Brian Portugais: [00:00:00] you know, we stop ourselves too because of that self-talk on getting better perhaps, 'cause it's like, well, maybe, maybe I am, I am overweight, and so I'm not starting the process to get healthy because I'm ashamed to get help.
Or I think people look at me and they're like, "That person's fat or overweight." Rather than it's like, dude, we're stoked that you're getting yourself better or trying to make yourself better. Like, people actually applaud that, and then you find out, it's like people are cheerleaders for you too. So it's like, not only, not only was I wrong, but I had it 180 degrees off.
You are listening to the Go Earn Your Salt podcast, brought to you by Salt Electrolytes. On this podcast, your host, Riley Rogers, explores the stories of people who get after it, get things done, and earn their salt. You will hear from high achievers who discuss what makes them tick, how they got to where they are today, and where they're headed tomorrow.[00:01:00]
Perhaps this podcast will help you go earn your salt
Riley: today I've got my friend Brian Portugueis. Is that how you say it, Brian?
Brian Portugais: It is
Riley: Am I close?
Brian Portugais: You're, you were dead on.
Riley: That's awesome. It's been a debate amongst friends, but Brian is, uh... I invited Brian on the podcast because he has been just a, a success story, and there's some principles of Brian's life I wanna kinda pick his brain on, and one, figure out how he did it, and two, celebrate the fact that he's, he's done very well in the business world, in the fitness world, and he's, just a, a guy who I look up to.
And, um, I wanted you guys to kinda get... to be part of this conversation that, that we explore how Brian got there and, and kind of celebrate it, because I think that's something in the world that when, whenever we have success, there's [00:02:00] always someone that'll tear us down, but there's very few people in our world who will celebrate it with us.
So Brian, welcome to the show, man.
Brian Portugais: Good to be here, Riley
Riley: No. I'm so jacked 'cause, uh, for audience sake, Brian, we, we, uh, we attempted to record this, gosh, what? Almost a year ago, wasn't it?
Brian Portugais: Yeah, it's been a while
Riley: And it was the, the beginning of the podcast, and I had no idea how to use, use the microphone, so I screwed the whole thing up, and I was not able to salvage the episode, so we are back to do it again. Uh, appreciate you setting
more time for
Brian Portugais: I'm,
I'm hoping the second time goes as well as the first time
Riley: Yeah. Well, the first time the interview was freaking awesome, and it kills me that didn't, didn't take. It was, it was a good time. But Brian, tell us, uh, tell us who you are, man. Who you are, where you grew up, where'd you come from,
Brian Portugais: Yeah.
Well, I grew up in Las Vegas, Nevada. Um, uh, lived there until I was about fifteen years [00:03:00] old and then ventured off to Utah. I've moved to South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia, California, and Idaho. I've lived kind of all over. Um, yeah, growing up, I was-- I grew up really poor. Uh, um, I thought it was kind of a normal life growing up.
Uh, that's all you know. In fact, I was telling the story today. I was at the gym, and someone was talking about high school, and I was like, "By the time I was in twelfth grade, I had been in three different high schools. Elementary, I was in seven, seven different elementary schools." So we moved around a lot, and I thought it was normal to sleep on couches as a kid, but found out that that wasn't exactly normal.
So, uh, I had what people would nowadays consider maybe a harder life. For me, it was just-- it was the life I knew. But, uh, it wasn't too bad. It definitely helped shape me into who I am. Uh, [00:04:00] since two thousand and fifteen, I've owned a company, Rapid Systems Engineering, and I started that when I was in the Bay Area, uh, California.
And that's going on eleven years, man, and it's been crazy
Riley: A wild, wild growth curve, hasn't it?
Brian Portugais: For sure. Two years ago, I started an insurance company as well. Um, I don't really ever talk about that but, uh, uh, that's one of my other little ventures I do. But mostly my main business is, uh, engineering, and I work in telecommunications and fiber optics, and everyone knows about the buzzwords around AI right now, and, uh, for anything AI related, there's gotta be a fiber backbone.
So we work with every tech company, uh, in Bay Area, uh, Northern California. Tesla is one of my clients. Uh, we get to do some pretty cool work for some big companies that as a [00:05:00] little guy, it's extremely hard to get into and, you know, you can imagine what it's like to become a vendor for AT&T or Verizon or Tesla, for example.
It, it's a, it's a pain in the butt
Riley: Um,
Brian Portugais: A-anybody that knows business, like they c-- they speak this language about, you know, the difficulties of becoming a vendor
Riley: Yeah, man. Um, before we go too far, you, you kind of mentioned there a couple times about your... You had a rougher childhood, but it was what you f- just, it was normal to you, right?
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: expand on that a little bit? Because I think I hear this a lot, especially with parents with young kids, you know, that wanna provide everything in life for them.
They want their life to be better than theirs was when they were a kid, and there's this, like, parent guilt that happens. But dude,
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: that was... My aunt just recently here a couple years ago said, "I heard about this stuff that happened in your house growing up, and that was, [00:06:00] kinda sound like child abuse."
And I'm like, "I never thought of it that way. It was just life." And yeah, in hindsight, and some of it might have been pushing the edge of abuse, but
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: was just normal, and I guess I never it that way. So I wanna hear
you have to
Brian Portugais: Y- yeah, you know, growing up in it, now I'm pretty open about it. Uh, I definitely, in our family, there was, there was physical abuse, emotional abuse, sexual abuse. Um, we went weeks at a time without eating. Uh, and I would go to school literally to eat 'cause there was no food at home. And I didn't have any parents at home.
My, my, uh, biological dad died when I was about eight years old, and my mom was, uh, uh, heavily into drugs, so she wasn't around for weeks at a time. And so I had two sisters, and we were kinda left to raise ourselves. [00:07:00] And if I wanted food, I'm like, "I know I could go to school and get food." So, um, yeah. Going back, though, to the kids and wanting...
You know, I understand wanting to make sure our kids have more than we do, but it's, there's a fine line in not giving it to them and making them earn it and, 'cause
we don't appreciate it if we don't struggle for it, and growth only comes through struggle. You know, we only build muscles through struggle.
We only learn through struggles. Uh, so how do we do that with our kids, especially now being, uh, successful? It's hard
Riley: Yeah.
Brian Portugais: Yeah. So, uh
Go ahead
Riley: No, I was gonna say we went through a, um, a bankruptcy, right? We lost a business and, and ended up in a Chapter 7, which was a complete clean slate, lost everything we own, right? And [00:08:00] we had two children at the time that happened,
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: And in their idea, we just moved to this cool house that had an upstairs.
We didn't have, uh, you know, we didn't, we didn't have an upstairs at the house they came from, and so they were like, "This is an adventure."
me and their mother, my wife, were, were like, a rough, dark time for us. But for the kids, it was adventure, you know? They, they see it so different than we do
Brian Portugais: Yeah. Well, if you wanna hear a story that I've, I've actually told maybe in our close friend group, I've, I've really haven't told this story much, and I, I recently told it, uh, to my wife and another person, and she's like, "You should probably tell that story more." But I went through a bankruptcy as well in 2012.
Um, I had just graduated from Boise State, and I got arrested, and I spent 117 days in jail, and I was, I [00:09:00] was going to do potentially 10 years in prison. And, uh, that was one of... You know, we have many wake-up calls in life, but that was for sure part of my big story. Um- I had received a scholarship from BSU.
They pulled it away. I wasn't allowed on campus unless, uh, they, they said I needed a police escort. Um, by the grace of God, I got back in school. Um, I actually did end up getting a scholarship back, and this was all while I was on felony probation. Um, they actually ended up giving me a scholarship and a job, and I worked for the Department of Engineering at Boise State during all this.
So, um, I was pretty well known around campus because, you know, the dean of students knew the story, the College of Engineering knew the story. Um, I had received [00:10:00] grant funding to do research. Uh, all of that got taken away. Um, and I remember talk-- I called a buddy up the day I was going back into school, and I w- I was, I was so scared.
I'm like, "Feel like everyone's staring at me." He's like, "You-- Maybe they are, but go in, go in there and hold your head up high." And I worked my ass off. Uh, I, I had, I had to work harder than anybody there, I felt like. Um, and I successfully completed all my research. I published three papers while I was there.
Um, Boise State ended up giving me a job as a research engineer, and that was before I went to San Francisco and, and started my company. But full circle has come around. I just recently, uh, donated fifty thousand dollars to Boise State and established a scholarship in the name of my mentor there. And, you know, I told him he had been at, uh, the university for twenty-seven years, and [00:11:00] I, you know...
He said to me, "Most people just want to accumulate." And, and so I wanted, I wanted to give back 'cause this-- w-without this guy believing in me, who the hell knows where I would have been. But, um, so after that ordeal, I had to file bankruptcy as well. Uh, and
that w- that was probably the deepest, darkest times of my life.
Uh, and in, in, in the span of our lives, you know, that was what? Fourteen years ago. And I-- You've never heard that story.
Riley: I've never heard that story
Brian Portugais: And, uh, uh, not many people have. But, uh, uh, so That my, my childhood played into the events though that led into that, me not dealing with trauma, uh, me not dealing with, uh, addiction that arose from that, uh, and, and all those other things i-in a [00:12:00] healthy way.
So, uh, facing that now has been, you know-- Now I'm able to talk about that, and I don't feel shame, and I don't, you know... There, there's always a part of me that feels something. I don't know what it, you know, I feel regret, and I feel remorse. But I, I can, I can tell the story and not feel like I'm less than other people
Riley: That's pretty profound, man, 'cause you're... One of the things you said there was this idea that everyone was staring at you. You know, it's kind of like that Scarlet Letter feel
you're
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: Like, and I, I know a friend and he got, he got into a... was a weird situation and it, but it, it like stained him, man, and he, he could never get over it. so in his entire adult life, he's kind of wallowed in it to the point where it's like, it's really affected his financial world and his relationships around him and... [00:13:00] Because he walks around feeling like everyone's staring at him. I'm like, people are not." No one knows that story, and you've had plenty of time to get past that. And so I, I try to encourage him through it, but man, it's been 25 years ago this thing happened, and he's still not over it.
Brian Portugais: think about there, there's a lot of men and women walking around like that today because, you know, uh, for me it took, uh, you know, honestly, God, a, a power greater than me to help me overcome that. And, um, sharing my story, helping other people with their, with their shit they're going through too. A lot of times, you know, if I'm having a bad day, the best way to get out of it is do something nice for someone.
You know? Help an old lady. Uh, my, you know, I got neighbors. Oh, there's, there's all sorts of people in the world that, that need help. So, uh, it's easy to get in a funk and be like, "The world is against [00:14:00] me," but really it's our own internal viewpoint, you know? And you meet a lot of people like that, that seemingly they have bad luck day after day after day, and it's like, really?
Do you have that much bad luck, or is it your outlook on things?
Riley: Yeah, man. So what did you do? 'Cause I, I'm, I'm curious now, like, you know, we both shared going through some crap, but what, what was it with you that allowed you to kinda shed that and get rid of that marked feeling?
Brian Portugais: Um, honestly, like, uh, the, the single-handedly singular moment, if you will, was being baptized. Um, literally, I, I shed all that off me. Um, sharing my story, helping other people, uh, creating an organization for students at Boise State that had issues with, uh, addiction and alcoholism, 'cause there's already kids at school that had these issues, and no one at Boise State was talking about it.
