How We Hatched: Bryan Enriquez, Founding Team Member of Hallow
Welcome to our most recent episode of “How We Hatched"! In this episode, you’ll hear from Bryan Enriquez, one of the founders of prayer & meditation app, Hallow.
During this episode, Bryan shares the story his founder’s journey that led him to be part of the team behind Hallow.
Here are just a few of the topics discussed:
About today’s guest: Bryan Enriquez is a founding team member and the Head of Customer Operations at Hallow. In that role, he leads the Community team, the Customer Insights team, and the Customer Support team as well as planning official events for Hallow. Bryan is a 2015 graduate of the University of Notre Dame (B.A.) and a 2021 graduate of the Yale School of Management (MBA).
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Welcome to The Pair Program from hatchpad, the podcast that gives you
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:a front row seat to candid conversations
with tech leaders from the startup world.
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:I'm your host, Tim Winkler,
the creator of Hatchpad.
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:And I'm
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:your other host, Mike Gruen.
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:Join us each episode as we bring
together two guests to dissect topics
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:at the intersection of technology,
startups, and career growth.
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:Brian, thanks for joining
us on the pair program.
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:Um, it's another bonus episode of a
mini series we call how we hatched.
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:Uh, just a fun discussion to hear
a little bit more about your.
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:You need career journey, you know, kind
of where you came from and how you arrived
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:at this current point in your seat today
as one of the co founders of halo, a halo,
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:a B2C app focused on health and wellness.
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:Um, so first I always like to start by
we'll get into the foundation of who.
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:Uh, Brian Enriquez is, so kick off with
the question, you know, what did, what
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:did Brian have for breakfast this morning?
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:Bryan Enriquez: Yeah, that's a,
that's a, that's a great question.
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:So actually right now
the answer is nothing.
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:Um, I, uh, I've started
recently intermittent fasting.
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:Um, okay.
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:Tim Winkler: Okay.
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:And
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:Bryan Enriquez: it's, it's going well.
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:Uh, I've been at it for
about a month and a half now.
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:Is this your first
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:time
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:Tim Winkler: trying something like this?
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:Bryan Enriquez: Yes.
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:Uh, so I actually have some autoimmune,
uh, situations I'm trying to go
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:through and trying to improve on.
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:And yeah, it's actually helped.
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:Um, I, I looked up some, some articles
from Johns Hopkins that talks about
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:how intermittent fasting can help
reduce inflammation in the body.
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:One point, it's like, Oh, it's one
of these bufu shishi like trends, but
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:it's actually like an actual, you know,
it's It had the science behind it.
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:So I'm like, I'll give it a try.
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:Um, I was not trying to lose weight.
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:I ended up losing quite a bit.
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:Um, and I do feel better.
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:So it's going to be something I'm going
to try to incorporate moving forward.
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:So
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:Tim Winkler: how long do
you go for your first meal?
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:Bryan Enriquez: So I try to do, I eat at
noon and then I stop eating after 8 PM.
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:Okay.
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:Let's
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:Tim Winkler: say.
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:Do you like, as far as like a
morning routine, uh, what do you,
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:what do you kind of get into?
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:Do you, do you have a, a, a consistent
routine you try to stick to?
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:Bryan Enriquez: Yeah.
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:So I think for me, it depends
on whether or not to go into
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:the office, uh, every day.
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:So at hollow, we're a remote first
organization, which means, you
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:know, I mean, the majority of our
folks don't work here in Chicago.
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:I'm here.
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:We just moved offices.
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:We're in a, in a new, we
worked, which is very nice.
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:Um, yeah.
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:You're in the Fulton market,
Wesley, Barry and Chicago.
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:Um, I live like 10 minutes
away, so it's really easy.
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:My routine, if I'm walking is I try to,
um, meditate and pray in the morning.
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:Um, so I'll do like one
of our hollow sessions.
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:I'm like, I'm, I'm one of those users
of, of, uh, the product that I've made.
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:So part of my role is try to
share feedback from our users.
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:And that is also me.
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:So I use it every day.
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:Um, and yeah, so I pray rosary when I walk
into work and when I'm staying here, I,
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:I sort of mix it up and, you know, before
I would eat something for breakfast.
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:No, I don't.
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:Um, yeah, so my, when I'm here, I
just try to wake up and, um, top
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:level things that I have to tackle.
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:I have it ready.
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:I have my, my calendar is
one of those things where I
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:have everything time blocked.
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:So people think it looks psychotic, but
for me, it brings me a sense of peace
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:because I know what I have to do when,
um, and it's all color coordinated.
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:So yeah.
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:Tim Winkler: Oh man, you're,
you got it down to science.
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:Time blocks are key.
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:I, I'm always, uh, you know, as a,
as a small business founder, I'm
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:I got a block off that morning.
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:Uh, I can't get attacked in the morning
by, by a bunch of, you know, meetings
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:and like requests and one on ones.
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:Like that's, that's, uh, that morning
is, is super important to just kind
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:of get the day scheduled, you know,
make sure you know what you're
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:doing and, and get a good start.
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:Um, cool.
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:Well, you know, we, um, we always like
to start by having you provide, you know,
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:the listeners with a quick, quick overview
on, on hallow and, you know, kind of.
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:Kind of work you guys are doing
problems you're solving here.
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:Yeah, absolutely.
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:So
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:Bryan Enriquez: I think, um, we
were talking earlier, um, before
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:we got started about sort of what
is how and where did it come from.
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:So really our perspective, um, the
goal is we want to help people pray.
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:That's our mission.
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:That's literally our mission statements.
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:We want to help people pray.
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:Um, the reason is because
prayer changed our lives.
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:Um, you know, having the space for
meditation and reflecting on, you know,
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:your purpose in life and your relationship
with others and your relationship
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:with God is, has been massive.
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:Um, but we came from a background of
not really knowing how to do that.
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:Um, and so that's sort of the voice
that we try to bring to the app is,
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:um, we're going to walk with you.
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:So it's all audio guided, right?
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:So all you do is you open the
app, you find a type of session
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:that's attractive to you.
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:You hit play.
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:Okay.
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:And then you can have 1 of our guides walk
through it might be Francis, who is 1 of
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:our founding members and is my roommate.
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:Um, or it could be Mark Wahlberg.
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:Um, so we've got an interesting mix
of guys in the app, um, for different,
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:um, yeah, backgrounds and interests.
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:So cool.
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:Tim Winkler: Yeah, we'll, uh, get
a little bit more into that, uh,
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:throughout the, uh, discussion, but, um.
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:Let's flash back a little bit.
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:I like to, I like to peel back
the founder's journey, uh, before
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:I dive deeper into the story of,
of, of the technology or the app.
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:So, uh, let's start with, uh, the roots
for you, you know, where'd you grow up?
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:Uh, what eventually led you down this
path to being a tech entrepreneur?
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:Bryan Enriquez: Yeah, absolutely.
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:I was listening, um, to your, um,
earlier, um, podcasts with, um, Brian
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:from Lauren studios, the, the game
studios and talking about just sort of
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:like, Hey, like, where did you come from?
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:And it's interesting, you know, he's
his experience of technology and like
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:playing, you know, computers early
on that kind of resonated with me.
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:I also loved computers
and tech growing up.
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:Um, but, yes, I was born in Puerto Rico.
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:Um, my parents are Puerto Rican.
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:I was born there.
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:I left when I was 2 years old, moved
around a lot when I was a kid, um, lived
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:in Iowa and Missouri and Kansas, ended up
spending most of my time in Mississippi.
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:So, I grew up a few years in the coast in
Bluxy, but I say that I'm from Meridian,
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:which is Sort of close to the Alabama
border, um, and then I went back to Puerto
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:Rico for a year, came back, graduated high
school in Mississippi, went to Notre Dame.
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:I'm a big, uh, Irish fan.
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:Um, and, uh, and then I ended up
working for the government in D.
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:C.
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:So in D.
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:C.
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:for 4 years, um, for the
Department of Justice.
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:And I say that because I is probably
the least likely person to be involved
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:on a, on a founding team of a startup.
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:So I just wanted to speak into that.
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:Some of your listeners might be like,
well, I don't know if that's me.
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:I mean, you know, I
studied political science.
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:I did study economics, but.
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:I never visualized myself
as an entrepreneur.
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:I never thought that I was, that's
what I was going to be doing.
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:Tim Winkler: Um, didn't run in the family
or anything like absolutely parents.
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:Okay.
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:Bryan Enriquez: Absolutely not.
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:No one, no one to my knowledge
has even started a company.
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:Um, they'll have had, you know, great
experiences, but this flavor of let's
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:start something from nothing is never
something that I even interacted with.
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:I don't think I met somebody like I didn't
have any friends who had done it or like
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:distant relatives or anything like that,
it was truly out of, out of nowhere.
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:And, um, you know, I was
working for the government.
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:I mean, when you think about, you know,
a startup, it's like the opposite of
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:a startup is the federal government.
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:I mean, it's something that's been around
for, you know, probably a hundred to
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:200 years, depending on what department
and group and, um, the way that they run
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:things a lot of times is set in stone and
there's, you know, different levels of
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:hierarchy and we talk about a startup.
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:It's like.
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:Didn't exist, no one knows what it is,
you know, most people know what, you
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:know, the Department of Commerce is, or,
you know, Department of Justice, um, DEA,
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:like, those just are things that people
are aware of, and so when you're trying to
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:create something that has no recognition,
like, when we start talking about HALO,
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:like, no one knew what HALO was, right?
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:So.
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:You have to truly go from 0 to 1
as Peter Thiel talks about in his
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:book, which is really helpful.
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:So people
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:Tim Winkler: just kind of fall into
that first gig out of school, right?
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:I feel like you're just so lost and, you
know, a lot of times you don't, you know,
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:you're not pursuing what you studied.
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:Uh, you just, yeah.
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:Connected by somebody that knew
someone who's trying to get a job.
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:So, you know, sounds like you kind
of fell into, you know, into the
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:world, you know, into the world
of government, you're in the area.
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:Um,
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:Bryan Enriquez: yeah, so I, I thought
I was going to be a lawyer actually.
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:So I did mock trial in high
school and college and I thought,
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:okay, you don't really go into
law after graduating, right?
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:You go, you know, sometimes people
become a paralegal and I thought,
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:well, I might as well just go and
try to work with some lawyers.
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:You know what I mean?
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:And try to get an experience and so
I went to the Department of Justice.
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:I kind of got that.
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:I got to work on projects with lawyers,
which is exactly what I wanted.
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:And then I realized that
that was not my calling.
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:Uh, law was not my calling.
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:Um, I just got the things that made
me passionate or things that drove,
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:I should say passion, um, in the work
that I did was more about problem
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:solving and working with others.
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:And law is sort of the framework
of is just different from that.
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:It's more about Research, um, coming
together with, with briefs, um, giving
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:counsel to other people that are making
decisions as like, that's, that's,
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:that's cool for the people who do it.
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:That's not necessarily what I want to do.
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:Um, so, yeah.
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:Tim Winkler: So then, uh, let's
fast forward and tell me how you,
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:you know, how you got regrouped
with some of your, your, your.
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:I guess co founders, right?
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:Some, some of your, uh, your
friends from school and, uh,
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:how did this idea come to mind?
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:Bryan Enriquez: Yeah.
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:So, I mean, again, not us not
really knowing, I mean, I certainly
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:didn't have that background.
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:I think so, Alex, um, he's our CEO,
Alex Jones, not the one from InfoWars.
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:Um, he was my roommate in college.
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:And we were randomly assigned,
um, uh, at Notre Dame.
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:It's that first year.
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:You just get randomly
assigned with a roommate.
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:There's no look for me to fill out.
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:You just, you know, and he was
the person that I met with.
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:And then a few people on our floor,
um, that ended up also being on
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:the founding team within my dorm.
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:Um, so the short answer is we all
met in college with the exception
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:of Eric, who had met Alex briefly.
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:Um, so we were all sort
of friends from college.
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:And then we started talking and
catching up on the weekends, sort of.
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:Um, over the years after we had graduated.
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:So, uh, we graduated in 2015
from Notre Dame and then the
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:idea sort of came around in 2017.
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:Uh, and then we actually started to,
you know, put things together, uh,
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:and, and really talk about in 2018.
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:Um, so the, the pre, there was a
precursor version of this, uh, of the
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:idea and then there was the actual idea.
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:So, um, the first version was
like, oh man, like we can maybe
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:do a blog on like our journey.
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:And so we started, uh, Alex also
under, and I started a blog.
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:That I don't think anyone read, I
mean, we got like a WordPress site
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:and we're like, let's just try to
share our experiences and journey
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:with other people that did not work.
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:I mean, we had no idea what we were doing.
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:And so then in January of 2018, um,
Alex was like, yeah, I mean, why
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:don't we start an app because I.
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:Was was really impacted in my life was
changed through prayer and specifically
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:meditative prayer, which is not
it's not that it's not mainstream.
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:It's just maybe not talked
about as much right.
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:Um, and so then he's and I was like,
yes, that sounds like an amazing idea.
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:Let's do it again.
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:Not really knowing what we
were getting ourselves into.
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:Um, and so then we started to
develop the app idea in:
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:then launched it in December of 2018.
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:Um, so this December will
officially be 5 years old.
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:But the founding team
itself, there's 7 of us.
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:Um, and we sort of came together
through, you know, being friends and
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:like having the right skill sets.
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:So I'm the sort of the
really extroverted person.
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:Um, so my role is head
of customer operations.
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:So trying to be the person who spends most
time talking with our users and bringing
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:that insight to the different teams at
hallow building community, uh, running our
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:customer support team, running our events.
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:Um, so yeah.
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:So, and then in terms of the, the, the
makeup three, the first three people
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:to quit their jobs are the co founders.
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:And then the next four, uh,
are the founding team members.
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:So I'm the fourth person.
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:So I'm actually a founding team member.
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:Alex was the first and then Eric
and then Alessandro and then me.
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:Um, so it was a really
interesting journey for us.
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:So
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:Tim Winkler: where you were still
kind of consulting, you know, while,
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:you know, the app was really kind
of being built in the background.
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:Bryan Enriquez: Yeah.
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:So we were all, I mean, we started
alking about it in January of:
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:like, Hey, like let's build this thing.
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:And then Alex ended up quitting to
go to business school in the summer.
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:So probably like June ish.
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:Um, and then Eric and Alessandra quit
that fall, so they quit in, like, October,
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:November, because we did a tech starter.
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:That's how we got started
through that period.
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:I was sort of working during
the day and then working after
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:work, you know what I mean?
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:So we have a weekly call,
um, to just chat, be like,
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:okay, what's the next project?
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:How are we getting feedback?
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:What are we doing?
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:What's this idea?
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:We had, um, our first meeting in
May, so flew to San Francisco.
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:Um, and we just kind of
like hash things out.
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:There was a room of sticky notes.
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:And so it's cool because it's like
one of those things you see on TV.
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:Like, Oh, we're starting a startup.
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:Like let's get sticky notes in a
room and let's, you know, it actually
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:ended up being really helpful.
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:Um, a lot of our ideas came
from that initial meeting.
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:Um, so
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:Tim Winkler: yeah, it's like a scene
out of like Silicon Valley, you know,
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:the show, it's just like, uh, exactly.
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:It was funny college
guys getting together.
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:Well, you know, because it's always
interesting to see, um, you know, I kind
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:of think back to like my journey to as
we're, you know, services companies,
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:it's a little bit different because
you can kind of start as an independent
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:consultant, kind of get a client base
going before you fully, you know,
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:take that leap and start hiring folks.
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:Whereas like when you're building an
app, it's a little bit different, right?
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:You need funding and you need
some, some, some money to kind of.
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:Help get you through and give you,
you know, that, that stability to feel
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:comfortable to quit your job and really
focus full, full hearted on, on the.
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:The company, um, and it sounds like
kickstarter was your all's, you know, kind
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:of gave you, how much did you guys raise?
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:Like from a, from a kickstarter,
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:Bryan Enriquez: um, I think we were
like a 27, 000 from the kickstarter.
