was 2 and 1/2, developed
an infection overnight, went into septic
shock. He's I'm very blessed that he's
still alive. We had nine surgeries. We
were in and out of the hospital for
many, many months. And while I would
walk the floors, there was a lot of
stuff about autism. I knew people that
were in the field, but I started
thinking it just put up, you know, idea
in my mind like maybe I should do
something with kids. It seems like it's
a little easier. You don't need like a
nursing home. You don't need real
estate, per se. I started researching
that. I went to a conference. And um
sort of like got it started without
knowing enough. And I was very blessed
to find
phenomenal staff. Very blessed. They're
still with us. I have two awesome
clinical leaders. They're like family.
And they've really helped us to grow.
And we've grown tremendously. We have a
lot of kids that we work with now. And
we've done this in 4 years, and we're
hoping to keep growing. Wow. So, you
learned a lot of what you're doing today
on the fly.
I I when I first started, I would think
like why doesn't everyone just start
their own business, which I think a lot
of people think they can start because
you technically don't need a lot of
money. You don't need a real estate. But
now that we've been around for 4 years,
I laugh at myself because had I known
everything I needed I I know now, I
never would have started. It would have
hindered me from starting. And we've had
a lot of breaks along the way, for sure.
Like we started in COVID. I think that
helped us a lot because a lot of
companies were not providing services.
So, kids were looking for services
because their agency that they were
working with wasn't providing services.
Um there are a lot of things that
happened that we were we had a lot of
mazel, a lot of luck, a lot of good
fortune. And we have a great team. I
think you're only as good as your team.
I also did a lot of research before I
started. So, all that time that I spent
going to conferences or whatever and
researching. And I also I I learned I
taught myself a lot. A lot of people
outsource a lot of things. And we don't
outsource anything. So, um you know,
that saves you money. Um but it takes
time to figure out.
Wow. I have a phenomenal clinical team.
We've had many families who specifically
wanted to speak to me to let us know
their kid was nonverbal, and now they're
speaking full sentences, and they're no
longer in the program. They've
graduated, which is really nice. Wow.
So, there's a personal side to this for
you as well. You know, I I would provide
a great service no matter what you're
doing, you know. Obviously helping kids
who can't speak be able to speak.
That's gratifying. Unbelievable.
That's amazing. You know, I tell our
sales reps here all the time, you know,
don't think of what you're doing as just
any job and you're just doing a sale
and, you know, you're consulting and
you're helping people save money.
Think about by the fact that a facility
has more money to spend now. Where that
money, well, we hope is being used,
which is on the residents, on the people
that live in this facility. It makes a
difference. You know, when you help them
get a better distributor that has better
quality food, they have better menus,
makes a difference in people's lives.
Think about your grandparents, our
grandparents, you know, that are in
nursing homes sometimes. And they're
eating breakfast, lunch, and dinner
there. And if you can make it a little
bit better for them, you're really
impacting people's lives. You are
impacting
children's lives. This is the most
precious things that we have in our
lives. This is amazing. So, you get to
make money, but you also get to really
see transformations in a lot of these
children. When I started, I was very
involved with every single thing to the
point where I even was involved with
some of the early families, right? Like
we got someone to apply. You know, now
thankfully we have a lot of people
applying every day, which is beautiful.
And we're very blessed. But early on, I
still remember like the first client
that called after this BCBA left. And it
was not a good case, meaning they were
looking for very few hours. They didn't
have great insurance, but you'll do
anything at the time to make it work.
But what stands out is there was this
one family who had this kid and then
some parents are just special parents.
Like they'll do anything for their kid
and that was this family and their kid
really grew quite a bit and they wanted
to meet me in person. I don't always go
into my office. So they wanted to meet
me and they brought flowers and a letter
and a whole special thing. It was
really, really nice.
Um that's when it really hit home that
like we're making a difference. You
know, I don't know that we help every
kid to the level that we helped that
kid. You know, also you have staff. Some
people are better and work harder than
others. There's only so much you can do.
You know, sometimes you hire people that
aren't the greatest. Sometimes you hire
the people that are the greatest. Um and
sometimes they're paired with that kid.
Just recently we have we have a party
for um you know, all our kids on a
Sunday. We rent a park and all that and
there was a family that came over to
thank me. Um you know, they would write
any they would do anything. So you know,
we don't ever ask people to write
reviews, but I asked them to write a
review. They wrote a beautiful Google
review um about how much we've done for
their kid. It's just the helping kids is
nice, too. That's very special. Very
nice. Al, we covered Mayor and uh you
know, his his work life, you know, and
what he does and I
one could actually argue that your work
life is more of a hidden secret actually
than because I I believe that there's a
possibility that everything going on in
your work life is all a front. Uh And
that you have to have a story. You know,
because nobody is able There's one
person who can argue who can say
otherwise, it's me. Both of you. You
both share this. I'm with Al when he's
at work. All right. No, it's real. Okay.
So Al, tell tell us a little bit about
he's got the big James Street project.
Oh, he he's stalking you now. Oh, I can
he's there with You got to talk lower.
No, what do you mean? Come on. Talking
about channel some pipes.
All right. So Al, let's By the What do I
do? Yeah, but it's important that we
know this. Very different. I'm the
opposite of Mayor. Mayor is uh was a
trailblazer who started and on his own
and and really just took that that lead.
I'm the opposite. I'm a I'm part of a
second generation business which I was
lucky enough to be invited by my
father-in-law and my uncle-in-law to
join their business 15-plus years ago.
Uh we do mechanical contracting which is
essentially air conditioning and
heating. Do large-scale commercial
projects. But really what we do is we
manage risk and manage people. Um that's
really our business.
What does that mean manage risk and
manage people? When I hear HVAC heating
and cooling, I'm thinking the machines
that you and then you said manage risk
and manage people. Yes. Yes. Of course
we do that. Um but essentially it's
providing a product in the current
environment uh
is very
complex, I would say with
OSHA which is safety regulations, just
understanding how to build a proper
system that functions, that's per code,
that is efficient uh that has longevity,
that will be serviceable. All those
things is what we do. What's your role
in the company? So we're a family
business that manages everything very
hands-on. So basically every decision
and every
aspect of how the company functions is
basically a podcast discussion
of what the steps should be, how we
should implement them. And that's
basically what we do. My father-in-law,
my uncle-in-law and I, my brother-in-law
and and a cousin basically round table
discussion our
plan of action
for how we should function as a company.
We have, you know,
200 employees
and how they should work. Obviously
there's the nitty-gritty of
actually bending metal and installing
metal and welding metal and installing
equipment, wires. It's a complex
organism of how the business works. But
ultimately it comes down to making
proper decisions
proper foresight which is what every
business is. Obviously the core of every
business is making sure that you have
enough work
to
feed your people, feed the employees
that you have, feed their families, make
sure that the money is there for their
payroll. Ultimately we're simple
contractors. We're not doing anything
that's rocket science. We're essentially
creating comfortable systems for people
to live in. Beautiful. So your
father-in-law started this business?
Father-in-law and uncle-in-law started
the business
almost 40 years ago. Wow. And they So
they bootstrapped it and you know
Absolutely. They're Russian immigrants
and they came here. My father-in-law is
an aeronautical engineer. He came here
from Russia uh as a
essentially a Jewish refugee. And when
he came here, he obviously was trained
as an
aeronautical engineer which is, you
know, airplanes, things like that. He
interviewed with Boeing and other
airplane companies and the CIA basically
said we can't have Russians involved
Exactly. The '80s. in the early '80s.
And so he was he's like, "Okay, I'll try
air conditioning. It's a little bit kind
of below my pay grade, but he kind of
worked for a few companies and he's
like, "Listen, like Mayor, I can do
this. It was the Mayor he was the and
he's like, "Listen, let's we'll figure
it out." His brother was very handy
started from the ground up.
And the two of them literally buying and
then installing machines for people and
taking any job. of, you know, 40 years
is a very long time and to have and I I
think it's their wish and their goal to
have this company be something that they
can pass down for generations and So
they have no intention of ever selling?
It's not you know, I think that Are they
the currently the sole owners, the two
brothers?
Yes. Yes. It's the most unique It's the
most I'm not going to go into like the
details of it, but it's a very unique,
loving um
uh structure that it would never work
anywhere else.
It's based solely on trust for all the
people that are involved.
And it's based on love and trust and it
works and it's worked for 40 years and
it's worked for the 15 years that I've
been part of it. And it's the goal to
nurture and foster that. I'm not saying
that it works for everyone. I think it
takes unique personalities to work
properly.
You better believe it does. It does. It
sounds to me You know, go very, very,
very wrong. Uh but I know your
father-in-law a little bit. Like I don't
know him personally.
He's uh he's
But I know of him. I know about him and
he's a great fellow and and I can tell
he's just wired differently. Yeah. And
it's not surprising to me that he has
this arrangement, you know, with the
family members that are part of the
business and I'm sure everybody carries
their weight and does what they can. He
probably doesn't even have a lot of
expectations. He just wants everybody to
step up as much as they could.
No, that's not true. All right. So he
holds you accountable like
Not at all. It's a very
it's real. It's a very real business.
No, I understand it's real, but There's
real accountability. Let's put it this
way. Not everyone's skills are
necessarily
um quantifiable
in a 9:00 to 5:00 kind of way. So I'm
totally I understand what you're saying.
Not every job is reflected or
quantifiable at a 9:00 to 5:00 where
you're sitting. Like there's a lot of
moving pieces, you know, that are behind
the scenes to a company that, you know,
really can make it very successful or
not, but still
I I I will say that, you know, it's
you're you're very fortunate both all
three of us. Everybody sitting here is
very fortunate that we have a job and
that we're able to bring home an income.
I mean, you guys are really fortunate.
You can also do two things that you
love. You get to be involved in a
company that brings you joy and you
know, your personal stuff that your your
golf life that you love as well. This is
a lightning round.
I'm going to throw 10 questions at you
guys. And I'm going to ask both of you
the same question. Okay? So I'm going to
ask you a question. You're going to give
me the first answer that comes to your
head right off the top of your cuff,
okay? Then I'm going to ask you the same
question and then I'm going to start the
second question with you and we're going
to go back and forth, okay? Now
obviously these questions are around
golf.
You guys are very good representatives
of the game of golf.
You've mastered the craft, I want to
say, of golf as far as an amateur can
go.
Master is a difficult word. You didn't
master the game of golf? Golf is like
life. You can't master it. No, you can
always room for improvement.
Always. That's the allure. Cuz you keep
chasing something. You could be have the
number one podcast in the world. You're
still trying to get more subscribers,
more listeners, right? Yeah, of course.
So It's never enough. Never enough.
Okay. So I'm going to start. I'm going
to ask some questions. This is just to
give a little flavor to the listeners
about you and about, you know, your golf
experiences, okay? Um base the
questions. Don't overthink it. Don't,
you know, try to give the perfect
answer. Just
you How did you come up with these
questions? Came up with them myself. I I
sat by my computer and I just thought of
questions I would want to know that I
was curious about and I put it together.
Okay.
Okay. Can I just say Can I just say one
thing? Yeah, sure.
Usually we sit at Kiddush together,
right? I know she has one rule. One rule
only. No golf. And no talking about We
can talk about anything except for golf.
Okay. So Al, you ready? I'm going to
start with you, Al, then I'm going to
ask you the same question, Mayor. And
then I'm going to turn question two to
you and then we're going to go back and
forth. All right.
What's the nicest golf course that you
ever played in?
And why? Maidstone. Maidstone. It's
called Maidstone. What's so nice about
it? It's on a piece of land that you
could never buy now. It's in East
Hampton. It's on the ocean which is on
the
I guess that would be the
south side of the south side of
the tip of Long Island all the way out
there in East Hampton. Like a half-acre
plot of land there goes for $80 million
and this is 300 acres. Wow. Did you play
there once? Played there one time.
