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Episode 524: Warrior to Wealth — Why Your Home Life Has to Win First, with Jonathan Berryhill
Introduction
You know, when you’re in business or working your job as a leader, you may well kind of leave the family and the personal life behind. And it’s not uncommon. I’m not saying it as judgment, but I think it’s a topic that’s worth talking about. And my guest today is a gentleman who’s lived that. He is an Army veteran and now entrepreneur, and he’s going to join us and tell part of his personal story. His name is Jonathan Berryhill. Jonathan, welcome.
Hey, I’m glad to be here, Doug.
Yes. Glad to have you on the show. And thank you for your service and your time in. When and where to start? Jonathan and I had a great talk in the green room, and there’s so many things going on here. Why don’t you, if you will. Can you summarize the journey? We talked about your entry into the military and then your exit and things you were doing along that path.
From Fort Benning to Bosnia
Absolutely, Doug, and thank you for your service as well. I saw that you were a captain and I thought, I think that’s awesome. That was going to be my next step if I stayed in, was becoming an officer. But I left the army as an Army infantry sergeant.
But so, you know, I. Yeah, I enlisted in the Army in 1996. You know, went to Fort Benning, Georgia, where? Home of the infantry. Hooah. You know. So you did all my training? Got stationed at Fort Riley, Kansas. Was deployed to Bosnia.
Married my high school sweetheart before I got deployed because I said if I get deployed, I heard about all this extra pay, which back then is like $300 a month. And to me, back then, I was like, oh, wow. So I asked her would she marry me? And she did. And I’m still married to her today. Thank the Lord.
But we did have a first, or first 5 or 6 years. It was pretty rough. And a lot of that was military.
The Night Everything Came Apart
And then I got out of the military, got into law enforcement, did some undercover stuff, working narcotics. My marriage was on the shambles.
And, I tell you, Doug, I, I, I could I woke up middle of the night, and, Hannah was in Hawaii with her sister staying with her, and she had my little girl, Mabel, and I just, I, I could see two human beings, and. And I really believe God woke me up.
I saw this, I saw me failing and everything except being a great police officer that, you know, I was a great soldier. I was a great college football player. I was a great police officer, I did great, I advanced in rank fast, but what I wasn’t great in was being a good husband, a good father, and, I was just that they were getting my leftovers.
And, you know, I saw my marriage failing. We’d filed for divorce, and, But then I saw this business man. God showed me this business man. This successful man.
And, you know, I could hear this almost like a voice that. Hey, you know, son, I have these things to give you, but you’ve got to get your life straight. And, you know, our foundation starts at home. No matter. You know, you. Yes, you can have a successful business, but usually a successful business doesn’t transpire in reverse. And come home and make your family successful. You need that to be successful.
“Babe, I’m Going to Give You the Life You Can Only Imagine”
So Hannah came back. She took me back and I told her. I said, babe, I’m going to give you the life. You can only imagine now how I’m going to do that. I ain’t got a clue, you know, I’m an ex infantry sergeant, police officer, you know, football player.
But what I did is, you know, at the age of 25 years old, I walked on to the University of North Alabama and played linebacker to finish my degree. I finished my degree in pre-med, biology and chemistry. I thought I was going to go to medical school.
But we found out we were going to have another baby. Second child. Actually, third child, because Levi was born while I was playing college football, right before I played college football. And then we found out we were pregnant with, my third, we have six total, but Micah was going to be born, and I had to get a job.
I was like, man, I’ve drugged my wife through all this. I’ve gotta get into the, you know. And so I started my career in medical sales.
Building the Business — and Rebuilding the Marriage
And, you know, I knew what I needed to do, and I got some commission dollars, and it really turned me on, like, I was like, okay, this is it. This is how I’m going to make the difference.
And so, you know, I worked hard a couple years into it, became a chief operations officer for this company. Another couple years later, I started my first business while I was chief operations officer. The company allowed me to do that on the side. And then I left the company about a year later, and, you know, that’s that was in 2009, 2010. And so I had a rapid run there for a while just to get, you know, things in order.
