Tag

football

Mar 26
Love25

Eric Hayden

By Business, Podcast No Comments

This week on Here’s What We Know, we welcome Eric Hayden, founder and CEO of Urban Catalyst, a company that’s helped drive billions of dollars in development across Silicon Valley. He was also named the 2025 Silicon Valley Business Journal Newsmaker of the Year.

That’s the resume. But that’s not the story. Because this conversation goes beyond real estate and development. It’s about how someone goes from selling sand dollars as a kid… to helping shape an entire city.

And really, when you strip it all down, it’s about how we think, how we build, and how we show up in the world.

This episode is sponsored by:

Be sure to tell them Gary sent you!

In This Episode:

  • Why housing is so expensive, and why it’s not an easy fix
  • What it really means to “win” at school, work, and life
  • What it actually takes to build in places like Silicon Valley
  • The hidden systems behind growth, cities, and opportunity
  • How curiosity and creativity can shape a career in unexpected ways
  • And why success has a lot less to do with intelligence than people think

Quotations:

“You just have to prioritize time management and do the work and do it good, do it better than they expect. “ – Eric Hayden

“Supply and demand. The neighbors love complaining about height, density, traffic, and parking. Those are their big four anti-development things. “ – Eric Hayden

“You need people. You want to have success in retail and restaurants and all that stuff, you need people to actually go there. You need the population.“ – Eric Hayden

Bio:

Eric Hayden is the Founder and Managing Partner of Urban Catalyst. Responsible for developing more than $3.5 billion in real estate projects, including over 2,300 residential units in the California Bay Area, Mr. Hayden has experience in acquisition, contract negotiation, due diligence, risk assessment, financing, construction, and disposition of multifamily, single-family, and large mixed-use and master-planned developments. He maintains relationships with a broad network of property owners, enabling him to identify and acquire prime investments. Mr. Hayden also has expertise in navigating projects through the entitlement process by working with elected officials, community groups, and political organizations to gain support and get projects approved.

Guest Contact Info:

Website: https://www.facebook.com/urbancatalystfund/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/erikhayden/

Feb 11
Love25

Jason Cole

By Author, Podcast, Sports No Comments

What really happens inside the room when Pro Football Hall of Fame decisions are made?

This week on Here’s What We Know, we sit down with longtime NFL writer and Hall of Fame voter Jason Cole to pull back the curtain on a process most fans think they understand but usually don’t.

Jason explains how Hall of Fame voting actually works, why the math matters more than people realize, and why some obvious names don’t get in right away. We talk about grit, greatness, coaching versus players, and the thin line between legacy and perception. Along the way, Jason shares old-school football stories that remind us why this game still matters so much to so many people.

If you’ve ever argued about the Hall of Fame at a bar, on the couch, or online, this conversation will give you a whole new perspective.

This episode is sponsored by:

Be sure to tell them Gary sent you!

(Use code “Gary” to get $89 off any service!) License #: 679261

In this Episode:

  • How Pro Football Hall of Fame voting really works
  • Why first-ballot decisions are more complicated than fans think
  • Coaching impact versus player greatness
  • What separates legends from very good players
  • Stories that remind us football is still a human game

Bio:

Jason Cole has covered or written about pro football since 1992. He is one of 49 selectors for the Pro Football Hall of Fame and has served as a selector since 2013. Cole has worked for publications such as Bleacher Report, Yahoo! Sports, The Miami Herald and The Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel. He started his career with the Peninsula Times-Tribune in Palo Alto.

Cole has authored or co-authored eight books, including the biography of Hall of Famer John Elway (Elway: A Relentless Life), Shut Up, Your Kid is Not That Great, including a foreword by Tom Brady Sr., Giant with Plaxico Burress, Heart for the Game with Simon Keith, and Ocho Cinco with Chad Johnson. Before covering the NFL, Cole covered the NBA, Major League Baseball and high school sports in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Cole’s five-year investigation of Reggie Bush and the University of Southern California resulted in Bush becoming the only player ever to relinquish his Heisman Trophy and USC losing its 2004 national championship. Cole is a graduate of Stanford University, served as an adjunct professor in the Journalism Department at the University of Florida for 11 years, and is the father of two Eagle Scouts.