One time. Okay, nice. All right, Mayor,
what was the nicest golf course you ever
played in?
It's a great question. So I'm actually
going to say something that's
interesting that Al probably knows the
answer to, but we just played a course
called Atlantic which is pretty close to
Maidstone. It's not a great piece of
property in the sense that it's not on
the water. Doesn't have the views, but
the course was in phenomenal shape.
There wasn't a blade of grass out of
place. There wasn't a weed you could
see. It was a beautiful It's not rated
anywhere near some of the other courses
we've played, but I loved it. Wow. I
wish you'd talk about me that way.
You know, about someone else amazing
like you. The The love that you have for
the course is unbelievable. All right.
So, Mayor, what was the best score that
you ever had at any course at any time
in throughout your entire playing
career? What was your best score? 70.
70? So, that's that's two below par.
mean you're under par. Some courses are
68, 69. Typically it's 72, sometimes
it's 71. Two under par. Okay. Al, what
was your best score that you ever did at
any course?
64, which is seven under. Wow. Yeah.
That's amazing.
But Yeah, it wasn't my best round of
golf, but that's my
Best final score after
Okay. I'm sure there's a lot of people
who are out there like, "Wow, that's
pretty impressive."
It's good. I
Have you ever done that multiple times
or
Yes. Oh, so you But that was the lowest
you've ever got.
him with Al on one of them. Oh, you were
there. So, you can back this up. And
then on Sunday I was seven under through
16 holes. Oh, so you ended up higher
than 70.
went bogey, par, and then shot six
under. It was a shame. Okay. Uh Al,
who's the most important person that
you've ever played golf with? Who's the
most important person you've ever played
with? It's a tough question. There are
two answers. One will be my son, Sammy.
No, no, no, no, no, no. That's not Let
me rephrase this question. Not your most
sentimentally important person, you
They're both sentimental. Important
person like celebrity-wise. Like
somebody that the masses know who they
are. Who's the most important person
you've ever played with? You mean like
who's the most famous person?
Let me use the word famous.
Nobody? Nobody famous?
I don't I mean Is world fame or is it
could say that. I would say I've played
with Lawrence Taylor. Oh, okay. Okay.
Why are you holding that one back? A
regular at Trump That's pretty good.
Taylor, uh Was he any good?
He's an excellent golfer. Yeah. He's
pretty famous. A lot of people love him
for like what he did for the Giants, I
guess. Yeah, for sure. Is he still
active? Does he still do anything like
TV
of golf.
Just plays golf now? Al, is he still a
regular at Trump Rock? No, because that
guy left.
But he's around. He's definitely around
this area cuz he'll probably do like
signings and stuff or whatever. He's
around. Still looks big and strong and
All right. Mayor, who's the most
important person other than Al that you
played with?
Yeah, so I don't know if I played with
anyone that important. I played with
John Flaherty who does the Yankee game.
I
played with Lawrence Taylor. John
Flaherty. These are very famous people.
When you meet famous they're regular
people. I understand they're regular
people. I'm not saying they're gods, but
it's a very famous person. So, how did
that come to be? How did you hook up
with him? So, we used to be members at
Rockland Country Club and John is a
member there and his friend had a match
against my friend, so we both played
against each other. John was a nice guy.
He was doing a Yankee game that night.
You kidding me? So, that night he was
commentating the Yankee game? Yes. Wow.
Yeah. And so, did you guys talk?
really nice guy. I enjoyed it immensely.
He played very well that day, too. He
beat me. Cell number?
I think I do, yeah.
It's So, you know who I met? So, um I
played with
um
Uh who's the head writer of SNL? Now?
Colin Jost. Colin Jost. So, Colin Jost.
I'll tell you a funny story. So, we're
I'm playing with Colin Jost and fine, we
play. A week or two later, we play
again.
And we finish playing
and
I we go in I change, he changes, and
all of a sudden he like is standing by
the carts and he's rocking like a like a
baby carriage.
And he goes, "Al, come meet my son,
Cosmo." I'm like, "What?" He goes, "Oh,
yeah. He's one week old. We just had the
baby." I'm like, "Oh." And then he
introduced me to his wife. And she was
standing right there? Sitting right
there.
And so, I go home and I'm like,
"Listen." I tell my wife, I'm like,
"Listen, I just met, you know, Scarlett
and Colin Jost. They had a baby. You
can't say a word to anyone."
Oh, this was under
this is the baby was a week old. And my
wife goes
So, the public didn't even know about
this.
"It can't be. It's nowhere on the
internet." I'm like, "Listen, this is a
private place. You can't tell any of
your friends until it becomes, you know,
public knowledge."
And And like she almost didn't believe
me. And then a month or two later, it
comes out and I I told her. I said,
"Mark my words, this is the baby's name.
I met the baby. I met" And he he is the
nicest, most down-to-earth guy in the
world. She is, too. I mean, she's a
little probably, you know, with being
famous like that. She's a lot more
famous than he is. She's worldwide
known. She's probably top three most,
you know,
highest-grossing female actresses
around, but
also very normal.
What was your reaction? Like when you
were standing there I'm not
and Colin Jost introduced you to his
baby and then to his wife, I was My
reaction was I'm so excited to tell this
to my wife cuz I know she'll enjoy it.
I'm enjoying this. So many people would
enjoy hearing this. And you know what?
He was there and there were probably 50
people that saw them and it didn't get
out at all until they publicly went out
with it. So, it just shows You were
golfing with Colin Jost? Yeah. And at a
place where we play We have mutual
friends that set the game up together.
Wait a second. So, when I asked you
who's the most important person you
golfed Can't say important. He's very
So, what did you guys talk about? Did
you talk about anything? I mean, I I
asked him about what it's like to be a
head writer of SNL and like how much
preparation it is.
He you just really He told me hysterical
stories that you know, how he pranks
you know, Michael Che who's on on on it
with him. Some crazy stories. So, did
you golf together with him?
Yeah. So, he saw you golf He saw you
swing and saw you play?
Yeah, we played together.
Did he Did he Was he impressed? Did he
comment? Nobody Nobody cares. Oh, they
don't care. The thing is you have a
handicap. So, everybody sort of knows
what your level is. You can't be a 10
handicap, which is okay, and then all of
a sudden shoot par. Right. Not That
means you're cheating. Right. So, you
know in advance of how good someone is.
So, anybody can play with anybody. It
doesn't really matter because you just
apply the right handicap.
you can compete with anybody cuz you're
not playing against each other. Right.
Wow. Yeah. I I'm still blown away by
this Scarlett Johansson thing. This is
amazing. I don't think I've ever met a
real celebrity. My sister has a knack
for meeting celebrities and she has the
pictures to prove it. Whenever she meets
someone, she always takes a picture.
Taylor Swift, Britney Spears. She was in
an elevator with Will Ferrell, with with
Paula Abdul. Like she has like a like a
Somehow she bumps into them all over the
place. But this is a real real
celebrity. You know, we also had a round
with Lissie Schwartz. Oh, stop it. One
day that'll be our biggest celebrity.
I mean, someone's going to watch this
podcast in 10 years from now.
Well, we'll see. We'll look back
What am I missing? He's saying in 10
years you'll look back and say, "Ron,
you had a podcast with Lissie Schwartz."
There's no question that Scarlett
Johansson is the real deal. This is like
Did you Did you play golf with That was
better than the whole golf day. Demi
Moore. Yeah? Very.
She was nice, also? Very nice. Do you
have cell numbers? Do you have Colin's
cell number? Did you even ask for it?
No. Ah, no. Colin's number? No, you got
to play cool. Come on. Interesting.
Okay. All right. I'm glad I asked that
question, by the way. Otherwise, I don't
know if I would have heard the story.
That's See, if you would have at least
let us speak about golf, you would have
heard this story.
Let me finish the questions. All right.
Question
four. Mayor, what was the most holes you
played of golf in one day?
72. Wow. Yeah. Is that even possible?
Yes. So, we played 18 18 holes in one
round. We played four different rounds.
Al and I did this, of course. Four
different rounds, four different courses
on the same day in North Carolina. We
took a trip and we teed off about 7:35
and we played the first round in about 2
hours and 45 minutes and we played the
next round in about 3 hours, then the
next one in 2 hours, and then about 3
hours. Nice 14-hour day, 72 holes.
And then you died. No, then we were back
out for 54 holes the next day.
Oh, yeah.
We played about 160-something
holes in 3 days. And we flew down
Sunday, played two rounds, played four
rounds Monday, three rounds Tuesday, and
flew back Tuesday night. You kidding me.
This is July July Hold on. This is July
This is July 4th weekend in North
Carolina. It was 95° and 90% humidity.
The one thing that was unexpected was
our hands were just throbbing because
the humidity, I guess, just
was made holding the club and swinging
the club like impossible. You know, a
big part of me is very envious of you
guys. You should be.
Very jealous because I don't know if I
have a passion for any as much as you
have the devotion, the dedication that
you have to this sport. To play that
kind of volume
straight through for So, you went on a
binge. You went on a three-day binge.
We were We're very proud of this 72 we
did. We're playing the other day with a
guy
and he goes we do this thing called the
summer solstice where I guess somewhere
around June 21st or whenever it is where
it's the longest day of summer. He goes,
"Oh, yeah. We play from sunup to
sundown." He had 201 holes in one day,
which is comes out to 18 It was like 11
rounds? No, 11 rounds? 11 rounds? 11
rounds? Is it 11 or 11 rounds?
That's insane. Can you even physically
like swing that many times without so
sore that you can't lift the club? They
were right.
We play legitimate golf and we could
have played nine more holes that day.
Yeah. We didn't play at our own course
where people let us play through. We
played four different courses, which is
nearly impossible. You drove from course
to course to course. And we didn't have
the intention to do this. As we finished
one, we're like, "All right. Let's do
another one." The higher the Let's keep
going. Absolutely. We almost played nine
more holes. We had a little more time.
Mad respect. Wow, unbelievable. It was a
lot of fun. By the way, when I made this
question, I would like think to myself,
"What would the answer be?" I was
thinking I'd probably like, I don't
know, 36 holes,
52, 72, something like that.
The next 100 guys you have you're asking
them how many holes they played, the max
you'll get is 36.
36, right? That would be a lot. You
played twice.
the highlight It was It's the best golf
trip ever. It was You guys have a lot of
stamina. A lot of endurance.
It's amazing. Okay. Cool. All right.
Next question.
Crazy thing was I shot 81 all four
rounds. Like The same score?
Same score. Different courses. Same
score. It's the weirdest thing. What did
you What did you shoot that day? I don't
know. The best one, you don't remember?
You remember every single score that you
get every game that you play? No, no.
But when you play a course for the one
time, let's say you talked about
Maidstone, I I almost remember every
shot I had or every hole, same with
Atlantic or the courses I played once
that I really enjoyed or I took a trip.
You know, trips are special because when
we do trips, it's like all golf. Like
most people do a trip and then they're
doing darts or fishing, whatever. It's
like God, it's got to be golf all day.
Wow.
only way it's worth it.
Not only that, other because we keep
kosher,
a lot of people, you know, their trips
revolve around food. Like where we
going? Where can we be food?
Mayor has shakes and that's all he eats
and maybe like a couple bars and I'm
just eating bars and cereal and granola,
maybe maybe we'll have like some
pastrami, but there's barely any food.
We're just
running on fumes. So you're traveling
all over the country throughout the year
playing at different courses.
year.
One or two trips a year. What do What do
you typically do?
I'll bring some cold cuts or we'll just
have bars, beef jerky and bars and and
that's it. All right, next question is
Al, this is for you. Okay, what's your
preferred brand in golf?
What's your preferred go-to brand?
What's your favorite brand? Apparel or
club or what? Apparel, yeah. That's like
asking
to teach the Torah on one leg.
Is it really? Is that There's so many
brands in in in golf? Well,
if there's so much depth
It's like going to Fino and there's
different materials. You're not going to
only get Style Biella. There's other
ones, right?
