Dustin's Book - Chapter Eleven (#139) — Transcript
Updated: Oct 26
THE PICTURE OF WEALTH · EPISODE 139
Dustin Serviss reads chapter eleven of his book. Theo meets a farmer whose choices open a conversation about expectations, risk and building a life around what matters.
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This transcript was generated from the episode audio and lightly edited for readability. It may contain transcription or speaker-attribution errors. Refer to the recording for exact wording.
Chapters
[00:00:00] Chapter eleven: Decision’s Grip
[00:01:36] Meeting Kaz and her snail farm
[00:02:50] Inside an unusual business
[00:04:07] Changing expectations after a life disruption
[00:05:22] Growing intentionally rather than chasing scale
[00:06:35] Can you live with the worst case?
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Transcript
[00:00:00] Dustin Serviss: Welcome to the picture of wealth or TPAW as we call it. I am your host, Dustin Service. As I mentioned in the last chapter, I don't know what the book name is going to be. It was Man's Picture of Wealth. But actually, it's going to be something different. Something more meaningful. Something more true to the text. So, listener, I appreciate you coming along the journey reading the book with me. So, without further ado, chapter eleven, decisions grip. Second contest, third of July twenty seventeen, in the hills above Chilliwack, BC. The sound of a horn beeping made Theo look around as he grabbed his
[00:01:01] Dustin Serviss: camera off the passenger seat and stepped out of the SUV. There was a bobcat skid steer coming around the corner of one of the modern looking buildings. The entire complex had clearly been conceptualized and recently built as a whole. Theo had driven to meet a potential ultimate picture of wealth subject, Kazuko Sato. The woman was a farmer from Japan who had built a small empire in the foothills east of Vancouver. Discovering her had been a surprise to him. He had been chatting online with an old colleague about his many failed attempts at eating healthier, and his friend had told him about Kazuko.
[00:01:36] Dustin Serviss: She was a snail farmer, his friend informed him, and she'd built a boutique plantation. After researching snails and the incredible health benefits they seemed to offer, and then Kazuko, who was clearly enjoying a very successful business and life, he was intrigued. When he looked even closer and saw how much her customers were paying for her snails and who some of her clients were, he emailed her immediately and asked if he could drive out. You must be Theo, she said. You can call me Kaz. She was older than he was expecting for some reason and not at all how he had pictured a farmer to be, even a snail farmer, a small
[00:02:14] Dustin Serviss: framed, almost a foot shorter than Theo, with thick, long, white hair pulled into a large bun at the top of her head. She wore light blue linen pants and an ancient pair of Converse shoes and dirt smudged rolling stones t shirt. Great to meet you, Theo said. I'm looking forward to learning about your snails and hoping you can add a different perspective to the ultimate picture of wealth contest. A booming snail business. That's pretty unusual. Caz laughed good naturedly as she led him to the closest building. Caz opened the door to the first greenhouse, and they entered a small holding room. This first room is to regulate temperature.
[00:02:50] Dustin Serviss: We heat the structure so we can have the snails growing all year round. Please wipe your shoes here. Theo did as he told and they moved into the main greenhouse. The smell in the complex was surprisingly clean. Theo didn't really know what he thought it would smell like. It was also quiet in the greenhouse. A young man working midway down a row raised his hand in greeting, then went back to work. The snail beds were lined with blue plastic near the top, which Theo concluded was to keep the snails from escaping. It was too slippery for them to move on. The whole thing had the feel of a clean, organized lab. There was nothing out of place.