But what I was really working on was my home life. I was really working on my relationship with Hannah. She and I were going through marriage courses. You know, we were investing. We were being intentional with each other. Because I knew I had that to be successful before I was going to be successful out of the home. I knew I could be successful out of the home. But then when I got home, it wasn’t a good feeling, so I reversed that.
And so I sold my first business for, you know, a few million dollars. And then it just it was on.
Six Kids, Five Brokerages, and a Farm
Then it was on. I started other businesses, you know, on a government contracting business. Now, we own a, five real estate brokerages. A DME durable medical equipment company.
And so, we raised Quarter Horses on our farm and been married for 30 years. Two of my children are married. They live here on the farm. They work for one of the companies. Their spouses work for one of the family companies.
And so, you know, right now I’m building a legacy. I’m about to release my first book, Warrior to Wealth. And, you know, I hope that’s what you asked me to do, Doug. So I kind of just have just been all over the map, but, you know, kind of just telling you my journey.
Great at Work, Failing at Home
Yes, absolutely. Jonathan, great story and so much packed in there to talk about. And, you know, I’ll start with your point that you made about doing great outside the home and doing all the right things, getting your promotions in the military, police, etc., and then even into the business.
But not having the home life you wanted and that you believed your wife and kids deserved. And boy, that’s a summary of a story that is often not talked about. People kind of hide behind that. There’s a degree of embarrassment that it’s not what it could be, but at the same time, the person — and by the way, this is man or woman, that I’ve heard both versions of this — you know, when you don’t have that home life established as it should be or could be, you know, what you might be doing at work is great, but it’s incredibly temporary.
That’s right, that’s right. You know, I’ve because of my history, because of, you know, my marriage troubles and stuff. And Hannah and I started teaching marriage classes. We started counseling and mentoring other marriages just because people were bringing them to us. You need to talk to John and Hannah. You need to talk to John and Hannah.
And so, you know, I just I just always remembered this scripture, in Mark, you know, I’m a Christian man. What good is it for someone to gain the world yet forfeit their soul? And so I was like, I always thought about that. Like, what good is it to have this great, successful life out in the world? But then at home, it’s just it’s turmoil or chaos.
Breaking the Cycle of a Broken Home
And so I knew I wanted to fix that. I’m from a broken home. My mom and dad were divorced. My dad was rough. My mom was not seen. I lived my grandparents most. You know, growing up 15 years old, I was pretty much on my own. My dad had, you know, gotten in trouble in and out of jail, DUIs and fighting and stuff like that. So we lived in a, you know, little mobile home trailer holes in the floor, plywood over it.
So, you know, I knew I wanted a better life than that. And so I saw myself spiraling down that same route. But on the other side of the law, because I was a police officer.
And so, you know, once I got in the business world, you know, I could see easily how it could repeat itself again, because there is a lot of stress and time and sacrifice. You know, when building something that’s, you know, worth always, you know, there always has to be some kind of sacrifice in building something.
And so, you know, I’ve mentored a lot of guys and gals even, where I brought them in to Hannah, and just told them, you know, get your home life to where it needs to be. The more, you’ll be even twice as successful as you are in the world if you get your home life where it needs to be. And so I know it’s work for me. And that’s my number one is my wife and children and my family. If that’s not aligned and I work on that before I work on anything else.
This Is Not Judgment — This Is Being Real
Yeah. And I want to be quick to say to anybody listening, what John and I are talking about here is not judgment at all.
Absolutely not.
It’s being real about the challenge that it can represent. And as many of you listeners know, I’ve not been ashamed to admit, you know, I’m a product of divorce and remarriage. And, thankfully, I got it right the second time. The third time, actually, to be honest. And my wife and I just celebrated 25 years together, so it’s awesome. We both made some mistakes in our early going. And, you know, a big part of my own experience is having the willing partner that’s going to work with you on the direction you want to go.