There was no student organization, so I started one. And, uh, my vice president had just gotten out of prison for cooking methamphetamines. He was there for five years. He now has a PhD. Uh, he's a, he's a research, uh, nurse. He, uh, does pharmaceutical research. Uh, my secretary had just gotten out of jail. I met her mom doing community service.
She's like,[00:15:00]
"Hey, can you talk to my daughter? She's an alcohol..." And I, "Yeah, I'd love to." And they all happen to be students at Boise State, so we, we kinda, we created this group, and I don't know if it's still running at Boise State, but it, it was there for five years. But it was like, there's plenty of other people that have all sorts of problems, and it's like, it-- the, the more you talk about it, the more you find out, and then people open up, and it helps them [00:16:00] recover as well with whatever that may be.
It could be addiction, trauma, you know? I, y- we meet guys on the mats that are going through all sorts of stuff. Divorce, uh, they've lost their kids, they don't have a job, and that's what, you know, we can be there for each other to talk about that. Uh, it's hard for dudes to talk about our problems, though.
Riley: It's funny you say that, but gosh, man, hang out on the mats for a little while after class and
stuff starts coming out, doesn't it?
Brian Portugais: It does.
One of the first times, uh, at Team Rhino, uh, I had gone back, I had taken some time off because I was going through a divorce. And, uh, my training partner, he's like, "What are you gonna do tonight?" And I jokingly said, you know, "I'm gonna go home and cry in the shower." I had just gotten this brand-new house, but I was alone.
Uh, my wife, my ex-wife now, had kicked me out. Uh, you know, [00:17:00] I felt disconnected. I was in this new place. I was-- And here I was just opening up to a dude in the gym, and he was like, he was blown away. And we're, we're best friends now
Riley: Dude, that, this, 'cause you're, you're talking about some pretty big deals, right? You know, you, you spend some time in jail, you go through a bankruptcy, you, you go through a divorce. These are things that are like on this trauma scale, they rate pretty high at the top. You
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: threw moving in there.
I don't know if you knew that, but on that list of moving a house is one of those things that
Brian Portugais: Yeah.
Riley: a long time, right?
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: y- you know, you said you moved umpteen times as a kid,
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: I don't know. Do you think there's, do you think you were kind of, uh, those experiences all went together to build strength in you?
Brian Portugais: Yeah, absolutely. I don't know if it was [00:18:00] like... I don't know if I used it as a way to build the strength, but looking back at it, like it definitely made help me who I am now. Um, it helps me navigate business extremely well. Um, I'm, I'm really good with people, you know. I, I love ch- chatting with people. I love hearing people's life stories.
I, you know, you know a business owner, we're, we basically live on our phone talking to clients and dealing with their problems, and it's like I... My clients call me just to bitch about their problems, and I'm like, "I'm here for you, man." But so all those experiences, yeah, they help me navigate stuff now, but it, you know, yeah
Riley: It's, it's interesting to me because, you've, you've been in that world where you've seen people ch- choose the other way though, where they've taken those traumas and just go, "I'm ruined now, and I can never recover," and go in almost a, a funk and a pity party rather than go, "You know [00:19:00] what? I just got punched in the nose, and now I need to make something of this," you know?
And what's, uh... What was it about it, do you think, caused you to make that decision in the positive direction?
Brian Portugais: Well, um, I felt like I had no other options. Imagine being in a hallway and it's, it's sh- it's as wide as your shoulders, so you can't turn, and there are no doors. So I think in life we have all these doors that we can take, and people get sidetracked. Well, God just gave me a hallway, and he's like, "You got one way, dude."
And I was, I was kinda forced into that. So it enabled me to work hard and stay focused, and I had no other options. Uh, you know, I couldn't get a job. When I, when I got out of jail, I had two college degrees and I was, I was cutting grass for eight bucks an hour, and I was the happiest dude in the world.
And I got a raise to 10 [00:20:00] bucks an hour, and I was like, "Yeah!" And you know, w- w- when you can't get a job and you can get a job cutting grass, it's like it, it's the greatest thing ever. And you can throw headphones on and you can make it something, or you can go home and you can cry about it, and you can mope.
And then, you know, you can start drinking and doing drugs again, and then, you know, those other doors are up, open, and you know what happens. And I've had friends that have died. Uh, I've had friends overdose. I've got friends that, you know, might be stuck in the same job, uh, for 20 years, and they're just constantly kind of in this rut that you can't get out of.
And it's like, I think I just didn't have any other options. That's why I did it. You know, I don't ever think I was special. Uh, I, you know, I, I just really thought I was limited in my options and I, I had to do that. And I had a big, I had a big chip on my shoulder too, like this, [00:21:00] I, I have no other options. I have to work hard.
I have to do this. Um, and then, you know, once I finally did get a real job, I was even in that job and I was like, "Everyone's staring at me. They all know." You know, I was back in that place and kinda reliving that, and then six months in I'm like, "They treat me like a normal human," you know? "They love me."
Like, people get over stuff if you allow them to get over it too. So, like to your buddy who thinks everyone's looking at me, well, like give other people a shot too because people are pretty forgiving
Riley: Yeah. It's, it's wild to me, I guess... There's a couple things here, and one of them I wanna ask you, 'cause y- you talked about addiction, right? And how you've had friends that have passed away, and you've had friends that have just stayed in that addict- addiction and never really grown through it. Do you... [00:22:00] Let me kind of back up a little bit, and I'll tell you kind of where I'm coming from with
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: So my, my... In my family, my, my real mom, she passed away from, was a, a drug reaction. She, she was on some prescription drugs that turns out she was getting from several different doctors the same drug, so she was tripling up on dosage.
was some
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: stuff. And then one night she decided to have a, have a drink, right?
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: of those killed her. And, but it was that, like, she knew better.
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: know, she was 31, 32 years old when she passed away, and it was... You know, I was just a little boy and, that, realization that that addictive kind of personality is in here, right? And so I'm pretty careful around anything that resembles substance abuse especially.
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: know, me from the jujitsu mats as probably the most, right? And, and I tend to have that, like, when I latch onto [00:23:00] something, it's on. And so did you, did you experience that in other areas, I guess is what I'm asking, that addictive, like, you latch onto something, you're on it?
Brian Portugais: Oh. Yeah, and people would still say I'm like that, so you, you try to channel it or funnel it into good things. Um, you know, when we trained together, uh, I, I focused on jujitsu. Now I'm into mostly lifting weights. I just recently got into biking, uh, you kn- you know. So yeah, I, I still have a very addictive personality, and I'm gonna be very honest with my daughter as well when sh- when the time is right and let her know that, uh, it, it runs in our family.
The, uh, my mom had a terrible addiction. She, she was, uh, in the '80s, she was addicted to crack, uh, which, you know, highly addictive substance. Uh, you hear all the things about it. The, in, in the later, early [00:24:00] 2000s, opioids was a big thing, and then she was getting multiple prescriptions from doctors. Same thing, my mom got hooked on opioids.
I've had other family members hooked on drugs and then, you know, you're going to see a doctor. These are professionals. You assume, you trust them. Uh, so I'm a little bit jaded when it comes to that, and w- especially with health and, and those things, you really have to be educated and take it into your own hands as well.
Uh, 'cause there are doctors out there that are still prescription happy, you know. "I got something wrong with me. Here's a pill, here's a pill, here's a pill." And it's like that's, that's not always the best solution. But unfortunately, in our society, especially in America, that's kind of the route we've chosen.
So and I don't wanna go crazy on politics, but I could.
Riley: Yeah. No, I just think that's something that's, that's an interesting deal because I do, I have come to, to just really believe that there are addictive personalities. [00:25:00] And man, you better watch yourself
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: alcohol or any kind of, any kind of substance especially, but anything that's unhealthy, right?
Brian Portugais: For sure
Riley: it just even seems like doom scroll, you know? That's freak, man. That's a hard one to,
Brian Portugais: dude, yeah. Nowadays, social media, I mean, Facebook just, uh, settled a class action c- class action lawsuit. Like it, it's been proven, you know, we have these tech companies developing apps that are intended to make you addicted, and then they start young, and then you have a lifelong client, you know, that you're gonna be...
So you've gotta be careful. Yeah. But like I said, even, even with, uh, the video games, technology, whatever it may be, sugar, um, I, you know, I'm gonna be very honest age appropriately with, with my own child and, you know, definitely let her know like, "Hey, uh, it runs in the [00:26:00] family."
Riley: Yeah.
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: Yeah, I think that's, I think that's true, man. And I, I, I don't know how much of that's just normal human nature that everyone struggles with, for me it scares me to open the door to certain things, you
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: yeah, certain things I just stay totally away from
Brian Portugais: You know, even in... So I started, I started my business in 2015, and, uh, again, underdog, thought I had to work, you know, 80 hours a week, and people think it's a point of pride to, you know, how many hours you can work. And, you know, building a business, there are moments where it's like you have to put in a lot of time, and I, again, did it in a very unhealthy way.
Um, uh, I neglected relationships. I neglected my body. This time it was for the work, though. Um, and that played a role into, uh... What's that?
Riley: I was gonna say work is socially acceptable [00:27:00] addiction, right?
Brian Portugais: Yeah. Yeah. And, you know, the newer generation is kind of putting their foot down with that, and, like, they value their time now, and they're doing so even over money. And, you know, from two thousand fifteen to two thousand eighteen, it was like seven days a week, eighty hours. And l-last year, you know... I, I pride myself now, the most important thing in the world to me is my time.
Um, if you mess with my time, you're, you're messing with me, uh, 'cause that's time away from my family now. That's time away from... You know, I'm getting old. I gotta take care of myself. Uh, so even your health now, uh, takes priority, and that takes a lot of time. Uh, and I'm married. I'm, I'm a newlywed. Uh, I wanna spend time, as much time as I can with my wife.
She's my best friend too. I love the kids. I love traveling, so all that's important. Uh, we just completed a [00:28:00] twelve-week project for, uh, the Hoopa Indian Tribe in Northern California, and it was the most intense work schedule, uh, that I've ever been a part of, and I lost three employees over it. And now on me, I gotta look back and go like, you know, "What could I have done better?"
And I have a lot of mixed emotions about it because if I wouldn't have taken that project on, I probably would have had to lay those employees off anyways. But, uh, they got to work and make a lot of money and save up. But, uh, you know, I, I just invoiced that job this morning, and it's, it's kinda bittersweet.
Uh, but this year it's-- I'm looking at the-- It's September already twenty-sixth, and we've already done last year's revenue by, like, June this year. Um, so the, the growth has been phenomenal. And, you know, how do I grow and make sure the people [00:29:00] under me are never jaded by the work? Try to minimize that. And it's important to me that they find that balance of time and that they make a lot of money 'cause, uh, I'm-- I-I've been a part of a lot of bad organizations that made a lot of money.
And, and let's, let's be honest, employees see when you make money, you know? So when you share that with them, and they get that sense of like, "Man, I get some of this profit sharing, and they care about me," man, you-- they'll, they stick around. Uh, most of my employees have been with me since college, and, you know, they're gonna own this company one day.
Riley: Talk to me about that, Brian, 'cause you, this, uh... You said you lost three employees over that account, so, or that, that job,
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: was it? Was it the grueling hours? What was the, what was the, you think the catalyst that caused them to leave?
Brian Portugais: So, uh, um, yeah, the hours was part of it, the [00:30:00] stress. Um, I tend to put young people in charge of our biggest projects, and I do it very purposefully. Um, I-- when I create project managers, I usually give them our biggest project, and it's, it's, it's literally trial by fire, and it's worked really well. And they have a great supporting cast, so it's not like, "Hey, go manage this.
You're on your own." But, um, one of, one of them came to me, and she was like... I was talking to her boss about what we do at Fiber, and he's, he's so animated and lit up. And like, I talked to you guys about engineering with telecommunications, like you guys love it. She's like: "I don't have that fire in me, but I wanna go find it."
And I was like: "That's amazing. I'm happy for you." Uh, also, the door is always wide open for her too, always welcome back. But, um, I have, I have motions about that too because, you [00:31:00] know, usually with work, I don't get-- The work doesn't make me, I make the work. So I can kinda fall in love with any work I'm doing.
But I get it that people wanna find that passion. Uh, uh, I don't know how this is perceived by the world, but I personally, you know, I don't, I don't think, you know, we have this grand idea of, uh, this job that we're gonna love and go find it, you know. I think people kinda fall in love what they do, and maybe it does happen both ways.
But like I said, I've always just, um, I've always loved working, so anything I've kinda done, I've usually loved. Now, I've worked at a Walmart Supercenter loading, loading boxes for twelve hours a day, and I hated that. But it, it, it showed me that, hey, I need to go get a job doing engineering work, you know, which was at least at the time, you know, something I enjoyed
Riley: What's interesting, 'cause you men- you mentioned, like, loading boxes for [00:32:00] 12 hours a day is, your favorite, but dude, there are people who that, they love that sort of thing.
Brian Portugais: Dude, everyone I worked with
Riley: and they've got... Yeah, it's like, I've got a cousin who can... He's, like, just gifted in this thing that he'll take these, these concepts that are sort of menial, you'd think, but then he pulls out of them, like, these, like, this nobility of some menial task, and it's so impressive to me because he, he makes it awesome.
It's like you sit and watch him work, and it's like, "Dude, I kinda wanna do that now." It's, it's like you're just stacking boxes or something, but it's, he does it with all, you know, this excitement and precision and, and enthusiasm, and it's a, it's kind of, um, just kinda sucks you in. It's rad.
Brian Portugais: What a mindset too, to ch- to be doing something that's work, but you enjoy it. So it's like, uh, it, it, it again, it's that frame of reference or your own mindset. [00:33:00] Like, yeah, some shit sucks, but we can make it suck less by having a good attitude And this doesn't always apply, you know, but
Riley: There's that whole entire show called Dirty Jobs is, is exactly that, right? Such a, such a rad, rad series. But Brian, when you're, um, you talk about this project, so this, this project, it, it brought in some revenue, but it also had some cost to it, right? And you as a business owner thinking these things through, how do you determine what projects are worth taking and which ones aren't based on...
factors in, right? If y-
gonna
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: on, it's gonna, maybe it makes you a million dollars, but you lose half your staff in the process. It's like, man, I don't know if that was worth it
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Brian Portugais: You know, this particular project, we were at a point where, uh, the, the telecom industry is... I mean, it is nothing but highs and lows. We're either killing it, making a ton of money, or it is so slow and there's nothing going on. So figuring out how to ride that wave and smooth it out so you're not constantly hiring and firing, 'cause it takes years to train an engineer.
So it's not like I can just pick up a bunch of engineers and then lay them off. So I gotta smooth that out. This project kinda was easy because we had noth- we had no other work going on. It was, it was do or die. So, but I sat everyone down, I got the team involved, I get management involved, and I said, "You know, the 12-week timeline is gonna suck."
And [00:36:00] we all talked about it, and it's like, you know, and then my vice president of the company's like, "It's gonna suck to lay off half the company too." And then in three months, because we know the highs and lows, we're gonna need them all back. So it's like, that one was another time in my life where it's like, no other doors.
We gotta go forward. And then I try to minimize the suckiness. You know, with young kids, I, I try to, I try to help them out with money. We bonus a lot. Um, we pay good per diem. We give them good travel accommodations. There was a lot of traveling involved with this. We were hiking through Humboldt and Trinity County in, uh, California, and I mean through the, the woods.
Everyone's got ticks, poison ivy. It's 100 degrees. I know everyone's cuss- cussing me out. But it's like, when you get through, a lot of employees, they go, "That was actually fun."
Riley: I wasn't stuck in an office all day, right?[00:37:00]
Brian Portugais: Yeah. But on that one, it's like going into the next project, we've been engaged, uh, we've been doing some work for, uh, some Native American tribes in California, and it's been, it's been rewarding to help out these communities. And you wanna talk about poor communities, I can take you in 2026 to places that don't have power still.
And, and this is like in California, and you're like, you're blown away. And then obviously, you know, uh, uh, Native Americans have their own host of issues as well. So it's... You feel kinda good about what you're doing too. And, uh, the team overall has that sense of like, you know, I don't, I don't feel good about doing work for AT&T or Tesla or, you know, Amazon or...
You know, I always feel good about doing a good job for them, but it's not like, "Oh, I just, I just hooked up another data center for you guys."
Riley: Sure. You, [00:38:00] you're, uh... One of the things you mentioned there, this, this idea of riding the waves, right? 'Cause you have these periods where, man, you almost need more people,
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: hire more because the lull is coming,
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: laying people off, right? And so talk about that a little bit, man, 'cause I think that's a part of business that someone who's never owned one and had to operate a company understands.
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: nights. They don't see the unsteady feelings and the knot in your gut you're like, "Man, this job's about to end, and I've got... I'm gonna have five highly paid people that I've gotta figure out how to feed," right? So, what do you do?
Brian Portugais: Dude, hiring my first employee was one of the most stressful things I'd ever done, 'cause it's like I, I wasn't even paying myself at the time, but I gotta make sure he always gets paid, and then as you expand to one or two people. One thing I've [00:39:00] done is I stay heavily involved with, uh, the university here.
I recruit through the university. Um, I, I hire a lot of interns, um, and I, I try or hope rather to develop them into engineers that may or may not wanna work for me, but they at least get to experience what it's like to work for an engineering company. Uh, I expose them to the financial side quite early.
I'm, I, I'm really open about, uh, the, the business side and the money side with, with people too. So staying involved with recruiting locally from the university has really helped me ride that wave. You know, I can throw an email over to BSU and be like, "Hey, I need, I need four students," and I usually get pretty good, uh, responses from them.
There was a weird time after COVID where, like, kids didn't wanna work or, or kids... For some [00:40:00] reason, everybody had a job, and it's like you couldn't even pay a kid, uh, more money than they were making. They're like, "No, I'm good." But staying involved here locally has really, uh, helped me, helped me do that.
Right now I have three interns. Uh, so they were part of that big project during the summer full-time. Now they're down to, like, 10, 15 hours a week, which is perfect 'cause we're slow.
Riley: Yeah, so you have part of the, part of the way you weather those storms is, is having people that kind of are part-time so that
Brian Portugais: Yes
Riley: And then what about s- what about... Do, do you guys as a company, do you set aside like a fund for that? So, so maybe, maybe the workload is 30 hours a week for your engineers, but you're paying them 40.
How, how do you guys go about that? 'Cause I know how we do it in our companies, but
Brian Portugais: Yeah. Well,
Riley: how
Brian Portugais: that has evolved a lot 'cause I remember, you know, talking to other business [00:41:00] owners and it's like, "We got 20 grand in the bank," and he, you know, people would be like, "That, that's gotta be scary." And I'm like, "Yeah, it freaks me out." We're just very fortunate right now that, uh, we, we have a, we have significant cash on hand, uh, that we're able to weather the storm.
So, uh, through the good years in the past, uh, we've saved money. Um, I've, I've started an insurance company also. Uh, that was essentially a tax play to put funds away for rainy day, um, and that, that's built up quite significantly. So w- we, we have, we, we have significant cash on hand now to weather those storms.
But dude, like,
th- this is crazy for me because like I said, even in, in '21, '22, '23, it's like I might have 60 grand in the bank and payroll is 20 grand a week. So, you know, [00:42:00] I'm always about we-- you know, cash flow, cash flow, cash flow. Now, cash flow is less important. It's still obviously cash flow is always important, but, um, when, when you have that reserve, it's, it's less of a worry.
And then we can develop business with less stress too of like, "If I don't get that next big job, we're screwed." Now it's like the next big job I'm gonna kinda, uh, pick a little bit more. We've partnered up, like I said, with, uh, a couple of tribes in the Nat- uh, the Native American community, and we're gonna do some cool shit with them.
They're really big into AI. They wanna, they wanna be self-sufficient, so they're bringing us in as subject matter experts to essentially mentor them and teach them what we do. Um, so that's gonna be a new thing in business I do. It's gonna be kinda weird.
And, uh, you know, one might ask, like, "Aren't you worried about developing a [00:43:00] competition?"
But it's like, you know, no, I'm not worried about it.
I, I'm pretty, I'm pretty cocky about how good we are at what we do. So, uh-
Riley: Well, did you s- you said something that I don't wanna gloss over, and I, uh, y- you said by having cash on hand makes the, the rollercoaster less scary. It's g- uh, I can't remember exactly how you just phrased that,
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: like once you have that covered, the emergency's covered, you've, you've got enough cash on hand to kind of weather those storms, now your focus can be on other things, right?
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: I think about, like, just in personal finance, like if you're s- if you're having a hard time the mortgage payment and putting food on the table, you're not thinking about giving to charity. You're trying to, you're trying to eat, man. And,
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: that also applies in business, it's so beautiful, is that, that once you've, once you've set aside enough to weather those storms, now you can start, [00:44:00] start thinking in that kind of altruistic how do I, how do I mentor someone else and teach them how to do what I do?
Brian Portugais: And yeah, and like I said, I, I talk to my employees about finances early on. Uh, I'm, I'm heavily involved in the market. Um, I'm-- I've got a nice real estate portfolio built up. Um, I've a- I've told my employees, you know, I a- I want them to all buy houses, you know. I look at the housing market. Again, we're in the news again for, uh, the number, the percentage of homes selling above market rate, and you're like, "How are kids gonna make it?"
You know? It, it kinda sucks for them. And then there, you know, and then there's investors that own 10 houses and... But it's like we gotta help mentor these kids get houses and, uh, my employees have been fortunate to, uh, get in and buy houses. We have a good profit sharing. Uh, we do 401, um, so [00:45:00] things like that.
I think there was another question I skipped over.
Yeah.
Riley: cool because you're, you're just... By being smart about the way you're doing business, it allows you to do other, other neat things, right? And it's...
Brian Portugais: Well, I wa- I was telling, uh, I,
I, I was telling, I was telling a brand new married young couple once and, and I was sharing a conversation that I had with one of my best friends. And I told him, you know, I had told them I want them to be successful and make a lot of money. And he's like, "Oh, mon- money's not gonna solve their problems."
And I s- I said, "Dude, no. But if you don't have money, you can't give money away."
Riley: Right.
Brian Portugais: If you're not financially responsible, how are you gonna help others be financially responsible? So, uh, you know, you got to true up yourself, you know, and it's important. I talk about having that emergency fund built up, you know? And now, like I said, I, I established a, [00:46:00] a scholarship at BSU. I, I can't do that if I'm riddled with debt, you know?
I c- I can't, I can't donate money to a, to a family that needs Thanksgiving or Christmas funds, but you can once you become financially sound in your own way
Riley: Yeah. so I was having this, this, uh, conversation with a young man here recently, just, just last week, and he was talking about wanting to make more money in his business, right? He's like, "Man, I j- I just need, I need a little bit of a raise. I need about..." You know, the number he gave me is, "About 500 bucks a month would make me comfortable." And so he's like, "What do I do?" And I'm like, "Well, here's the leverage you can pull. You know, you can raise your prices, you can, you can work more hours, you can go s- you can go sell more stuff. know, but these are the... this is the way you've gotta think about it. There's only a certain amount of leverage you can pull.
You can cut expenses, you can bring in more gross sales, or you can, you can raise prices and create more margin." And I'm like, [00:47:00] "Dude, that's what, that's what you need to do, so tell me, which one of those can you do?" And he's like, "Well, I, I guess I could, I could do this, I could do that." He starts naming some things.
I'm like, "Okay. Th- go do that." You know, and so Monday morning, that's wh- that's his project
Brian Portugais: So you know what? My, my second year in business, working seven days a week, 80 hours a week, I, I made-- I, I did $380,000 in revenue. So I figured out if I work seven days a week, 80 hours, my max as a person was about three hundred and eighty thousand. So for me to grow, I had to hire, uh, employees. And, you know, I, I'm an engineer.
I've had no business training whatsoever. I've just always been... Anywhere I've worked, I've quickly become a part of the business and wanted to always learn from it, so I've always worked under the owners. But my idea was like, "What if I just created a [00:48:00] carbon copy of me? Now I got two people that can make three hundred and eighty thousand a year."
You and I both know it doesn't work like that 'cause now you become a manager, and you gotta manage people. So maybe I got a carbon copy that can do three hundred thousand a year, and now I'm a hundred thousand a year. So maybe year two we're only at four hundred, but then again, this is just how I went about it.
I'm like, "Well, what if I create another carbon copy of me?" And, you know, you kinda, you, you kinda kept doing that. And, you know, at the height of my business, we, we had 20 employees, uh, last year. We're down to, like, a comfortable 12. But, um, that, that, that was one way to do it. You know, you, you, you duplicate what you know to be successful and, uh...
So that was my method of doing it. Uh, I don't think I've raised prices on paper i-i-in eight years. Uh, so, [00:49:00] but that's not, you know... We've increased our efficiency mode so much that I-- we, we increase our bottom line by raising margins, so our customers always feel like they're getting this value. We appear to be one of the cheaper companies sometimes.
Sometimes we're the most expensive. Uh, it, you know, it just depends on the project. But, uh, yeah, people have asked me, you know, "How can I make more money?" One answer is, you work more hours. That's absolutely a valid response, and I think there's a time and a place for that. In your 20s, absolutely, you know, go for it.
Um, as you, as you get older, that becomes less of a valid response. But, you know, it, it, it's not a one-size-fits-all solution either
Riley: No. No, and again, there's, there's, there's more ways to pull levers, you know? And
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: young man I was talking to, he went out on a... [00:50:00] Yeah, he went out and bought a brand new car. And what came with it was a, you know, $550 a month payment. I'm like, "Okay, so you're saying 500 bucks a month would make you comfortable, huh?" I think I found it. You know, it's
Brian Portugais: Dude, I hear...
Riley: chunk of it
Brian Portugais: I s- I, I, I, I live this story once a month with kids. Like, a kid, kid that, uh, I hire to do odds and ends around the house and rentals, he pulled up in, like, a C6 Corvette, and I'm like, "What in the hell are you doing?" 'Cause I sent him to California, and he made, like, five grand in a week, and he's...
You know, for him, it's, like, more money than he's ever made. He comes back and buys a car. I'm like, "You dumbass, save that money." But they all gotta learn, too. Hey, and I re-
Riley: that's how we went through it.
Brian Portugais: Look, in, in, in 1998, I discovered student loans, and the, the first [00:51:00] thing I did, I, I was in Cedar City, Utah. I went and bought a 1967 Plymouth Barracuda
Riley: With student loans
Brian Portugais: with student loans. So it's like, I've done it too, but now I try to tell them, "Hey, that wasn't the smartest idea." But, you know, we go through it
Riley: I love it, man. I love it. If you could, if you could start over again, and l- I guess, like, this is a question I have for you. Did you have people around you at that time telling you that was a bad idea?
Brian Portugais: No, not really. Uh, you know, I, I was raised by a single mom. She-- her commute was an hour each way. She worked swing shift. She wasn't around much. Um, so no, you know, you're kinda-- you're surrounded by your friends a lot, and people say, you know, "Look at your five closest friends, and that's who you're gonna grow up to be."
But it's like, yeah, we were kinda all doing stuff like that. I, you-- so I didn't at the [00:52:00] time have people telling me, but, you know, I quickly learned, as you have to pay off the student loan debt, like, damn, that was stupid.
Riley: Dude, I, I think about my bankruptcy, and that's something I've talked about a million times over the years, is that at the time I was doing all the stupid that caused that to happen, I didn't... I had a bunch of yes men around me. I had people telling me everything I was doing was so smart and such a good idea and, know. Yeah, if I would've just read my Bible, 'cause it was telling me different. But
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: what I was doing was smart, I'm, I'm like, in hindsight, dude, those people. I needed to have somebody in there that would tell me the truth that hurt. I needed it to sting 'cause I'm not very smart, right?
Brian Portugais: Yeah.
Riley: I needed to kick my butt, smack me upside the head.
Brian Portugais: Now, and now, now
Riley: I value that so much, so it's cool that you got people that you're, uh, to talk to that way and say, "Hey man,
with me for a minute. [00:53:00]
Brian Portugais: Yeah. And now it's like most my friends, you, are, are business owners. Like, a lot of my friends have businesses, and we, we talk about everything, you know? And even with you, you know, I talk to you about my str- struggles with my kid, uh, my kids now, uh, my wife, uh, my health, business. There's other things in life too.
So now I got people that, uh, I'm honest with, and we, we share all our struggles together, so. And I got buddies, like I'll send a picture, I'm looking at this Porsche. "You're an idiot. Buy a house." He straight up tells me, you know? Uh, and, and I, I am the same way too
Riley: Listen, there's, there's a place where you should lighten up and have a little fun, but be smart in the process, right? There's... Things are a lot funner when the consequence of it going wrong won't kill us.
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: can have a little fun, like [00:54:00] I, I always think of somebody who would go buy a, you know, a scratch lottery ticket.
I don't buy them. Not into that. But if they got a, if they got a million bucks in the bank and they wanna go buy a scratch lottery ticket once, uh, that's not gonna hurt them.
Brian Portugais: You know, the, the la-
the latest thing too with the kid, e- everyone's gambling now. And I, I meet these kids with the gambling apps and I'm like, they're like, "Well, you, you, you'll bet on fights." I'm like, "Dude, it's not the same," you know?
Riley: Five bucks with my buddy is
Brian Portugais: Yeah, yeah, and it's like you're, you're, you're betting 500 bucks when it's like that, that could be half your paycheck.
So, uh, I think that's an interesting new problem we're gonna be seeing is, uh, this unregulated gambling, and there's so many apps that you can do it on now. So, but again, like you said, if you got a million bucks in the bank and you wanna spend 500 bucks, it's like, as a percentage, it's probably not gonna [00:55:00] bother that guy.
But when it's 50% of your paycheck, you better rethink that strategy
Riley: Yeah. Yeah, man. It's the, the damage that can be done when you do stupid like that, and then your spouse is watching you do stupid like that, and she's having to budget at home because you're gambling half the paycheck away.
man, that are about to smack that young man in the face are
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: It's gonna make this whole thing a lot less fun.
Brian Portugais: Yeah. And I think it kind of also feeds into that, that addictive personalities that s- people might have or even, uh, we create because we've started it so young now with Instagram and social media, and then kids, uh, I see... Someone told me the other day an eight-year-old, one of them friends had a, a smartphone.
I was like, "Oh my gosh, that's insane to me." Uh, but we're conditioning them for that, for that, uh, dopamine response already, and then [00:56:00] we're making kids numb to betting 500 bucks at a time when it's like w- 500 bucks even for me and you, that's a lot of money, or we respect what that is capable of purchasing.
And for me, it's like, you know, I, I always equate money to time, so... But everybody has a different season in their life what money does for them. So yeah
Riley: Man. Brian, you mentioned earlier very briefly we talk about when you do have a, a, a certain level of success, and you said your employees will s- they, they know when money's coming in, right? They can feel it.
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: What, what do you do? 'Cause I, I... Here, here's something I'm thinking about is, is a while back I had a friend and he was a, he was in landscaping.
He owned a company. And he had his, his shop where he'd park the trucks and the mowers and did all their [00:57:00] work on his property. And he had... It was a, it was a nice home, but it wasn't extravagant, but it was a nice place. And I remember him talking about there was this, like, strife that was happening because his employees would come to work, and they would see his home, and it was nicer than their home, and so then they became jealous.
You know. Do you, have you experienced that?
Brian Portugais: Yeah, I've experienced it on both ends too, because I was one of those employees that went to my boss's house and I was like, "Dang, dude." We, we went from 5 million at one company to 25 million, and I got a $3,000 Christmas bonus, and you get jaded. So I've used those experiences to try to be better and treat my employees differently.
Um, I don't think I've experienced, that I know of w- currently with my employees and my success, but there might [00:58:00] be. Um, they've been pretty good about not showing it. But like I said, you know, uh I also try to tell them like, "Hey, you know, I'm 47, you're 30. There's gonna be a gap in life too with things."
'Cause w- when I was 30, you know, I didn't own-- I didn't... I bought my first house when I was 39 years old. So I, I experienced success way later in life. Uh, so I see these 25-year-olds that work for me, and they got their shit together, and they got a sizable 401, and they're saving for a house or own a house, and it's like, so there are kids out there like that too.
And it's like, even my wife will be like, "You know, that's crazy. We have employees that are-- got their head on straight and are doing that." But, uh, last week, I went in the office, I gave my vice president four grand cash. J- He, he was like, "I feel like a [00:59:00] drug dealer." I'm like, "Eh, it's just money." So, so it's...
Yeah, dude, I brought, I brought, I brought a stack of hundreds. I was like, "Here. Thanks, man." 'Cause he's been working every night till 9:30. And I, I, I, I also try not to motivate people purely with money. Um, but everyone's motivated by different things. My, my, my highest performers, I give the ultimate freedom to.
Uh, I give them freedom to do whatever they want. And your very high-performing people, you cannot have a thumb on them because I was like that in another company. So I don't tell people when to go to work. I don't tell people when to leave. Uh, I don't con- micromanage their schedule, uh, because they're the best at what they do, and I, you know, they, they need that freedom, and that's one of the things that motivates them too.
And I remember, uh, my vice president, I'm like, I'm like, "I know it sucks working at night. Here's a little bit of [01:00:00] m- money." I, I... And he said something funny. He's like... I was like, "I know this doesn't help or something." He's like, "Yeah, it does." So
Riley: Yes
Brian Portugais: he's like, "Sure, it helps." Uh, and I remember talking to another business owner once about giving someone a cash bonus, and I thought they were gonna be like blown away by it.
Like, "Wow, this is amazing." And they were just like... They were like, "Thank you," quite subdued. And I was like, I was kinda bummed that they weren't more excited 'cause like I would be so excited. But then, you know, one of my buddies put it in perspective. He's like, "Dude, they, their heart, they are cheering inside right now.
They're, they're so thrilled, you know?" So, um, like he said,
Riley: just, you know, it's... money helps, but it's that, that attaboy. It's that, you know, done, dude. That,
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: them, that recognition you gave them. I think that's a freaking big deal for people, man. I've seen people blow out [01:01:00] of some pretty high level, highly paid positions because they just were taken for granted, and
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Brian Portugais: They're [01:02:00] not appreciated.
Yeah. It, it, a- and you're right, you got, you have to encourage people with positive words, affirmations. W- we, guys say we gotta give each other our flowers nowadays. Uh, but yeah, dude, I'll go up to a guy in the gym and be like, "Bro, you are jacked." And their whole demeanor is like, they're like, "Whoa, thanks, dude."
And I just walk, I just walk away, you know? Uh, so
sometimes it's cool just to encourage people, man
Riley: Do you... So I wanted to ask you about the other side of this, right? 'Cause this is the fun side, when you, when you get to recognize people and you get to build them up and you get to, you get to pay them more and throw bonuses their way. But t- talk about what happens in your world when someone doesn't perform, when you need to, when you need to correct them or discipline them or fire them
Brian Portugais: Yeah. Um, because I've hired so many [01:03:00] students, uh, nowadays it seems like everyone's got such a polished resume, and they come in and they interview so well, and then they get in, and you're like, "What the heck, dude? I thought this, this, and this." I am now quick to let go of people extremely fast. Um, I used to hem and haw about it because I, I wanted to see if I could change them or help them grow.
Um, and to an extent, I do wanna help you grow, but it's the people that want to grow with you, not the people that are like, uh, you could tell people that are, like, stuck in their ways. So I'm really quick to get rid of those people, and my other employees have also appreciated it because it's a cancer in the organization, and it affects everybody else.
And then your high performers have to pick up the slack, and then they're like, "What the heck, dude? I'm doing their job too, and we hired them to help relieve some of the stress." [01:04:00] So it's like when you get rid of those people, the f- the relief on the other employees is palpable. And people have thanked me, "Thank you for getting rid of them.
They were dragging us down." So, um, I'm pretty quick to terminate now. Uh, like I said, though, my, uh, all my management have been with me since they were in school. Uh, my vice president just turned thirty 30 years old. Isn't that crazy? Uh, and he's been with me for
Riley: since graduating college
Brian Portugais: Since he was a senior in college.
Riley: That's
Brian Portugais: Yeah.
Riley: man.
Brian Portugais: Yeah, and I used to put him...
I, I had no boundaries when I first hired him. I called him at 11 o'clock at night. I called him in class and told him to get out of class. We had permits we need to submit. Like, I, I joke around and I tell him I put him through the Navy SEAL of engineering training, and he's l- he even jokes. [01:05:00] He's like, "Dude, the new employees have, like, the nice Brian.
They got it so easy." No idea. Yeah.
Riley: That's such an interesting thing, man, 'cause you, you, you kind of get a camaraderie there. Like, I've got a friend, the first guy I ever really had a, a career with, the first guy I went to work with in construction. You know, I, I worked for this dude for... I'm trying to think. It would've been nine years, eight... Anyway, eight or nine years with him, right? And well, dude, we went through some crap together. It was his, his business, but was there from the beginning, and we, we grew that thing together, and it was like a... We had the, the horror stories and the, the, those times that we talk about now fondly, but they were rough going through them. And we're still friends today, man, and we just... In fact, I saw him this last weekend, and we, we sat down and talked, and just talking about the memories of these, these kind of the trench times, you know, when you're, you're fighting for your life out there. And, and it's, again, fond memories now, but holy crap, dude. I wouldn't want to [01:06:00] go through that stuff again.
Brian Portugais: Dude, I don't even know if I'd wanna redo this business again. Like, now that I've learned what I... And, and I joke because I-- people that know me, they're like, "Dude, you could never work for someone." Because again, when I worked, I, I needed ultimate freedom to do what I do. And then you get into an organization, and they're like, "Well, we're paying you a lot of money," and, you know, they wanna keep tabs on you.
But I was always like, "Let me have that freedom to solve problems, and I'll even make you more money." And, you know, I, I watched, uh, a few companies I worked for, you know, uh, you know, go from-- to grow a company from five to 25 million in a span of a year and a half is insane. And then, you know, uh, money makes people weird too if you're not ready for it
Riley: We'll talk about that, man, because, since I've known you, your world has changed as [01:07:00] far as that goes.
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: you know, again, I wanna celebrate that with you 'cause I just think it's freaking cool as crap. I love it when somebody, when somebody just takes off. But you've also got to feel the pressures of that, right?
Because you're, now all of a sudden around you start to get weird maybe,
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: for you to get weird. I don't know. I don't see that side of you, and I've never really felt that from you, but what's it like on that, on that side of things?
Brian Portugais: You know, I, I, I tend to be careful who you share your success with and, and how you do that. Um, your friends, your, your true friends celebrate the victories with you, right? And dude, all my friends, you know, I want to be super successful. I'm a customer of yours, you know? I don't ask for any redemption codes.
I just order your shit online, and my wife drinks it every day. [01:08:00] I drink it every day, uh, you know? Um, but it's, uh, being careful how you share and what you share and, uh, staying humble too 'cause, you know, it can get to your head, but it's like you gotta remember where you came from. And when you realize, like, dude, there's always someone with more, and there's always someone with less, and I'm just a normal dude.
The, the best I can hope is to teach people what I know, rub off on good, and help raise our kids to be good humans, you know? Uh, so, um, but I mean, you know, if you're driving a Porsche down the road, people take notice
Riley: Yeah.
Brian Portugais: you know?
Riley: you talk about... Go ahead. Keep going
Brian Portugais: That, that's, that, that's all I was gonna say. So, you know, I, I, I wanna be honest, you know. I have other buddies, let's say, that might drive really expensive cars, and I've even talked to them, "Is it weird going [01:09:00] to visit clients when you're in those kind of vehicles?" 'Cause it can make clients weird too. Like, "Well, you're making that much money that you get to drive those kinda cars?"
But it's like, you know, that's not the full story either. So, but yeah, people can, people can be like, "Yeah, well, uh, you know, you have three Porsches, and I, I ride a bike." And it's like, you can't necessarily compare one-to-one because like I said, uh, it's taken me a lot to get here, and I've... Like Andy Dufresne in that movie, I dug through 500 feet of shit to come out in the pond and take my shower in the rain.
So a lot of people, you, you have to share it with people who understand what it took to get there, and, uh, especially people that have done it themselves, you know? Uh, I, I... N- nothing was given to me at all, so, uh, you know, definitely have the [01:10:00] appreciation for the grind to earn it, you know?
Riley: I think, I think surrounding yourself with people who can celebrate your wins and then be there for you when you lose, dude. 'Cause when you own a business, there are those highs and there are those lows, man. And I... Sometimes it's all during the same day, sometimes it's in the same hour, know? And you just have this like...
There's a, there's a book, and I think I still have it on my bookshelf back here, it's called the, The Entrepreneur Rollercoaster, right? that's the part people don't see, man. They, they see the highlights, they see
Brian Portugais: Yeah. Yeah
Riley: they don't see that, man, the sleepless nights and that burden you carry, and what it feels like to have to let someone go an employee, you know?
And what it, what it, yeah, feels like to have to cut payroll every week. It's... You don't understand, you don't understand, and there's a burden you carry
Brian Portugais: Dude, even, even going and doing something, [01:11:00] uh, like cliff jumping, you know, I have to take into account if I get hurt, you know, I'm potentially not only hurting myself, but the families of 15 people. So it's like,
going, you know-- even doing things like that, like I, I'm always aware of what I'm doing because, uh, it's not just me and my family, it affects other people too.
And, you know, and, you know, I, I, I don't brag about anything I own or, uh, I, you know-- I'm not even on social media. I don't post anything. Uh, I share with my friends, you know, if I get a new car, of course, I, uh, text pictures of it to my friends. You know, I even let my friends drive it 'cause of course you wanna share it with them.
Uh, but yeah, you share those victories. But also, you know, uh, I just went through a divorce four years ago, and I, I was severely depressed, and it's like, you know, I got to share all that with you, [01:12:00] and you guys got to see me when, you know, in that season of my life where I was, uh, horrible, you know? But it's like I remember, dude, going through that divorce, I was like, "I'm, I'm losing half of everything I own.
I'll never get it back." And it's like, "Get out of here."
Looking back now, it's easy for me to be like, you know. But, uh, when you go through that stuff too, you know, it's like you, you're, you're not only losing half the bank account, you're losing half your time with your kid. You're losing
years of time you built with another human being where you shared victories and, uh, the, the, the hard times too.
So, uh, you've put time into those relationships, and to me, time is the most precious commodity there is
Riley: Did you, you just, you just kind of hit on something that, [01:13:00] you know, back again to that, that mark, that scarlet letter, right? Because now, you walk through that and it's like now you walk around as a... Your, your, your goal when you got married the first time wasn't to end up in divorce. now you're a divorcee, right?
And you're, you're like, "Well, crap, now I'm one of those guys, and now I'm walking around and everyone knows it." And it, you know, it's, it's like there you go again, having to fight through that.
Brian Portugais: You know what?
Riley: the... Oh,
Brian Portugais: Oh, I, I was gonna tell you to speak to that directly. I, I hid I was getting a divorce from people for a while too because, again, I had so much shame, and I felt like I was a failure. And, like, 'cause you go into this, uh, forever, you think it's gonna be. And, and, and then you are separating and divorcing.
You're like, "Well, I failed. I failed this person I married. I'm, I'm failing my kids. I failed myself." And then I'm like, "How am I ever gonna find love [01:14:00] again knowing that I was a failure this first time?" Um, but it's... You know, you rebuild, you rebuild yourself even better through those times and, you know. And now my, uh, my wife now is amazing, my best friend.
And dude, it's like I can't wait to spend as much time with her as like... I'm always like, "That's all I wanna do now," you know? And like I said, time is that commodity where, uh, we did come out of it better, and you do, uh, you do grow from it, you know? And even my ex-wife, we're still friends, and I want her to have an amazing life, and I want her to be happy too.
And, uh, I think if people took that approach more like, "Damn, I just want other people to be happy too," and then it's like entropy in the world. It, it makes... You can, you can put a little good out there, and it makes someone else have a little good, and it's, it's, uh, contagious
Riley: I, you know, just as a compliment to you, man, that's [01:15:00] something that... your ex-wife, and I've been at parties where after your divorce you guys were hanging out, and you had a cordial relationship, you know. And I imagine there was some head-butting that went on behind the scenes in that, but, but you still, like, would invite her over, and it
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: "The kiddo's gonna be there, so you might as well be here, too." And there was just this like... I thought that was cool because you could see it. It was like you could feel the fact that you wanted her still to be happy and weren't... you'll see it, and I know you- you've, you've got friends who've done this, where they just lock in. It's like their entire existence is trying to make their ex-wife or, or ex-husband miserable.
Brian Portugais: Dude, I hear horror stories and it's like, yeah, uh, unfortunately, a lot of people feed off that kind of thing too, and it's, it's that, it's that negative outlook again and like, you know, if, if I'm hurting, I wanna hurt you. If I'm suffering, you should be suffering. Instead of like, you could take the different [01:16:00] approach, I wanna be happy, so I want you to be happy.
And yeah, we're still friends and dude, I've-- She is dating now. Uh, my wife and I, if we have a party, we've had her and her boyfriend over for parties and a lot of people are like freaked out by it. They think it's weird, but it's like, I don't care. It's cool
Riley: Yeah. Well, if that's generally what's in your heart, that you want her to be happy, then, dude, that's where, that's where you're at, right? What else are you gonna do?
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: of one guy, and I... This, this just completely breaks my heart, but he had, he and his wife had, um, adopted a kid. And when she left the marriage, she, she took their...
They had a child together also, she took the child and fought for custody for that one that they had together, their biological child. the adopted child, she disowned him, and it was like, she said, "That's yours. [01:17:00] That was your decision. That was something that I don't wanna be any part of." And dude, it's just...
And then she's just been a terrorist ever since to him, and it's like, it tears me apart to watch that, 'cause I watch the just anguish he goes through. And he's the kind of dude more like you, just like, "I want her to be happy, and I, you know, don't really necessarily wanna be around her all the time."
But God, man, she's just, just like dead set on making his life miserable, and it's terrible to watch. Terrible to watch
Brian Portugais: Yeah, and it sucks. I mean, divorce is like really the, the, the, the number one thing if there's kids involved you should be focused about is the kids. Like, that is the most important thing. And unfortunately, people have such big egos, and they can't get out of their own way 'cause, uh, they want something or, you know, again, I'm not happy, so I want you to be unhappy instead of like, well, we got this human being we created or adopted.
Really the focus should be on them
Riley: Yeah. Yeah, for sure. It's hard for people to get over that sometimes, and so, you know, we [01:18:00] all go through crap. Um,
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: several things you've been through and that, and it's, it's how do we come out the other side, you know? And so Brian, if you had advice you could give somebody, no one is gonna walk through this life unscathed, right?
Unscarred. when it comes to coming out the other side better than you were before that hardship, what, what do you have to say about that?
Brian Portugais: You know, the best thing I could, I could tell anybody is, uh, develop a love of work. Having a love of work and that good attitude affects everything. It affects how you treat people. Uh, it, it affects your outlook on everything. So, uh, and, and I don't mean to always bring this back to work, but I think just having that attitude can affect so many other aspects of your life, help you with finances, help you be more responsible with, uh, yourself and people.
So [01:19:00] I've, I've really noticed, uh, teaching your kids to have a love of work too. Get-- Like, teach a kid, like when they're raking leaves, like if they do it joyfully, uh, it, it literally affects how they, uh, do everything in life. You know? Like, shit doesn't have to suck, you know. Of course, there's stuff we do that sucks, but it's like, uh, we blow it up too much and make things that are demons and evil, and it's like, it's not that bad, you know?
So
Riley: way worse than it should,
Brian Portugais: Yeah. So I, I, I really, one of my goals is with, with my kids is, you know, to, to try to hand them down the, the advice that... I actually learned that, uh, from a pastor, just that love of work, uh, and, and how can it affect so many different things. So also, man, when you're down and out, if [01:20:00] you go out and help somebody, and I mean anything, you know, there's always old ladies walking around.
I got neighbors that, you know, need help bringing in their trash cans, but getting out of your own head and helping someone else can really affect your day. And I mean, doing that puts you in such a different head space when it's like, "The world's not out to get me." And a lot of people get stuck in that.
Like,
yeah
Riley: We, we were talking about something here this morning at a Bible study I go to on Wednesdays. in fact, down at the, at Team Ryno, we have a Wednesday morning Bible study going now,
Brian Portugais: Nice
Riley: we, we, we fight each other and then we go over the Word of God, and it's great. but one of the things we were talking about this morning was this idea that, um, of receiving help from people, and the fact that it's so difficult for us sometimes to receive from someone else, you know. Easy for us to give. You talked about going and doing [01:21:00] something good for somebody else, but have you ever experienced that, where, like, someone comes to, to pour into you, and you just have a hard time taking it?
Brian Portugais: Yeah, and I'll even tell people sometimes, uh, it's easier for me to see it in other people, but I'm like, "Don't rob people of that blessing of helping you either." Because if someone wants to help you, like, that's a blessing on them, and if I'm turning that down, I'm, I'm taking away their blessing. So it's like we gotta be careful to doing that, and men especially, 'cause we're so tough and badass that we don't need help, or we don't share our emotions and yada, yada.
But it's like you know, w- we're all in this together, dude, and especially your close friends. Like, the shit they're going through, I'm gonna go through it with them. So, you know, m- my, my biggest thing is when I, when I see that is I try not to rob people of doing that, because I'm taking away their blessings.
So, and it makes them feel good [01:22:00] too, 'cause I just said when I'm down and out, I wanna help someone. So if I'm like, "I don't need your help," maybe they were doing that 'cause they needed to do that, so I need to help, I need to help them by receiving that too. So it kind of goes both ways
Riley: It's, that's hilarious you say it that way because that's exactly what gentleman who brought that up this morning at this Bible study was... He had the same conversation with somebody, and he used those exact words. "Listen, dude, don't rob me of my blessing. I, I, I wanna do this for you, and you can't right now.
So I'm coming over and I'm gonna..." It was a, he was gonna mow his lawn, right?
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: weeks while this guy was out of town on a work assignment, and just take care of his yard for him, man. And he's like, "Let me do it." And he's like, "Well, I'll pay you." And he's like, "No, you won't."
Brian Portugais: Yeah. It, it's, and it's that
socially now it's like if you do a favor, there's, there's gotta be an exchange of something, right? But it's like, no, there doesn't have to be. [01:23:00] Sometimes people just wanna do nice stuff. Like, I don't want any money. Dude, I wanna come over and cut your grass while you're out of town 'cause it's a blessing for me.
Like, it's actually giving me fulfillment by doing something nice for you. Keep your money.
Riley: man. It's so funny because it's, it's such a window into the, the pride that we can have. You know, just... and that's what one of the guys said. He's like, that's, that's pride. That's exactly what that is. You won't receive it. You won't, you won't receive a blessing from someone else. You won't receive a, a gift from someone else, and it's just 'cause you're, you're too prideful, man."
Brian Portugais: Dude, it's kind of that ego thing, right? I don't need help. I got it.
Riley: I got this.
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: Well, and, and you had kind of said, like, you had not, not revealed the fact that you were going through a divorce for a while,
and
part of
Brian Portugais: Mm-hmm.
Riley: was that, right? It's just like, "I don't wanna... people to see my warts, man, those skeletons in the [01:24:00] closet." But it's there and, and, you know, I don't know, you, you probably...
Brian Portugais: You know what's funny too?
Riley: and would've... go ahead
Brian Portugais: All my friends, no one cared. All they wanted to do was check on me and see how I was doing. They wanted to check on me and see how my daughter was doing. They, they, they didn't think anything less of me. They didn't think I was a failure. They didn't think I wasn't be- gonna be able to move on and ever find love again.
That was shit I was carrying around
Riley: Oh, dude. That, I mean, that's so profound, 'cause I'll tell you, we did care. We
Brian Portugais: cour--
uh,
Riley: We didn't, we didn't, again, did not see you as less. We just like, "All right, man. Brian's gonna be going through a, a time, let's be there for him."
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: you're... we get in our own head. Talk about that a little bit, 'cause you're, you're having this head talk like, "Oh, they're gonna think less of me if I let them know I'm going through this garbage."
That happened the same thing to [01:25:00] me in bankruptcy. I just kind of didn't want to tell people, and I had several friends, um, who I'm kind of ashamed in the hindsight that said, "I didn't even know you were going through that." I was like, "Yeah, I kind of kept that close to the vest, you know?" And it was, uh, because of the shame, right?
But the shame wasn't, it wasn't,
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: from them. It was coming, it was all in here
Brian Portugais: Yeah, dude, we, we can be our own worst enemies, and i- it's all that self-talk, and we're human. We walk around and we're like, ba, da, da, da. We're, we're talking to ourself all day, and then if there's something wrong going on, you're, you're probably focusing on that. So yeah, I think we can absolutely be our own worst enemies with our self-talk.
And when you tell someone about it, it's like, it's not that big of a deal. Like, we're making this big monster out of something when it's like, no one really cares. Uh, you know, I talk to people that are perhaps overweight, and they, they're like, "Dude, I'm embarrassed to go to the gym." And I'm like, "I hate to, [01:26:00] I hate to burst your ego, but no one cares."
Like, they're, they're happy you're there. No one's looking at you. We're all, we're all doing the same thing. Everyone's just trying to make themselves a better version of themselves. So it's like, you know, we stop ourselves too because of that self-talk on getting better perhaps, 'cause it's like, well, maybe, maybe I am, I am overweight, and so I'm not starting the process to get healthy because I'm ashamed to get help.
Or I think people look at me and they're like, "That person's fat or overweight." Rather than it's like, dude, we're stoked that you're getting yourself better or trying to make yourself better. Like, people actually applaud that, and then you find out, it's like people are cheerleaders for you too. So it's like, not only, not only was I wrong, but I had it 180 degrees off.
People are stoked I'm here because I'm ... You know? So it's like, [01:27:00] you know? And you see that in jujitsu too. Uh, it's a very ... It's, it's a, it's a hard sport to get started in, right? Maybe one of the scariest. And people, you know, you've rolled with people their first time, and they're, they're shaking. You know, their adrenaline's so pumped up, and it's like, dude, calm down.
It's all good. And then next thing you know, it's like we're friends, and they start to experience, and like, black belts are just normal people too. You know?
Dude, people think, "Oh, that guy's a bla- that guy's a black belt," or something. I'm like, he poops just like you do.
Riley: That's it.
Brian Portugais: Like, that's it, man. It's like we're all here just to train and exercise and get better and have fun.
And when you kind of, uh, apply that to other things in life, it's the same thing. And you and I can probably go on tangents about how we can, you know, apply jujitsu to all sorts of areas of our life, and we do. But it's the [01:28:00] same thing. It's like, eh, no one really cares.
Riley: No, I, I think, you know, you, you have that, uh, realization at some point in life, at least I hope people would have this realization, that people who are, are doing something at a higher level than you are, they almost never, um, tear you down. the ones who haven't got there yet and don't believe they can that will be the first ones to tear you down.
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: uh, tall poppy syndrome they call it, or the, uh, the crabs in the pot. Have you ever seen that one?
Brian Portugais: Mm-hmm.
Riley: You know, you get one crab trying to crawl out, and every- those other ones pull him back in, 'cause they don't, they don't wanna see him escape the, the misery they're in, right?
Brian Portugais: Well, let me ask you, when you were starting your business, did people think you were crazy? Did anyone ever tell you like, you know, "Oh man, it-- you-- how are you gonna do that? How are you gonna do all the research, the packaging, the product development, the distribution, the [01:29:00] sales, the marketing?" And it's usually people that have never ran any kind of business that are, like, tearing you down.
And it's like , "Well, I'm gonna figure it out. I don't know how, but watch."
Riley: So I had a weird experience with that because I had one guy who was probably one of the, one of the dudes that encouraged me to do the electrolyte company. Um, he was one of the most encouraging guys there in, in that, in that whole time that I was coming up. But then one day after I had started to kind of take off, like we had actually launched the company and, and we were, we were building it, and it was... I was starting to see a little bit of success. And it wasn't much, dude. It was right at the beginning, you know. It was only three, four months in. And he, he looks at me and he goes, "You did what? You got this many new accounts this week?" And, and he shakes his head and he's like, "You do you, man." And just turned around and [01:30:00] walked away.
And it was weird, the way he phrased it was
Brian Portugais: Mm-hmm.
Riley: knew background, he was doing something on the side too and not having that success.
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: there was a dig. He kind of said it as a dig, and it caught me so off guard 'cause I'm like, "Wait a second, dude. Two weeks ago you were like my biggest cheerleader, and now you're doing this like an attitude 'cause you see some success in it."
It's like... And so you'll see both sides of that. And unfortunately from this, for this guy, it was kind of two sides of a, it was kind of a two-faced thing, and it was a weird... Like I said, it caught me off guard. But, but most of the people around me, they had a lot of questions, but it was almost... tend to, to... Had surrounded myself already with people who were encouragers more than they were detractors, right?
Brian Portugais: That's amazing, yeah. Dude, and I remember, uh, from the early days getting our samples in the cup and then f- filling out our [01:31:00] questionnaires and, you know, I, I remember it all. And now it's like, now I just go to your website and put my order in and it shows up at my house
Riley: It was so funny, man. So for, for the audience who's never heard that story, what Brian just said is, is I was using my, my jujitsu teammates as the guinea pigs for, for the flavor development and the, the formula development. And so man, these, these poor guys got to taste some terrible formulations of what I was trying to develop. Talk about that a little bit, 'cause I, I just, man, I, I look back so fondly on those days, but some of the crap you guys had to deal with, I just have to laugh
Brian Portugais: Dude, I don't know. I thought it was exciting and rad 'cause one, it's like I don't even know what goes into wanting to do that. And then like with food products, with anything around the regulations, and then yeah, a dude at the gym is showing up with a duffel bag full of these little cups with [01:32:00] powder in it, and they might have a little marking on the top, M or STR or something.
And then it's like, we got this questionnaire, we gotta rank this stuff, and, you know, you're drinking it and you wanna be honest too. I'm like, "Damn, this one's really good," or, "Wow, that's really salty." Or, you know, the next week you come back in, you're like, "I took your guys' input, m- created a matrix, and like adjusted the formulas based on what you said."
So you're seeing product development in real time, and, and then you're drinking it and tasting it, and you're a part of it, and you're like, "Whoa, dude, this is exciting. This is cool." So I remember though, you'd come in, and then, and then I was like, "Oh, these are better than Liquid IV. Can I get a few extra?"
But it was rad to think of, uh, you know, from the beginning of that, watching you, uh, create these formulas and these different flavors, and then even adjusting. Uh, and then, and then everybody having questions [01:33:00] like, "Well, what, what is ma- what makes this different? What's the passion behind it? What gave you the idea?"
And you know, obviously, like jujitsu for us was a big catalyst, so, uh, very cool to be a part of that.
Riley: Well, it's funny 'cause, you know, you and I were two of the most sweaty dudes on the mat, right?
Brian Portugais: Yeah.
Riley: did,
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: ad, and, and, but between the three of us, I think we sweated more than any 10 other guys combined. But was... That was such a, such a fond time, man.
My favorite question I'd get is like, "So I tried that stuff. What was it?" I'm like, "Wait a second. You drank that and didn't even know what it was,
Brian Portugais: That's hilarious
Riley: I should make an ingredients list for you guys. I
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: The willingness to help, though, was... It was endearing, man. It just... It's like, again, such fond memories, 'cause I'm like, I couldn't have done it without you guys.
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Brian Portugais: Yeah. I, dude, I remember people texting like, "Did you taste that one? What'd you think?" And like, we'd be, we'd be all talking about it. And it's like, again, it's like you got to see this business develop in real time. Now, uh, we go to Northwest Submission Challenge, you're the biggest sponsor. You know, you got a commercial [01:35:00] there, a booth.
It's like, that's awesome, dude. Or, or I invite you over and you're always out of town at a trade show or something. I'm like, "He's, he's hustling, dude. He's growing this thing," and I'm proud of you
Riley: Thanks, man. Makes me so happy. It's like, partly because I know that you know what it takes to build a
Brian Portugais: Yeah.
Riley: a grind, man.
it looks glamorous on the outside sometimes, but underneath, when you see what I do on a day-to-day basis, it's not very glamorous. It's just work.
Brian Portugais: Yeah. Oh, dude, I, uh, s- s- starting my business and having a child, I, I, I aged more in that timeline than like everybody. They're like, "What happened to you?" I'm like, "Oh, I started a business." Like, "Oh, you aged 20 years. Good job." So yeah, I get it.
Riley: Well, dude, you, you also have kept fitness up, up pretty high, right? You- you've stayed in good shape and you've, you, uh... In [01:36:00] fact, in the time that I've known you, uh, put on a significant amount of muscle from the time when we first started grappling together to when, d- you know, a couple years later all of a sudden I'm, like, looking at Brian going, "Holy crap, dude. You're putting on some meat." And it was, it was nice, lean. Like, you're just in good shape, dude. I was, I was, uh, pretty, pretty proud of you for doing that. I, I, uh, I need to do some of that myself. getting too lazy with the jujitsu. But uh, yeah,
Brian Portugais: Well
Riley: you, you've grown in so many ways, right?
You, you've just grown as a business owner. You've grown in the, in the fitness realm. You've, you've grown in character to where, like, you can handle the, the stuff that's coming your way on a daily basis. 'Cause again, you had mentioned it before, success without the character to, to, the shoulders to hold it up is a disaster, man
Brian Portugais: Yeah, it makes you really appreciate everything, especially as you get older, you know? Uh, you look back at it and you're like, "Damn, that was so [01:37:00] hard." But look, we're, we, we, we came out of the tunnel of shit you're crawling through, and it's like, uh, you can breathe now. Um, but yeah, a lot of people don't know what it's like.
And, and, you know, owning a business isn't for everyone. In fact, if, you know, I would support my kids if they wanna go to school, if they wanted to be an artist, if they wanted to own a business. Uh, you know, uh, uh, people, people find happiness in all sorts of different ways
Riley: Yeah, for sure. man, Brian, at this point in the podcast, I usually try to switch direction here and just start asking some, uh, kind of ra- little bit of a rapid fire sort of questions that are a little more personal on, on getting to know you a little bit. Are you game?
Brian Portugais: Yeah, let's do it
Riley: Awesome, man. So it's called the Go Earn Your SALT Podcast.
Uh, when you hear that term, our little tagline for SALT Electrolytes, what comes to mind?[01:38:00]
Brian Portugais: Uh, go earn your salt. I think of it as like to, you gotta, to hustle, to, to, to persevere and to grow, uh, it takes struggles. And, you know, when you use the analogy of us working out, like we're, we're, we're sweating out everything, and we have to replenish that, you know? So I think it's a rad tagline with that.
But I think of it, uh, go get your hustle on. Go work your ass off. Whatever that may be too. Even if it's like, you know, uh, I wanna read some books. I wanna learn a new language. It's like there's all sorts of ways you can go earn your salt. Uh, a- and again, I know this is kind of like a business-focused podcast, so, um, I think business owners especially hear that, and they're like, "It's time, dude.
We gotta get... We gotta go hustle." It... You know what I mean? And when I call my buddies and they're, "What are you doing?" [01:39:00] "I'm hitting the streets right now." You know? "I'm out selling." You know, and I get it, and they're, they're earning their salt. That's what I think
Riley: You know, I saw this video the other day and it was two, two young men who started a window cleaning company, they had posted a... They, they post their door-to-door sales experiences online. it's, it's, kind of rowdy, 'cause I've done so much door-to-door in my life and I've done so much cold calling.
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: s- totally respect what they're doing, but they're kind of dingbats about it too, man.
They're, they're like purposely going up to these houses that have no soliciting signs and, you know, and they get a lot of attention when they tick somebody off and the guy goes off on them and, you know, that brings social media views. But I'm like, man,
Brian Portugais: You know everybody?
Riley: But at
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: I'm, I'm like, I so respect you guys just getting out there and grinding, man.
It's such a cool thing
Brian Portugais: Al- almost anybody, especially the kids that are coming by, I-- In the last month, I probably had three [01:40:00] different kids come by trying to clean my windows, and I always go outside and talk to them, um, just even if I don't hire them. But, uh, a couple of years ago, I had some kids come over, and they, they had no idea how to price their jobs.
So I was, I was talking about figure out how to price your job. And then I was like... Yeah, I text them later, and I was like, "I'll, I'll give you a hundred and fifty bucks to do all my outsides." And they ghosted me. And I'm just like, dang, they ha- they had an opportunity to come make a hundred and fifty bucks and potentially get a, a client, and they ghosted me.
So I'm like, you know, kids are... But like I said, i- they, they either learn from it, and they'll figure out that that's not for them, or they'll fly by night, and they'll make a couple hundred bucks and probably go away
Riley: Yep.
Brian Portugais: Yeah.
Riley: experience,
Brian Portugais: For sure
Riley: Brian, what, uh, what's your favorite pastime?[01:41:00]
Brian Portugais: Man, right now? Uh, it depends if I'm... Well, I'm pretty into driving cars, and I love going for, uh, car rides with my wife. We're, we're, uh, we're getting ready to take an eight-hour trip down to St. George, Utah. Um, spending time with my kids, uh, being present with my kids too. I've been, uh, really aware of, uh, technology and me putting my phone down and being present 'cause my daughter's only eight for one year.
She's only seven for one year, so it's like, I'm gonna make the best of it. And when, and when your kid is, like, swimming in the pool, and they're like, "Dad, come play with me," you better jump in that water and play with them. 'Cause when you're older, you're gonna be like, you're gonna remember all those times that you didn't.
And I think a lot of people, hopefully they reflect back and, you know, you know, me, I reflect back on that and like, "Damn, I [01:42:00] didn't take advantage of that. Now what?" You know? And then, and then your kids get older, and they don't wanna hang out with you. So it's like as, as they-- There's this weird, uh, stage where it's like, you know, you're their hero, and you wanna spend as much time with them as you can, so definitely taking advantage of that 'cause I know, I know that time's not always gonna be there.
Uh, I try to grow too with my daughter in what she's doing. Like, what is fun for her when she was five is different when she's eight, so making sure I'm, like, present in those activities. Um, right now too, I'm a newlywed, so, you know, I love hanging out with my wife, um, spending as much time as we can, whatever that may be.
So
Riley: Love it, man.
