Ep. 1 -Sean Babin

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Vanya podcast brought to you live from our sauna here in Phoenix, Arizona, currently cooking at John. What's the temperature there? I think ninety two. Ninety two. OK, we just got the wood fire stove ripping. So it's it's cool in here right now, but it's going to get cooking. I've only got one rule in the sauna. No farting. Got it. Makes sense. Yeah, that's a good rule. All right. My name is Luke Manuel. I'm your host. And today I've got one of my great friends, one of my hometown heroes, homie from Grass Valley, California, Sean. Motherfucking bad. Let's go. Happy to be here, man. Yeah, well, representing five three zero in the sauna. I feel like I'm just going to shout out the temperature like every ten degrees. That's good, because yesterday I did a podcast with one of my Jiu Jitsu buddies, R.B. Much love, R.B. And we barely talked about the sauna. Unfortunately, it was a great conversation. Talked for about 40 minutes, but fucked up and didn't record any of it. I forgot to press record. Classic newbie shit right there. So we're going to get we're going to get classy. We got some tech guys coming over. They're going to get the video component rolling for us. I am not good at technology. So we're going to get the sound figured out, too. I'm sure this sounds like shit, but you know what? We're getting started. We're going to get in here. We're going to sweat with some people. We're going to try to expose their true nature. And I honestly, I was kind of amazed. We did 40 minutes at about 180 degrees. Me and R.B. Yeah. But, you know, when you're talking like this, you're your mind kind of gets off a little bit. So I was thinking these would be like 20 minute segments, but I just need to go like lower temperatures and longer times, you know, because I'm not really sure about the science of hitting 40 minutes straight at 180. Or we just take the listeners on like a cold plunge with us and just go back and forth. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, we could definitely take breaks to like cut it up and pause it and jump out there. But, you know, we'll figure all that shit out. You know, we probably find a way to get some ice outside by the cold plunge. So but yeah, a little background built the sauna here in my backyard. I bought a little wood fire stove called Harvey. And, you know, wasn't wasn't too expensive. I mean, you know, it was like four or five grand, which, you know, that's money for sure, but compared to like, you know, the stuff that's out there. It was the move. So super high sauna. We're sitting up about six, seven feet, you know, up on the trenches. So cedar line. You are one crafty man. And you were able to build this pretty much all by hand. So, yeah, you know, five grand. I was just mature. You pressed. Yeah. Straight material for sure. Yeah. I like doing shit like that. I'm I'm OK at it. I'm I'm always in a hurry, though. So I cut corners for sure. Yeah, there's a few gaps, but you got it. You got it. Yeah. No, I mean, it works like a dream. It it it does does its job. Did we get we get super sweaty in here? We got a lot of a lot of people coming in here. One hundred degrees. A lot of my good buddies coming over from there. We're at one hundred degrees. One hundred. Yeah, I'm sorry. I don't get the sweat. But yeah, so we're going to make this this podcast. You know, we're going to do a lot of Jiu Jitsu talk and stuff like that. And Sean, you do not love Jiu Jitsu. Yeah, big Jiu Jitsu guy. I probably saying it correctly, too. Jiu Jitsu. You are a golfer, a b-baller, not a combat sportsman. No, I didn't have that like killer instinct. That's why I chose the golf and basketball. Watched you and your brothers wrestle for many years and tried it one week. And wrestling practices were very, very difficult. Yeah, well, wrestling, wrestling is fucking it's it's it's different from Jiu Jitsu in the grind way, especially like when you're doing it at school, right? Like you're dealing with with, you know, happen to do well in school and hit all these practices and tournament obligations and all the pressure because of that, you know, being a casual Jiu Jitsu dude, I'm almost 40. I'm like, I don't know, whatever, late 30s. And, you know, it's like the pressure is not there. It's an obligation. It's all up to you, right? Like you just it's it's it all comes from what you want to do. So it's much more enjoyable in that way, right? It's just it's all for fun. Yeah. Yeah, it's kind of a mind going technique on, you know, what you were really good at, which was wrestling. I'm sure translate pretty well. Did you just see I've seen it first hand, really? You know, it sounds like a good group of people that do it, too. And that's the best part of it. It's like, you know, they're all just I mean, 99% of them are just great people, you know, it's like and you don't in the general population, the civilians out there. You don't get that. I remember when I went out to dinner with y'all and like every single one of them was like, are you coming? And I was like, I don't know. And they're like, you better fucking come. That's all we do is try and recruit people, you know, getting newbies in there. Never gone yet. But, you know, one day for sure. Yeah. I'm working on a couple of guys from