The Secret Sauce: A Partner Who Fights for It
That is super key. I was actually on a podcast yesterday. And, you know, they he asked me what’s been the most, the secret sauce behind your success. And I said, honestly, my partner, my wife, she’s been so supportive of me. You know, especially once we got all the kinks worked out.
I mean, I was I was a dog, man, I was unfaithful, I was, and for her to take me back, I’m just blessed. She did. You know, because I could easily — she could have easily, you know, said, no, I’m not going to fight for it. But, you know, our little girl, you know, Mabel, my oldest daughter now, who actually has two of my grandsons. You know, I think she had a lot to do with it because we both knew that we wanted to fight for it. And so I’m thankful.
But you know what? You’re exactly right. This isn’t. Listen, we all make mistakes. The nice thing, the best thing that we have going for us is that if you’re still alive, you get to do it again. You get to try again.
And, you know, each and every day I mess up in business. We just went through this accreditation where we had a lot of deficiencies. I had to meet with the team yesterday and one of our health care companies. And, you know, I was like, what am I doing? You know, I’m letting down. I gotta fix these things.
So, you know, it’s there’s no judgment at all. We all make mistakes. But if I can help in any way, if my story can help you out, if my past can give you some encouragement, you know, give you some hope. You know, that’s that’s the reason I wrote the book. Warrior to Wealth is to give someone, hopefully someone who sees that and goes, hey, if he change, I can change. You know, if he did this, then I can do this. Because I told you I needed, I needed some help. I was I was a bad dog. Dirty dog.
Doug’s Story: The Anger He Carried
Yeah. Well and you know, in my case, you know, I was guilty of a couple of behaviors. Not — and again, I’ve talked about this before publicly — my big thing was I carried an anger with me because I lost my dad right after I was born. So I fundamentally never knew him.
And what I didn’t know, as I grew up, it created an anger in me that could be triggered, you know, really badly in the wrong situation. And, I mean, I never physically hurt anybody. I never, you know, got arrested for it or, you know, never went out in public and did anything. But I got good at patching plaster walls and where I’d put my fist through him a time or two, you know, and things like that.
And I realized I needed some help with that and I went on a journey. I talk about it. In 1995, I went on a full one year journey of — some great people at my church came alongside, were mentors and counselors for me, and I did some real deep soul searching about who and what I should be and turn that whole thing around.
The Verse That Turned It Around
And for me, the scripture that turned me around is in First Peter, and it’s an obscure one that nobody ever does as a memory verse. But it grabbed my attention. It said, why are you worried about the futile ways of your forefathers? Because you’ve been purchased by, not perishable seed that they bring, but by the permanent blood of Jesus Christ.
And that, you know, the core of my anger was saying, I wish my dad could have taught me these things. Well, what would he have taught me? He would have taught me the useless things that he learned from his dad.
Right. Exactly.
And there was nothing to be seeking or admiring. And so you know that. I mean, when my mentor showed me that, and I really started focusing on that verse and realizing the truth in that statement, for me, it was the 180 degree pivot.
Yeah. That’s awesome. I love that that’s great. Well, you know, my dad had some great attributes, but he also had some very bad attributes. You know, he being an alcoholic and, you know, sometimes kind of violent, you know, so, I knew I wasn’t going to give my kids that life as well.
What You Put In Through Your Eyes and Ears
But, you know, mentorship and just me being able to see other people overcome things help me tremendously. You know, reading the Bible and being around, you know, people. Iron sharpens iron. You know, being around people that were going to make me better. I knew I had to do those things.
I started. All right, John, you’ve got to leave this crowd and get with a better crowd. You gotta leave these, you know? Something I talk about is what we kind of forget about things we put in our body through our eyes and our ears. What we’re seeing and hearing a lot of is what develops our thoughts, our actions, our words.
And so we tell our kids all the time that, hey, eating isn’t the only thing you’re putting in your body. It’s also things you see and hear. And you know, we have to be careful what we put in there.