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: something, what's something quirky about you that people don't know?
Brian Portugais: Wow. I don't know. That's a [01:43:00] good question. Uh, I think everybody knows how weird I am. Like, you come over to my house, uh, I've tried to chill out, you know, I'm pretty OCD. You know, uh, people taking their shoes off, uh, uh, I've, I've, I've... Having a girl, I've gotten real... I used to wear, like, black and r- dark colors.
Dude, I'm wearing a pink shirt right now. My toenails are painted pink. So n- now it's like, who freaking cares, man? Like, I, I get a lot of look- I'll, I'll roll into the office with flip-flops on and people are like, "You know, you've been hanging out with your daughter, huh?" And I'm like, "No, I went and got a pedicure with my wife."
But now I do, it ju-
Riley: my, wasn't my eight-year-old. I
Brian Portugais: Yeah, but now I do it just 'cause it's funny and, you know, my daughter thinks it's funny. A- and or now she's kinda like, [01:44:00] "Uh, Dad, that's embarrassing." And that in itself is fun too, 'cause now you get to play that game. But mostly d-
Riley: on purpose. I love it,
Brian Portugais: yeah. But, uh, I don't know. I hope that answers the question enough.
Riley: Yeah, for real. What's your favorite naughty food?
Brian Portugais: Sh- dude, I love candy. I can, I can do
Riley: a specific one?
Brian Portugais: Nerds. Nerds. Any... Yeah, I love... I, I'm not a big chocolate guy. Um, so my daughter came into her closet the other day with my, with my wife, and it was pitch black, and she had this stash of candy in there that I bought her for her birthday, and I knew where it was, and I was eating it, and they're like, light flipped on, and they're like, "Busted."
And she's like, "Dad, you're eating all my birthday candy." So candy is a, a big one for me. And [01:45:00] uh, now, now that, uh, you know, you gotta chill out as you get older. But that's definitely one, one of, one of my big ones. I can destroy some candy
Oh, they're the best
B-- uh, people call me BRP Uh, my, yeah, just my initials. It's been with me, uh... My, my, one of my best friends that I've had since I was 15, he started calling me that, and it just stuck with me, and my family, uh, all, all sorts of people call me that. Uh, yeah, but that's my only nickname I've really ever had was just BRP
Yeah
Yeah
[01:46:00] Man
Um, man, there's been so many. Getting sentenced to, for jail was pretty scary. Uh, I had no idea what was coming. Uh, that was terrifying. I've had, you know, I've had a few injuries that were pretty scary. Uh, uh, I f- I fell off something on, on a construction site once and, uh, and it was nighttime. Uh, dude, and I, I thought I was gonna be trapped in this hole and buried alive.
It was, uh, it was an excavated pit that was like 20 feet deep, and there was no shoring. Um, but yeah, looking back at those moments though, after you've been through them, it's like
I kind of made it more scary than it was. Of course, it's easy to say that now. [01:47:00] Um, hell, even just getting married, I was so nervous. Like, you know, but it was like, you know, you're with your, your best friend and your soon-to-be wife and you're shaking, and it's kind of that nervous excitement like, you know.
Um, becoming a stepdad is pretty scary, you know, uh, 'cause you, you wanna be a good dude and also tread lightly around boundaries with relationships, you know? Um, even, even like how do I, how do I be the best dad I can be, you know? Not saying those are scary moments, but, uh, they, they could be, you know. And it's a daily thing, too.
And Yeah, yeah. Like, uh, ha- having kids is like, it's crazy, it's intense, and it's so much fun and rewarding at the same time. But, um, you're, you're in [01:48:00] charge of like this human, this little human's life, and you gotta, you gotta help them grow into an adult and, you know, you have so much influence over that.
Think about that, uh, how much influence you have over another human being, and you've seen kids that are... Uh, I've seen kids that are wild and have all these crazy ideas at the age of 15. You're like, "Where in the hell did you learn that?" Your parents, you know? So, you know, being aware of, being aware of like, you know, what I think my daughter naturally thinks right now.
She, she is, uh, she mimics almost everything I say. So it's a big responsibility we have,
Riley: Mm-hmm.
Brian Portugais: to recognize that. Um, yeah, sure there's been a lot of scary moments. But, you know, looking back over it, I think, uh, they're scary at the time, then we get through them and it's like, "Oh, that wasn't so bad."[01:49:00]
Huh. Uh, you know, uh, uh, I was at church that one time, and I've already said it, but, uh, the, the lesson of the, of the message was giving your kids a love of work. And I heard that and I was... Dude, I, I repeat that all the time. It was, it was so profound to me and how it affects so many different aspects of your life and, and who you are.
And if you have kids that do that, too, you know, they wanna help people, they wanna be better people. It's not just about the work and the physicality of it or the mental anguish of it, uh, but it, it helps prepare them for other struggles, too. You know? And that could be struggles in life, school, sports, relationships, uh, interpersonal struggles, struggles we have in our own head [01:50:00] even, so
Riley: Yeah, dude. I mean, that, that's come up several times, right? Is that,
Brian Portugais: Yeah.
Riley: discussed in the episode here, and I, I think that that perspective is just a beautiful thing. I think hopefully this episode really helps people out in that, man. Just get over that self-talk. Start, start talking nice to yourself. You know,
Brian Portugais: E- even, even talk to some other, even talk to some other people that you really trust about that self-talk and be like, "Hey, let me, let me tell you what I'm thinking," and, you know, bounce ideas off other people because we can be our own worst enemy at times too. And like I can be walking around thinking these things that are just really malaligned with my own beliefs, and maybe something's going on and I don't realize it, but I'm like, "Riley, you know, dude, I'm really struggling with this," or, "I'm thinking about this."
And you're like, "Dude, let, let's talk about that and how I view it." And it's like, "What? Really? That's what you think?" I'm like... You know, again, we can [01:51:00] blow things out of proportion. And hey, at the time too, let's not minimize our struggles because a struggle a person may have is super real to them in the moment.
So, you know, uh, I remember three months before my mom died, my mom told me, she's like, "I'm dying." And you know what I said? You know what all my family said to her? "Don't be stupid. Don't, don't be silly. You're not dying." But my mom, like I, I really feel like she had some indication. Uh, so not minimizing other people's problems too and letting them speak 'em and, and don't shut it down.
'Cause even though someone might be in debt for 500 bucks, and that's like, "Ah, that's nothing, dude, you'll get out of it," maybe at the time that's that person's everything and that is an evil monster. And then we've just minimized it because it's nothing for us, so, you know, [01:52:00] again, allowing people to, to talk that.
And I'll-- When it comes to death too, whenever someone talks to me about their health or anything, I'm, I always take it very serious now. Um, and yeah, I'll never forget that, dude, my mom saying that like, and people just blew her off and then she died and people were like, "Oh, maybe she did know something."
Riley: You have to keep that in mind. I think that's, I think that's fact
Brian Portugais: Yeah, and trauma looks different for other people too. Like, you know, something that might be a minor event in, in one person's life could be super traumatic in another person's life. So, uh, just because it's not a big deal to us, [01:53:00] it might be everything to another person
Riley: Yeah, that's a fact. Brian, what's a, what's an item on your bucket list? Something you wanna do before it's over
Brian Portugais: Damn. Um, I am really, uh, I have, I have a big fear of flying, so I don't travel much if it comes to airplanes. Um, I really, really wanna get over that. Um, my wife loves to travel, so it's like something not only I gotta do for myself, but I've gotta do for her. And again, people hear that and they're like, "Oh, you're stupid, dude.
It's the safest." And statistically, you know, I'm an engineer, I understand, I understand the statistics of how safe it is, but it's still, it's like something I really wanna get over. Um, I've been talking more and more about, uh, getting a pilot's license as well and learning to fly. Uh, on our first podcast we did together,
I really wanna get into autocross, and it's-- I have s- I [01:54:00] have this kind of fear of it.
Like, I don't know what I'm doing. It's a new community. Will I be welcomed? And so any day you wanna go autocross with me, I'm down to go. Uh, that, that, that's something I wanna go do that. That's, that's, that's a real big item for me.
Riley: Your favorite book of all time?
Brian Portugais: Um, Unintended Consequences by John Ross. It's a, um, it's a, it's a hi- it's a fictional novel set around historical events. And dude, if you read that book, it'll scare the living daylights out of you, especially with what's going on in the world right now. Um, it's, it's, it's a good read. It's hard to find.
The, the, uh, th- there was some issues with publishing. Uh, th- the ATF really had a hard time with this book. So the author, uh, you, you can still find copies of it, but you're gonna pay, uh, money for [01:55:00] it. Um, right now I'm kinda taking it easy and I'm reading, uh, I s- I'm reading Dune right now, but I'm gonna read all the books.
And like, I, I, I got a Kindle so I can read at night. I quit watching TV at night. I used to think-- I used to watch comedies at night to fall asleep, but now I've been reading and my sleep is, like, so much better. Um, but now I'm reading Dune and I'm, like, in the thick of it and it's so exciting and I'm like, I'm all jacked up on it, and now I'm trying to fall asleep
So I'm like, "Maybe I'm gonna read like a more calm book at nighttime when I go to bed." But, um, I like dystopian sci-fi. Um, I'm also a nerd. I read, you know, I, I, I used to read a lot of, uh, uh, like theoretical physics books and stuff like that. Uh, I tend to not anymore. I don't have that kind of time like I used to.
But, uh, yeah
Riley: I love that, man. I love to get into a good read where you're [01:56:00] like these just nuggets out that you can chew on.
Brian Portugais: Yeah
Riley: Well, so you're not on the social media, Brian, but the, what's your company website? can people check you out?
Brian Portugais: rapid, rapidsystemsendineering.com. I, I created that website 10 years ago, and I've never updated it, and I don't plan on it. We don't advertise. Yeah. You know, I-- pe-people have asked me, I've never advertised. I don't do marketing. Um, uh, it's, it's a, it's a weird market we're in, and we, we're kind of-- we fill this, uh, really boutique engineering role, uh, and it's cool.
We get to, we get to work on different projects. We're always doing stuff too that doesn't fit our day-to-day. Um, you know, this n-this new job we're gonna be taking on, we're going to be more of a mentorship and [01:57:00] teaching rather than doing the engineering work. So that's gonna be a new role. Um, I also have aspirations to get into construction.
Uh, we design the fiber. I wanna now install the fiber, so that's kind of a, a big thing. That's a big leap too, as you know. Construction can be scary.
Riley: Yeah. Yeah, that'll be cool to see what you do with it though, man.
Brian Portugais: Yeah. So that's kind of... That, that, that falls into, like, the bucket list too, longer term goals, uh, with, with the, with that company. And yeah, just always looking for opportunities for, uh, employees and I, that we can do fun stuff together
Riley: That's pretty awesome, dude. Brian, man, thanks again, dude. Like I said, uh, I appreciate you, man, and I, I wish you well and continued success.
Brian Portugais: Thanks, Riley.
Hey, you've just finished up this episode and I wanna know, are you or someone you know a getting after it, go earn your salt type of [01:58:00] person? If so, message me directly on Instagram at the Go Earn Your Salt podcast and perhaps we can have you on the show. Also, if you like this content, leave us a review, subscribe, and share with your friends, and perhaps this podcast can help you and them go earn your salt