from my warehouse. They're going to come for Thanksgiving, do a little turkey roll nationally. Yeah. Super pumped. They're going to have a lot of fun. I'm hoping Nancy takes the shit out of them. That's our five foot tall lady that does the duty. She's a badass, though, so it's going to be super fun. I'm going to try to videotape those guys getting choked out. I mean, I'm sure you'll have her on the pod at some point. But like, is there background that she has been doing it forever? That's what's super commendable. And I like I love it about the duty, too, because there's people that you would you would look at them and you go, these people have no business doing this kind of stuff. And they're they're doing it and they love it. A hundred and ten. They're getting healthier. You know what I'm saying? Like, it's it's wild, the diversity of people in there. And like for somebody that doesn't like like my background, obviously, it's great for you to like in shape already grappler. Like, you know, it's the road. But like to watch like a 40 or 50 year old person just go from like having a life of like no athletic to just like walk into the gym and just own it. It's it's amazing. It's inspiring. I I would hate to be in their position. You know, and they like. A lot of a lot of them do it like the people that can let go of their ego. The only the only issue we run into, like people quitting, it's typically, you know, besides that crazy stuff happening in your life. It's mostly like people that can't handle. Getting handled. Yeah. No, they just can't beat up. They're probably not comfortable showing up every day getting what you might say, athletic. I mean, you're not. Oh, it's 100 percent. Yeah, it's fucking rough. Yeah. Hey, why don't you be a sweetie pie and get some water on those rocks, my guy. Oh, yeah. All right. That'll do. We're steaming. We're steaming. Oh, steaming, steaming. So, yeah, that's that's kind of that. We'll get you in there one day, Sean. We'll get that bug bit on. Yeah, you know, so my to do list, you know, I try and wake up at 530 every day and I get out of bed at seven. And so I miss you just to practice every time. And, you know, I've got a six month old now and she is my everything. And I like to be there in the morning with her and mama. But, yeah, I want to make this happen. And it's on the pod now. It's live. And I know your boys will make me live up to my words and I will try. I will. I'll roll. We're going to show you your house. I can't just come pick me up. That could be a lot easier. Yeah, I can't turn that down if you're in my driveway. Yeah. Yeah, dude, it's sick. It's sick. I don't care. So how is newborn? How's that going, dude? Dude, it's wild. It's wonderful. Sophia, baby Sophia. Cutie pie. Yeah, I mean, you know, we're in the sauna. So, like, we're going to get deep here right off the bat. Yeah, you know, Megan and I, it took us two and a half years through the IVF process to try and have a kid. I mean, it really wasn't looking good for a long time. And we almost called it quits and just kind of, you know, figured like this was what God had planned for us. You know, we were going to be her and I and kind of came to grips with that. However, you know, sad that was. But then, you know, we were kind of encouraged to try one more time. And that one more time we got one embryo. It was a girl. And we had one last shot and it all worked out. And Sophia is like our little miracle baby. And we love her so much. And she's happy and healthy. And so is mom. And, yeah, she's six months old now. So she's like starting to crawl a little bit. She can sit up on her own. Dude, it's crazy. She can drink out of a cup. Like she doesn't do a sippy cup. She's never done a sippy cup. She just takes a cup and she'll drink water. That's awesome, dude. That's the part that I hated the most about, like, all my kids. The quantity of, like, all these little sippy cups. It's all the bullshit they need. And, like, they still spill with all that stuff, you know. It's like so much dishes, so much mess. 120. Hell, yeah. That stuff drives me nuts. Like my kids are beautiful inside and out. Like they're super nice, kind people. But they have so much goddamn energy. And they drive me nuts, dude. They're insane people. Dude, you have three. Like I can't imagine even just being equally numbered versus outnumbered. I would, yeah. Well, it's probably what I have, too. It's like they're super hyper. So it's just like, yeah, they're the thing. They don't stop talking. They don't stop walking away. It's wild. It's just all worth it. They're beautiful, and, you know, they're growing out of some of that stuff, too. So I just can't wait until I can get them into sports and, you know, get them locked in. We tried taking them to Jiu-Jitsu, and they got kind of, it was mutual. They got kind of broke up with that gym. They weren't enjoying our company. I wasn't enjoying watching them kind of, you know, ruin the experience for other people. You know, again, all, you know, all good-hearted stuff. Like they're having a great time laughing, but just, you know, not following instructions. It weighs on a person. And, you know, a lot of it, like people at Jiu-Jitsu, they're funny. And it's great. I love it about them. Trying to embody that, like, you know, peaceful, like, patience