Overcoming Life’s Obstacles and Exploring Virtual Opportunities: The Story of Jennifer Smash

September 14, 2023

Episode Transcript

Imagine what it feels like to face a life-altering diagnosis and come out stronger on the other side. Jennifer Smash, a valiant warrior living with diabetes, shares her heart-touching journey of resilience, strength and acceptance. With the courage to transform her struggles into a source of empowerment, Jen now stands tall as a double amputee, using her experiences to uplift others.

But that's not all. Have you thought about the immense potential the Metaverse holds? Jennifer Smash did, and she shares her exciting venture into this digital frontier. After 30 years of accounting and working with celebrities like Puffy Combs, Public Enemy, The Notorious B.I.G, and she found the courage to reopen her accounting practice in the Metaverse. Today, she's educating entrepreneurs in this virtual world, offering free classes and resources to help them flourish.

To top it off, we're joined by Meta Clean Rupert, another creative force in the Metaverse. He shares his experiences and teaches us valuable lessons about self-belief and the power of helping others. This episode isn't just a conversation; it's a journey into the world of overcoming life’s biggest challenges and seizing opportunities in unexpected realms.

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Introduction

Speaker 1 0:00

But welcome to today's podcast replay from the Killer B Studios . Let's go ahead and dive on in . Hey everybody , hey everybody , hey everybody . Thanks for joining us . We've got Arkana . They're shooting the confetti cannon . I like this . What do you guys think about that confetti cannon ? Can you show us that again ? Arkana ? Let's show that thing off man . You guys look , keep building all this . You guys throw in some confetti . If you love the confetti cannon , yeah , awesome , I love that . Very cool . I'm super excited for everybody being here tonight . Tonight we have a special guest joining us . She is once an account for some of the biggest names in hip hop and other celebrities . Jen , would you mind to take 30 seconds and let people know that you might have to make an intense seconds with the way our experience has been yeah no , tell us a little bit about who you are and tell us about Jen Smash .

Speaker 4 0:48

Well , I'm Jennifer Smash . I'm originally from New York and I have been an accountant over 30 plus years . I don't want to say my age , but quite a long time . I am married for 29 years , three kids and I am a double amputee and a survivor .

Speaker 1 1:13

Okay , does anybody here know Jen ? Has anybody ran into Jen Smash here in Horizon Worlds ? Okay , yeah , we've got you . Got some fans out here . Jen , yeah , awesome , awesome , well , jen , okay . So we're going to start with , we're going to go through Jen's story and let her share what she's doing here in Horizon , but we want to really hone in on your story too , get to know more about you and the life that you know , the seasons and the struggles you went through and the wins , like where you are today and where you're going . But tell me , like you say , you're a double amputee Like how did that start ?

Speaker 4 1:47

Well , unfortunately , I have what you call the bad diabetes . I've been diabetic since I'm 20 years old , straight to insulin and well , the struggles with diabetes is real . You know it's . There's no cure . So it's . You know , both of my parents had diabetes . I have three sisters that don't have diabetes . I think I carry every all the weight of the family . So complications of diabetes is real , from kidneys to eyes , to even losing your legs . So , unfortunately , I wish I had a kind of unique story about losing my legs . Unfortunately is due to the complications of diabetes . I'm just living with diabetes .

Speaker 4 2:34

I'm not going to let it hold me down or hold me back .

Speaker 1 2:37

I love that I love that .

Speaker 4 2:39

Living with it , so I just can't drink . You know Coca Cola , my favorite drink , yeah . A little slice of chocolate cake , maybe for a birthday . But you know , it is a lifestyle , it's a change in stuff .

Speaker 1 2:51

So that's good .

Speaker 3 2:53

I love that I said that you won't let it hold you down . It's beautiful .

Speaker 4 2:59

One of the one of the stories is when , when I was in the hospital , about to lose the second leg , I called my peer um , my peer leader , and was like okay , I'm going to lose it , Like I don't think I could live life without legs . And he was like hold on , he pulled over , Hold on . I was like somebody who's going to call you , you just answer it . And I was like , oh God , you know , this guy is crazy .

Speaker 4 3:24

All right , so I hung up the phone and a lady called with such a spirit . She was like hey , jen , I heard you're losing a leg . And I'm like this lady is crazy . And she was like you know , listen , you have faith in God . I heard you're a woman of Christ and stuff like that . She was like listen , I lost both my legs , both my hands and my husband . And I was like holy crap . I started laughing like oh , my God , she was laughing . All I can , all I can remember asking her is how do you wipe your butt ? How do you wipe your butt ? And she said very carefully , and at that point I was like I'm not , I'm never going to uh , feel sorry for myself because there's people worse off than me . I mean , just imagine having no legs and no hands I can't and then no husband to support . So from there I was like I'll never feel sorry for myself , ever .

Speaker 3 4:26

And .

Speaker 4 4:27

I'm in this time of age , technology and medicine is so advanced that my prosthetic legs could you know , I had some some very expensive legs , and they do have the Falcons on it , because I'm a Falcons fan . And I wear them well , I'm proud of them and it is what it is . Go Falcons .