I already regret this question. Let's
forget it. This sounds too complicated.
Your golf you think is like a sport,
it's
almost a religion.
And so you're asking questions that have
lots of layers. Go on, if I can.
Go ahead. Lend belts.
Lend belts is the answer. What is Lend
belts? Anybody can look it up, Lend
belts. Oh God.
Lend belts?
Yes. And they make everything, they make
belts? Just belts?
Belts, wallets, Do the professionals on
tour wear Lend belts? Very few. What's
so good about Lend belts? What what Just
beautiful. Okay, most expensive golf
equipment or gear that you own. It could
be a club, it could be a pair of shoes,
whatever it is. And what's the price?
Lend belts, $14.95. That's what one belt
costs? That's like a small mortgage.
Yes, it's expensive. Wow. Yes. And it's
the brand No, no, no, no. To be honest,
I mean, the material is only so much
money.
that we've played with anyone ever wear
a person. Two guys. We both have a
bunch, but uh
We got them when they were when they
were cheaper. That's the most expensive
thing that you own? No, I have something
that's much more. Okay. Oh, she's like
companies right now listening to the
podcast going, "Oh my gosh, they're the
two guys that bought our belts?"
Exactly.
You built their business for them.
Okay, uh where is your bucket list golf
destination that you haven't gone to yet
that you just you have to get there
before before you die? There's three
There's
two, three answers. Okay. So, the one
that's very attainable that hopefully
will happen within the next year is
Shinnecock.
What? You want to say that again? It's
called Shinnecock Golf Club. Where is
it? It's in South Shinnecock Hills. It's
called Shinnecock Hills. It's in
Southampton.
It's where they host the US Open.
Really? Yeah, it's it's a legendary
place. It's supposed to be I've never
been there.
going there? Tell me. It's very
difficult to get an invite. So it's
difficult to get in. So there are people
that have memberships there and they
have to invite Like Bloomberg is a
member there. It's very elite.
place, super elite. So all the high-end
people have Like I wouldn't say that
there's Is it expensive? Exclusive, they
host like the US Open for golf every six
to 10 years and that generates like I
don't know what it is, 10 bucks, eight
eight million dollars.
you gone to watch the No, it's very
difficult to get there. To go watch a
tournament, to buy a ticket? No, no, no,
that's easy. But to get out there,
there's one road in, one road out and
it's very difficult. Is it going to
happen now? Are you going to Oh,
absolutely, 100%. Always try to bring
Mayor.
Uh so far it's worked out, but But
that's your bucket list. No, that's 1A
and then one is Augusta National. Which
is where they play the Masters. Nice.
In Augusta, Georgia. I didn't know
Augusta's in Georgia. I wasn't aware
about it. It's in Georgia. Is that hard
to get into or is there something you're
not Yes. It's also hard to get there.
That's the hardest.
The hardest? The hardest. Wow. What's
your plan? How are you going to do it?
I have ways. Okay, okay. Mayor, what's
your It hasn't worked yet.
The bucket list is the same place as him
or do you have your own
So, let me just give a little background
to There's There are private courses
where people are members and then in
order for you to join, you either got to
become a member which may be impossible,
it may be hundreds of years a wait list
or you need to be somebody. We have a
friend, a guy that we know that is a
member at our club, which is Manhattan
Woods, who's very wealthy and he wanted
to join Augusta. He's worth it well into
the billions and he was turned down. So
it's not a money thing because he's only
a great golfer or whatever it is, but
there when you ask the question, I sort
of understood it as what's a place that
we can go. There are many destination
places that are public that are
beautiful. Some of the top courses in
the world are public. You just need to
be able to get a tee time and you pay
three, four hundred dollars or whatever
it costs, but there are private places
like Shinnecock or Augusta and there
it's not about money, it's about who you
if you know somebody. YSV, it's like big
YSV. Who do you know? Who's on the
board? It's YSV, it's like getting into
the Pentagon. Imagine YSV. Right now
there's a thousand kids in YSV, imagine
that you had a YSV, every class had 10
kids and you had the size of the
community that we're in trying to get
into YSV with 10 kids per class.
It'd be very difficult. What type of
class would that be?
maybe two kids per class. Wow,
interesting. Okay. All right, so then
you need to know a member and you need
the member to have you take him. Now you
have to realize that every guy that this
member knows that plays golf wants him
to take him there. It's annoying. He's
like, "Stop asking me. I got the next
hundred guys already asking me."
Then this the clubs make rules. Like
Shinnecock has a rule that you can only
bring six guests a month. That means a
typical round of golf is with four
people, so the host and three guests and
you can do it twice a month
in the summer because they don't want
all these guests there. The members want
to play themselves. I don't want guests
in my club all day. But it's difficult
to get on. It's not about money, it's
about who you know.
I hope you take a lot of pictures when
you finally get there. But the number
one course in the world is actually in
New Jersey. It's called Pine Valley.
What makes it the number one course in
the world? We have never played it.
Well, how does it get ranked? What's it
predicated on?
There the land is just the way that's
very private.
Is it the most expensive?
No, no, none of these have to do So it's
also the most coveted? It's not on the
ocean like Shinnecock's not on the
ocean. Shinnecock is right next to water
and it's you can't see any water. There
are other two other courses right next
to it that are on the water, which is
more beautiful,
um but it's something about it is
supposedly unbelievable. Wow. Um the
rolling land. You want rolling land, not
flat. You don't want mountainous, you
want
Right, because you do a lot of walking,
so you want it to be easy on the legs.
Okay.
What is your biggest pet peeve about
other golf players? This is a great
question.
pet peeve, like what annoys you? What
irks you when you're golfing with
someone or even if you're not golfing
with them, but things that people do
that really annoys you. I'll go first.
I'm going to go first.
No, no, you only get to pick one. One
big Nothing bothers you, Al?
It's true. I try not to let anything
bother me. But if we're having
We're having that kind of day, what
would you
Playing slowly.
But
that's like not proper etiquette to play
slowly. Isn't that like I'm not a golfer
and I know that it's not proper to hold
up the Yeah, but does the guy driving 50
in the left lane know he's going slow or
he just thinks it's like that's normal?
So you're saying they're delusional
about it? Like they don't even realize.
Now, would you say something to someone
that you know, when you see that
happening? It depends.
Because you know me, I don't have it in
me not to say something. When I see
somebody doing something that irks me
and this is a big problem I have and it
gets me into a lot of trouble, but I
have to say something. I feel like it's
my duty to say something. If I don't say
something, who will say something and
then they'll never know. I'm almost
doing the person a favor by saying
something. You don't do the same thing?
No. So you just keep it quiet and you
suffer? No, and that'll be the last time
I play with them. Oh, so you're saying
slow people that play with you. Oh, yes.
I thought you were talking about people
that in front of you are playing slowly.
Then I'll whistle.
Then you would say something.
Oh, yeah, yeah. But let them know that
I'm watching and you're out of line.
Pick it up. Oh, but guys that play with
you and you're not going to play with
them again. I'll try to gently, you
know, prod people along. Like, you know,
all right, we got to pick up here and
keep moving. How people are playing No,
no, no, no. They want to make sure
they're hitting their best shot and Some
people are slow, some people are fast.
Being good or bad has nothing to do with
it. Okay.
You could be the worst player in the
world and play fast and you could be the
best player and play slow. Okay, yeah.
What's your biggest pet peeve? And
Mayor, you got to stick to one, you
know, It's one pet peeve, really.
And many people have that do this, but
it's pretty much making noise and moving
while one is about to hit. It's
something I need to work on and get
better at.
But I feel like that's something that's
very commonly understood. It's when a
player is hitting, it's not just in
golf, in any sport. When a tennis player
is serving, Right. right? You you can't
make noise at that moment. Like that's
very normal. There's all there's all
these stories about Tiger Woods when he
was growing up and his father would drop
keys or make noises in his backswing to
try to strengthen his mental game, which
I'm sure helped him. There are videos of
him stopping his back, you know, in
middle of his swing before hitting balls
and the announcer saying like, "How
could he possibly do that?" or whatever.
But yeah, that kind of thing bothers me,
but usually what I believe happens is
the people that do it don't are not
bothered by that. So they don't see
peripherally. Like I notice a lot of
movement or sound. Is that
No. Did I move while you're hitting? No,
no. No, okay. Mayor, you're talking
about like the person that's playing
with you. Caddies that carry your clubs.
Once in a while you'll play with, you
know, a random caddy at another course
and the guy will just start walking
while you're hitting and I see it. And
what happens is I take my mind sort of
wanders to him, which it shouldn't. It
should stick with my plan of what I'm
trying to do when I hit the ball and all
of a sudden I'm thinking about that and
I hit a bad shot and and it just ruins
my whole round.
Mayor, I got to tell you, you're
triggering something for me right now.
I'm sure I am. You really are triggering
something for me right now because I
have a story with you. And so, for those
that don't know, you're a master ba'al
koreh. Okay, so for those non-Hebrew
speaking folks, a ba'al koreh is
somebody who reads the Torah every
single week in a synagogue.
You know, you have to have a
professional that does it because the
words and the tune that it goes in is
not just plainly written and it has to
be done by someone who's practiced and
knows what they're doing and you're one
of those guys. And I have to say, you do
a phenomenal job. I think our synagogue
particularly is very fortunate that we
have someone that knows how to do it
well because a lot of synagogues have
people that aren't that great and it's
hard to listen to sometimes but you're
very easy to listen to. And we've had
people who've come to our shul and have
spent shabbos by us and heard you and
said the same thing. Like we get always
good feedback from people saying,
"You're a ba'al koreh who knows what
he's doing." He's So, we're very
fortunate. But, and I want to dial this
back like, I don't know, 3 4 years ago,
4 5 years ago. I think today, Mayer,
you're a different person in a lot of
ways than you used to be. But, I
remember a story that happened where I
was just kind of minding my own business
and you were laining, you were doing
your thing.
Correct. And I fidgeted the wrong way or
I did something and you stopped.
You stopped dead in your tracks and you
gave me a look and everybody stopped
with you because as soon as the ba'al
koreh stops, the whole shul is like,
"What's going on? What's happening?" And
it became a scene, a very dramatic scene
unfolded right in front of But, you
stopped and you looked at me. It was for
not a long time, it was for a few
seconds but that's all it took. When
that happened,
it was a shocking moment. And it's a
perfect Because it bothered you because
somebody made a movement while you were
performing your your art. You were doing
your art and somebody somebody
interfered with that and when you're
saying this about golf, that's your pet
peeve, it makes perfect sense. Like,
it's very in line. I have to concentrate
in both I've grown. I'm a much stronger.
I don't have to prepare to the same
extent and I don't have to concentrate
as much. So, things moving around making
noises doesn't bother you as much. But,
in golf it's very much like that. I need
to
be able to focus on what I'm trying to
do and if whatever reason something
takes me away from that ability to
focus, I lose it. And it doesn't always
get me. Sometimes I don't notice it. You
know, sometimes I will say like, "Hey,
did I get you?" Meaning like, "Did he do
something I I didn't notice?" But, there
are certain people that have no idea
what's going on. I I literally They're
almost obnoxious about it.
That's not nice. What is a guy in a
four-lane highway doing on the left lane
going 55? That's my pet peeve.
It's very selfish. It's very
self-centered. It's like the world is
your is your ashtray. It's like, "I'm
going to drive in the left lane at my
own, you know, pace, my own speed and
forget about the people that are behind
me." It's like that's very selfish.
But, you would not have done this 6
months ago. If I would did that same
motion whatever I did 4 5 years ago, you
would not have done that today. Now, I'm
curious what By the way, big change,
you're you're one of the more
well-tempered people that I know today.
It's hard to get a rise out of you. You
don't really get upset. But, back in the
day, you weren't, you know, that's
awesome, not you weren't getting upset
by it but you were very
passive-aggressive about it. Today,
you're in control. Like, you're a
different person. I'm curious,
in life, like what was that trigger for
you? What was that point What happened?
