If you don’t know how to network and you’re afraid of meeting people or you’re getting nervous. You’ll want to know how Jack Wendt networks with high-value people and is now going to become the head of Strategic relations at Caleb Guilliam’s company Better Wealth.
He graduated high school last year and went straight to the Army National Guard.
He’s in aviation intelligence. He did basic training and learned all the crazy, top-secret stuff. Just 12 days after he graduated, he had no job offer. So, he flew down to the event, hoping to figure something out. And he did. He was with Caleb in Nashville, learning on the job. He told Caleb he wanted to help and learn from him, aspiring to be like Caleb. He wanted to combine his strengths with Caleb’s and improve. It worked out. They created a position for him in Caleb’s company.
Jack Wendt says it’s about asking the right people the right questions. A lot of life’s hardships is figuring out who to ask and what to ask.
Jack didn’t know Caleb and was at a random event with high-profile business connections. He liked that Caleb is young, innovative, a genius communicator, and great at networking. He wanted to learn how to do that.
Once he completes the trial period, his title will be Head of Relations, Operations. It was about asking the right person the right question, focusing on humility, ability, and connection.
We’re moving into a world dominated by AI, losing personal touch. That’s why strategic partnerships and personal connections will always matter. AI can’t replicate this unless we have humanoid robots like in Ex Machina. Maybe that will happen someday, but that’s far off.
I can Imagine being 19-year-old Jack, trying to build real relationships with high-value people. Seeing someone as high-profile as Caleb would be intimidating.
We live in a world that encourages us to be consumers. On TikTok, scrolling is a comfort zone where there’s no judgment or rejection. But to get ahead, you can’t fear rejection. Take the salespeople in Salt Lake City, for example. They spend two years on missions, facing constant rejection. This makes them the best in the world because they learn to embrace rejection and overcome it.
Overcoming fear and putting yourself out there is crucial. Everyone has a little voice in their head holding them back, but sometimes you need to push that voice forward. Think about it—what’s the worst that can happen? You have to be more like a missionary.
But what if you’re an introvert? What if you don’t have the charisma that Caleb and I have? Are you doomed to fail at building relationships with high-value people?
I believe everyone has something to offer.
While Caleb and Jack rely on charisma, those traits are learned, not innate. It’s harder for some people, but it’s all about trial and error. Failing is how you grow and learn.
Is building high-value strategic relationships better than focusing solely on selling? One of the best ways to scale sales is through word of mouth and personal connections. Having someone vouch for you is invaluable.
This is where strategic partnerships come in. Many people have loyal fan bases in niche markets. For example, Jack is currently looking at popular YouTube channels in the fly fishing community. Jack sells life insurance, and many fly fishing enthusiasts are in their target audience.
It may seem unusual for a 19-year-old in a life insurance company to collaborate with a fly fishing YouTube channel, but there’s a lot of value in it. By leveraging these partnerships, you can tap into existing communities and build trust with potential clients in ways traditional selling often can’t.
Jack’s fascination with watches started at 13. His grandpa had some watches and said, “Jack, I’m about to buy a $4,000 watch. Any money you save me, I’ll give you half.”
Jack found that watch for $3,500 and made $250. For a 13-year-old, that was amazing. He thought, “I could do this for people.” At 15, during quarantine, he started flipping watches. He bought a few at a time, starting with a $150 watch.
The first watch he bought and sold cost $150. Two weeks later, he sold it for $375. He kept doing that, parlaying his success like in the book Smart Cuts. He didn’t know the concept yet, but he kept growing his money and increasing his margins. With more money, he bought more watches and continued to grow his business.
He took a break while he was at basic training, but now he’s working with a partner to launch an e-commerce company. This helps Jack with strategic partnerships because he can approach high-worth individuals and identify their watches.
Today, Jack walked up to a guy and said, “Hey, I love your Rolex. Is that a Daytona or a Rolex Explorer 2?” It instantly breaks the ice and gets them interested in what he has to say.
It’s an actual conversation where you exchange stuff. There’s so much small talk today, and people are on autopilot, having the same conversation over and over again. Breaking that gets their attention. It doesn’t have to be about watches; it just needs to be something you’re genuinely interested in. Start with a hobby or something you love.
Jack didn’t figure out what he wanted to do until halfway through his senior year. He had no clue whether he should go to college, join the military, or go straight to the workforce. All these options felt daunting. He applied to colleges and got into a few, but it didn’t make sense to him. So many people go to college, put themselves in six figures of debt, and not many end up successful.
Jack realized that college isn’t always necessary. Education is not bad, and he might still get a college degree, possibly online while working full-time. He just needed options.
He joined the Army National Guard. He always wanted to serve, partly because his dad regretted not joining the military. Jack wanted to put his last name back on an army uniform. His grandpa was in the Navy, and his great uncle was in the Army. Wearing the US Army uniform is something very special and something he holds with the most pride. One of the proudest moments of his life was graduating from basic training.
You don’t have to take the beaten path. You don’t have to go to college, figure out what you want to do, and spend hundreds of thousands of dollars doing it. Many people have $200,000 degrees they don’t even use. Imagine this: you have no money, and you buy a
$200,000 car that you’ll be paying off for the next 20 or 30 years. Then you park it in a garage and never use it again.
A lot of people’s parents buy it, so people don’t care, but Jack Wendt did not have that luxury, and his parents were not going to spend any money on education.
I love how Jack Wendt jumps into things and does not follow the cookie-cutter path that everyone else follows.
A few minutes ago, Jack spoke live on stage in front of 200 people at the Better Wealth Mastermind in Denver on June 25th. He was a little nervous because he didn’t know what I would be talking about. I wanted to show how easy it is to use AI in business without any preparation.
Jack reviewed someone’s entire website and their articles using AI without any training from me. He did this live in front of 200 people. It was a bit of pressure, but his dad, a pastor, had modeled public speaking for Jack his entire life. Speaking in front of people wasn’t as daunting for him as it might be for others. Jack used many tools, switching back and forth without any help from me. I never touched the laptop; Jack did everything. All I did was talk. Congrats to Jack!
If Jack can do it, you can learn to do it too. It’s all about mindset. Being willing to go for it is crucial. People can sense your vibe. When you have high-value relationships, people can sense your approach and who you are as a person. Connecting through a watch or any other means is just a way to show that.
Jack Wendt runs Strategic Partnerships for Caleb Guilliam. If you’re a young adult or a client of Better Wealth, I’d love to hear your feedback. If you have any questions for Jack or me, reach out to me on Facebook, and you can email Jack at jack@betterwealth.com. He can arrange a meeting with Caleb and help make some cool collaborations happen.