So, I mentor some young veterans and other guys and have over the past years. And, you know, I tell them, start listening to podcasts, start listening to audible books that are going to make you better. You know, start if you’re going to read or start watching stuff, start watching stuff that’s going to lift you up, start watching things that’s going to, you know, put you on a better platform. Because it’s not just eating things. It’s going to make you either sick or healthy, but it’s also what we look at, what we hear and stuff like that.
Why Doug Turned Off the News
That is so absolutely true. And I know for a long time now, personally, I’ve chosen I don’t even turn on a news channel. Any any of them.
No.
Because it’s just garbage. Most of it.
And negative. It’s a lot of negative stuff. And, I mean, we need to know what’s going on in the world and stuff, but, you know, that that’s just it’s just turned into where it’s just nothing but just negativity. You know, I just. Yeah, I’m the same way, Doug.
And, you know, it’s a kind of sensationalism. We don’t need it. People want to get your attention and get you upset about a certain issues so that, you know, presumably you’ll join the band there and go that direction. And it’s a tug and pull that’s just constant. And it’s a very negative influence overall. So, yeah, I agree with you totally.
The Hardest Pivot: Taking Off the Uniform
As you made the pivot out of the military, John, this is a, you know, hot topic for many veterans. It’s, you know, it’s classically a tough pivot when you’ve really been immersed in the military life, you’ve even embraced it and found value in it. And then you take off the uniform and show up for a civilian job. It’s a tough change for a lot of people. What did you find was helpful in your own journey?
You know, active duty. When I enlisted in 96, you know, the — well, anybody that goes to boot camp, if you’re going to go to the military, you know, your day is structured. I mean, you’re, you know, I don’t know how it is now, but I know back in the 90s, you know, it was rough. You got up at a certain time, you ate at a certain time, you know, everything was structured, you know, at Fort Benning. And even when we got to our units and we were deployed or whatever, everything is structured.
And so once you leave that — I did a total of seven years. Once you leave that, then you’re kind of just you kind of wake up and you’re like, okay, I could go do PT, you know, I could go do these things.
In the Military You Have a Mission. In Business You Need a Why.
And so, you know, entrepreneurship, we call it what your why? Well, in the military we had a mission. And so the book that I wrote was a lot about that.
I didn’t do 20 years and some of these guys that do, you know, 20, 25 and, you know, I just man that that’s amazing. And I give them, you know, praise for doing that because, you know, I’m very thankful for our guys and gals that go and serve and continue on what we did.
But, you know, I knew when I first got out, I immediately almost went into law enforcement. So I got sent to police academy and I thrived again. I was thriving there. But I was thriving because I was used to that kind of structure. I was used to that kind of discipline over motivation.
Like, you’re going to get up and run in the army. You’re going to get up, run whether you like it or not. You can be motivated or not, but you better be, in part because the consequences was not good. So that helped me develop over time. That motivation comes and goes. Discipline doesn’t.
Legal Pads Stacked Four Feet High
And so, you know, what I did is I started creating my why, my mission. And that was, you know, repaying Hannah by giving her a better life.
And so I would write down my mission, you know, kind of like, you know, your operation when you have your meeting before you go in your operations or when you get back, you do a sit rep or whatever, you know, you sit there and write these notes. So I would write out my goals and my missions, what I’m going to do, how I’m trying to do this. And I think I have legal pads stacked, you know, four feet high. From all the writing I would do. And I think that helped me a lot writing, but also helped me by finding what my mission was.
Find Your Mission, Forge Your Identity, Build Your Legacy
And, you know, my book, Warrior to Wealth. It has three little statements. It says, you know, find your mission, forge your identity, and build your legacy.
And so once I knew what my mission or my why was, and that was Hannah, then it turned into my kids. Now it’s turned into my grandkids and a legacy. So it’s evolved into this, you know, from one thing to another.
So, you know, I would just encourage anybody getting out of the military, whether you serve, you know, two years or 20 years, you know, find that mission. Figure, you know, make sure you know what you’re doing, what you’re going to do and why you’re going to do it.
You know, in the military, we knew why we were doing it because we were told to. And that’s just what we knew to do. In the civilian world, a lot of times we don’t know why we’re doing something. So you need to develop that why and then to develop that mission.