Maybe it wasn't one particular thing
that happened, a series of events.
What was it that changed that brought
you to this calm place, this confident
place that you're in today, that you're
exuding this, you know, you have it all
together? And at one point it wasn't
like that. You were rigid, you were
tough. You had to walk on eggshells
around you almost.
You know, so what what was it? Walk us
through that. It was a definitely a mix
of a few things. Uh first of all, I want
to say that I'm not like that in golf. I
wish I had that capability in golf.
Everyone who plays golf with me sort of
feels that way, the way you're
describing the on egg walking on
eggshells kind of thing.
It's uh if I can conquer that, you know,
so I don't have all the answers. He
doesn't play golf. I just want you to
know that. He's not perfect. No, no, he
he's retired. Oh, he's retired. He has
he's quit he has not he's quit golf.
He's saying Mayer has quit golf.
He doesn't play golf. He only plays
pickleball now. This is permanent.
That's how you know the love is real.
He's fighting with golf right now. He's
having an argument. But, he'll he'll go
right back. We're not worried.
But, you were saying I I always threaten
to to quit golf and I threaten he quits.
I I've quit. I quit, I'm retired. I'm
going to tell Al Al doesn't even know
this. So, I quit golf like a week ago
cuz I had a rough round and I'm like,
"Why am I doing this to myself?"
It's not cuz he had a rough round. But,
that day that I quit, I booked a lesson
for a few weeks later. I was just going
to like I figured I'll take
off of Jason. Okay. Um but, he wasn't
available. He asked me about you, you
know. He wasn't available. You could you
could read my message with him.
Um but, so I I always threaten to quit
golf because as you know and as you've
pointed out, I like to do things well or
at least to the best of my ability. I've
gotten really good at golf. I've gotten
a lot better but I'm just not at the
level that I want to be at and it kills
me. So, similar to the way I used to
lane and the way you described that that
instance where I
laser focused I lasered at you and I
took a break and whatever it was, I
don't have the I haven't conquered that
mental aspect of golf. But, to answer
your question,
what changed? I'd say a couple things,
you know, I wasn't at the place I wanted
to be in business and I think that
really changed my mindset. You know, it
really changed the way I feel about
things. I think the confidence is there
but I need to still get better at golf
with that. You know, it's very true.
People don't give enough credence to how
they look externally which makes them
feel internally. I have a friend
um he's been overweight his whole life.
His whole life.
And I know how deeply it bothers him.
When he shares that with me, we're very
close, he tells me about it. But, it
goes even further than what he actually
vocalizes to me. I know how it And all
he does is he builds his entire day
around how he's going to lose weight
because to him that's the most important
thing.
And outside looking in, he has a lot of
amazing things. He's a really quality
person. He has a lot of good going for
him. But, this is one area that he
really struggles with and it really
hurts your confidence. It really does.
And that's why when people are
overweight, they'll go through drastic
measures to try and lose weight. Like,
they'll go through surgery. I mean,
they'll cut themselves open in order to
And And it's not just, you know,
somebody being shallow. You know, it's a
real thing. We as humans, we really do
internalize how we look externally. It's
important to us and I can respect that.
Now, you did Even even when you're
successful financially, nobody I mean,
very few people go and show their bank
statements or how much they're making.
It's an internal feeling. Yeah. At the
end of the day, your feeling of success,
same with laining like nobody's judging.
Nobody cared if I made a mistake or if I
lained at a certain speed. Nobody said
anything. It's my own internal value,
you know, evaluation of what I did. Same
with everything in life. Like, I don't
know, for me some people
you know, have social media and they're
all about like what others think. For
me, it's about what I think. I can't
trick myself. I know if I'm doing well
as a husband or as a father or in
business or in golf. I don't care if
somebody says good shot or not. I know
if it was a good shot. It's all I care
about is what I think. It sounds like
you really hold yourself accountable.
Yes. It's a blessing and a curse. And
you're sure they don't correct you?
Like, never happens? No, nobody would
dare, Al.
Nobody would dare. There's one guy who
likes trash-talking.
I would like to think I don't make many
mistakes. The last one was a achicha.
Um could be. Usually when I make a
mistake, I underline it
so I know for the next year. On this
you're again you're just I'm sorry that
we're spiraling here. I didn't even get
to question number 10 yet but
um you mentioned something that really
hit home with me a little bit. And I'm
sorry, I'm getting a little personal
right now.
I I apologize in advance but
um I started seeing a therapist like, I
don't know, 3 4 months ago.
And it's not just a therapist, it's like
a rabbi therapist. So, it's like coming
from a spiritual place but also from a
from a real, you know, therapy place as
well, like a licensed therapist as well.
And one of the things that I've been
learning
is about giving yourself a pass, not
being so harsh on yourself, not being a
critic and you know, not feeling like
you're not good enough and you can do
better and always trying to chase
something more. Sometimes it's okay to
say, "You know what? I actually did a
great job. I'm actually putting in the
effort, I'm putting in the time
and I think it's very important and kind
of what you what you were saying, you
know, that you really do hold yourself
to a high pedigree and to a very very
high degree and you're, you know,
anything less than reaching 100% of it
to you seems like it's a failure. It's
like it's all or nothing. It's black or
white and there's a lot of people like
that that hold themselves to a very very
high regard. I can't live that way. For
me, I have to accept that it's not going
to be perfect and you know what? I want
to actually give myself not just a pass
but compliment myself that you got to
70%. You got to 75%. You know, if your
kid comes home and has a test score and
shows you a 82, you have two things you
can do. You can either say, "82, where'd
you go wrong?" You know, you can focus
on that or you can say, "Wow, 82, that's
a high score. That's amazing. Let me see
the questions that you got right." Does
that resonate with what I'm saying?
Yeah, so I would never say anything to
my kid if he got 82. Like,
he did his best, that's great. He always
try his best as best you can, that's
what I think. I think I should be easier
on myself but I just have never been
able to figure out how.
And what's interesting about golf is
I've gotten better. Like, just about
every year I've gotten better by playing
with Al the last few years many times a
week. He's a phenomenal player, way
better than I am. I've gotten better.
The problem is once you shoot 70, I
believe I should shoot 70 every time.
You know what you're capable of
yourself. Once you taste it, you know,
it's hard to go back, right? Once you
fly first class, it's hard to go back.
Once you fly private, it's hard to go
back. It's hard to sit in the back in
the middle seat in Spirit after you fly
private, right? It's just a hard thing
to do. Yeah. If you can give yourself a
pass and just say, "Hey, my goal is to
get there." It's just a destination
thing, big deal. But, most people can't
do that. I I can't do it. Yeah. By the
way, not for nothing, but you know,
talking about therapy here.
I I I'm Al, I'm going to address this to
you. Okay, therapy has been like
stigmatized at least in our community.
It's been stigmatized as something
negative, right? If there's something
wrong, then you have to go to therapy.
If there's something really good, you
should go to therapy in my opinion. You
don't want to get too high, you don't
want to get too low. When I got married,
my wife pushed me to do therapy very
early on in the beginning. Mhm. For
building tools, prevention. You know,
why wait till there's a problem and then
do treatment? Why not give yourself a
good chance of succeeding by getting
those tools up front? And in our
community, you know, therapy is like,
whatever. Okay, oh, that person is
problems. You see the therapist? Oh, I
wonder what their problems are. Like,
it's looked down upon. What a shame
because therapy can be really
enlightening. It can be very helpful
and, you know, turn people's lives
around and for for the better, you know?
So, what's your take on on therapy? And
specifically, I'm curious, specifically
with therapy
for children.
Meaning Oh, I'm all
at an early age and Sasha, like, what's
your take on that? What do you feel
about about So, I have four kids. One
one son goes to therapy every single
week.
And I don't know what type of therapy
you're referring to, but I actually have
other kids that go to other types of
speech or reading therapy and I consider
a golf lesson therapy. Any kind of
opportunity you have to get better, to
have someone kind of give you input on
what you're doing is therapy and I think
that my wife is my therapist. I think
she's
very highly qualified to be my therapist
for, you know, at least what I'm willing
to share, which is most things. I'm a
pretty simple person. No complications
here.
What about therapy? By the way, you're
opening my eyes because I'm using the
word therapy in a very specific way, but
you're expanding.
Right. Anything that helps you improve.
Yeah, therapy has to be something that I
guess provides provides calmness that
you can now think rationally and that
you can now learn from and then you can
grow to make better decisions in the
future. Right? I would say something to
that effect. I think
to therapize is I don't know, therapy is
a is a remedy for something. I think
Right. is is a
But you're talking about therapy from
like a mental health perspective.
Absolutely. I I I happen to think that
therapy searching back in one's
childhood, which is where everything
starts, and whether we realize it or
not, it manifests itself in a lot of
ways later on in your in your I happen
to be a big fan of it. Here at
PrimeSource in general, you know, all of
us we're very we actually bring in a
rabbi
who comes in once a month in our company
and does I don't want to call it a
speech cuz that's not what it's very
engaging, but it's really meant just to
talk about how to be better people, how
to grow personally, how to be more
motivated, how to wake up and feeling
better about yourself, how to not be
your harshest critic. Like, things like
that, those are topics. And then we
offer the employees a chance to also
talk one-on-one with this person if they
want to and continue the conversation
cuz we encourage that. We feel like if
people are feeling better about
themselves, they'll be more productive
and it'll serve us all. Every it has a
big effect on people around you when
you're not your best version. Your kids,
your wife, your friends, everybody
suffers when someone is not feeling
well. And And I want to tell you,
I was just talking to someone.
This was shocking to me. I was just
talking to someone and they were telling
me that they don't feel connected to our
community, to the people, to the
neighbors, to the They don't feel
connected and they don't they don't feel
like they're a part of it. I'm like,
what?
You're not What are you talking about?
You're you're very part of like from
what I see. It just shows us how little
we know.
And it shows how how how blind we are,
right? And what's happening is that the
people in his life immediately are
probably being affected by it because
that person I think we owe it not to
ourselves.
We owe it to the people around us to be
the best versions that you can be. And I
think my wife was very astute when she
brought it up in the beginning is, let's
try to set ourselves up for success.
Let's give ourselves a chance, a
fighting chance. But in our community,
unfortunately, it's been stigmatized. I
think getting tuned in with yourself,
get in touch with what happened in your
lives and what triggered certain things
and learn more about yourself. I think
it's a beautiful thing. There's nothing
to be ashamed of. And we've taught I was
taught when I was younger and we we
perpetuate it sometimes is you have to
be a little bit ashamed of it. Keep
things under the rug and no, that's not
how you get better. That's actually how
you escalate, that's how it festers, and
that's how it become I'm very I'm very
passionate about this because I think
that, you know, I've seen people around
me and it's a big deal. It makes a big
change and we should embrace it. We
should embrace it more. So, that's why
I'd like to ask you, you know, what are
your thoughts about it? I think for our
kids, but I think schools
should institute this. Gym class,
there's math class,
therapy class.
Therapy class with one-on-ones,
one-on-ones with the kids, just to
check-ins, just, you know, I'm saying
the parents should individually deal
with it. I mean, the school is very
that'd be very difficult. That's not
what I'm talking about. I'm talking
about a class where they actually teach
them, how do you deal with anger when
anger arises? Like, what's, you know,
why is it important, you know, not to be
addicted to things? And I I
just just basic things to start the
conversation.
Yeah, exactly.
When we get older is when we start
working on ourselves.
I think therapy is a great thing. I
think therapy at that the way I
understand therapy is to better me
yourself.
Yeah.
Like, I actually think this podcast is
therapeutic. Mhm. How often do we sit I
mean, I don't go to therapy, but I would
go if I thought it would better if it
would do something for me. Sometimes
you're not sure who the right person to
go to is and things like that.
challenge. If somebody could, you know,
comment about a good therapist to help
me with my golf issues, I'm great. I I
would do it. That's where your problems
lie in your golf game? Everything else
is swimmingly doing okay?