and, like, 130, 130 max. Yeah, just kind of, you know, the guy, you know, he was like, I got it. I was kind of like, hey, dude, listen, they're insane. They don't listen well. Like I don't know if this is going to work. He's like, don't worry, dude. Like we got it. Like I can handle him, no problem. And he was, he did, this guy did really well for a long time. But there was this one week, you know, maybe he was just having a bad week. And it was, it was just not, it was not good. Like he was, he was breaking a little bit. And, you know, like I said, it's probably just, you know, bad couple days or whatever. But that was, it was the breaking point for me where I was like, okay, this guy doesn't, he's not handling this. He did as well as he could for as long as he could. Yeah. And then they had this other purple belt teaching that, you know, again, good guy. But he was pretty uptight. Like he wasn't the, like, stereotypical, like, yogi mentality like this other guy had, you know. And so he had a pretty hard time with this twin. So that was always hard to watch. And then, like I said, once the main dude started kind of breaking, I was like, all right, I got to, I got to pull this out. It's, you know, they're kind of ruining the experience for the kids at this point. You know, when the coach is getting that frustrated, it's like, it's clear that it's going to spill over for everybody else. Was there a moment where the coach, like, just talked to you and Karen, and was just like, hey, like, I don't think this is working out. No, no, no. And you're like, all right, we're done. Definitely not at all. But when I thought, I was like, look, dude, I don't, I think we need to pause this. And he was a zero fight in that conversation. He was like, I get it. I get it. So in a couple of years, maybe, like, kind of like a thank God, I'm sure, you know, going in his mind. So, but have they taken any interest in the karate scene? Because Cora does it. Cora does it. No, the boys, no. No, I mean, they would not do well in that setting because karate is, like, again, so, like, wrestling is a scrap, dude. Like, the practices, I think the boys would do well there because it's, you go out there, you're just kind of rolling. And there's much less of, like, a pecking order of, like, respect. Jiu-jitsu has that, you know. You've got your belts, your coaches, your protocols. You know, there's some tradition in there with that. And then karate, it's, like, maxed out. Like, that's a huge part of the culture, you know, is, like, that respect. And it's great, dude, because if they can pull it off and teach the kids all that stuff, it's awesome. I just think particularly, like, my boys, my twins, like, I don't think it's a setting for them. And not to mention I'm not really honestly crazy about it. It's not. I would much rather them all. It's great for my daughter. She's learned a ton. She's grown mentally, physically in there and, you know, thrown kicks and all that good stuff. She's 40. So, yeah, I'm kind of leaving her alone in there because she's enjoying it. And it's a good setting. The people over there are great. But, yeah, definitely I've got to get my boys into either, you know. I'm trying to – I don't know. I keep going back and forth on wrestling and jiu-jitsu. Like, wrestling is harder in a lot of ways than jiu-jitsu. So, you know, I'm concerned if I throw them into jiu-jitsu, they're going to not go for wrestling, you know, in a bigger way. But I think it's probably, like, long run maybe a little more important, particularly, like, college scholarships, stuff like that. Yeah, I mean, you have laid out a pretty good blueprint in your progression through this wrestling scene. You're, like, you know how it goes. You know what it takes. And, yeah, they definitely have the energy that you do and the scrappiness that you do. And I think, yeah, when it's just more, like, let's scrap. Like, those two have that kind of energy. Oh, yeah, for sure. They want to pin their ears back and fuck somebody up and put them on the back. They try and do it to me every time I fucking come over. Right. Yeah, dude, we've got to get a clock in here too. I like your neon sign. I think we can get an LED one that the heat won't fuck up. Yeah, no, you're taking on new territory now with trying to podcast from. We're almost at 150. Yeah. The little, like, earbud rope that I have will touch me every now and then, and it's burning hot. Yeah, absolutely. You definitely can't touch this microphone stand. No. The metal is unbearably hot. Yeah, there's some things. But you know what? We're just going to have to fucking work through it because this is the deal. This is the deal. I did a miniscule amount of research. I couldn't find anybody that's given this. In a sauna or a podcast. Correctamundo. Come on, guys, come on. Some of us are poor. I hope so. Yeah. You got it, dude. Thank you. Yeah, no, it's a unique thing, and it'll be fun to get people in here. Like, obviously, you and I are super comfortable with each other. We grew up together. Let's go LG Bombers. Let's go Miners, right? And you Miners, shout out. But, you know, it'll be fun to get people in here that I'm not as familiar with, that I just kind of know, either through work or through Jiu-Jitsu, and kind of, like, see what goes down. Absolutely, and what a setting