And then you need to forge your identity because, you know, being a soldier isn’t your identity. That’s part of your identity. Now you’re, you know, as I say, warrior to wealth. I’m a warrior because of those things that I’ve done. So now you need to start forging that identity of who you want to become.
“What Does That Guy Look Like?”
I tell a lot of when I go and talk, I love to go and do speaking to, you know, young entrepreneurs or or even sometimes athletes. I’ll tell them, I’ll say, you know, where do you see yourself in ten years? And sometimes I’ll try to get them to say, you know, give me a profession. Where do you want to be in ten years?
And I’ll never forget, I had this one young man. He was saying, I want to be the CEO of a multi-million dollar company. And so I asked him, I said, well, what does that guy look like? Who is his friends? And I said, do these — there’s those match up today? Because if you want to be that person, you know, in ten years from now, you better start doing what he’s doing now.
And so that, you know, opens up a lot. For me, I knew who I wanted to be. I knew who my identity was. Number one, my identity is always in Christ. But I knew who my identity was. Beyond that is husband, father. Now I’m Papa John, successful entrepreneur, successful real estate broker.
And so that’s what I encourage. You know, a lot of the ex-military guys and even law enforcement guys, you know, find your mission and develop that why. So it is so big on the days you’re not motivated. You do it anyway.
Have You Ever Defined the Leader You Want to Be?
Yeah. You know I love that find your identity thing. That is very similar to something I do and encourage all my clients. And I speak about this as well. And that is that what I discovered when I started doing executive coaching, I would ask people, have you ever really defined the leader you want to be? And the answer 99 out of 100 is no, I haven’t.
And they just kind of ride the wave of, you know, they go to work as a young person, they get recognized for good performance. They get given an opportunity to be a team leader or manager. And then now they’re on the leadership track and they seldom think about this.
Or the other answer I’ll get when I ask that question, have you ever defined the leader you wanted? “But yeah, I did it in a workshop a couple of years ago. I got the book around here somewhere. I’ll pull it out and look at it.” Well, you missed the point.
Yeah, exactly.
Building a Personal Leadership Framework
And so I challenge my clients to build this personal leadership framework. And even that’s the subject of my latest book, that one behind me called Steady. That book is a recap of over a thousand interviews I’ve done over eight years, asking people this question. If you had to define your own leadership framework, you know, what do you believe in, why are you doing it? And you know, who do you really want to be?
That book is about the top 12 things that people identify that they want to become. So it’s a chance to really solidify. And that, by the way, is a starting point for building a legacy. You know, if you’re going to build a legacy, you have to be intentional each and every day. But so now if you agree with that. Intentional about what? Well, now you’re defining that why and what that you need to be.
Intentional Means On Purpose
Yeah. That’s awesome. Intentionality is so huge. And any kind of development of whether it’s your marriage, being a father, being a friend, you know, being a walking with the Lord. You know, we have to be intentional.
And people say, well, what do you mean? You know, what is intentional? I’m going to do this on purpose. I’m going to spend time with my wife, just me and her. I’m going to take her on a date. That’s called being intentional. I’m intentionally spending time. I’m putting effort into it. I’m intentionally I’m going to take my son out. We’re going to go, you know, throw the ball. We’re going to go for a nature hike, you know.
So I love that that you said that. And I would love to get that book. I’d love to read that, Steady. I’ll get with you after this and see how I can get her going.
The Wheel of Life
Absolutely happy to do that. But, you know, I love the idea of what you’re sharing here, John. I think it’s so critical. And back to the main story, there’s a very popular coaching tool we call the Wheel of Life, and it shows up in many different forms.
But it’s the idea of you got a little bit of a pie diagram, you know, got 6 or 8 slices in it and you name the slices. You know, you’ve got business and wealth and finances, you got hobbies, you got family, health, you know, physical health, mental health, maybe spiritual health. You know, those elements.