Golf is a metaphor for life. Golf is
like life. How often does one sit down
and and get posed questions that you
respond to and you bring out things you
don't even know you weren't think we
weren't plan. I didn't see any of these
questions.
Yeah. Yeah. Right? And it's therapeutic.
Yeah. By the way, I now we're talking a
lot It keeps circling back to golf. It's
I feel like I'm back at Kiddush with you
guys. It goes back to golf. So, let me
let me circle to actually one of the
questions that's relevant for this, but
it kind of opens up the door.
in Augusta, I mean, with my mansion
Okay, I think there's a question a lot
of people want to know.
And this is probably also good pointers
for people that have the desire to play
golf as often as you guys do because
let's face it, you guys play golf a lot.
I'm talking about it really covers a
bulk of your day. You're busy, you know,
with with golf. But how did you get your
significant others to sort of
participate and really enable this type
of of of life that you have Do they have
any I think most people couldn't get
away with it. Now, I get it. You're both
very good and it's for the greater good
and all, but let's be realistic. There's
got to be a line in the sand somewhere.
I feel like you're crossing that line
many times, but it's still going, you're
still doing it. What's the secret?
What's the secret? How do you do this?
Mayor, I'm going to start with you.
You're not going to love answer, but she
just I I I didn't do anything. I don't
coax her into it. I she just even today,
which Al mentioned I've been on break
for a week and she's like, why don't you
go play? She's just a really sweet
person. I don't know. She knows I like
it.
She knows I enjoy it and um
she wants me to be happy. I don't know.
It's pretty lame. It's not You might
want to edit that out. Really, I can't
even get you subscribers for that. Okay,
I'm going to go out on a limb here and
say I don't believe you. I believe that
there is some type of arrangement.
There's something that you're that
you're holding back in us, but Al, I'm
going to turn it to you. I'm going to
turn to and ask you like how do you How
do you balance it out? What do you have
to give up? What else are you giving up
that makes up for, you know, your
lavish, exquisite lifestyle?
Well, well, that's heavy. Yeah.
Yeah. The fact that
Mayor's wife allows him, so she can't,
you know, competition. Like, if Mayor's
wife lets him, of course my wife has to
allow so she has to keep up, so
I know that marriages have been like
broken up over over golf. I know two or
three people intimately that that
literally would go to the golf course,
change into their golf clothes, play
golf, change back into their whatever
clothes and go back home and not be able
to tell their wives. I think
We recently played with two random guys,
two different guys, two different times
and both had a similar story. Hey, I
just had my first kid, so I've only been
able to play like once a week now
situation? Are you guys married? Yeah,
we're married. You have kids? Yeah, four
four kids? You both have four kids? And
they're wide-eyed. They can't they can't
believe it. They can't play because they
have one kid, you know, except for maybe
once a week, you know, we can't even
play on Shabbos, otherwise we'd be
playing. So, You don't see guys like you
on the course a lot. Either the older
people that are, you know, they already
have grandkids, you know, they have the
time, they're retired. And you guys are
in the prime of your life Yes. and
you're really having the luxury of doing
what I'm very happy for you. Don't get
me wrong. I'm very happy for you, but I
mean, you guys recognize that it's, you
know, an anomaly. It's not very common.
Um it's a good, you know, like
I always think to myself, like these are
the best years of my life and I've been
thinking that since I'm 10 years old.
That's literally how I wake up every day
and I think to myself, these are the
best years of my life. Live as well as
you can.
Enjoy every day and I've repeatedly told
my wife every single year, you know,
like our kids are young, little kids,
little problems. These are the best
years, you know, like we're young we and
as we got older, you know, our kids are
still and now I have a teenager. I have
a 15-year-old. He's an excellent kid.
12. For sure. Well, good for you. I'm
happy for you. But you know, it's I
can't answer it. Sometimes it's just
I don't want to call it luck or
or it's just a blessing. Okay, cool. I
guess. So, I have a question I'm very
curious about. I actually know this is a
thing, but I don't know how it actually
works.
When it comes to a business deal that
you're chasing after and you you agree
to go out to the course and you go with
the client and whatever it might be,
right? There's an etiquette I imagine. I
think there's an etiquette of how you
approach that first question or that
first time you bring up when it comes to
the business part of it. Let's face it.
If I would go to the course with
someone, I'm going strictly because I I
want to get to do business with them. I
don't care about golf. I'm not
interested in golf. For me, it's
tedious. I just want to get through with
the golf. That's all it is. I don't even
know at what point am I supposed to talk
about business between holes, in the
club, at the very end when you
everybody's going to drink, before in
the driveway and get it out of the way
and then go I'm not sure how it works.
What is the policy protocol? What
guidelines can you give when it comes to
What's your best chances of getting a
solid deal done and doing it in a
professional way? What's the etiquette
when it comes to business? How does it
work?
And I generally don't know, so I'm
asking.
I'll answer cuz Mayor's never done
anything business related on the golf
course.
I would say like this. I think in
business
if you're looking at simply as
transactional as like I'm trying to sell
something to you and you're trying to
buy something from me.
It's really a low level of business when
it's uh simply you know, you're going to
the cash register and you're giving
someone money for
whatever goods you sell. I think when
you get to a slightly higher level of
business, you're you're really dealing
with relationships.
And that's really what golf is. Golf
allows you like this. We're sitting here
talking about you know, we're sitting
here for 4 hours, 2 hours talking to
each other where we normally won't do
this. Golf affords you the ability to
walk around for 4 hours together
with no distractions, to speak to each
other, to learn about their families,
learn about the person, see how they
carry themselves, how they manage
themselves around the golf course. They
could be good, they could be bad. Like
the quality of their golf doesn't
matter. Although I do believe that
the better golfer
kind of
makes people believe that if you're
competent in one area, you're probably
competent in another area.
But that may or may not be true.
But I think that overall, it's about
creating relationships.
And when you know the person,
usually
you kind of understand how they'll react
in business and how they'll treat you in
business. And people want to work with
people that they like. And
Yeah. And and that's what it comes down
to. I don't do I haven't done any deals
on the golf course. So but I will say
the one thing I think you could learn
about a person on the course is there
are guys who cheat a little bit. I'm not
saying they're trying to trick you, but
they fluff their ball up a little bit.
In other words, if you hit the ball into
the rough, which is the thicker grass,
they might move it a little bit, which
makes a gigantic difference. Or they
might move it a little bit in the
fairway or clean their ball a little bit
or whatever it is. And sometimes they
like will move it around. I found the
ball behind the tree. Like there are
little small things that people do that
most people don't really care much
about. And I believe that that shows you
what they're about in life, too. Meaning
they're if they're one who bends the
truth a little bit, um that's somebody I
would never want to partner with. That's
not what I'm about at all. If anything,
I would make sure to hit the ball with
in a situation where Al might say to me,
"Mayor, listen, that was a crazy
situation. Like you can move that. I
don't want you to get injured. There's a
root there or something like that." I'm
still going to hit it. Right? That's the
only thing I'm going to add to this, but
They believe that they believe that a
the lie is true or that it's it's it's
fair to
Cuz isn't there a code of conduct in
golf? We're playing for fun. If we're
just playing for fun, like why why hurt
yourself?
I think
like if when I'm playing with my son and
I want him to learn the game and there's
a situation that's rare or difficult
that is not going to gain he's not going
to gain anything from it. I'm going to
say, "Listen, just move the ball a
little bit. We're practicing here. We're
learning."
But that's a mutual understanding.
We're talking about like in a situation
where you're playing for money or you're
in a tournament. It's the stakes are
higher.
You know, you see someone kind of go
wander off and go, "Oh, found the ball."
And like or the guy could be like, "All
right, I'm dropping the ball here." And
fine, he says I'm dropping the ball here
and
the funniest thing is when you finish a
hole, some people will say, you know,
one person usually keeps the card with
the score.
And
people will say, "What do you want
there?" As if as if like it's a question
about what you want versus what actually
happened.
What happened? Right. So what do you
want there? Like give me a five. Well,
the guy made an eight. Oh, that's good.
You know? So like two people can keep a
scorecard and you'll have vastly
different scores at the end of the day.
Interesting. But that
it's a study in human nature. It's a
study in people's self-confidence,
self-worth, how they view themselves. Uh
some people feel like they're they
shouldn't score a certain way. They
should be better than they are. And so
they just can't bring themselves to put
a higher score than uh than and that to
me speaks to someone that either has a
warped sense of reality or at least an
inability to kind of reconcile their own
Yeah. I I asked Lawrence Hajioff, he's a
you know, he's a rabbi and he's very big
into you know, when Messiah comes, you
know, Mashiach when it comes the end of
days what's going to be So I asked him.
I was like, "I was curious. Like what's
going to happen when Mashiach comes and
all the Jews are going to you know,
we're all going to congregate in Israel
or whatever version you know, they say
is going to happen. What happens to the
rest of the world? What happens to the
people that are not Jews? Like where
where do they go? What do they" He said,
"No, no, no, no. They're still going to
be around. Somebody has to buy retail,
you know? Somebody that we we still need
them to be around." But it was
interesting because like you know,
everybody ganders to think what's going
to happen and what's going to be the end
of days. Nobody really knows, you know?
It's people have different perceptions
of what's going to go on. But it's it's
actually a scary thought, you know? Are
you doing a better job raising your kids
than your parents did raising you?
You know,
I I wonder. So I'm the product of my
parents' parenting.
First of all, first of all, I think you
would say that Al is a great guy, right?
And you got to give credit to the
parents. I mean, whether they tried get
him to be this at this point or
whatever. At some point, if a person is
successful and they're a good person,
then
don't you have to give your parents
credit? Of course. Your parents
say that I molded everything myself.
Yeah. Now, we may think that they should
have done things differently,
but they're coming at it from a Al's
parents and my parents come from very
similar situation. Um and we're both the
oldest
uh in the family.
Um but I think we both came out and are
pretty successful. We're we're pillars
of the community. We're good people. I
think our kids think we're good people.
Our wives think we're good people. I
think overall, you just you got to give
credit to your parents.
That's what I would say. Okay, that's a
beautiful thing and uh I'll I'll accept.
Now, let's talk about some of those
things that maybe weren't so great.
Let's talk about some of the things that
maybe we could learn from
and do differently with our kids. Does
anything come to mind when I ask you
like what did you go through
and your siblings go through that you've
learned from and you are make a
conscious effort to do something
differently with your kids?
I don't know that I do anything
consciously differently. It's just that
I am different than my my dad and my
mom. So I don't think I'm trying to do
things differently with my kids. I I
actually think there are a lot of things
I'm I I'm lacking or I I'm flawed in
that my dad would have done better. You
know, like for example, I believe I was
pushed to do things to a certain level.
I didn't always get to that level. I
don't push my kids enough, you know? But
it's just something that's just who I am
and I'm not great at it. But I don't
think that my parents did a bad job. My
dad wanted me to be a certain person. I
think that's fine with that. There are
certain Let's say for example with
athletes, some athletes will talk about
their dad pushing them, pushing them and
they were successful. I'm sure there are
thousands of kids that were pushed that
were never successful that we've never
heard from.
Right? And are broken. I don't think
there's anything wrong. I mean,
at the end of the day, a parent's job is
to make their kid as great as possible.
It's not It's easy to just say, "Here
here, watch a show all day." and take
off and just chill. That's easy. For a
parent to go and work on their kid and
spend time, even if their kid doesn't
like it, I don't think there's anything
wrong with it. I think it's admirable.
Just sometimes kids are hurt by it later
on and they take offense to it. Right.
But everything has balances.
Me? Maybe I'd be a total loser. Mhm.
Mhm. Yeah. Look, I I agree in a certain
way that our parents, the older
generation,
knew what they were doing to some
extent. I mean, a lot of us turned out
okay. And you know, they had their
challenges, they're flawed as well.