Speaker 1 4:52

That's good . That's good . I love that . I love that when you found out that you had diabetes , I mean , you said this is , this is something that's run through your family , though so that might not have been that big of a surprise , but when you realized that you were facing that , how did you come to terms with it ?

Speaker 4 5:08

Like , it took a long time . I I denied it . I like I looked at the needles one day and I'm like I'm not going to shoot myself . I got to shoot myself up three times a day for the rest of my life and I'm 20 years old . It took a long time to really accept that I was diabetic . You know , being young and stupid , you know I did get into some trouble with high sugar . That almost cost me to be in a hospital and I , you know , reality hits you in the head and , yeah , I'm accepting it every day , every day .

Speaker 3 5:52

I see how that would be an issue , especially at 20 , because you , you know , think you're an adult I mean , technically you are , but you know what I mean and you probably think like , oh , I'm just going to push through this , like it's going to be fine , I'm 20 . And so I could totally see thinking that , like it'll be fine , I'm , it's not going to , this isn't going to last my whole life .

Speaker 4 6:11

I can see , I think that's what I would have thought too , like , no , it's like if , if you , if it was something that you can see , if the disease of diabetes is some kind of scar on your face that gets bad , I think you will mentally take care of it better . But because it's internal and you don't see it um deteriorating your body inside , you kind of you know people who are diabetic . Sometimes we , we , we get tired , we get tired of shooting ourselves , we just it's mentally straining um knowing that this is the rest of your life , right .

Speaker 4 6:49

It's not never going to stop .

Speaker 1 6:51

I'm always going to have to have insulin for the rest of my life , so that would be a challenge because , like I'm not I don't know about any of you here , but I am not a big fan of needles , Like uh , well , my family is really not a big fan of it . Like they all pass out all the time . Uh , I haven't had .

Speaker 1 7:08

I haven't had that , but I would say like I still wouldn't like to have to do that . That would be so difficult , Mrs Killer B . I mean , her mom was a paramedic and now she works at ER and she deals with needles all the time . And Mrs Killer B will even tell you like she doesn't like the thought of seeing the needles .

Speaker 3 7:30

Oh , I have a terrible time thinking about it . Yeah Well , Brian just at home did a blood test where he had to prick his own finger . I literally almost passed out , because I couldn't even stand the thought of pricking your own finger . And do you have to do that part too ? Like to test Every day , every day yeah .

Speaker 6 7:47

Every day .

Speaker 5 7:48

Yeah , that's my life .

Speaker 1 7:50

Well , and I love that , I can't you know , I'm so excited to get to the part of the story , of what you're doing , like you're not letting this hold you back , and that's a big , that's a big deal . I would like to ask you , like you don't have to worry about the mic , you don't have to hold the mic , we can hear you if you want to hold it so if you like it ?

Speaker 5 8:05

there you go , there you go , you can hold it .

Speaker 1 8:09

Yeah , go for it . Just don't you have to clean off your spit though , because , like you know , there's mics and that holds stuff in it . That's good .

Overcoming Challenges and Finding Strength

Speaker 1 8:19

How has losing your legs changed your perspective on life in your career ?

Speaker 4 8:25

Oh my God , I can't even tell you it changed dramatically . I haven't stand up in a shower since 2016 . So taking a shower , a little thing , is taking a shower . Every time I'm in the metaverse , I go to people's houses and I go to the shower right away . Freedom knows I'll go take a shower . I'm always in somebody's shower . I'm just standing there . That's . Life is different with one leg and then no legs . You got to think about it . When I take my legs off .

Speaker 4 9:03

How am I getting around if I don't have a wheelchair ? I have to crawl . I'm on the floor crawling in the middle of the night , running well , crawling to the bathroom . Hopefully I don't have diarrhea , because that's all right , you got to hold your cheeks and crawl at the same time . It's rough guys and then mentally trying to be sexy for my husband . That's another mental thing . You have to get strong .

Speaker 4 9:34

Just looking at yourself in the mirror and falling in love with your body again . It's a struggle . It's not a struggle . I learned how to build that and I have a great partner , husband , that thinks of me as beautiful . As you know , he calls my legs sexy and we play around . He's like put woman , put on your legs .

Speaker 2 9:58

You know stuff like that .

Speaker 4 10:01

My kids hide my legs sometimes and I got to go find it .

Speaker 2 10:05

So , you know we try to make it light as possible .

Speaker 4 10:11

But you know my fear , my only fear is being in bed and the house is on fire .

Speaker 4 10:18

Like you can't run out . You got to put on the sleeves , put on the legs . So having a plan is important and just being in crowds like I went to New York and I had anxiety . I had to go and have some sessions with a coach to get my head right of going to New York and being with those millions of people and not being able to get on the subway now and hustle and bustle . You know it took some work with me and met a coach in here and to get me my anxiety going and I made it . I made it to New York and so , yeah , life is different . Every day is a new day .

Speaker 1 11:07

What I love about meeting different people in here is we meet people from all around the world that are going through different challenges or have went through different seasons , but they're still pushing through . And hearing your story . I love hearing your story and I would love for you to share a little bit where you came from too , because to hear you're not giving up this is something that could easily set us back . I mean , we've got things that I mean Mrs Killer B knows right now I'm going through some things and it's nothing compared to what you've went through , jen , and what other people maybe here has gone through , but it can really get you depressed . She knows right now what's it been , what we just figured out . Two weeks I haven't been in a car or I haven't been outside . Those are challenges . Like man , this is not life . This is not the way I'm used to live in life . So I thought it was interesting to hear you share .

Speaker 4 11:56

I think surrounding yourself with good people . A good family structure is one . Knowing that you need help and finding that group that can help you is two . And give yourself a break , man . Like just allow yourself to feel when you're feeling down , feel it , cry , boogers , everything , but then have a stop point , like I'm going to cry but then I need to wipe myself , wipe my nose , get up and let's go . So I allow myself to get down but I don't stay there . And you know , having a young family well , they're teenagers , but having a family and a purpose gets me keep on going . So it's a lot of mine . It's really you heal within your mind first , and your body . Yes , your mindset is everything , everything .

Speaker 1 12:56

So watch out , mrs Pooley , the boogers coming . So just let you know , she gave me , she gave me permission for boogers .

Speaker 3 13:03

So I can handle the tears , the boogers . You have to go in the other room for .

Speaker 1 13:10

That's good .

Speaker 3 13:11

I'm past the booger stage of life .

Speaker 1 13:13

Before we go into the live Q&A , I would like to ask you what ? Okay , you're doing something different here now , Like

Entrepreneur Opens Accounting Practice in Metaverse

Speaker 1 13:19

you're in horizons for a reason . You have a purpose in here , so do you care to share what that is and what inspired you to pivot to virtual reality ?

Speaker 4 13:30

Well , as you know , I've been an accountant for 34 years and I was fortunate lately to represent a lot of the very I'm sorry famous celebrities . I was blessed to represent public enemy Puffy Combs , erica Badu , a lot of the R&B singers . I was also the Notarius BIG's accountant when he was alive . I went on my own after his death because he really was the one that inspired me to start my own business and he was hounding me for a year to start my own practice and leave my lovely , comfortable job . And so I talked with my husband and we just moved to Atlanta and I said , okay , he lit my entrepreneur light inside me and I agreed before he left to California that I would go ahead and open the practice and as long as he bought me a table , a computer , you know , all the necessary things to start it off .

Speaker 4 14:49

So he says I got you . He goes to LA and then he gets killed out in LA and I thought my future was done . You know , that was a hard loss for me because I really had a future . I finally was going to do it . And maybe when Puffy was on tour with the Goodbye Tour , with all of everybody in bad boy entertainment , they came to Atlanta and they just they asked me to cook for them and I was like , sure , just come . While the tour bus came and everybody came Little Kim sees 112 and I cooked for them and they took me to the back and said listen , big had a dream for all of us and we want to make sure that that dream happens . And so they said we want you to open up your practice and we were going to be your clients . And I was like , but I don't have a computer , I don't have any of the table .

Speaker 4 15:49

You know you need things to run up Sure and my car was breaking down and they blessed me with all that stuff and I started my practice for , for I ran it for 20 years and lost my leg so I had to close it because you know you need energy to run a business . And Thanksgiving of last year I saw this I had a dream is . One of his song is it was all the dream . I had a dream that he finally came to me , but it was like chaos in my dream and I was trying to talk to him but he had to go . So he pointed to something on the table . I didn't know what it is , but it kind of moved me so much that I had time . I called his mom , I called little C's talk to my husband like what is this ? And then the next day I see on Facebook and Toria's BIG in concert in the metaverse . I was like what is the metaverse ?

Speaker 4 16:56

And I found out that these Oculus that I bought my daughter to you know that's sitting on the shelf collecting dust , I told her to bring it home from college , because I need to go to this , some kind of concert here in the metaverse whatever that says . So , December 19th . I put it on and I went and I saw the late notorious big in concert walking on the stage and I was lost it yeah .

Speaker 5 17:28

I lost it .

Speaker 4 17:29

I lost it . And then I'm looking at people and they're like hey , you know , I'm like you're talking to me . And he was like yeah , I'm talking to you , I'm like you can see me , you can hear me .

Speaker 5 17:39

It's awesome .

Speaker 4 17:40

And I was like this metaverse is crazy . So I befriended somebody called TY and he took me hopping around and I ended up in a world where somebody was having a meeting . Mediclean Rupert was having a meeting with some other creators , and so I'm like , oh , they're doing business .

Speaker 3 18:04

What is going ?

Speaker 4 18:05

on Like people are really doing business . So I heard them go back down and say I'm sorry , but I listened . And then they went through a portal to MediClean Rupert's office . I go into the office and what do I see ? In his office A portrait of Nataria's BIG , and I was like whoa .

Speaker 1 18:27

Oh my goodness , that's crazy .

Speaker 4 18:28

The spirits are talking to me and I knew that I had to speak to this man . I did eventually had the courage to speak to him and he's been my friend , my consultant , guide here and I articulated what I want to do . I wanted to have an accounting practice in the metaverse , wow . And he was like I'll hook you up with the right people . The builder that I hooked up with was Thunderbills . No , no , he ended up having a roommate that went to school with the Nataria's BIG STOWORTER . Oh my , gosh .

Speaker 4 19:09

He was like , oh my God , like yeah , okay , this is it , this is it . And he built me an office and I'm at 300 Golden Ave in the city of Anthem and I'm sitting in there . Guys , I'm in there . If you need accounting , tax services , payroll services , I'm in there . That's the best one . But my love is teaching entrepreneurs how to build a business , start a business . I've launched and created over hundreds of businesses during my career , and so I put these tools together while I was in the hospital to teach people how to start businesses in the hospital and tested it out with Zoom . That's when COVID was around , and now I'm converting that thing into the metaverse and I just opened the VIP Entrepreneur Academy here in the metaverse with my partner .

Speaker 4 20:10

MediClean . Rupert Thunderbills did that too , and I'm here giving free classes to those people who want to start a business . I'm going to put you through a nine-week course teaching you how to start a business and get you out there to become millionaires .

Speaker 1 20:32

Oh , that's awesome . That's incredible . I love that . I love the . There's so many people in here in Horizon yeah , you guys can throw a confetti over that , that's great . Yeah , absolutely Like that's awesome . Like I don't have my applause button anymore so I can't hit it . It was Zoom back up upstairs . But I love like there's so many people in Horizon that are doing amazing things . And I mean for people that's listening to the podcast , like listening to the podcast replay I know there's still people out there that's wondering , like in this metaverse , thing's a joke , it's not just a game . There's real business things happening here , real connections . That's what I love , exactly the connections that we're making with people around the world this technology is making available to us . It's powerful .

Speaker 4 21:12

Now my reach is national . You know I'm all over the States . I have clients . I've gotten four clients out of here viable clients and continued to make more and more meetings . I was in a meeting for four hours today in the office .

Speaker 2 21:31

Wow , oh my .

Speaker 4 21:31

God , I gotta be on killer Four hours Four hours .

Speaker 5 21:34

You know , give me some tea , you got four hours , that's great .

Speaker 3 21:39

And you know , I'm just here .

Speaker 4 21:43

I'm really I feel like my purpose . I think God is making me . I'm here for a reason Absolutely . I could have died with my first leg . I almost died in my first leg Heart attack . Everything on the table . I'm here Now . I'm here doing it without walking to an office . I just put this on and I can walk with no legs into the office .

Speaker 3 22:11

I know you won't say a name and that's okay . But what is the weirdest like expense item that you ever saw something come across your desk . That's good .

Speaker 1 22:20

That's a great question .

Speaker 4 22:22

Um , I don't care , I'll drop names . I think the one client that really challenged on the expenses that at a drop of a dime I need a mansion , I need a mansion Rent a mansion was puffy was Sean Combs . I have to give him credit because he was a unique entrepreneur . That man was talented and it shows today he's still prevalent and he has all these different businesses . He was one of my teachers man . He was one of my teachers . There's a lot of people that taught me no names names . Michael Eisner from Walt Disney , just doing his books and looking at his empire was awesome . You know , helping out Jay-Z's fan club and working with the Capones like the mafia family Capones oh my goodness .

Speaker 1 23:28

They didn't have any arresting write-offs in their ass for nothing .

Speaker 4 23:32

I was like I had the unique ability and then meeting these stars you know , these unique souls I mean spending time with left eye before she died was amazing . Just being with the public enemy and history Like that's history right there .

Speaker 4 23:59

Absolutely meeting the Tupac Shakur family and I'll give you a unique story . One time I was on my own . I represent some of the Tupac Shakur family and his aunt , gloria Cox . She has a on Hulu . She has a documentary right now . She sent somebody over to the office . She didn't tell me who the person's name is and , vice versa , didn't tell that person who I was . So this lady comes through the door and sits down and I'm doing my spiel . Hi , I'm Jennifer Smash and I'm the captain . Blah blah , blah . You know . You know , I represent Natalia's big . You know giving my resume . As soon as I said that , she stopped and you could feel like the whole tension in the room come down .

Speaker 4 24:48

And I'm like oh snap , did I say something wrong ? I said , excuse me , is everything all right ? She says no , no , no , no , you know what ? My brother's gonna turn in his grave . And I was like who's your brother ? And she was like Tupac is my brother .

Speaker 2 25:05

Oh , my God .

Speaker 4 25:06

And I was like , oh , I stepped back and everybody in the office you could hear a pin drop and I was like , listen , I understand if you get up and walk away .

Speaker 4 25:16

I understand she was like no , no , no , my aunt sent me here for a reason and I guess I need to ask this question . I said what ? And she said Jennifer , did Natalia's VIG kill my brother Tupac ? And I said absolutely not . He was in the hospital with a broken leg during a time that your brother was shot . He didn't really have a penny in the bank at that time because we were just finishing up the album . But I can tell you that camp to have nothing to do with your brother . And she looked at me and she says I believe you . And she was light after that .

Speaker 4 25:59

She I think she was sent there for a reason and I'll never forget that meeting . I think she did find closure . She walked out that place and I hope I gave her a piece . I know I gave her a piece . We still talk from here . Her brother just got a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and I think that was one of my proud moments to be able to give her piece .

Speaker 1 26:27

Yes , oh man , it was a drug-laving story . Oh , the story , yes .

Speaker 4 26:32

And her aunt did that on purpose .

Speaker 3 26:34

I found out that her aunt did that on purpose . Yeah , she did that on purpose .

Speaker 4 26:40

Shout outs to Szechua Shakur .

Speaker 2 26:44

Yeah , your story is amazing . By the way , I appreciate you telling everybody , but that's all I got . That's awesome , Thanks .

Speaker 1 26:54

Nate .

Speaker 5 26:55

Thank you , nate , thanks , nate , thanks for joining us .

Speaker 1 26:57

You can throw it up here if you want and if anybody else does anybody else have a question ? Go ahead .

Finding Inspiration in Failure with Metaclean_Rupert

Speaker 4 27:02

I would like to definitely , if I can , ask for my partner , meta Clean Rupert , to come on the stage . He's really an important part of my story and I want to give him some flowers .

Speaker 1 27:17

man , Come on up here , Meta Clean . Jump on up here . There you go .

Speaker 6 27:21

It will give you , it will put boundaries in perspective , both figuratively and metaphorically , with his headset . So yeah , that's right , it's a pleasure to meet you , pleasure to meet you , pleasure to meet you , pleasure to meet you .

Speaker 4 27:34

So I do want to and there we go , meta Clean . He is one of the most important people here , I think , in the Metaverse world . He's well educated , knows exactly what this world is about . Without him I don't think I can articulate my future here and my success here with my accounting practice and the VIP Entrepreneur Academy , and so this man is well respected and one of the best , best , best guys out here . Thank , you .

Speaker 6 28:07

Thank you very much . I don't know if I deserve all that , but I do really try to help people and I think if we all start there , then I think we'll be okay . Yeah , let's just help each other . Yeah , absolutely , it's really that simple here . It's really awesome .

Speaker 1 28:21

Yeah , it really is . I mean , we've had people help us here at the studio is what we're doing , and it is it's . We can do so much more together , and I love meeting you , Meta Clean , I've seen you on I think .

Speaker 2 28:31

I've seen you on Instagram and I've seen you Absolutely so I spent a lot of time here , yeah so yeah we just now got on Instagram , so but yeah , it's good to meet you in person , so can you ?

Speaker 1 28:40

fair to tell us a little bit like what you're doing in Horizons .

Speaker 6 28:44

Yeah , so I think when I started in December 2021 , I came in like everybody else , really wide eyed and thinking I can take over the world with my creativity . I am a creative . I have a background in photography . I used to shoot for a lot of the magazines in New York , I've been a graphic artist photographer and I kind of combined all of that in one , which led us to get an artist signed with Dr Dre and Aftermath Records for a pretty sizable deal . But you know , as fate have it , once money's involved , people's feelings change , and her feelings change towards the management of her career , and so we got sent home . So you know , but to get there was truly a blessing all in itself , like I had no business being in that room with that caliber of talent , but then I started believing that I should be there . Good .

Speaker 2 29:31

Why not me right so why not anybody ?

Speaker 6 29:35

But it's kind of led my life into kind of how I live every day , like just believing that anything is possible . But some of those possibilities have to come with the people that you surround yourself with and being good to people , Because if you're good to somebody it's gonna come back on you . It might not be tomorrow or 100 years from now , but if you're generally good and not for wanting to receive any type of reward for it , but just help people reach their goals . And I was presented with an opportunity which kind of kickstarted all of that right , I was in the right place at the right time . My cousin was an assistant to an editor in chief for one of the biggest music magazines in New York , so she had complete access to everything . And I was right there alongside her .

Speaker 6 30:20

Honestly and I know this is a Christian based show and I'm a Christian but I was there for the free liquor and the women . I'm not gonna lie . I was 20 , I was 20 something years old and I just happened to know how to use a camera , so it came in handy , so I got to enjoy . You know , before I was married I got to drink for free and party with celebrities and get paid to do it , because I was taking pictures and saying it was work .

Speaker 1 30:47

We've all got real life stories . I mean that's part of our life , right , and I love that you felt comfortable to be real about that , because I mean , hey , we all got a pass and I love to hear where your heart is today and to help people , because it is who you surround yourself with can really change the direction that you're going to .

Speaker 6 31:08

Yeah , and who's not going with being a different person than you were five years ago ? There's nothing wrong with that . Oh gosh , yeah , definitely .

Speaker 3 31:14

Sorry , this thing's going crazy . You know , I hope you all heard that . I think that was such an important thing that you said about you know you had this opportunity and then it was taken away from you and you just looked at it like , well , I'm glad I had that . You know it made you a better person in what you're doing . That's so important because I think sometimes something happens for us that's good in our life and we just hold on to that thing like it's the only thing we've got .