Guest Contact Info:

X: https://x.com/jasoncole62

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-cole-1330266/

Jun 18
Love21

Jedidiah Collins

By Author, Education, Podcast, Professional Athlete, Sports No Comments

This week on Here’s What We Know, our host Gary sits down with former NFL fullback Jedidiah “Jed” Collins, now a financial educator, author, and founder of Money Vehicle. From playing with the New Orleans Saints to launching a financial literacy movement, Jed shares what it means to lead with purpose both on and off the field.

​​If you’re a football fan or just trying to get smarter with your money, this one’s for you.

This episode is sponsored by:

In this Episode:

  • The NFL Days: Stories from Jed’s time with the Saints, team culture, and what it was really like to play with legends like Drew Brees.
  • The Fullback Mindset: Why the most underrated positions can teach us the most about teamwork and grit.
  • Failing Forward: How the NFL taught Jed to embrace failure and channel it into growth.
  • Building Legacy Over Lifestyle: Why top athletes and all of us should be thinking about impact, not just income.
  • A Saints Fan for Life: Gary shares his childhood fandom and why the Saints always felt like more than just a team.
  • Money Vehicle Mission: Jed’s passion project teaching students how to make smart financial decisions early.
  • Why Financial Literacy Matters: Especially for athletes entering sudden wealth, real talk on fraud, fame, and responsibility.
  • Entrepreneurship & Life After Sports: The parallels between athletics and business, and how resilience shows up in both.

Quotations:

“I think that’s the message that everybody needs to take, not just in football, but in life. You’re gonna lose, you’re gonna be beat, you’re gonna have things go the wrong way that you never expected. As an entrepreneur, I’m realizing this on a daily basis. But all I can control is the message I put out, the person that I am, and the decisions that I make. And I like that. If we’re gonna roll the dice, let’s do it with my best foot forward.” ~ Jedidiah Collins

“I don’t control the outcome. I control the input.” ~ Jedidiah Collins

“I love the beauty of sport because it translates all of these messages into the reality of life. If I’m going to go down, I’m going to go down swinging with my best punches.” ~ Jedidiah Collins

“When I got humbled, I went back and did what I do best, which is get better inch by inch. But you look at these first round picks and everybody says, how does this kid with all the talent in the world not achieve what we wanted him to do? And it’s simple. You never gave them the atmosphere or the preparation to fail. And confidence doesn’t come from success. Confidence doesn’t come from getting drafted in the first round. Confidence comes from getting on the field. getting rep after rep after rep and losing most of those reps, identifying how you lost and then having the plan to continue to go forward.” ~ Jedidiah Collins“

I’m a hard guy to kill. You can’t get rid of me. And I’m going to figure out a way to make this thing better. And once I do, then you find my role.” ~ Jedidiah Collins

Bio:

Jedidiah Collins, CFP®, is a former NFL fullback, Amazon best-selling author, adjunct professor, and Certified Financial Planner® (CFP®) with a passion for financial education. His journey to financial empowerment didn’t begin with a textbook but with personal experience—after being cut 12 times, he persevered to become the #1 fullback in the NFL.

While living the dream of playing professional football, Jed faced a harsh reality: he was unprepared for the financial opportunities that came with success. Determined to change that, he pursued his CFP® certification while still in the league. After transitioning from football, he gained real-world experience in wealth management but soon realized his true passion wasn’t in helping people end their financial journey—it was in empowering those who had never spoken the language of money to begin theirs.

To fulfill this mission, Jed founded Money Vehicle, an education technology company providing schools and students with a roadmap to financial freedom through an engaging and accessible financial literacy curriculum.

Today, Jed is a passionate advocate for financial awareness, helping professional athletes capture their dreams while also guiding young professionals to start theirs.

Guest Contact Info:

Website: https://yourmoneyvehicle.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jedidiah-collins/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fullbackoffinance/