They're not perfect people. And they
overall did a good job. I don't think
that you could say fairly one person
does a better job than the other. I
think it's very hard. There's a lot
circumstances that I mean, there are
people that are
neglectful or abusive or Right. And that
happens every generation. I think a
parent's job is to see where their kid
is weak and help them with that, which
is very tough. Yeah. Right? Every Every
family you look at it almost There is
very are very few families that have
every kid is exactly the same.
Everyone's different. And helping a kid
get to be the best they can be is the
job of a parent. At the end of the day,
in my belief is a kid was never asked to
be born. A parent had the kid and it's
the parent's job to make sure that their
kid is the best they can be.
Everyone's given different abilities.
Yeah. Right? Like I can never be the
golfer Al is. Just not really possible.
He's more athletic than I am when it
comes to that. But I can be as good as I
can be and he can be as good as he can
be. Different levels. Yeah. And that's
what a parent's job is if you ask me. I
love that. I love that comparison. Don't
measure up to the next person. Just be
the best version that you can be and
that's what you want your kids to strive
for as well. To be the best version of
themselves and be a support system for
that to get there and be a good resource
for them. All right. So we're running
out of time here slowly, guys. There's
one thing you guys didn't touch on.
Yeah. For sure like let's say
my parents, even myself,
like we didn't have the ability to join
all these leagues, all the sports that
we have That's true. and our kids that
our parents my parents for sure. I'm a
lot older than you guys. Like they
didn't have nothing, you know? Like
Little League like was like a a foreign
thing. I grew up in Muncie. I'm here 42
years. I played in Muncie Little League
when there was one front team and the
other five or six front kids played on
another team. But like there was one
full front team. Lakewood, they're
blasting. You see what's going on in
Lakewood? They have this I think it's
called LBA. And uh it's become a
full-blown business. But actually
they're actually like monetizing by the
way. They're making money this league.
Why do you think any of that is
good for kids? Because what about the
self-confidence that you get? I'm I'm
asking that because I want I want to
hear your opinion on it because I think
it's bad. I No, no. You're I I as a
person I I believe that
for certain people sports allows people
to explore their identity and it's a
microcosm of their own life where they
are many challenges replicate
life challenges, which is why I think
people are so obsessed with golf. I even
athletes that have played football,
basketball, whatever it is, they all
gravitate towards golf when they're
finished with their careers.
And sports in general allows people to
have a a microdose of
intensity
of overcoming challenges
that and have a very clear
direct
result that they can realize. Well,
that's a good thing. Oh, 100% and I
think when we were So what don't you
like? I do. I love I thought you said
you don't like the
ample amounts of leagues that are going
on. Yeah, it's amazing. Because as you
were talking I was like you're kind of
proving my point.
I like you know it's it's amazing for
many reasons but Stephen to answer your
question, the reason you're right. It
was not around when we were kids. I'll
push my kid into every league that
exists. Like if he wants to play, I'm
there. I'll And by the way, I'm backing
it up. I put the effort in. I'll leave
work early if I have to drive at 6:45 at
night which was annoying to go to a
basketball but I do it. Sundays, you
know, I put the time in because I really
think it's actually going to help him in
a lot of ways. So it means something and
it's important. It's I think it's
critical as he grows. Kids today are
they're not playing sports?
Unfortunately, they're not considered
like somewhat cool, you know, and
they're not going to get that confidence
and it's going to be harder for them to
excel. It's going to be much harder for
them. Uh you're speaking from someone
who values sports. I've I've four kids.
I have three boys.
And I'm a
big sports person. I play a lot of
sports. I don't follow sports but I play
a lot of sports. And
one son plays sports, one doesn't, two
don't. They're not so into it. And
you know, they have groups of kids that
just don't play sports and they're not
into it and they're fine. As long as
they develop a healthy
um
I would say humorous personality where
they're not too
they're not I think the key is not to be
angry. Like kids these days seem the
unhealthy ones seem to be a little bit
angry.
If they don't have this feeling at least
maybe towards their parents or towards
their life or school or whatever it is
where they're not angry,
I think they need like adults too. They
need to have love of life. Right? I mean
you love life, right? And you got up
Some days, not every day. You got the
party, you got a fire in you. Like you
need a fire. So some people it's sports
and sports is great but you know what? I
remember playing I still vividly
remember I was 9 10 years old and I was
playing basketball and we had this kid
on my team who was horrible. I mean like
couldn't even dribble. And you know, it
was one of those parents that like
pushed their kid to play and we would
never pass to the kid cuz he was
terrible. And the mother literally
started berating me like for not passing
to the kid. I'm like your kid doesn't
even want to play. He like literally
told me don't pass me the ball. But
you're crazy like the crazy mother. I
still think about this kid. There's no
way this kid's talking to the mother.
Like the mother was It was almost like
she needed it more than he No, she heard
like oh, your kid has to play sports
otherwise they'll you know.
But like
you just got to have a fire. You got to
have a love. Hobbies. Where's the
father? That's That's I don't know.
That's a little bit odd by the way for
like the mother to push. I don't know
that was weird. Hobbies, hobbies. Like
your wives have to have hobbies, your
you have to have hobbies. It's important
to have things you're interested in. If
you have nothing that you like, how
could you enjoy life? Right, right. You
got to have certain hobbies. People
that's total
you know.
I don't know what else is there. Golf.
That's
I don't know. What else do people like
to do? Read. I mean whether it's there's
so many
there's guys who play darts and bowling
and that's what they do every day four
or five days a a week. You just have to
enjoy it. Right. Pick something, find
your lane and and live in it. And find
it and it might change. Like a lot of
think golf is dumb for many years and
they'll never play golf. Like I play
baseball, I play basketball, I play
tennis. And then they start playing golf
and then they can't believe. Like we
have a friend, right, who just started
playing golf. The guy's an absolute
addict. He used to talk golf and say why
are you guys talking about golf? Golf is
so dumb. Right? It's so dumb. And now
Did he say that at one point?
Oh, absolutely. And now he's like why
didn't you guys get me into it 10 years
ago? Like well, we tried. Not like we're
not going to coax you into it.
You're bad people by the way cuz you
know that this person is now going to
inevitably and he's never going to do
anything else. No, they reach
equilibrium. People reach equilibrium.
If they can't have a healthy
relationship with golf, it means they
have an unhealthy relationship with life
and they have an inability to regulate
their own emotions. Can I tell you guys
something that I think the three of us
can take on as a group? Yeah. The three
of us as a little like let's take on a
project to part ourselves.
Because you're right, Mayor. I'm a
decent guy. I have a decent personality.
And I'm saying I'm decent, you know. The
best. I I'm using very humble words.
Yeah, what is your number one skill,
Oishe? Number one skill. Yeah, what
makes like My number one skill.
What makes you good at it? Like in
number one skill? Like you know, in life
wow, that's a very hard question.
I'm very uncomfortable right now. You
know,
what I would think is you make things
happen.
Okay, a doer. A lot of people are doers
but yeah, I'll take I'll I'll label
myself A doer might be told or asked to
do something. You make it. You you
conceive of the idea or even if someone
else has the idea and you make it
happen.
I appreciate those kind words. Thank
you. But I want to go back to what I was
saying. I really think that we should do
something. I could really do more of
this. I think I'm a terrible person cuz
I don't do this enough.
How many people
sit around
not like us that are feeling somewhat in
the background that are feeling somewhat
removed that are feeling somewhat
ignored and they would love to be more
part of things. And what a difference it
would make in someone's life and it
really doesn't cost us a whole lot,
right? We're not spending money on this.
Just a little bit more of a just a
little acknowledgement. A little I'm
terrible at this. I want I I How about
the guy I'm sitting on my hands. I I I'm
a snob that way and and it's really not
nice. And I want to make more of an
effort and I think that the three of us
should should take this on. It's to be
more not just approachable. So I have
people outreach. Probably you're going
to start inviting like there's like
three four guys that just moved into the
neighborhood. You're going to start
inviting them for meals.
I'm
inviting them to my home?
What are you going to do? Whoa. You're
going to say hi to them? I don't know.
Invite them for breakfast? Anybody
except I I had this idea that when we
moved into the new synagogue, we moved
into a new building a few weeks ago.
And when obviously we always sit
together. We've been sitting together
for years at kiddush which is where we
just sit around and talk like we're
doing now that we if we all every seat
has a seat number. Let's say we have 100
people there. You pull a number out of
the hat and you have to sit in that
seat.
What a good
We had this thing and everyone's like
yeah, yeah, great idea.
But the issue is yeah, it might be a
great idea. You know why? Maybe the
three of us could talk to any which guy
but there are a lot of people who don't
like this is my one hour that I get to
chill and hang with my boys. That also
by the way I'm backing the other side.
What a good argument.
I don't know what By the way, both are
really good points.
do it every fourth week. You could do it
any Oh, but You know, it's every week.
And now that's that's a good that's a
good compromise. That's what we came up
with. He said
every uh Shabbos Mevorchim should be the
one where everybody changes their seat.
But it's a lot of work by the way cuz
you have to prep this cuz you have to do
who's coming that Shabbos. Make sure
everybody's names is in a hat. You can't
leave people out.
No, no, pick a number. Go and pick a
number. Oh, you pick a number and then
you choose a number. Interesting idea.
By the way, let's petition for this.
I'll leave it up to you. I'm I'm going
to petition for this. Uh first of all, I
have to have to clear this with our
venerable leader and our fearless leader
the rabbi making sure that he's I can't
see why he would have an issue with it.
Okay, but we can't see it right now but
you know,
I'm going to bring it up. I I I'm a fan
of this. Because first of all, I'm all
about this podcast just so you know.
Michael always preaches this and he
mentions this a few times an episode.
It's all about growing personally,
becoming a little bit better than we
were yesterday and professionally as
well. Right? And the two really have a
lot of uh there's a lot of
synergy between growing professionally
and personally. I don't think you can be
good in business if you're not a happy
person. Right? And What's the point of
being good in business if you're not a
happy
Nothing. Who can Who can celebrate? Who
cares? Would you rather be unhappy and
rich or
poor and happy?
Well, that's a not a fair question.
Obviously everybody would cuz if you're
happy by definition things are working
so it doesn't matter if you're poor, it
doesn't matter if you're you know, happy
is the key. Happy is wealth. Happy is
wealth. Right. In a way it's almost like
And then money has nothing to do with
anything. Form of how you can reach
happiness. I disagree. One variable.
It's easier. It's easier.
But I think happy people that are rich
are happy. The problem also is a lot of
people are rich don't think they're
rich. They're not rich enough. That's
They want more. Which is the craziest
thing. Which is absurd. Like
why do people need to go make more and
more and more? Now listen, maybe you
have a fear that you're going to lose it
or whatever it is but you know, there
are stories out there of people who die
and they have millions of dollars and
their kids don't even know they had any
money. Like they lived like a pauper.
True. Now, it's a good point. That
Listen, at the end of the day I think
that we should just make somewhat of an
effort, you know, to uh
make a little bit more outreach. That's
the bottom line. When was the last time
you spoke to someone like you had no
idea who they were and like you learned
about their life? By me approaching
them? No, or just in general.
When was the last time I made a new
friend? The new person you met, you
learned. Like this guy that you just
talked about you said there was a guy in
our community you thought he was like
one of the I didn't say pillars. I said
that. Okay, he thought I don't know who
it is, right? And you thought he was a
big piece of community, a lot of friends
and you were surprised to find out he
felt like he's an outsider.
Was that shocking? Yeah. Yeah. He told
you this in confidence? No. How did that
come about?
A throwaway conversation like on the
side. Like it wasn't the reason why we
spoke. We were talking and then kind of
threw it in there and then caught me.
is I'm not going to say who like as a
specific name, but who in the community
what type of person is the center of the
spider web that
branches out and touches everybody?