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:Tim Winkler: And obviously everybody
had kind of saved a little bit
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:of money up and, you know, that's
what I was going to say that
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:Bryan Enriquez: the kickstarter
was in November, but before then.
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:Um, we each had to look and
say, all right, like, how
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:are we going to fund this?
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:And so the answer was our, uh, 401k,
so I had to, and, you know, and I
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:mean, we were only a few years out
of college, so it's not like we
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:had a lot of, I mean, I certainly
didn't have a lot of, I don't know.
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:Alessandro and a few of those
were in different industries.
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:Um, so the pay different was there was
a pay difference, but I think none of us
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:were, you know, sitting on a lot of money.
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:So we had to rely on that for, you
know, the first few, uh, iterations of
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:building it and getting people to help us.
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:So we got some contractors early on
that ended up becoming employees later,
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:um, worked out really, really well.
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:The Kickstarter was there.
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:Um, we, and then we did a seed
round, which is amazing, uh,
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:about a year and a half later.
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:Um, and that really was able to
kind of push us, um, to the, the
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:next rounds that we we've closed.
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:Tim Winkler: So cool.
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:And, um, you know, tell me a
little bit about, you know,
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:what your inspiration was.
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:I think we, we kind of talked
about a little bit offline, but.
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:You know, you guys were scratching
your, your own itch here.
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:Um, but, um, I think you had
mentioned that, you know, one of
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:the other founders had been using
Headspace or something, right.
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:And it was kind of a, a
game changing experience.
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:I think, uh, when you, when you think
about that type of technology, that app,
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:um, was that one of the big influencers
with, with how you wanted to build?
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:Bryan Enriquez: Yeah, so, I
mean, I think, um, there was
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:2 things going on at the time.
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:So Alex, it was his idea.
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:Um, he was the one who had used headspace
and was found it helpful because it, it
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:sort of helps you, um, find silence, um,
and which a lot of times people don't have
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:silence in their days, you know, because
it's, it's this constant news feed.
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:It's the notifications, it's the
emails, it's the, whatever the
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:tick tocks or the Instagram reels.
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:So.
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:Yeah.
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:That was helpful for him to create
a mind space, if you will, to think
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:about what he truly believed in.
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:And I think for him, before that had
happened with the meditation, it sort
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:of, he was, he was searching, trying to
understand what he really believed and
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:was one of the catalysts that helped
him realize that he wanted to pray.
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:And I think that's, that is one of
the differences between the apps
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:is when you talk about headspace,
you're really thinking about.
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:Mindfulness meditation and the silence,
whereas how it was really like, how
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:do you have a conversation with God?
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:How do you pray?
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:Um, and so he was like, well, we don't,
there's not really an app for that.
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:I mean, obviously there's some apps that
give you like Bible verses and there's
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:some Christian apps out there that are,
uh, non denominational Christian apps.
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:There was nothing that was
like a Catholic focused app.
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:And there were so many traditions
and things that are in the church
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:for hundreds and hundreds of years,
thousands of years, sometimes that just
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:weren't At least we thought like, I
never had a priest go up, get up and
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:say, you should do, let's do Divina.
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:Like, I had no idea what that was.
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:Um, it turns out it's a way to
meditate and reflect on scripture,
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:which is really powerful.
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:Um, and so that, yeah, that was
sort of the inspiration was like,
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:okay, there's this format that
worked well for me, but it's missing
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:something and I need that something.
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:Why don't we build that something?
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:And so that was 1 of the
things that was happening.
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:The 2nd thing at the same time.
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:So at work.
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:I, again, I was at the Department of
Justice 1 of the things that I was
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:tasked with was looking at the mental
health wellness needs of operators in
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:the branch of the Department of Justice.
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:And so these operators, um,
you know, sometimes they defuse
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:bombs, they rescue hostages.
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:Um, they have to negotiate,
you know, with people who, who.
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:Um, are difficult to negotiate with,
um, and so they have stressful jobs, um,
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:and we were trying to figure out, you
know, what's the state of, of, of them.
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:And we found that, uh, of all
the things that we recommended,
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:um, a few things were interesting
1 mental health and resiliency.
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:So when you phrase something as mental
health, it's like, uh, like, that's,
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:there's a stigma attached to it.
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:Sure.
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:When you talk about mental resiliency,
it's actually people want to grow in it
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:because they think it's like, oh, it's a
muscle, like I'm going to become stronger.
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:So that really resonated with people.
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:And then the other thing was
doing mindfulness meditation and
396
:just kind of finding silence.
397
:And so there was actual benefits
in terms of the heart rate
398
:and things you could measure.
399
:And so I, from that experience, when
he was talking about this, I was like,
400
:yeah, man, like, I've seen this work.
401
:And the, um, sort of secular context,
and so there's no reason why it can't
402
:work in the religious context as well.
403
:If we combine some of these
techniques with, um, you know,
404
:the experiences of, uh, and the
teachings of the Catholic faith.
405
:So that's kind of where the inspiration
came from, uh, initially to kind
406
:of develop the 1st version of it.
407
:Tim Winkler: Yeah, it's really a
fascinating space because I think you
408
:Instrumental time, I would say that
mindfulness is becoming, you know, like
409
:around when headspace, I started tapping
into headspace, maybe say:
410
:2018, something around that time and,
and, uh, meditation and mindfulness
411
:was, was really popping off, I'd say.
412
:Um, so you guys kind of.
413
:Got into it, I think, and wrote a,
an early rising wave where it was
414
:kind of cool, you know, like people,
you know, especially younger folks
415
:were like really getting into that.
416
:Um, And, you know, to bring it back
to, um, you know, Catholicism at large,
417
:something that, you know, I was, you
know, talking to you about offline was,
418
:you know, you know, raised Catholic
and, you know, as a younger individual,
419
:you know, going to a Catholic church,
you know, they had like CCD, right?
420
:They had like, You know, you could
go and watch the videos, um, while,
421
:you know, while maybe, you know,
the, your, your parents were, uh,
422
:you know, actually in the sermon.
423
:Um, but the, the reality was, it was
just, you know, it can oftentimes be
424
:really challenging for younger folks
to, to find, uh, the Catholic religion
425
:engaging, um, you know, and, and so
when I was doing my research on the app
426
:and, you know, downloading and, and, you
know, engaging with it, I was like, This
427
:is really catering to this, like, you
know, younger generation of Catholics.
428
:Um, and I think there's a movement with
that too, and kind of like marrying
429
:the, you know, the mindfulness and, uh,
religion and blending that together.
430
:It's a really fascinating concept.
431
:I'll obviously say like, you know,
B2C apps at large are extremely
432
:difficult to get traction for.
433
:Um, did you all, you know, did you,
was, was there, um, those conversations
434
:happening around, like, just, you know,
talking to investors or just doing your
435
:own research of like, what's it going
to take, uh, to be successful here?
436
:Um, and did you get, you
know, discouraged at all?
437
:And I'm always interested in those early
stages of you here, you know, this is the
438
:type of traction you're going to need.
439
:Uh, here's the fail rate.
440
:Yeah.
441
:How did, how did those conversations flow?
442
:Bryan Enriquez: Certainly.
443
:Um, difficult, you know, so
I think, I mean, there's the
444
:stat that gets thrown around.
445
:That's like, you know, 90 percent
of startups fail within two years.
446
:Um, and in particular, you
know, B2C apps are tough.
447
:You gotta really have a strong
sense of marketing and how
448
:you're going to distribute it.
449
:And you gotta really watch your, your, uh,
your CACs, you know, your cost to acquire.
450
:Versus the LTV and like,
that's got to make sense.
451
:Um, so yeah, so initially, um, Alex
sort of, uh, was the one who took on
452
:these conversations and he had came back
and shared with us, like how it went.
453
:Basically, I think it was
something like the first 50 or 60.
454
:Like initial seed conversations
where, where people saying like,
455
:you know, this is a stupid idea.
456
:This is not going to go anywhere.
457
:And I mean, that's, that's
a lot of conversation.
458
:I mean, it's, it was dozens and dozens
and dozens of just, no, no, no, no, no.
459
:It's a lot of
460
:Tim Winkler: rejection.
461
:And you
462
:Bryan Enriquez: know, I mean, Alex
was like, look, God, like, I believe
463
:that this is what you wanted me to do.
464
:Right.
465
:Like I need, like, I'm going to trust
you and please like, show me the way.
466
:And I kid you not like immediately
after that, like the next day or two,
467
:he got an, uh, an email, um, uh, and
a term sheet, um, from Suse Ventures.
468
:Um, they've been fantastic.
469
:Uh, and then once we got one term sheet,
we were able to get more and then we
470
:closed our seed, we closed our series a,
I mean, it, it was really, um, amazing.
471
:Uh, and I, so I think part of it was like,
Um, but also it's sort of the, what I was
472
:talking about earlier, the, I think the
authenticity just really comes through,
473
:especially in a Kickstarter video.
474
:Cause it's just, it was Eric and Alex,
um, the two of them were just like,
475
:Hey, like we're starting this thing.
476
:And you know, again, we're not like
Eric and Alex, uh, and myself, we were
477
:not really people who would consider
ourselves super religious or like,
478
:I mean, yeah, we would go to church,
but like, it wasn't something that.
479
:We were very engaged in and what we
realized is that people could see
480
:themselves in that like, Hey, I wasn't
very engaged and then check it out.
481
:I did this app and I, and
I learned how to pray.
482
:I think for us, you know, having
that base routine of that habit, that
483
:ritual of, Hey, I'm going to, I'm
praying and I'm meditating every day
484
:enabled us to then understand and take
much more out of the actual services.
485
:So, as before, I was like, I don't
understand why is there a red candle?
486
:Why does he look like, why
is he dressed like a wizard?
487
:Why does why do you have these robes?
488
:I don't get it.
489
:And then when you start to actually
be like, oh, I now understand
490
:where this all comes from.
491
:Um, it's from the Judeo Christian roots.
492
:So it goes back to thousands of years to
like the time of Moses, um, of like these
493
:robes and what it means to be a priest.
494
:And so anyway, so I, I guess my point
is some people are like, Oh, are
495
:you trying to be like a replacement
for, or a substitute for religion?
496
:Like in, in terms of
like, uh, going to church.
497
:And I think for us, absolutely not.
498
:We want people to pray.
499
:And certainly if you're not
a Catholic, but that's okay.
500
:If you're not a Christian, that's okay.
501
:Like
502
:Tim Winkler: that was one of my questions.
503
:It is a kind of catering to.
504
:Like Christians and like, uh, just
505
:Bryan Enriquez: a hundred percent.
506
:So I think we really struggle with that.
507
:It's like, how do we,
how do we be authentic?
508
:That was one of our big things.
509
:We want to be authentic.
510
:And we said, look, we are all Catholic,
so we can't pretend to be something
511
:we're not and the experiences that we
had are rooted in the Catholic faith.
512
:So we have to stick, stay true to that.
513
:We want to be inclusive and we want to
welcome other people of, of different
514
:Christian denominations and even
people who aren't Christian as well.
515
:Now that's trickier because obviously
like the content is focused on Christ.
516
:So.
517
:If you're not, uh, if you don't follow
Christ, then it, you know, it's, it's a
518
:little different, but I've had people,
you know, explain and tell me that
519
:they, they, they're not Christians
and they still find it useful.
520
:So, um, that's exciting to me.
521
:Um, just the way that we've
structured the content, I think
522
:resonates with a lot of people.
523
:It's less on like preaching and it's
more on let's have an experience
524
:together and we have some soothing
voices, amazing people to pray with.
525
:And then just like that experience of
like, oh wow, I'm, I'm experiencing
526
:something and I literally feel better.
527
:And so I think that kind of like,
is not as scary for a lot of people.
528
:Cause it's not like, you know, pray,
whatever four decades of the rosary go.
529
:It's like, I don't, I don't know
how to, you know, it's worse.
530
:Like just press play and listen and
just like, let it kind of wash over you.
531
:I think that really resonates
with a lot of people.
532
:Tim Winkler: Yeah, I think that's a really
interesting point because, you know, one
533
:of the things that I think is always a
bit of a turnoff for somebody that, you
534
:know, I kind of look at myself as a little
bit of a religious mutt, you know, I
535
:grew up Catholic, you know, transitioned
into a non denominational Christian,
536
:may or may not have been a cult.
537
:I'm not sure it was one of those like
really intense non denominational
538
:Christian churches, kind of got turned
off, lived in, uh, Bali, Indonesia,
539
:uh, kind of got entrenched in a, in
a Hindu environment for two years.
540
:Came back home, um, you know, started to
really try to explore what, what, what
541
:else is out there, um, without losing
sight of what I'd experienced in the past.
542
:And one of the things that always
kind of turned me off, I think, would
543
:be when people were really preaching
and they're like, it's almost like
544
:it's, it's a selling, you're really
trying to sell me like a car salesman
545
:here on, on, on why, why you.
546
:Um, I like when you say it's like, you
know, we're not here to preach to you, you
547
:know, and make sure like, you know, you
know, that this is the way it's more of
548
:like, let's have this experience together
and like reinforce, you know, whatever
549
:it is that you're, you're pursuing,
like, we want to kind of like help you
550
:with that versus, you know, this is the
way it is, you know, I think that's,
551
:Bryan Enriquez: yeah.
552
:And I think again, you know, we have
a really wide variety of content.
553
:I think Mark Wahlberg's content is great
because his, his content is just like.
554
:Let's, let's get after it.
555
:Like the mentality is like,
let's conquer the day.
556
:Like, let's seize the day.
557
:Like that person really
resonates with a lot of people.
558
:We have content that is like more on
the meditation side, which is like
559
:experiencing something in silence
or like reflecting on something.
560
:Um, but then if there's people,
so if you're listening to this and
561
:you're like, I'm not religious,
like, I don't understand why these
562
:people talking about religion.
563
:It's like, look, I think the core
of what we're talking about is.
564
:We wrestled with what is,
what is the meaning of life
565
:and like, where's my purpose?
566
:And I've noted and I've had, I
have friends who aren't religious.
567
:I think the core of it and the message
that I think everybody can take
568
:away from is what I, my experiences.
569
:You have to search, you
have to wrestle with it.
570
:I think some people kind of
like, they focus on other things.
571
:They think about the career, about
whatever it is, their family.
572
:And they never stop to think about
like, what is it that I truly believe?
573
:Like what happens after I die?
574
:Uh, you know, which
we're all going to die.
575
:So it's, something's going to happen and
just kind of wrestling with it and being
576
:like, what is it that I truly believe?
577
:How do I want to live my life?
578
:Like, I think that, so I, there's a CEO
of all state who gave a talk recently.
579
:And, um, and he leads a company of
whatever, I mean, they probably have
580
:like 50, 000 people, if not more.
581
:And one of the most successful
things that he talked about, um,
582
:that Tom was mentioning in his talk
was it's like half day retreat,
583
:full day retreat that they do.
584
:I think it's, it's a day and a half
and it's for the entire company.
585
:And it's, um, about understanding
what motivates you in life.
586
:And it's like, it's not like a faith
thing, but it's a values thing.
587
:It's like, where do you get your energy?
588
:What, what makes you passionate?
589
:Where do you feel like you're most alive?
590
:Where do you feel like you're most dead?
591
:Like wrestling with that.
592
:And he said, has been the single
biggest thing that's driven retention
593
:and just, um, employee satisfaction.
594
:And they look forward to it every year.
595
:And again, it's like, there's people of
all faith backgrounds, but that wrestling
596
:with like, what is it that I believe?
597
:Like what, what gets me
out of bed every day?
598
:Like, how can I find my passion
and my meaning is super important.
599
:And I feel like if anything you
walk away with is, I would just
600
:encourage you to spend a few
more minutes thinking about that.
601
:You haven't been.
602
:Tim Winkler: Yeah.
603
:And, uh, you know, a lot of folks,
you know, maybe that doesn't hit
604
:them until a certain stage in life.
605
:Right.
606
:So I just had, uh, our first, uh,
child, my wife and I, we had a daughter.
607
:Yeah.
608
:Thanks.
609
:She just turned seven
months today actually.
610
:And, um, You know, one of the things
that kind of sparked us to, to re engage
611
:in our faith, right, was we, we want to
raise, uh, our daughter in a, you know,
612
:some sort of a religious household, right?
613
:You know, I think there's order to it and
it's, uh, a family bonding experience,
614
:uh, surround yourself with a community.
615
:And for us, you know, so it started with
light, like praying at, at night before
616
:dinner, you know, and, um, you know,
taking those small things, but then,
617
:you know, pushing yourself further, like
kind of like what you're alluding to is
618
:really challenge yourself to think, you
know, uh, about some deep, deep shit.
619
:There's going to be things
that are really going to.
620
:Uh, come up and, you know, when, when
you have another person that, that you're
621
:responsible for, um, it kind of forces you
to, you know, think forward, uh, versus
622
:maybe, maybe you just get comfortable if
it's just you and just, yeah, whatever.
623
:So, I think, um, you know, it's certainly,
it sounds like it's, it's catering
624
:to, you know, younger, uh, is it, is
it catering to younger generations?
625
:Would you say most, a
lot of your users are.
626
:Younger, or what does the user base
627
:Bryan Enriquez: look like?
628
:It's super interesting.
629
:So we don't as our onboarding,
we don't ask for age.
630
:So the short answer is we don't know.
631
:With 95 percent degree of accuracy,
the user base distribution, we've done
632
:surveys and we've talked to our users.
633
:And what's fascinating is the user
distribution, I would have thought is
634
:like a 18 to 35 and then like much lower.
635
:Because it's a, it's a tech
app, but it's not, um, it's
636
:actually relatively distributed.
637
:There is, uh, I would say a bump of like,
you know, 18 to 35 in terms of users,
638
:but it's pretty smooth in terms of the
distribution, uh, across ages with some
639
:of our most engaged users being over
65, which I would never have guessed.
640
:Um, I think the intuition there is
everybody gets something out of it.
641
:It's a little bit different.
642
:So I think folks that are in that over
65, you know, they have more time.
643
:They are sort of in the
end of life chapter.
644
:So they're like, okay, he's
like next 30 years, my, or,
645
:or whatever might be my last.
646
:So I have to think through
like what happens next.
647
:And so it kind of prompts them.
648
:Um, I think the middle group is
kind of what you're talking about.
649
:We've noticed that marriage having
children triggers like a desire
650
:of like, what do I really believe?
651
:Because I now have to, I
have to pass something on.
652
:I either ask like, God's
not real or like God's real.
653
:And it's this one or that one.
654
:Like you have to, you
have to say something.
655
:Um, yeah.
656
:Or you can let them figure
it out on their own.
657
:But like, how do you, how do you walk
with them in that journey of life?
658
:I think it's something that everyone
can kind of wrestle with or needs to
659
:wrestle with in that, in that stage.
660
:And so I just wanted to add
something to the earlier comment.
661
:Um, I remember I, I, so I went
to Yale for, um, for my, my MBA.
662
:Um, so graduate 2021, um, and I'm
happy to talk about that experience.
663
:I know some of your listeners might
be wondering like, okay, well,
664
:I want to go to business school.
665
:I'm not really sure.
666
:Do I get a master's degree?
667
:Do I get a business degree?
668
:So definitely I wrestled with that,
but there was this one class and it was
669
:kind of like, uh, an orientation class.
670
:I thought that was fascinating.
671
:And one of the talks.
672
:Resonated with me because the
guys similar background to you,
673
:his dad was a pastor, actually.
674
:So he said, Hey, you
know, my dad was a pastor.
675
:I didn't know what I believed and
I was kind of wrestling with it.
676
:One thing he told me
that I'll never forget.
677
:He said that because his dad was
a pastor, he was invited to a lot
678
:of people's final moments, right?
679
:It's like, Hey, this
person's about to pass.
680
:And like, let's have the pastor
just come by and like be with you
681
:so that you're not alone, pray
over you as you, as you pass away.
682
:And he said, you know, the one
thing that he said is the most
683
:common thing on someone's deathbed.
684
:It's talking about the things that
they didn't do and they, and the
685
:regret of like, I didn't do this thing.
686
:I wanted to start that business.
687
:I didn't do it.
688
:I want to write that book.
689
:I didn't do it.
690
:I wanted to, you know, make
that trip and I didn't do it.
691
:And so he's like, that really motivated
me because I'm like 1 and Jeff Bezos talks
692
:about this, like how he makes decisions.
693
:He likes to think of it, of it
like 40 years from now, looking
694
:back kind of like the premortem,
like, what would I have regretted
695
:if I did or didn't do this thing?
696
:And he's like, that motivated
me to start a company.
697
:He started a company and it failed.
698
:And he was like, I was in my
pajamas and my mom's, uh, my,
699
:my, my parents dinner table.
700
:And uh, we failed, but you know, but
I don't have to regret I'm not trying.
701
:Yeah.
702
:So if you're listening and
you're like, I don't know.
703
:It's like.
704
:Yeah.
705
:Wrestle with it.
706
:I certainly don't think everybody's
called to be an entrepreneur.
707
:I think it's something that's probably
one of the hardest things you can do.
708
:Um, very risky.
709
:But yeah, I mean, if you're, if you're
wrestling with it, just consider that,
710
:um, you know, think about yourself
in the future and what motivates
711
:you again, what makes you, what,
what drives passion in your life?
712
:Is it creating something?
713
:Is it trying something new and you
just haven't had the experience?
714
:Certainly that was my case, right?
715
:Like I hadn't had the
opportunity to build something.
716
:I was in the government
and there's not in my life.
717
:Part of the government, my, my department,
there wasn't really a space for that
718
:to build something from scratch.
719
:Um, certainly if you're, I don't know, if
you're in the Pentagon and like, you're in
720
:some research division, you can probably
build something from scratch with a lot
721
:of money, but I was working with lawyers.
722
:It's like, uh, you know, that, that
experience of like building an app or
723
:building something was just not possible.
724
:So it's almost like I never had the
opportunity to know if I wanted or not.
725
:And I just had, we just took
a leap of faith and thankfully
726
:it's, it's worked out.
727
:Um, we just closed our series
C, uh, but a few months ago.
728
:So.
729
:Yeah.
730
:Tim Winkler: Yeah.
731
:Yeah, man.
732
:That's really cool.
733
:Uh, really cool feedback.
734
:I, I, I, I think about that as well.
735
:And, you know, I read a lot of books
around, you know, that exact moment of
736
:the folks that their biggest regret,
um, is, you know, wish I hadn't just.
737
:Kept putting in those extra hours
at work, you know, when I could
738
:have spent more time with my family,
uh, or something like that, right.
739
:That's usually the most, a really common
one as well, which entrepreneurs, you're
740
:going to put in some work, you know,
and it's not going to be, uh, that, that
741
:smooth sailing, but the, the reality is
that you could have a, a bigger payout.
742
:Uh, retirement could come a little
earlier if you're putting in the,
743
:the, the sweat and the tears in those
earlier stages, but the regret piece, I
744
:think is, is a, is a fascinating point.
745
:Um, I'm gonna, uh, wrap up a couple more
questions here for we, we transitioned
746
:to the five second scramble, but,
you know, just a couple of quick
747
:hitters on, on how low, you know, I
guess how many downloads, you know,
748
:rough estimate you guys, uh, have
749
:Bryan Enriquez: at this point.
750
:Yeah.
751
:So the last time I checked, we,
we cracked 11 million globally.
752
:Wow.
753
:So that's wild.
754
:It's very, you guys are,
755
:Tim Winkler: you know, in hundreds of
countries I'd imagine folks are, are.
756
:Bryan Enriquez: Yeah, so the way
it works is any country you can
757
:download an app, um, you can use it.
758
:So, I mean, there's, I think we have users
in like, Qatar and Saudi Arabia and like
759
:all these other nations, even though we
don't have it in Arabic, for example.
760
:Um, so we're, we're global in that
sense, but in terms of languages, we
761
:have English, we have Spanish, we have
Brazilian Portuguese, um, we have Filipino
762
:Tagalog, uh, we have Polish, we in Latin.
763
:And then we're launching in
French, German, and Italian,
764
:uh, in the next, uh, few months.
765
:So,
766
:Tim Winkler: wow.
767
:And you've got some, some
pretty, you know, big, big
768
:partnerships and collaborations.
769
:You, you, you mentioned
Mark Wahlberg is one.
770
:Um, you know, how do you go about that?
771
:How do you snag, uh, Mark Wahlberg to, to,
to use the app and then, you know, engage
772
:him to, to lead some of these sessions?
773
:Bryan Enriquez: Yeah.
774
:So it's, it's interesting.
775
:We've had folks like, um.
776
:Joe Montana, he was 1 of our 1st, um,
investors as an angel investor legend.
777
:Um, who's who's great.
778
:Yeah.
779
:Um, and yeah, I mean,
it, it sort of depends.
780
:So we have, um, the actor who
plays Jesus in the chosen.
781
:It's a popular streaming series.
782
:Uh, his name is Jonathan roomie.
783
:It's becoming bigger and bigger.
784
:Obviously, we have Mark Wahlberg and
we've had a few other people that.
785
:Mario Lopez, um, and some, some
other folks that have been gracious
786
:enough to give their time, um,
and energy to help our project.
787
:And really, it's sort of like an all
of the above, like, some of them have
788
:been, we've reached out through an
agent and then the agent connects us.
789
:Some of it has been like, we,
we know somebody who goes to
790
:their church and we're like, Hey.
791
:Do you want to work for HAL or
do you want to work with HAL and
792
:they're like, yeah, HAL is cool.
793
:And so it's cool because it's,
it's, it, again, it appeals
794
:to a wide range of people.
795
:Cause we have clergy in the app.
796
:So we have like cardinals and archbishops.
797
:And we also have, again, like
Mark Wahlberg or Jonathan,
798
:people who don't have any formal,
you know, role in the church.
799
:And again, it's just, we're trying
to create something and it's like,
800
:well, how do you be inclusive
and not watered on the message?
801
:Well, we've landed on is
like, we want to be authentic.
802
:So this is who we are.
803
:So we're not going to shy
away from it, but we want to
804
:be as welcoming as possible.
805
:And just, I think the format of
the app is what enables that.
806
:So that's why I think people want
to work with us is they're like, Oh,
807
:okay, this is a little different.
808
:Like the way that this happens,
the way that you experience a
809
:session in hallow, uh, is resonating
with a much larger audience.
810
:And again, some people think like,
Oh, it's the younger audience.
811
:But again, we've had some of our
people or power users that are over 65.
812
:I had a, I had a call.
813
:There was a, there was a, uh, I guess
a girl who was, who just turned 18.
814
:And then there was a woman
who was 81 on the same call.
815
:And they both were like, I love how,
and I'm like, it just kind of struck me.
816
:I was like, that is crazy.
817
:That is wild, wide range or
both, both find something
818
:valuable and it is, is kind of
819
:Tim Winkler: unique.
820
:So that's crazy.
821
:That's, that's so cool to
see that diverse user base.
822
:Um, and you just mentioned, yeah,
you guys just snagged a series
823
:C recently, um, total funding.
824
:Where are you sitting at right now?
825
:Bryan Enriquez: Uh, we're at one Oh five.
826
:Um, so we've closed 105 million funding,
um, through our seed, a, B and C, which is
827
:Tim Winkler: awesome.
828
:Some big names too, like Peter
Thiel's in there, uh, investor.
829
:Yeah.
830
:We just
831
:Bryan Enriquez: closed
with a good water capital.
832
:Um, Eric, yeah, this is fantastic.
833
:Um, so yeah, and general catalyst has
been really good with us and a few others.
834
:So.
835
:And from a
836
:Tim Winkler: headcount perspective,
you know, what's, you know, you're,
837
:you're, you guys are scaling up.
838
:What's the size of this operation?
839
:How many employees are part of this thing?
840
:Bryan Enriquez: Yeah.
841
:So I think right now we're hovering
between 60 and 65, but we're also hiring.
842
:And so it's kind of like influx.
843
:Um, with a series C that was one of
our goals is to do a hiring push.
844
:So, you know, right now between
contractors and employees, um, we're
845
:probably just shy of a hundred,
um, with, you know, by the end
846
:of the year, we'll probably have,
we'll be over a hundred for sure.
847
:Um, with all the hiring that
we're doing, what, what areas are
848
:Tim Winkler: you hiring in?
849
:Oh, I mean, We got across the board, all
850
:Bryan Enriquez: of us, all of the stuff.
851
:Yeah.
852
:But now we've been at
this for a few months.
853
:So some of the roles have been closing.
854
:So, um, we've been hiring everything from
growth marketing, um, for Latin America.
855
:We've got, um, our content
writing position was some of
856
:the most applied to position.
857
:So that's like writing the actual
content that gets, um, into the app.
858
:Um, we're hiring for people to help
our B2B sort of our partnerships
859
:team to help scale that operation.
860
:Um, we're building a team
to help, um, parishes.
861
:So it's sort of like offering
hallow as a, like a course or an
862
:experience that masters can bring
to their, like to the parish nurse.
863
:Like, Hey, you know, do hallow as,
as a parish community, for example.
864
:So it's like, yeah, I'm hiring
for some customer support people
865
:on the customer support team.
866
:Um, so yeah, it's just been kind of like
all over the board as we, as we grow.
867
:Tim Winkler: Are you, are you
hiring up any, uh, like in
868
:areas of tech, uh, engineering,
869
:Bryan Enriquez: uh, product?
870
:Yes.
871
:Yes, we have.
872
:Um, so we're, we're going to a new
model, um, of what we call them pods.
873
:So it's going to be a pod focused on
community, a pod focused on retention,
874
:and then a pod focused on sort of growth.
875
:Um, and so we're hiring, yeah,
you know, new engineers for
876
:those roles, Android and iOS.
877
:Um, we're also hiring
designers, um, as well.
878
:So, uh, one of the
things that makes hallow.
879
:Uh, I think so successful
is the visual appeal of it.
880
:Like when you open the app, it's just
the visually beautifully designed app.
881
:Um, the illustrations really are,
I think, awesome and they help
882
:sort of like lower the barrier.
883
:It's like, Oh, like it's,
it's, it's welcoming.
884
:It's like, Oh yeah, like I
want to spend time meditating
885
:with this, uh, with this app.
886
:So.
887
:Wow.
888
:Tim Winkler: Yeah.
889
:It's really fascinating app.
890
:Um, definitely recommend any, uh, any
of our listeners out there to, to, to
891
:give it a download, tinker with it.
892
:Uh, I'm sure it loves your feedback on it.
893
:Um, and, uh, yeah, keep up the good work.
894
:I love, um, I love people innovating
in a space that for one, like,
895
:you know, it's important to me.
896
:Um, you know, I was really thrilled, uh,
to, to see something like this popping up.
897
:Have you seen anything
else out there like it?
898
:Have you seen anybody kind of.
899
:You know, mimicking what you're
doing right now or, uh, anything
900
:else that's, that's similar.
901
:Bryan Enriquez: Yeah.
902
:It's weird because, um, on
the one hand, like, so our
903
:mission is to help people pray.
904
:And we've talked about this as
like, it's not really competitive.
905
:Like if somebody else makes another
app that helps people pray, that's
906
:like, I mean, more power to you.
907
:Um, so I know that there's a few
apps that are, that have come out.
908
:So Ascension is one of our partners.
909
:They've been great with us.
910
:Um, so father Mike Schmitz, um, he's like,
Why are they considered to be one of the
911
:most, um, followed priests in the U S.
912
:And he actually had a podcast
called, um, Bible in a year.
913
:And when that launched, um, I believe
it was in:
914
:one podcast across all podcasts for
like, I think two weeks in Apple.
915
:So like for, I guess across all their
podcasts, it was like this priest
916
:reading the Bible was like the most
listened to thing, which is crazy.
917
:So probably makes me great.
918
:He's in our app as well.
919
:So you can listen to Bible in your app.
920
:They launched their own version, which
is more of like a Bible, like video
921
:type thing where you can like, you
know, Um, if there's specific questions
922
:about the faith, like, that's that's
an app that you can kind of go to.
923
:So, um, that's been a new
thing that's come out recently.
924
:I know.
925
:Uh, there's another app
called the amen app.
926
:Um, so they're tied to the
Augusta Institute, which is
927
:like a larger institution in
the way that they run things.
928
:They have offer courses, um, for people
who are interested in getting degrees.
929
:Um, so, yeah, it's, it's
kind of interesting.
930
:It's like, look, I mean, if you're going
to use an app that helps you pray, like, I
931
:don't, I don't care who you use, we won't
obviously want hollow to be the best.
932
:But if something else, some other group
offer something that we don't have, then.
933
:I forgot to
934
:Tim Winkler: ask, um, I guess
how is the, uh, is it monetized?
935
:Do you all offer like a plus,
uh, membership, like less ads
936
:or anything like that, like
how, how are you all monetizing?
937
:Bryan Enriquez: Yeah.
938
:So we, we don't sell any user
data, so there's no, and there's
939
:no advertisement in the apps.
940
:There's no ads.
941
:Um, the way that we make money is
through an optional subscription.
942
:Um, so it's 79 99, uh, a year
for the annual plan or 99 99
943
:or the month to month plan.
944
:Um, there's also a totally free
version, so you can download it.
945
:And if you're like, I, I don't
want to pay for anything.
946
:There's the free version that
has content that's free forever.
947
:So some apps offer like just limited
free trial, but hollow has an, you
948
:know, content that's free forever.
949
:So you won't ever be kicked out of it.
950
:We also offer a free trial and a
paid trial of the premium stuff.
951
:So if you want to try it out
for a bit, there's options.
952
:You can sort of design your trial.
953
:You can toggle it to be free or paid.
954
:Um, so yeah, we have options for everyone.
955
:Sweet.
956
:Tim Winkler: Yeah.
957
:Love the flexibility on that.
958
:Um, well, cool, man.
959
:I, I've got a boatload of other questions,
but, uh, you know, in the essence of,
960
:uh, keeping, uh, keeping your time,
uh, uh, top of mind, I'm going to.
961
:Uh, stop there and I'll transition
us into this final segment
962
:called the five second scramble.
963
:Um, so this will be a little bit more
of a, it's a little fun, you know,
964
:rapid fire Q and a some, some personal,
some business, uh, you're ready for it.
965
:Go for it.
966
:So explain how low to me as
if I were a five year old
967
:Bryan Enriquez: hollow is a fun way
to talk to the big man upstairs.
968
:Tim Winkler: Sold man, sold.
969
:What problems are you solving?
970
:I don't know where to start.
971
:Bryan Enriquez: I don't know how to pray.
972
:Um, I don't know if I'm doing it right.
973
:Uh, I'm by myself and I want
to pray with somebody else.
974
:Perfect.
975
:Tim Winkler: What aspect of your
culture do you most fear losing with
976
:Bryan Enriquez: growth?
977
:I hate when people say family.
978
:But, um, we have a, a culture
where like I was just with a team.
979
:We were bowling last night and it's
easy to forget that they're coworkers.
980
:It's like, oh, these are,
these are my friends.
981
:Um, and as you grow, that's something that
we want to keep what you bowl, like 72,
982
:like, I'm like, yeah, like I was trying
to get 200 and I just kept throwing it
983
:Tim Winkler: into the gutter.
984
:Yeah, usually you have like somebody
that's just like, yeah, clearly killing
985
:it, maybe bringing their own shoes.
986
:And then the folks that are just like, I
just want to get this thing down the lane.
987
:Um, what trait do you value
most in your co founders
988
:Bryan Enriquez: data
driven decision making?
989
:Tim Winkler: Nice.
990
:What type of technologist thrive
991
:Bryan Enriquez: at HALO?
992
:I'd say people who are hungry
to solve difficult problems.
993
:Tim Winkler: What can folks be most
excited about with HALO closing
994
:out 2023 and going into 2024?
995
:Bryan Enriquez: HALO is going to be, can
be described as a single player game.
996
:We're moving it to a multiplayer game.
997
:So the biggest thing is how you
can interact with and walk with,
998
:in a prayerful way, uh, other
users from around the world.
999
:So really excited about how we're
going to be able to do that.
:
00:46:55,940 --> 00:46:56,280
What is
:
00:46:56,280 --> 00:47:00,130
Tim Winkler: a charity or corporate
philanthropy that's near and dear to you?
:
00:47:01,290 --> 00:47:03,040
Bryan Enriquez: Uh,
I'd say Cafe Charities.
:
00:47:03,280 --> 00:47:05,830
Um, they are really
active here in Chicago.
:
00:47:06,020 --> 00:47:07,619
Um, they do a lot with the homeless.
:
00:47:07,899 --> 00:47:10,729
Um, which, yeah, is a cause
that I really care about.
:
00:47:13,370 --> 00:47:13,900
Aside from
:
00:47:13,900 --> 00:47:16,029
Tim Winkler: Hello!, what's
the favorite app on your phone?
:
00:47:19,160 --> 00:47:19,270
I
:
00:47:19,270 --> 00:47:21,560
Bryan Enriquez: would, I would
have said tick tock, um, but I
:
00:47:21,570 --> 00:47:24,560
had to delete it because I was
just on it too much, too much.
:
00:47:25,380 --> 00:47:25,870
It's just,
:
00:47:25,910 --> 00:47:27,170
Tim Winkler: yeah, it's
just one of those things.
:
00:47:27,580 --> 00:47:29,500
Delete tick tock and add threads.
:
00:47:29,500 --> 00:47:29,800
Right.
:
00:47:29,830 --> 00:47:31,830
Is that how it works?
:
00:47:31,840 --> 00:47:32,570
Something like that.
:
00:47:32,610 --> 00:47:36,629
Bryan Enriquez: Um, yeah, I have now
been using, uh, Instagram reels and,
:
00:47:36,630 --> 00:47:39,940
and, and YouTube shorts, but yeah,
I believe it or not YouTube music.
:
00:47:40,445 --> 00:47:40,885
Okay.
:
00:47:40,905 --> 00:47:42,415
So it's a controversial topic.
:
00:47:42,425 --> 00:47:43,405
People make fun of me for it.
:
00:47:43,455 --> 00:47:44,755
Um, I love YouTube music.
:
00:47:44,825 --> 00:47:47,245
Uh, I'm probably one of their, it
was like, well, you're probably one
:
00:47:47,245 --> 00:47:48,375
of their only premium subscribers.
:
00:47:48,905 --> 00:47:49,825
I think they have more than just a few.
:
00:47:49,905 --> 00:47:51,615
Um, but that's my favorite app.
:
00:47:51,645 --> 00:47:53,124
My go to music app is YouTube.
:
00:47:53,335 --> 00:47:53,565
So
:
00:47:53,594 --> 00:47:55,605
Tim Winkler: like with the
music videos too, is that,
:
00:47:56,315 --> 00:48:00,815
Bryan Enriquez: so for me, it's just,
I grew up like creating you, like when
:
00:48:00,815 --> 00:48:05,867
YouTube started, uh, I put my songs
and music in like YouTube playlists.
:
00:48:05,867 --> 00:48:06,029
Yeah.
:
00:48:06,320 --> 00:48:09,880
And so then it was easy for me to
just port those into YouTube music.
:
00:48:09,880 --> 00:48:12,900
So I still have my original playlists
from like whenever I go, whereas
:
00:48:12,900 --> 00:48:15,849
Spotify or like whatever, Pandora,
you have to create your new ones.
:
00:48:15,850 --> 00:48:16,990
And I said, I don't want
to create my new ones.
:
00:48:17,180 --> 00:48:19,880
Tim Winkler: So that's
why, yeah, I gotcha.
:
00:48:20,610 --> 00:48:22,959
What's the worst fashion trend
that you've ever followed?
:
00:48:26,210 --> 00:48:26,879
Bryan Enriquez: Oh man.
:
00:48:28,330 --> 00:48:30,660
I, I don't know if you
remember the brand affliction.
:
00:48:31,640 --> 00:48:32,090
Yeah.