And if you score that circle from zero in the middle, out to ten on the edge, and you rank each one of your segments of life, typically everybody’s wheel is very out of balance. There’s a lot of focus in one area, not enough in other areas.
And sometimes back to the intentionality. Sometimes the low score in an area is okay. I’ll give you an example. As I’ve gotten older, my notion of needing to have a lot of friends has come down on the scale.
Yeah, exactly. I really don’t care about a lot of that. I think that’s the same way. My wife and I were just talking about that.
I want a few really solid friends and that’s it. That’s all I need in that category. And when that happens, I can put a ten on that slice, you know? But the friends — I’d use that not to be facetious or joking about it. But the point is, as life goes on, the significance and the meaning of each one of those slices can change.
Bud, Tootie, and a Saturday That Changed Everything
And like you, I have grandkids now, and I really value my opportunity to spend time with them. So intentionally, I make time for that.
That’s right.
And because their schedules are busy and there’s, you know, limited opportunities. So, you know, when we do it, I’ve got a deal going on now with my granddaughter that is just incredibly good. She’s 11 now, but as she was younger, she and my wife would go out on the Saturday. And to our grandkids, my wife and I, we’re Bud and Tootie.
That’s awesome.
That’s our grandparent names. But my granddaughter would have a Tootie day. And finally, one day, we were sitting here and we were playing and I talked to her. I said, what do you think about having a Bud and Sarah day? And she went, wouldn’t Tootie be upset, you know, that she didn’t get to go? And I said, no, Tootie’s in favor of it.
So we did. We went out a couple of months ago and we had a Saturday together. And it was just — and I mean everything’s been different ever since then. I can promise you, you know, it’s not that it wasn’t, you know, good before, but it’s been really different ever since then.
Intentionality Magnifies Everything
And that just goes to show you, you know, every one of us, when we’re intentional with our personal development, our spouses, our children, you know, when you really, really are intentional, like you just the great example, the relationship, the results, it just it magnifies.
You know, it can be good. It can be amazing right now. But then when you put a little bit more intentionality into it, like, you know, reading another book or listening to another podcast or listening to something that’s going to, you know, turn your mind or turn that brain on to just nothing but positive thinking, it just gets better, you know? I love it.
If Love Is Time, How Much Are You Really Giving?
Yeah, it really does. And, you know, along that line not to beat it to death. But back about that time I was on that journey I described for me, that was in 1995, my pastor at that time gave a message one day on a Sunday, and he talked about — he said, if you say you love your wife, kids and family, how much time are you really spending with them? Because if love ultimately is time, you have to be there. You have to be present in that moment.
And I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard business leaders say, yeah, like when I’m at home eating dinner with the wife and kids, I’m really not there. You know, I’m thinking about what I left behind at work, and it’s bearing down on me, and I’m really not there. And some people have admitted that their spouse will call them out on that. You know — I know you’re here, but you’re not here.
Non-Negotiables and the Phone That Stays in the Office
And that starts a whole creative chaos because I’m guilty of that. You know, where we’d be at a at a dinner or out to eat or something. And I’m over there messing with my phone, doing something. And my wife goes, you know, John, you know, it’s our family night. Or she’ll say something. And then what it does to me is I’m like, I’m just trying to finish this last word, you know?
So we’ve learned over time that there’s certain non-negotiables that we just do. You know, things can wait. Things will wait. So, you know, dinner — you know, I leave my phone in this office. This is my home office here on the farm. So, you know, at certain times, this phone gets plugged up and I walk out of this office for the day and I don’t come back. And then I start at a certain time in the mornings.
And now there are some exceptions. You know, there’s always exceptions. But I try my hardest. We do our hardest to be intentional about not having the phone constantly in our hand, because there’s always something to look at, right? There’s always some news. There’s some email or some. There’s always something to look at.
That’s right.
Sixteen Hours, One Atlas Map, and No Cell Phone
Just remember back in the 90s, I just remember in Fort Benning and even in Fort Riley. Listen, we, me and Hannah drove to Fort Riley, Kansas. We were 19 years old. She rode with me to Fort Riley, Kansas. Her mom and dad, they knew I’d already asked her to marry me, so we were engaged. I got her engagement ring. But we drove the 16 hour drive. No cell phone, no GPS. We had a big Atlas map.
Oh, yeah.
We drove and we stopped. I think we stopped just outside Saint Louis on a payphone, called her mom, told her where we were, and then we kept driving.
And I just remember those times like it wasn’t immediate. You couldn’t just check your email. You couldn’t just get a phone call through. I mean, we’d go out in the field. You didn’t have cell phones out in the field. I’d say, hey, Hannah. I’ll see you in two weeks. Babe, I love you. And we’d go out in the field for two weeks, and guess what? There wasn’t no cell phone or texting. It was like, two weeks. Then we got to see it.
And so, you know, we now everything’s so immediate that it can rob you of your time. So you got to be careful. But, you know, I understand people are busy and you’re trying to grow. There’s a balance. You just got to be super, super careful with that. But.
Closing Thoughts and How to Connect with Jonathan Berryhill
Right, right. Well, John, I feel like we could go on and I feel like maybe we’re brothers from other mothers, you know?
And that’s it. Yeah.
Got a lot going on here. But thank you so much for sharing your story and tell people the best way to get in touch with you.
Well, you can go on jonberryhill.com. That’s jonberryhill.com. We’re doing a pre-sale for my book right now, but I’m on social media. Jonathan Berryhill — I’m on, that’s Facebook. I think it’s Jonathan Berryhill. Or Jon Berryhill on Instagram. I’m on LinkedIn.
Look me up on social media. You know, shoot me a message, let me know. You saw this. You heard this. And, yeah. Love to connect with anybody out there. We’re working on doing some coaching and mentoring down the road. I’m working on a few speaking engagements, so, you know, if it hit me up. You can also email me jon@jonberryhill.com. That’s J-O-N at jonberryhill.com.
That’s great. Well folks, as always, we’re going to have that in the show notes. So feel free to check that out. And give John a jingle. But one last time, John, this has been great, brother. I appreciate you.
Thank you so much. You bet. This has been awesome. This has been. Yeah. I’ve really enjoyed this.
Well, folks, I do likewise. Want to remind you, we have a video version of this show on YouTube, channel by the same name, Leadership Powered by Common Sense. Please join the channel. Subscribe. You’ll get regular notices of our release of new episodes. We do drop shows twice a week, so we got a lot coming at you, a lot of great guests and content. So please check us out over there.
If you need to get ahold of me, it’s Doug at DougThorpe.com. Would love to hear from you. And that’s the web address as well, DougThorpe.com. And for now, we’re going to, as always, sign off, say goodbye, go out there and make it a great day.
Meet Our Guest
Jonathan Berryhill is a former U.S. Army Infantry Sergeant, law enforcement officer, and entrepreneur who built multiple 7- and 8-figure businesses — but only after confronting the one thing that was quietly holding him back: his identity.
He didn’t grow up with stability. By 15, he was on his own, navigating life without a foundation. He found structure in the military, adrenaline in law enforcement, and success in business — but nearly lost his marriage in the process. That moment changed everything.
Jonathan rebuilt his life through faith, discipline, and personal responsibility — not just fixing his marriage, but redefining who he was as a man, a leader, and a father. From there, he went on to build businesses across real estate, healthcare, and government contracting — with his current focus in real estate, where he went from new
agent at 43 to building three brokerages, recruiting 50+ agents, and generating seven figures in commissions in just five years.
Today, as the author of Warrior to Wealth, Jonathan speaks to men and entrepreneurs who feel stuck between
where they came from and where they know they are meant to go.
Connect with Jonathan:
Website: https://jonberryhill.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jon.berryhill
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jonhannah.berryhill
Connect with Doug Thorpe
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dougthorpe/
- Doug Thorpe Website: https://dougthorpe.com/
- Podcasts: https://podcasts.dougthorpe.com
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/dougthorpe_com
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/headwayexec
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/dougthorpe_com
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