Rabbi.
100%. I think we're very fortunate that
we have a rabbi like this, but you don't
got you guys don't even know. I don't
none of us know the extent. I mean, some
know more than others about few more
stories here and there, but what he
does. The amount of good that he does
all
over the place, it's unbelievable. But
guys, we really are running out of time.
We can't we can't go on forever. Tell
you this. Michael, this is for you. This
is a shout out to Michael.
is awesome. Michael brings out the best
in me, also the worst in me sometimes.
What do you do with Michael now?
That's what I'm saying. So, I feel like
we really missed a big chunk of the I'm
realizing now that I'm not doing it
without him. Like I said, you sometimes
you don't see what's in front of you
until you don't have it.
You don't realize how badly you actually
Michael really is a major asset. Like
you know, he has a way of keeping the
conversation going in a in a very fun
way and I'm a big fan of Michael's. He
does a lot of things very very well.
It's one of the things he does well.
He's been sorely missed on this episode,
but
What doesn't he do well?
What doesn't he do well? I'm going to
tell he knows he knows he knows. We By
the way, Michael brought up this idea a
long time ago. I think partners
should be scoring each other and should
be doing reviews with each other every
so often about what do you feel that
they're doing well? What are they not
doing well? Okay, but this last story
and then we got to wrap up. He's such an
arrogant Let me wrap it and then let's
continue. Then we're off the podcast?
the podcast. Yeah, we'll we'll just uh
You By the way, he's hooked now. He he
needs a microphone here. Oh, there's
going to be a tomorrow morning we're
we're going to be doing a podcast from
the golf course tomorrow. We're
recording a podcast like Mayor, we're
back at the golf course after your
hiatus of 1 week.
How was about that? Your muscles have
atrophied. You have completely
shriveled.
Can you even hold a club?
Atrophied?
You know what that means?
No, that's what a great word. Atrophied?
Atrophied? Yeah, it's good. Okay, that's
too much. Well. Okay. I E D.
atrophied mean? It basically means to
like shrivel up and
like Like what Have you ever used that
word before? Yeah.
it just like come to your head right
now? Have I ever used it? No, but of
course it's in my
Wow, what a word. What a great word.
Atrophied? I just like the way it
sounds. Can we use it for the title of
your I'm going to figure out how to
incorporate that now into certain
sentences that I use a lot. I have to
figure it out, but great word. So,
listen guys, this has been amazing.
You guys have been excellent guests.
Before we finish,
we'd like to do something, which is we
ask our guests
to recommend somebody else to be on the
podcast. Somebody you think might be a
good candidate, somebody that's
interesting, somebody that has what to
offer, that could contribute towards our
growth. Who would you recommend? I would
like for you to make that call now on
air, make the call and ask the person if
they would be interested in joining our
podcast. Anybody that comes to mind,
anybody you can think of?
Who's coming to mind, Al?
Mayor. We should both write it we should
both write a name down and we should see
if the names is
to end up being the same same name. It's
going to end up being the same name. I
think I can tell you both know who Hold
on. He knows who I will pick and I will
who he'll pick so we can
if you do this person we have to be
here. Yeah, I want to be part of it.
And it'll be great. And it'll be great.
Can we call I believe I think we should
call I think it'll be great. This person
is fantastic, be unbelievable
Who is this person?
And they are a Are they local? They live
within 20 minutes He's around here. He's
within 10 minutes of here many times a
day and many times a week. No, no, no,
no, And he's a business I mean like in
terms of business
the
guest of your time. What's he doing
tomorrow? Who are you talking to? The
person you want to do it with Michael.
Huh? Well, who are you talking about?
You say it and I'll tell you if it's the
right guy.
Okay.
Well, no. I mean
Is this guy
Or you Or I was talking about somebody
else.
We have two guys. We have two potentials
now. I thought he would be spectacular.
Yeah, he'll be great. Yeah. Who are you
thinking about?
I'm thinking about Leonard Schleifer.
He's a he started his own business. It's
a publicly traded company. It's health
care. Really?
Regeneron and he's a a spectacular guy.
He's
he we play golf with him and he's I
think he would do it. Absolutely think
he would do it.
Al, let's go. Al, let's go.
And the problem is now that I didn't say
Al's guy when Al's guy sees this
podcast, I'm going to be in the
doghouse.
Well, no. Listen, you went billionaire
so that's fine. I thought about money.
He's uber successful, but he created
many drugs.
He's a neurologist. He invented
monoclonal. Yeah. I'm saying you
remember when COVID happened, he
invented I'm I'm saying he's
I would be shocked if he didn't come on.
I think he would do it.
You think so?
know.
Let me ask you guys. It is very well
documented and very well known that golf
is very expensive.
Not a cheap sport. Not everybody can
afford to have a life that revolves
around golf. So, I know that it costs a
lot of money to be a part of clubs and
pay memberships. What would you say is
the most money you spent in any
particular year?
I've always
I I was lucky enough to be part of a
club very early in my life because I
managed to
make some connections and find a place.
When you're young, they let you join for
very very reasonable rate because they
want young members in hopes that they'll
continue
you know, to you know, patronize the
club and be there. The course of your
career, your life, how much do you think
you spent? Over everything. Don't break
it down by year. Just like to this
point,
how
So, like I spent I have not been a
member for that long. Right. You've even
been a Half a million dollars you spent?
No.
Over the lifetime of your playing
career?
crazy. Oh my god. Wow. For the first 10
years of my life it was $2,000 a year,
$3,000 a year.
Okay. I'm going to move on from this
topic because I can tell you're
uncomfortable with it and that's fine. I
don't Rightfully so by the way. I don't
know. It is a little bit No. To spend
this kind of money on anything on
anything, not just golf on anything it's
a little bit excessive, but let me ask
you I think people spend a lot of money
on food or whatever and I think that's
absurd. Like why would you go out to eat
and spend a thousand dollars at a nice
restaurant two times a week? I just
don't understand it.
People don't go twice a week to a fancy
restaurant. They they they like It's a
different day. You have a meeting,
business expenses covered. order
everything on the menu That's not the
same. You guys are clearly addicted to
golf. You have an addiction. Let me ask
you this. What is an addiction? That you
like doing it excessively and you you
have withdrawals when you don't do it.
Like if you're not playing golf, you're
in a bad place. You get like somber and
you you have
Well, he's going to get back into it.
Maybe yes, maybe no. What do you mean? I
told the club that he quit. I'm sure you
know You know that? They put his
membership on hold. His membership on
hold. Let's do over under how long he
gets back into it. Non grata. Let's do
over under. His face is actually when
you walk in there's like a guard booth
that's unattended and there's a picture
of his face. The truth is I mean I'm
sorry. I do have to go back to the club
because I don't know if you heard, but I
had a hole-in-one this year.
If you heard, but I had a hole-in-one
this year. Is that like something that
you do or
tremendously luck and Al is a much
better player than I am and he has not
had one in what? 14 years?
12 years.
In 12 years you've never had one
hole-in-one. It's been 12 years. Let me
just tell you about my hole-in-one
though. I was with Al and we had a
caddy. The caddy is the guy who carries
our bags. He's a good friend of ours
now.
We get up to the hole, the tee. Tommy
Fitz Maurice. And they're pretty much
four opportunities around that you can
have a hole-in-one. It's called a par
three. It's a shot that's a one shot
into the green.
And before I hit the ball, I don't know
why. I don't think I've ever done this
before,
but I made a declaration and
announcement and I said, you know, it's
been nine years I've been playing golf.
I've never had a hole-in-one. I've never
seen a hole-in-one. I've never been in a
group with one. And you said here it is.
It's happening now. You're like Babe
Ruth. You you called it out. I'm hitting
a home You know, everyone says that was
a joke. It was a scam. He didn't really
do that. He was pointing. No one really
knows. I made a whole speech. It was a
little rainy, a little wet. I actually
asked the caddy for a towel to dry my
right hand.
For whatever reason I stood over the
ball 185 yards is 545 feet away from the
pin and I felt like it was going in. I
hit it and it went in.
The happiest day of your life. No, it
wasn't the happiest It was it's a weird
feeling cuz But it's not all luck. It
had some skill involved that you were
able to hit it around the hole. I think
what you tapped into this the happiest
day of your life. I think the happiest
day of your life is not like the day you
accomplish something. When you look back
on the happiest day of your life are the
days you put in the effort to get to
that point. It's experience.
moment Well, I would I don't disagree
with Al, but I think the happiest
moments of your life are something
sudden and unexpected. Like I don't You
think so? Yeah, I don't like when people
when people say the happiest day of my
life was when I had a kid and I have
four beautiful kids. I love my kids.
Love them. But the day they were born, I
knew for many months we were having a
kid. It wasn't unexpected. It wasn't
like something Now, somebody who maybe
had trouble having kids for many years
and finally has a kid, I could totally
understand why it's something really
special. But if you have a kid at a
young age and then you have other kids
that follow, I don't think that the day
they are born is something so special.
It's moments in their life that are more
special. Their first time they take a
step or they say daddy or something is
way more special. It comes out of
nowhere.
Right? It just happens. So, a
hole-in-one, it just happened. Like and
not only that, but you whatever reason
you have a conversation throughout time
and people are like, how many
hole-in-ones do you have? I'm like,
zero.
How many hole-in-ones do you have? Zero.
You know, it happens all the I've never
seen one. I've never had one. I'll never
have one. I'll never see one. Average is
about four hole-in-ones a year.
Now Right. Now and and there are
different sets of tees, how far away you
are.
How many of those do you think that
someone actually say in advance, make an
announcement, I think I'm going to have
a hole-in-one here.
It was a special moment. I do it every
time now. It was a cool moment. It was
with Al. I'm going to be a little bit
mean and I apologize in advance to both
of you.
But I'm actually a little bit mortified
right now and I'll tell you why. You
ever heard someone say like they put
like a lot of salt on their on their
food and you ask them like, are you
having some lasagna with your salt?
Right. You know, like you ever you ever
heard people make that joke? Talk to me.
I feel like you guys have a lot of golf
with your life.
I feel like almost like
every time you guys make a metaphor or
you make a certain comparison, you
revert back to something in golf and you
make that connection. And that golfers
don't get it. And by the way, I'm like a
little turned off because like I could
appreciate somebody
who loves something and is very
passionate about it, but it gets to a
certain point. This is the problem. This
is already too much. It's getting into
unhealthy space and let's not kid
ourselves. I guarantee that there's a
little bit of neglect going on somewhere
in your life, people in your life
because of your golf habit and everybody
appreciate somebody that cares about
something that's fine, but not too much.
They always say too much of a good thing
is not a good thing, right?
Got to have that balance, that fine
line.
Do you not agree? You have the winter. A
disease maybe I could almost go as far
as to say and maybe we we we need to
have you guys sit in therapy to figure
out what is this drive that you have to
just obsessively be focused in golf.
You know, I think golf is unique in that
it's the ability to basically live a
life in 4 hours
and
have it have a beginning and an end.
And that's why it's so addictive. You
you're literally born on the first tee
and you die on the last green. And you
have the opportunity to literally be
born and die
in 4 hours. And that's why I think
people love it. It gives you the
opportunity to really live a complete
life in 4 hours and see what happens.
You're literally proving my point, Al.
No, oh You're proving my point right
now. Again, you're comparing the essence
of living life to a golf game in 4 hours
where you're born and then you It's
crazy because there's
What in life is there finality? What do
you do where you are judged from a
beginning and an end? What have you done
lately that there isn't end, a
conclusive end to what you've done?
What What was the last time you did
something that started and ended in the
day?
every day and it finishes. You made a
mistake in work, you fix it the next
day.
No, you you No, what do you mean? Any
sport you have that opportunity to
perform and if you don't, you you can't
other people Okay, so there's so you're
better off tomorrow. Tomorrow's a new
day. You have a better new life. It's a
new life. No, no, no, I need to do an
intervention with you guys. Well, wait,
hold on. Enough is enough. I have to be
the one to say it, guys. At a certain
point, you really have to have a hard
reflection over here and ask yourself
that is this maybe a little bit too
much? Have I gotten carried away? Have I
taken this a little bit too far?