[00:03:28] Dustin Serviss: Kaz went to a nearby shelf and picked up a pail of what looked like vegetable scraps. What was the main motivation to start this operation? Theo asked. I think I mentioned on the phone, but I broke my neck diving into a pool while on vacation several years ago. It did not sever my spine, thankfully, but my long recovery made me realize my life could have ended right there. And what had I accomplished, really? Middle management at an unnamed electronics company in Japan? Kaz smiled at Theo. I achieved much for my employer, but nothing for myself. My grandparents had lived in a small village, and as a girl, I was
[00:04:07] Dustin Serviss: fascinated watching how their little farm worked. I had treasured being close to the earth and missed it dearly. But I always thought there was no money in farming. And that type of labor was frowned upon, especially for a woman, so I never pursued it. But after my accident, I decided to put my own interests first for the first time in my life. I came to peace with changing my expectations didn't mean I was lowering my expectations. I packed my things and I moved from Japan to Canada. And, Kaz paused her story while she peeked under a section of net, I learned to see happiness in new things. I tried growing some different things.
[00:04:46] Dustin Serviss: I tried experimenting. Snails are not a North American tradition, but in Japan, we enjoyed snails all the time. It was a comfort food. When I saw that there were no organic snails grown in this area yet, I created my own hutch and started selling them online and at food markets. They were a success. Theo looked around the huge greenhouse and the contently working employee making his way down his row. A success? That's an understatement, he thought. How had she done it? Caz continued, We have grown from one small greenhouse and a small crop of snails we sold locally to shipping them all over the world.
[00:05:22] Dustin Serviss: But it was important to me that we grew naturally, intentionally. We don't have massive production. It is still relatively small scale. We take special care of each season of snails. We generate enough revenue to cover what we need. I employ twelve local people who had been bouncing from job to job and getting nowhere, mostly immigrants and many of them single women who couldn't make it on the low wages offered to them elsewhere. Now they are saving for their children's education and pursuing their own dreams. We all work four days a week because every day is the same to snails. Employees choose which days off they want.
[00:05:59] Dustin Serviss: We encourage taking time off for an active lifestyle. Theo registered how many snails there must be in that greenhouse and the two others like it. Where do they all go? The snails? Do your customers eat them all? No. Many companies buy them to use for anti aging creams. She looked around at the greenhouses thoughtfully. These creatures serve humans in so many ways. We try to treat them with respect while they are under our care because our well-being is directly related to theirs. It was obvious Kaz was very proud of her product and of what she had built as well. She was a genius, he thought.
[00:06:35] Dustin Serviss: When they walked into the packaging area to pick up the order that Theo had made online, he said, if you don't mind me asking Kaz, that is a huge decision to leave everything behind and move to Canada. Wasn't that hard? She leaned her elbow on the counter and thought for a moment. Well Theo, my father always said, when you need to make a decision, go right to the worst case scenario and decide if you can live with that. For me, if I quit my job and moved to Canada, the worst case would be if I had to return to Japan and go back to the job I had before. The worst case scenario of staying though would be knowing I had never really
[00:07:11] Dustin Serviss: lived to my full potential. When you make a decision, there is always many possible outcomes. Hanging around in those thoughts too long is like decision quicksand. We must not get stuck on decisions, and this is for financial decisions, life decisions, and relationship decisions too. If you are scared of all that could happen, you will never do anything. I would not have this beautiful farm. With that, she handed him a box of frozen snails as Theo imagined the above visual in his head. They said goodbye. He didn't end up using Kaz as a subject, but he did take away a picture of what his life could look like if he slowed down long
[00:07:53] Dustin Serviss: enough to consider what he really wanted. Before deciding, ask yourself, can I live with this? Thank you for tuning in to this episode. If you enjoyed the show, please like and rate the show, share with a friend, or use your new knowledge in your next conversation. If during the show something gave you a pang of inspiration, motivation, or sense of uncertainty, act on it now. Get the clarity you're looking for. Find the permission you seek. Go to servicewealth dot com to discover how others are learning how to take Fridays off, or buying a recreation property or spending more money.
[00:08:27] Dustin Serviss: If you're an organizer of an event where you believe my philosophy on finance lifestyle design would be applicable, go to servicewealth dot com and book me as a speaker at your next event. If you want a copy of our new book coming out soon, send me a message on Instagram or Facebook and we will be sure to get you a first copy.