:
00:48:32,170 --> 00:48:34,960
It's like a Criss Angel style clothing.
:
00:48:35,755 --> 00:48:39,595
I would, I was obsessed with it
for a few years and like, looking
:
00:48:39,605 --> 00:48:40,795
back, I'm like, why did I wear that?
:
00:48:40,805 --> 00:48:44,745
That's just totally not
my personality for me.
:
00:48:44,745 --> 00:48:47,155
I don't know if it was a trend, but
I noticed, you know, I, I certainly
:
00:48:47,155 --> 00:48:50,195
wasn't the only one wearing it and, um,
maybe some people could pull it off.
:
00:48:50,375 --> 00:48:53,975
I, I, I for sure couldn't pull it off
and no one, no one was, had the mercy
:
00:48:53,975 --> 00:48:56,885
to tell me they were just like, no,
let's just let him, you know, seep
:
00:48:56,885 --> 00:48:58,175
in until he realizes his mistake,
:
00:48:59,915 --> 00:49:00,615
Tim Winkler: good stuff.
:
00:49:00,895 --> 00:49:03,125
Um, what do you love most about yourself?
:
00:49:04,304 --> 00:49:04,664
Bryan Enriquez: Hmm.
:
00:49:06,615 --> 00:49:12,065
Um, I would say that this
is, I've been told this.
:
00:49:12,155 --> 00:49:16,075
So I feel like I can say this zest
for life, contagious zest for life.
:
00:49:16,075 --> 00:49:20,085
Like I like to share my excitement
and passion with other people
:
00:49:20,175 --> 00:49:21,175
and it gets them motivated.
:
00:49:21,185 --> 00:49:23,075
And I think that's what I
like about myself the most.
:
00:49:23,935 --> 00:49:25,255
Tim Winkler: I love that zest for life.
:
00:49:25,344 --> 00:49:26,544
It's a good, it's a good slogan.
:
00:49:26,624 --> 00:49:27,355
Good life slogan.
:
00:49:28,445 --> 00:49:29,195
Um, all right.
:
00:49:29,195 --> 00:49:29,885
A couple more here.
:
00:49:29,885 --> 00:49:32,645
So, um, if you could have any
superpower, what would it be?
:
00:49:33,815 --> 00:49:34,345
Bryan Enriquez: Oh, man,
:
00:49:39,605 --> 00:49:42,975
I would, this is one of the iceberg
questions that we ask and I go back
:
00:49:42,975 --> 00:49:47,394
and forth on just like generically
flying is just like, it's just so cool.
:
00:49:47,525 --> 00:49:49,005
You know, just people that
fly from different places.
:
00:49:49,455 --> 00:49:50,785
But people are like,
well, you can already fly.
:
00:49:50,795 --> 00:49:51,465
You can just get on a plane.
:
00:49:51,465 --> 00:49:55,165
I'm like, yeah, but like, you
can't like fly and whatever.
:
00:49:55,215 --> 00:49:58,635
And so I've, I've, I've landed on
flying because I picked up skiing.
:
00:49:59,095 --> 00:50:02,874
So it'd be of a mountain and
then like fly back and then do
:
00:50:02,874 --> 00:50:04,335
it again, you know, for sure.
:
00:50:04,355 --> 00:50:05,814
So I think that would be kind of sick.
:
00:50:06,394 --> 00:50:06,824
Yeah, yeah,
:
00:50:06,824 --> 00:50:07,204
Tim Winkler: yeah.
:
00:50:07,365 --> 00:50:07,635
Yeah.
:
00:50:07,775 --> 00:50:09,420
The folks that just said,
just get on a plane.
:
00:50:09,420 --> 00:50:11,795
It's like, all right, you're, you're
not playing by the rules here.
:
00:50:11,795 --> 00:50:13,185
We're talking about soups and hours.
:
00:50:13,235 --> 00:50:14,555
Yeah, yeah, yeah, exactly, exactly.
:
00:50:15,335 --> 00:50:19,985
Um, If you have one day left to
live, would you spend it with
:
00:50:19,995 --> 00:50:22,245
Morgan Freeman or Denzel Washington?
:
00:50:22,295 --> 00:50:23,405
Denzel Washington, 100%.
:
00:50:24,785 --> 00:50:27,145
Bryan Enriquez: Yeah, Denzel, if you're
listening, we would love to have you
:
00:50:27,145 --> 00:50:30,154
in the Halo app and Morgan too, but
I mean, Morgan has a great voice.
:
00:50:30,625 --> 00:50:32,665
Tim Winkler: I mean, Morgan's
voice, they're both great boys,
:
00:50:32,665 --> 00:50:35,805
but Morgan's voice is like,
talk about mellowing me out.
:
00:50:35,874 --> 00:50:36,444
That's true.
:
00:50:36,534 --> 00:50:37,115
Bryan Enriquez: That's true.
:
00:50:37,275 --> 00:50:41,685
Um, yeah, I just feel like, like
Morgan is one of those guys that like,
:
00:50:42,220 --> 00:50:43,640
You see, you're like, I respect you.
:
00:50:43,680 --> 00:50:44,910
You know, like I see what you're doing.
:
00:50:45,200 --> 00:50:47,190
Then I feel like it could be
like, like an uncle to me.
:
00:50:47,210 --> 00:50:47,800
You know what I'm saying?
:
00:50:47,800 --> 00:50:48,980
Like, like, yeah, friends
:
00:50:49,000 --> 00:50:54,059
Tim Winkler: kind of just grab you under
his arm and going out hard with them.
:
00:50:54,830 --> 00:50:55,109
All right.
:
00:50:55,140 --> 00:50:55,649
Last one.
:
00:50:55,649 --> 00:50:57,009
Favorite Disney character.
:
00:51:01,530 --> 00:51:02,310
Bryan Enriquez: This
is going to sound bad.
:
00:51:02,599 --> 00:51:04,300
Um, for the longest time was Aladdin.
:
00:51:04,775 --> 00:51:06,895
Because he was brown and I
was like, Oh, he's brown.
:
00:51:06,895 --> 00:51:07,265
Like me.
:
00:51:10,685 --> 00:51:11,775
Tim Winkler: Well, that is my favorite.
:
00:51:12,045 --> 00:51:12,765
Oh, there you go.
:
00:51:12,945 --> 00:51:13,235
Yeah.
:
00:51:13,605 --> 00:51:14,345
It wasn't the Brown.
:
00:51:14,375 --> 00:51:15,165
It wasn't the Brown.
:
00:51:15,165 --> 00:51:17,064
It was just, I think
the magic carpet, man.
:
00:51:17,065 --> 00:51:18,595
You went back to the flying thing.
:
00:51:18,685 --> 00:51:19,355
Bryan Enriquez: Yeah.
:
00:51:19,435 --> 00:51:19,775
Yeah.
:
00:51:19,805 --> 00:51:20,685
No, the whole thing.
:
00:51:20,785 --> 00:51:23,755
I mean, you know, Jasmine's beautiful
and like, you know, The whole, anyway,
:
00:51:23,795 --> 00:51:24,985
yeah, Magic Carpet was a good joke, so,
:
00:51:26,225 --> 00:51:26,245
Tim Winkler: yeah.
:
00:51:26,535 --> 00:51:27,615
Well, uh, well played.
:
00:51:27,685 --> 00:51:29,075
Um, awesome, man.
:
00:51:29,075 --> 00:51:31,165
Well, thanks so much for
spending time with us, Brian.
:
00:51:31,165 --> 00:51:33,615
Uh, excited for the future, what
you guys are building at Halo.
:
00:51:33,615 --> 00:51:37,405
And, um, I'm sure, yeah, I'm sure,
you know, with that team of, of
:
00:51:37,605 --> 00:51:40,085
an all star kind of cast, you're,
you're going to be super successful.
:
00:51:40,085 --> 00:51:41,095
So we're rooting for you guys.
:
00:51:41,135 --> 00:51:42,945
And thanks for hanging
out with us on the pod.
:
00:51:43,435 --> 00:51:44,235
Bryan Enriquez: Yeah, this was super fun.
:
00:51:44,235 --> 00:51:44,785
Thanks for having me.