You got to be a little bit open with
that. Hold on, is this quantity based or
is this or is this just total
or just totally consumed by both? What
if there's a guy I'm still and all the
time. What if there's a guy who plays
once a month, but all he thinks about he
daydreams all day long about golf. He
just doesn't have the money to play,
can't get out, I don't know whatever it
is. No, it's in the middle of winter.
Dreams about There are many people who
daydream about a lot of different things
and and think about it all the time.
What if it doesn't consume my thoughts
other than when I play?
Right? And I play.
But some people think about things all
the time. That's all they think about.
Maybe it's money.
Right? Maybe it's losing weight.
Whatever it is, it consumes it consumes
them. And that's also bad. I don't think
That's bad. I no longer think about golf
when I'm not playing. Like I'd like to
call you out on that.
Okay. Because I hang out with you a good
amount. Whenever we hang out, the
conversation steers to the direction
of golf.
the time. They assume that's what we
want to talk about. I wasn't sure
actually if we would actually talk about
golf today. We didn't see the questions
and I was fascinated because we sit and
talk at Kiddush and you have this rule,
no golf talk. And I was Which we only
stick to for about 5 minutes.
like Ushi is going to run this
conversation. He's the ball. Okay, so
let me So let me play ball for a second.
All right, go. Go ahead.
Man, I would have bet that we were not
going to talk about golf. That's wrong.
You never lose a bet.
I do want to focus a little bit on
something that is actually pretty
spectacular because, you know, both of
you, Al, you mostly, I mean, you are a
one-of-a-kind talent. You're probably
the best Jewish golfer that's alive
tonight. And that's a big deal.
Sure, that's what I meant. That's
Orthodox golfer that's alive tonight.
It'd be remiss if I didn't talk about
that and bring it up and
share that experience with with the
listeners. Of course, I would talk about
it. But you're right. You're right. I
myself now I'm getting sucked into your
world of just talking about golf and I'd
like to deviate from that a little bit.
And I want to ask you so aside from
golf, I want to hear
you know, think about it first. You
don't have to answer me right away
because it's a little bit of a personal
question.
What else are you addicted to? Addicted?
Yeah, what else do you feel like you
have an addiction to? You know, I think
the sign of really a good podcast is
the listener having
the debate themselves with what you're
talking about. You know what they should
say
or you know what they I disagree with
this or disagree with that. Ushi is an
idiot cuz he didn't understand Right. He
doesn't hold his wife's hand. Like what
he doesn't understand that it's
circumstantial and that like Of course,
what an idiot. And you're sitting there
screaming at them. I'm like, hey, they
did a good job.
Yeah, they did a good job. No, that's
the purpose of it. It's to Yeah, I saw
I don't think that they don't even know
what we're talking about. I don't
understand Let's try to go like 5
minutes without the word golf.
to? Without the word golf. What are you
addicted to?
I don't know. I I
eat too much. I I don't want to
necessarily say it's addictive, but I'm
addicted to my phone.
And I hate it. I hate that I'm addicted
to my phone in the sense that like I'm
checking emails, checking texts,
checking WhatsApp, checking YouTube,
Instagram, whatever it is. I definitely
feel that there's a dopamine dopamine
related release when I'm I'm looking and
checking. I don't have it like Shabbos
or Yom Tov 3 days, it's off. I don't
miss it. But then when it's available
and I think that's what the studies have
shown that like when the phone you know,
you phantom buzz in your pocket, I'm
definitely addicted to to my phone and I
hate it and I hope there's a day where I
don't have to deal with my phone.
Are you doing anything about it?
I'm thinking about doing something about
it. I'm not doing anything about it
because it's so difficult. It has the
power of heroin
and
the same time I we all need it because
we have to read our emails
realistic here. We're all addicted to
our phones. You're not alone. I don't
think I am. No?
So I the only social media that I use is
Twitter and I do it for like sports and
news and for a month I decided I just
deleted the app off my phone. I don't
post or anything like that.
Well, on WhatsApp I will post some golf
related content that I've been been told
is actually Does Does your wife or your
kids make you crazy that you're on your
phone all the time and it's too much? Do
they
My kids, yeah. My kids will say, "Dad,
you're always working. You're always
answering emails." We actually have a
chat with this guy who Al thinks should
be on your podcast, the three of us and
it's very busy. When Mayor quit golf, I
actually muted the chat for 8 hours
because it started going in directions
I'm out. I need a break. He knows I
never quit. I always threaten to quit.
It doesn't really make any He was more
concerned about it at this time.
Honestly, this last time Mayor quit to
the point where I actually believed he
should You didn't go 5 minutes. That's 5
minutes. It's amazing. I think he should
quit. You know, you guys have a problem.
We really need to do an intervention
over here.
I feel like there's something maybe in
your lives that you're running away
from. No, absolutely There There I mean,
it's the only explanation. It's the only
logical explanation is that you're
filling a certain void and this gives
you your fix. I feel like you need this
golf. You need it in your life. Without
it you're lost, you're alone, you're
abandoned. Like what? I don't know many
people that are attached to something to
this extent, this level. I'm like blown
away by how committed and devoted you
are to this that I don't think you
realize how far it goes. That's why I
think Mayor should quit.
That's why I think he should quit.
I think that perhaps you should try to
stay off a little bit longer. Maybe
because you're going to end up like Al
one day. I'll be kidding. Like this golf
goblin is like More golf. Give me more
golf. Not at all. It's It's intense.
Well, here's the the golfer. Al is
spectacular. Yes, that's what we agree.
No, obviously there are better than him,
but I'm a very I don't take it serious
Not that I take it seriously, but I I'm
not um
an angry golfer. All right, let me let
me pose it to you this way. I don't get
frustrated.
see it now another bird's eye view here.
If I were to tell you Yeah. that
in about 3 years No. your son Uh-huh. is
going to go down the same path that you
went down. He might actually discover
this a little earlier than you did. And
he's going to become exactly like you,
play as much as you do, talk about it as
much as you do, build around his life
around golf, building vacations around
golf. Your son is going to do the same
exact thing. I'd be very I'd be very
happy. You'd be happy? You'd be happy
for your son the way I'm doing it.
Exactly the way you're doing it.
Play as much as you're playing, often as
you are. If you could do it, I'd be very
happy. You know, his wife is anti-golf.
That's That's a dynamic that you can't
answer. I mean, is the wife If he's a
golfer before he gets married That's why
my wife was into me because what would
happen was she would text me and I'd put
my phone in my golf bag. I wouldn't see
it for 4 hours. She's like, "Who is this
guy? He doesn't answer me for 4 hours."
So it served you
Oh, it was great.
you.
It was great and I'd be like, "Oh,
sorry."
Little did she know
Little did she Yeah, exactly. With my
wife, I didn't start playing till after
I was married. One day she started
seeing boxes of these weird sized boxes,
long and narrow and it's clubs. I'm
like, "You're getting another Like you
know, there's 14 clubs that we play
with." And she's like, "14 clubs?" Like
you know, most people think, "What do
you need more than like two or One
racket, one pickleball racket. Usually
use one, but there's In golf you have 14
clubs in your bag and they're different
sizes and stuff. Al, do you think your
wife
would prefer secretly that you weren't
this into golf? No, no, no, don't do
that. Don't put
Don't put it on me. We know the answer,
Al. Would you be happy?
He has zero guilt, this guy.
Hold on. You literally Zero guilt.
You're doing your wife a favor.
My I actually know my
I actually don't think my kids should
golf.
And my wife's actually tried to get me
to get my kids lessons, and I don't
think it's that healthy.
And I think that the big dynamic is the
wife.
Wow. If she says yes, this could be
And my wife My wife thinks I should I
said, "Would you be happy if I quit golf
for life?" Tell me that you never asked
her that question before.
She'd be happy if Of course not. She
knows he She knows he'd be She's asked
me if she if I love her more than golf.
She's asked you that question?
Yeah. What's your answer? It's a
situation.
It depends on the day. That's on the
day. It depends on how things
You know what? Right now, right now it's
golf.
Oh my goodness. She's By the way, it's a
real contention.
No. What do you mean? It's a good she
feels when I say it's her over golf. Cuz
I Cuz she knows how much you love golf.
"You probably played bad, didn't you?"
Yes, I did.
Oh my goodness. By the way, this is
phenomenal. And And a part of me envies
you that you have something so near and
dear to your heart that you can pursue,
and you can do Part of me envies you.
Guys, a part of me, I'll be honest,
feels bad for you.
A part of me does I feel like you're
missing out in a lot of other things in
life. You're missing What? Tell me what
I'm missing out on. Tell me what I'm
missing.
What are you missing?
I don't think he's missing any
Actually, let me just say vacations or
whatever. Like there was a couple guys
talking about a vacation. Like I message
out even while I'm retired this week.
Like I'm not going on a vacation that's
not centered around golf. A golf
vacation is the purest
vacation of all. Like there's The
biggest reason I would never retire
from golf is because I can't miss those
vacations.
That is just like this It's special. The
lead up to it. Like we
come along. You make sandwiches. We joke
around. Like we want to make sure that
we have another trip booked when we take
our trip. And obviously mostly in the
winter. Have you ever How many times do
you lie to your wife or to
Never. to your to your workmates or
people that you have to Someone account
How often do you lie so you can continue
to play
can You don't lie? I want Oh, that's the
line you don't cross?
What do you mean? What line do I cross?
Let's say your wife says, "I really need
you today, you know, you And I won't
come. And you say, "But you really want
to golf that day." And then you say,
"No, no, I have a work function that I
have to be at work. I can't. I'm sorry.
No. You don't do that? So don't lie
ever? Not only that, but I'll say, "I'm
golfing."
It hasn't happened for probably
8 years.
Years ago before I started my business,
my wife would call me and say, "Hey, did
you leave the office yet?" And I'm like,
"You know, why don't you just track me
on Find My iPhone?" So for over the last
8 years weird.
She sees where I'm at, and she knows if
I left. She actually will wait now to
call me about work issues till after I
leave. And when she sees I've left,
she'll call and tell me what things have
occurred throughout the day.
I didn't hear anything anymore after I
heard you just say
we work together.
Yeah. Me and my wife, we work together.
Like that's striking to me.
I literally did not hear anything after
that.
I asked my wife, "Would you be happy if
I quit golf for life?" She goes, "No, of
course not. You'd be miserable." That I
just said
She cares about you. Right.
She would be happier for it, but she
wouldn't
Say if I could be happy
Yeah. while playing
Obviously she would want you to quit.
She would want you to quit. But that's a
very good wife you have. Very nice.
What? But you know what? I got to say
that She has other hobbies, too.
No, no, no, but she's involved. We're
like
before Like when we were first married
and she didn't fully get the golf thing,
and she was pregnant, and she had to be
up like with our first kid. We're very
young. I was 21. She was 19 or 20,
whatever it was.
Um she was on
bed rest when she was pregnant.
And I was like I didn't I wasn't really
working. I was in school. I was in
between. I'd be like, "All right, I
finished the classes. I'm going to go
play golf." She was like, "Wait a
second. I'm just sitting here on bed
rest. Hang out. Let's just I'm like,
"Well, uh I don't want to sit inside."
And so she
wasn't so thrilled with it. But as we
matured, we worked on our relationship,
and we worked on our desire for each of
us to be happy with the other person
doing what they wanted to do with their
hobbies and whatever it was. Now, she's
thrilled for me to play. Good for you.
Yeah. You're very lucky. This has been
amazing. This has been great. Thanks for
Thanks for doing this. I'm glad
it's going to get condensed into an hour
and 5 minutes.
try our best. We're going to try our
best. All right, guys. That's a wrap.
Okay.