for it. No, exactly, and it's, like, the stress, like, putting people through stress. Like, a few of the calls, I was booking a bunch of guests today, and, like, one of the girls, she's fucking amazing. Kristen, she was, like, I think I'm, like, maybe let's keep it at, like, 150, maybe, you know, for that amount of time. That's exactly where we are right now. That's where we're at right now. 150. And, Kristen, it's warm at 150. Pretty fucking hot. We're sweating bullets. Yeah. We don't need to. If somebody, if one of the guests wants to come in here and rip it, dude, and get up to 200, I've had this bitch over 200, for sure. That might be, like, your 10-minute bucket list. Yeah. But, like, you know what's so weird? Like, if I'm just sitting in here thawing without this, I'm thinking about it constantly, and I'm, like, I got to get out, and I got to get in the pool. You know, I'm, like, ready to take that break, whereas, like, when I'm chatting on this, like I said, dude, I mean, I'd be going 40 minutes. Like, I couldn't believe it. It was insane. Yeah. No, I think when you can move down, like, from 7 feet down to 4 feet, helpful, too. But, yeah, no, this is quite the setup, and, yeah, happy to be your first guest and down to get into whatever you want to get into. Yeah. Yeah, I'll have you back on once we have the video component up, too, so people can see that sexy-ass body that you got going on right over there. Yeah. The sweat is just pooling. Even though ladies and men, Sean is a taping man. He's a nice lady. Shout out, Megan. I love you. Megalodon. Megalodon. Kids farm mega. She loves that. Sean Omega. I'm sure she loves those two nicknames. She's, like, a giant whale, which she is not, by the way. Very good-looking lady. Megalodon. But, yeah, dude, you know, speaking of wives, my wife, love her to death, given me a lot of shit for this. The sauna, the podcast, all of it. Well, yeah, you know wives. I mean, kind of all of it, for sure. The sauna, she's, ah, fuck, that microphone burned the shit out of me. She's come to grips with the sauna, for sure. I would imagine she loved the sauna after the film, because the kids were in here with you. And she was kind of, like, in the house, doing her thing. That's what I'm saying. All four of you. You know, I get some, like, you can probably hear them out there swimming right now. Yeah. Yeah, dude, it takes them away from annoying her, you know, a ton. So, I don't get no respect, though, man, dude. You don't get no respect. You know what I mean? So, I'm trying to, you know, push through this. And, you know, I'm going to prove my sweetie pie wrong here with this podcast. Because 90% of the people so far have been, like, super fucking excited about it, you know. And the other 10%, I hope to win them over with this concept. Yeah. How do I go about this slightly? The wives don't seem to love new ideas and how they're, like, proven. And if they give you the chance to do it, typically it works out. But sometimes it just gets kiboshed from the very beginning. Yeah. So, you just spun off and opened your own company. Yeah. Yep. Shout out to Babin Wealth Management. Babin Wealth Management. Babin Wealth Management is sponsored by, I will be expecting a check. I'll do a second. Promo code the Banya. And Sean will make you a very wealthy man. I should say he has one of the dopest catchphrases in the biz. And it is, prepare to be wealthy. So, if anybody needs a money manager, Sean is your guy. Yeah. But, yeah, so how did when you made that transition, though, from you were at Edward Jones and you, you know, launched off into your own company, like, how was the wife feeling about that? Dude, Megan couldn't have been more supportive from the very beginning. Megan and I met at a finance firm. She was in the Mason, Ohio office. Shout out, Mason, Ohio. And I was in the Scottsdale office. That was the two locations that the firm had. And that's how we met. You know, her coming out here for events and me going back there for certain things. Right. So she understands the finances. She worked with a lot of financial advisors. And she knew that I wasn't super happy with being inside of the big corporate wheel that is Edward Jones and wanted me to do more and be able to do more. And was it nerve wracking? I think I was, and she'll tell you this, too, I was more nervous than she was. Right. She was going, do this. Like, I mean, it's now. When are you going to do it? Why haven't you done it yet? And I'm like, well, maybe another month. Like, I've got to get more stuff in line. Like, that was the biggest risk I've ever taken in my life. I've never started my own company or been fully on, you know, I guess you could say, you know, fees or commissions. I was always a W2 person. Yeah, it's a big concern. Yeah. That's a scary thing. You know, I was very fortunate with, you know, starting our company. Just, you know, obviously, like, all the help I got from my dad and what a fucking awesome person he is in terms of, like, you know, he's an entrepreneur, always has been, you know. And, you know, couldn't have done this without him, obviously. But, you know, it's terrifying in that way for sure. But, like, nothing feels better than when you bet on yourself and it works out. Right. When you, like, when it's working and you're like, I've done this, this