Speaker 3 31:38

But you can use it as a stepping stone and continue moving forward and , you know , let that grow you into the person you're becoming and not get wrapped up in being mad that it's gone now , you know just be thankful for what it was and now move on to better things .

Speaker 6 31:53

Yeah , and I feel like , first of all , we never understand God's story , right ? We ? Think we can explain him and we're fools for even trying to attempt to . But you know , we know that he puts us through these things . Sometimes he's unbearable things . Listen , nothing I've experienced is unbearable . There've been some traumatic stories , but Sure , but he meets us where we are right . He puts us through these things that we shouldn't overcome , but yet we do and we come out completely different people after it . Right ?

Speaker 6 32:21

He doesn't do that to people that he considers weak or can't handle the burden , he puts it really on the people he believes can . That's my opinion of who can handle the burden because those failures that I have , now I can communicate with people about that , right . And when I , when I moved through the space , when I decided that I wanted to build an empire of creativity in here and then realized I didn't like to build , which was an oxymoron , it was unfortunate , right , but . But I knew some of my experiences could could hopefully inspire or at least help somebody figure out what their goals and dreams are . So , even at the expense of kind of putting the stuff that I want to do on the side which is fine , because I get probably more pleasure out of doing this part of the business than doing anything for myself , right , I just know that my failures could help somebody get through a story and know that just failures , just learning , that's , that's all it is .

Speaker 6 33:14

Don't . Don't think it's the end . It's just the beginning of what not to do the next time .

Speaker 1 33:18

I love that I think that's what we need so much of that today , because so many people like they want to teach from their success . But there's so much more to learn from learning from each other's failures , because when we try to teach just from success all the time , people always think that I'm not good enough , I'm always messing up , I'm failing , and that's never going to happen . But anybody that's successful . There is a lot of failure that took place to get there and that's a crucial , crucial part of your story . I've seen it all .

Speaker 4 33:48

I think that's why this course that I'm doing is based on a lot of entrepreneurs' errors , people making errors and failing at stuff . I , I , you know they . They got back up and was successful . I mean , those are . The real drive of why I'm doing this is to let everybody know yeah , you can do it , you can get up . You will make some errors , but I know some of the formulas that you can avoid it .

Speaker 3 34:16

Now , I think , it's so important what you said to like even earlier , when you said you know you're , you're accepting your situation every day , and I think that's important . You know , I think other people see someone who's successful in some way in their life and they just look and think , well , they've got it all together . I'm never going to get there , but with you being willing to talk about those things that you deal with still every day , it gives people hope , like , okay , like .

Speaker 4 34:44

I can do that too .

Speaker 3 34:46

I can take what I have right now and be faithful with it and just keep moving forward . I love that .

Speaker 6 34:53

I tell you , mrs Killaby , I will much follow somebody who has been broken and figured it out than somebody that's never had to struggle through it .

Speaker 5 35:00

Yeah , See why I partner up with him .

Speaker 6 35:05

Absolutely .

Speaker 3 35:06

I mean , he's glowing purple for crying out loud . Why would we follow him ?

Speaker 6 35:11

God's best disciples were the broken ones . Those are the ones that spread the message like nobody else right , they weren't the perfect people . They were the broken people that that had to go through some stuff and come out of it to be incredible so it's fine . It's okay to feral man . It's okay to feral .

Speaker 1 35:26

Right , I know that you guys . I want to thank you guys all too , for coming out and hanging in here , even though you know we're down here . This is so strange , like trying to run this show downstairs instead of up in the main studio . But , like you said , like I mean honestly , like when it kept kicking us all out , I was like , oh my gosh , are we not going to be able to do this ? And I was like , no , we got to think of a way to make this happen , because this is an important story to get out here and see . Here we are , we're doing it downstairs and we made it work , and that's part of not giving up , like things , even in horizons , things are going to be thrown at us . We're going to have to be able to pivot and work with it .

Speaker 1 35:59

But we're here for purpose . You know for those of you that maybe this is your first time at Killer B Studios you know our focus here is connect , share and transform . We want to connect with people . This is a place to connect to people , meet new people , share real life stories and experiences . This can be wins , this can be struggles , challenges . To help help encourage each other , because you know again , a lot of us are going through similar things and you never know who your story is going to help . All in hopes to transform people's lives . Help your , give you hope . Give you hope . It's such an important thing that we need to be here for each other and I love this technology allows us to do it .

Speaker 1 36:34

I love to hear what you're doing in here , jen . I can't wait to see all the stuff that you have planned ahead . I wish we could do more of the Q&A , but I know it's kind of complicated down here , but we will go upstairs and just second and take a selfie and then Jen's going to drop a portal . But , jen , before we wrap up , I would actually Nate dogs got a question .

Speaker 6 36:52

I'm just going to say I'm going to give Jen back the stage . But I do want to say one thing about her is that is that as professional and as she is and her experience and resume that she comes with , she doesn't lead with that . You would never know that and especially in this space , with the amount of egos that we sometimes run into , you would expect somebody to be really braggadocious and lead with that and expect to get a certain amount of respect or notoriety because of that . But the reason I'm gravitated to her is one because we're both from the Bronx , we're similar age , which is no longer 25 . But she really leads with the heart first and I'm attracted to people who have that philosophy . You can make money anyway in a million ways and you can do it in a really horrible way or you can do it in a really pleasurable way . That's really intent on making somebody's life different .

Speaker 6 37:45

So as long as she will have me around , I'll be here , so I love it .

Speaker 3 37:52

I love it . Thanks , medical , thank you , thank you , no problem , thank you , thank you , thank you , thank you . Thank you for joining us . Man Appreciate it , no problem .

Speaker 1 37:59

Yeah , appreciate it , man . All right , so Nate's got a question .

Speaker 4 38:01

So let me check in the mail .

Speaker 1 38:02

Your check's in the mail your check's in the mail . All right , I'm gonna throw Nate the voice ball here . Here you go , nate . All right , nate , welcome back . So what do you got for us , man ? You got a question or thought ?

Entrepreneurship and Financing for Future Business

Speaker 2 38:16

Yeah , I got a question for Jen how do I become an entrepreneur ?

Speaker 4 38:22

How Well . You have to come to the course and figure it out . I'm going to . If you take the course , we'll vet your idea , we'll give you the tools that you need and we'll make you . You're going to work in the class , though . Do your homework , take some tests and get you really vetted for those investors to back you . So you have to come with an idea , a clear idea , a passion for it , and be ready to roll up your sleeves and work at it , and then I will make sure .

Speaker 4 38:52

I guide you and give you the tools to be successful . I'll give you valuable information for profits . That's the idea .

Speaker 1 39:01

Awesome . Next thing , though yeah , thank you , the class is entirely metaverse based .

Speaker 4 39:06

Yes , it's entirely metaverse based .

Speaker 4 39:10

The homework and stuff is of course on your computer and outside but the class is definitely here , and what's the unique thing about the class is I also bring in the professionals , experts in their field , to speak about . So when we're talking about law and business , I'm not going to be the one that's going to facilitate it . I'm going to have a business lawyer in there so that you can have a direct information , directly right from the lawyer's mouth and you can ask him . He can articulate the right answers for you .

Speaker 3 39:42

Oh , that's fascinating , that's awesome .

Speaker 1 39:45

I love that .

Speaker 4 39:45

And , of course , mr Killer B . We talked about the marketing segment of the class and I invited him to be our guest instructor to talk about marketing man , because I don't know .

Speaker 1 40:01

Yeah , a lot of people here don't know . They just think we're Killer B studios , but we actually have a business Killer B marketing and we actually work with broadcasters in business and all people around the world with marketing and digital and strategies and purpose .

Speaker 2 40:13

So , yeah , and I don't do that . I do love to be yeah , so I love that .

Speaker 1 40:16

Scholar . You have something you want to add ? Yeah , here , I'm going to throw you the ball . There you go . Oh no , oh no .

Speaker 3 40:20

Hold on , I think it knocked you . Go over and grab it now .

Speaker 1 40:23

There you go , there you go , ok Game . Thanks for joining us .

Speaker 5 40:27

Scholar , it's good to be back . Hello Jen , so happy to be here with you and good to be good to see you again , Mr and Mrs .

Speaker 2 40:36

Killer B .

Speaker 3 40:36

Great to see you .

Speaker 5 40:38

Yes , yes , yes . I just want to let you know that Jen has been inspirational for me in my life in getting my business in order as I'm moving forward , and she's been a wealth of information and I can't wait to continue to build my business with her in hand .

Speaker 2 40:54

So I just want to know .

Speaker 5 40:56

I got to do my homework .

Speaker 2 40:57

I'm still doing my homework , yeah .

Speaker 5 41:01

So I have signed up for her for your business classes , right ? And I did have one question that I think might be interesting Are you going to be talking about finance , because I saw that that was one of the questions about investment funds . Absolutely .

Speaker 4 41:21

Absolutely . So we're going to be working on your performance , so you have to do some financials and we're going to have to incorporate getting alone and putting that within your performer or find out what's the best avenue for you . I have some investor friends that will be coming to the graduation and you'll be able to pitch your business plan to them and your idea and then hopefully someone will fund you . But yeah , that class I forgot is week seven . We get down and dirty figuring out your numbers , which is more important , but understanding them and being able to interpret them to the reader , it's very important . I will make sure that you're going to be straight with that and figure out how much you need to ask for . Do you know how much you need to ask to start a business ? We're going to figure that down and break it down for you .

Speaker 5 42:23

That's awesome , Jen . Yeah , thank you .

Speaker 3 42:26

Feels like behind the scenes at Shark Tank . Behind the scenes , yeah , behind the scenes at Shark Tank .

Speaker 1 42:30

So OK , so , blue , just let you know you're muted . So if you want to unmute yourself , that way we can hear you there you go . Now you're unmuted . Hey , thanks for joining us hey , hey , hey .

Speaker 3 42:42

Thanks for being here .

Speaker 2 42:43

I just want to say that I plan on being a future alumni of Jen .

Speaker 6 42:49

Smash's class .

Speaker 2 42:50

Nice .

Speaker 3 42:51

Yes .

Speaker 2 42:53

So my question is what has been worrying me pretty much is that when I had my colon surgery and I pretty much lost the house , the car , medical bills stacked up with my credit issue . Am I going to be able to look favorable to individuals who want to invest because of what happens to me ?

Speaker 4 43:24

Good question . Maybe not an institution of a bank per se , but there's angel investors in there . You just have to find the right one that works with you and they can see your plan and see the future so you might have a little higher interest rate . I'm not going to lie to you . It might be a challenge but yeah , there are people out there that will invest in you , especially knowing your circumstances . You'll be able to expand . Hey , I had surgery , got a little bit . They'll have that understanding so they can look at your credit differently because they will understand your personal issues and stuff . Believe me , I know I lost a leg and I had to ask for funding and my story helped me so they were able to not look at that and look at the business plan and stuff like that .

Speaker 2 44:23

OK , that's great .

Speaker 5 44:24

So yeah , there is a possibility for everything .

Speaker 2 44:29

I believe in the process and I think it'll work through , and I just want to make sure that everybody has a clothing tag with our company .

Speaker 1 44:43

Awesome , awesome . Thank you , blue , thank you , thank you All right .

Speaker 4 44:47

Blue . I need to get your email when I have a chance .

Speaker 1 44:50

So , jen , can you let us all know like so ?

Speaker 4 44:52

I can send you a registration form .

Speaker 1 44:54

How can people connect with you ? How can people connect with you ?

Speaker 4 44:58

Oh yeah , so in the world I have my information labeled . You can text me or send my email addresses in there so you can go to the world and write it down . Located on LinkedIn , my professional page . My name is Jennifer Smash , so if you Google me I will come up as well . I kind of look like my avatar back in the days 10 years ago , so which I kept that picture up there and I'm listed so you can find me . Google me , look me up and I'm there .

Speaker 1 45:39

Awesome . Now how can we find out about your , the classes and stuff that's coming up ?

Speaker 5 45:44

Yes .

Speaker 1 45:45

I heard people saying like they've registered and stuff like so right now , is .

Speaker 4 45:49

I'm taking registration . There is a vetting process that I do Not . Anybody can come in the class . You got to be very serious about taking the class . There's expectations . I have some real expectations that you have to take all nine weeks . It's free . It's free . So if I'm giving my time to you , you got to give your time to me . It's a very unique small class . I do this purposely because we build a community amongst ourselves and those other . There are eight people to our class . Those other seven people are your potential customers . So in the class we're sharing ideas , but you're also testing it out with some real customers in the class and so , with my unique perspective of my history and knowledge , we really work it out . There's a lot of participation and there's a lot of work . So having your own business is a lot of work .

Speaker 1 46:53

You should know that right , that's a lot of work .

Speaker 4 46:55

Oh yeah , your family has to understand you have to have a good support . Being an entrepreneur is the worst time of your life and the best time of your life .

Speaker 1 47:04

The best time .

Speaker 4 47:05

Yeah , that's true , so I'm very realistic about who I choose in the class and what classes are starting in September and in my world , all the information on each week . I have it narrated by the lovely British candy . She kind of breaks down vocally in what the classes are about , so you'll come in the world . You can stand on the little box and listen to what that week's course is about .

Speaker 1 47:37

Awesome , awesome , well cool . She's going to drop a portal after we take our selfie upstairs and you guys can go check it out . Jen , I know we don't get to do the outro music or anything , since we're down here . We have no sound board down here , but that's all right . I would love for you to like . You saw , I asked people to close with a closing thought . I'm going to do a little bit different than asking you for a closing thought . What I'm going to ask you is Thank you , Lord Jesus .

Speaker 1 47:59

Yes , with everything that you shared .

Speaker 3 48:02

Answer prayer that fast .

Jen Smash's Advice to others Facing Life Challenges

Speaker 1 48:04

With everything that you shared and the things that you , what you've gone through and where you are today . What advice would you give to others facing life challenges or setbacks ?

Speaker 4 48:15

I think you need to stop and get centered and you know , like I said , feel what you need to feel , but get back up . Do not give up . Don't give up . I post this one picture of a bird who's trying to eat a frog , but the frog is choking the neck of the bird . Just don't give up , man . Believe in yourself and stay focused . I'm very spiritual , you know . Speak to your ancestors , speak to God for some strength and just believe in yourself and get out of your way .

Speaker 4 48:56

You can do it , just get up , get up .

Speaker 1 48:58

Yes , I love that . Get out of your way , because that's what happens a lot . We're in our own way . I love that . You guys , everybody thank you for joining us tonight at Killer .

Speaker 4 49:07

Beast Studios . Thank you guys , I appreciate you .

Speaker 1 49:09

Thanks for tuning in to today's podcast episode .

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New Horizons: A Metaverse Podcast Experience

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