is what I've built, this is my thing, there's no one going to come in tomorrow into my office and say, you need to increase prices or you need to change this or you can't do that. And when it's rolling and people are happy with what you're bringing to the table and the value that you're bringing and you get, like, an attaboy from people, I'm a big attaboy with people. I like feedback probably too much. And so when you're getting that, you're like, oh, my God, this is working. And you go, why didn't I do this earlier? Why didn't I do this three years ago, four years ago? But everything happens for a reason. And, yeah, watching you grow your company from, you know, the warehouse that you were in and, you know, I'll never forget walking in there, like, week one and just being like, where are we in this town? And I'm like, what is it going to go on here? And then you go into your warehouse now and you've got, what, like 12,000 square feet? Am I shorting that? 30,000 square feet. And it used to be, what, four? We started with five. The entrepreneurial spirit is alive and well in America, and that is what I'm all about. And, hell, yeah, anybody out there, you know, considering doing something they're passionate for their life, for their career, and, you know, on the fence about it, get with the people that know you best and love you most and get their feedback. And if you're getting green lights from everybody, just do it. Like life works out and God is good. And, you know, take that bet. Do that for yourself. Yeah, and I'll add something, too, to that. Like, you know, reaching out to people that can help you. Like people like to help people. I recently have kind of made some changes to my personality in a way. And, like, you know, prior, like very closed up, you know, yeah. Wanting to, you know, not really ask a lot of people for stuff. But, like, just with this podcast, like I got a buddy that he happens to come from this industry. And he's going to come over and set us up with the video components and stuff. Like, and he's pumped to do it and, you know, whatever I'll pay him, whatever he needs. But it's like, you know, before, like, I probably wouldn't have brought it up. I would have just kind of, like, done this in quiet. But, like, you got to kind of talk. You know, you got to let people know what you're doing. And, like, you know, just like my wife laughing at me. And I secretly love it that she does. But it's just like, you know, it's fucking silly, dude. Like, you know, who are you to start a podcast kind of a thing? And it's like, who gives a shit? But, yeah, it's fun. Megan laughed when I was like, hey, I'm going over to Luke's house tonight to be the first guest on his podcast. And she was like, what? I was like, yeah, he's doing a podcast from this moment. We're going to get her kicked off tonight. And she was like, I got to see this. Like, what do you mean? I can't wait for the video component to be in there. It's going to be – it'll make it a lot more fun, you know, when people can see us in here sweating our asses off. 160. 160, nice. You know what, dude? I think this is pretty damn good for the first podcast. You feel satisfied? Yeah, I'm feeling pretty good. And, you know, more good shit to come. We'll have you back on once the video parts in here. Yeah, no, I definitely would love it. We can show that sweet, sweet, sexy, sexy tushy off for everybody. But, yeah, dude, thanks to – I want to thank the community that we're going to be working with, man. All the jujitsu people, the people I work with, you know, in the industries and stuff, just, you know, the good folks out there. And I'm excited to, you know, start parading everybody through here and, you know, share more about ourselves. You know, I mean, that's one of the funnest things. Like I like listening to podcasts when I know the people, you know, to a degree. And so I'll try to open that up in our little community here, you know, specifically, you know, Aries TV, jujitsu, Grey Wolf, and then also, yeah, my network of people at work because we work with some really interesting companies, you know, launching THC brands through drinks and pouches and, you know, people doing some really cool shit and, like, trying to make stuff better and healthier, you know. I will say me and my boy, RB, today, both committed to quitting the pouches, you know. We both have kind of an addictive personality and we're just, like, doing too much, you know. Are you talking about me? No, no, no, RB. Oh, okay, gotcha. I was like – Speak for yourself, bro. I heard RB and I was like, ooh. But, dude, I can't, like, I can't do those, like, one a day or whatever. I'm just, like, popping them all fucking day. Yeah, I mean, it's not good. So me and him both threw our shit in the trash can today. Proud of you guys. And we're done, dude. Taking it day by day. Yeah, for sure. But, you know, I think I got this one, man. I don't need that shit in my life anymore. So that said, dude, thank you, Sean, for coming on. Absolutely. Official podcast number one. Official podcast episode. RB. Number one and officially recorded. Officially recorded. And I'm proud of you. Best of luck. Love to come back anytime you can have me. Hell yeah. Love you, brother. Peace. Thanks for listening. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye.