Tom Alkazin- People Helping People

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Welcome back to another episode of It's Time to Man Up. Yours truly, Nikita Kolov. Once The Russian Nightmare, now The Devil's Nightmare. And I have a great guest lined up for you today. I had the privilege of meeting this legend about 15 or so years ago.

We'll find out more specifically from him. But today on the show with me, Mr. Tom Alcas. And welcome to the Man Up show, Tom.

Hey, Nikita. Thank you, brother. It's a pleasure to be with you today. Well, it's great to have you on the show. And I know our listeners, our audience is going to be thrilled and excited to hear some of your story. And I made mention in the opening that we met, I guess, I was trying to calculate, but I think it was approximately about 15 years ago that I was introduced to you through a nutrition company that we were involved with and a part of. And you were one of the leaders I looked up to in the organization and certainly was learning and gleaning from you. This nutrition company, which presently is called Body Pro, that's in case someone's wondering, well, what was the company?

So Body Pro is what's presently listed under. But that's where we first met, right? Way back when.

That's it. It was, you know, isn't it interesting, Nikita, how there's certain, you look back on things and they're certainly God-ordained. And, you know, having the privilege to meet you and so many other wonderful people, it's just, it's funny how we gain perspective on how certain things and how certain relationships developed and ours was one of those. It was just one of those true blessings that I'll always treasure, I'll always look back on and with very, very fond memories. So yeah, it was. I think it was, you know, regardless of the year and the month, it was a while back, but what it was was a great and special time. Yeah, it really was.

A lot of wonderful memories. Even as you're talking, here's what I'm reminded of, Tom. I'm reminded back in the wrestling days, and I don't even know how much, you know, whether you did or didn't follow a lot of wrestling and either way. Oh, absolutely I did. Well, and I know your son Brad did. Boy, he was an avid fan.

I know that. I don't know, was Chris a fan too or no? Chris? I think Chris was a fan. Our oldest son was a fan, both of them. I mean, you know, I grew up watching a bunch of the old, all the great names, but then the Nikita Kolov came on board, and I mean, that was like, you put them all to shame.

You're being kind, but I came on the scene. I know, because Lex Luger, I know Brad really loved Lex. Lex Luger was a part of the company with us as well, and certainly attended many of the events that we had together.

But here's what I'm reminded, though. Going even further back than the 80s and 90s in my career, just prior to me, there was a tag team. It was known as the East-West Connection.

There's a point why I'm bringing this up. They were known as the East-West Connection. They were known as the East-West Connection. It was Jesse Ventura, Jesse the Body Ventura. Jesse really did talk like that. Brother, Nikita, let me tell you something, Nikita. That was really Jesse. And then his partner was Adrian Adonis, and they were known as the East-West Connection.

Here's why I bring that up. Our connection through this nutrition company became an East-West Connection. I was out on the East Coast of North Carolina along with many of our friends, David Graham and JD Phillips and so many others. You were on the West Coast.

You were out in California, right? And we were in the Carolinas, but yet we came together and just had, like you said, so much fun building that business. I want to get there in a moment, but before I do, for our listening audience, we've brought up your sons. You've got a lovely First Lady. You've got a lovely bride there. Bethany, right? I do.

I do. She's amazing. We have been married 41, almost 42 years, and just, you know, God just so blessed me when we were introduced actually through friends a long, long time ago, and Bethany's a PK. She's a preacher's kid, and her dad pastored for 33 years, and so, yeah, I mean, I could go on as long as you want about her, but what an amazing woman, you know, the backbone of our family, just a heart of gold, and we're just blessed.

We continue to count our blessings every day. In fact, Tom, if I remember right, correct me if I'm wrong, South Carolina, right? Isn't that where her dad pastored? South Carolina? Well, he was all over the South. I mean, she was born in Darlington, South Carolina.

Okay. He pastored in Darlington. He pastored in Georgia. He was all over the place, and Church of God out of Anderson, Indiana was his affiliation, and so he, anyway, Frank, I talked to yesterday. He's 88 years old, and actually one of our, just thinking about, I'm looking at a picture here on my desk of Frank and myself and Dr. Charles Stanley, because one of our dreams was to surprise Frank. We took him on a Alaska cruise that InTouch Ministries had sponsored and arranged for a little private reception, and Charles Stanley presented Frank with a letter congratulating him for his 33 years in ministry. Anyway, I could go on and on, but yeah, just an awesome experience was there for sure. Wow, that's amazing.

So you, as we know in the South, so you married a southern belle is what you did. Oh, I did. Hi, Nikita Koloff. Be sure to check out The Man Up Show, now available on television, broadcast, and podcast. Go to monistartv.com or the Truth Radio Network.

Check out your local listings, or better yet, download the Truth Network app today. Hi, Nikita Koloff here, and I am excited to announce the first annual Morning Star Men's Conference, August 25th to the 27th. Our theme, Man Up. It's time.

We have a phenomenal lineup of speakers, including NBA All-Star Al Wood, WWE Superstar Lex Luger, David and Jason Benham, the Benham brothers, Lieutenant General Jerry Boykin, world-renowned evangelists Frank Shelf and Chris Reed, Dr. Rick Joyner, of course yours truly. Get registered early. You do not want to miss this event.

Go to mstarevents.com. And I had to learn how to speak. Right, right. There's a language. There's a whole thing about, you know, about the language. And I remember when we first got married, you know, and she said, you better take a look at my car. She said, I think the oil needs to be taken care of and changed.

And I go, the what? She said, the oil. I said, you mean the oil? She said, that's what I said.

The oil. And so, anyway. No, you're right.

Tom, you're so right. When I tell this joke, like for real, like when I first came to the South and, you know, I wasn't a wrestler. I was a a wrassler. You one of them wrasslers, ain't you? Wrassle, that's right. Yeah. And I'm like, how do you spell that? Right. I do that wrasslin'. I don't wrestle. That's right.

I do that wrasslin'. So you are spot on that there's a whole cultural language here, which is, in my view, absolutely adorable in one sense, right? Oh, it's special. I mean, come on. You know, it's special. It's unique. It's, you know, the love that comes from and I'd never been prior to meeting Bethany. And that's a whole nother story.

But, you know, I'd never been to the South that much. And just absolutely fell in love with the people, the attitude, the hospitality. It just, you know, our whole life together is God-ordained. And I look back on it now after 41, almost 42 years, and I can just see it.

You know, it becomes crystal clear. That's awesome. Well, and congratulations. I mean, in today's world, that in itself, Tom, is a milestone, you know, to be married, you know, 40 plus years. And so, congratulations. Please extend congratulations to her as well.

And so, we mentioned the two boys. Now, you got one daughter? Yeah, a daughter, Amy, is our youngest, and her husband David, and two beautiful grandchildren. And so, we've just had our one granddaughter, our four-year-old. We had her here for a week with us, and we had just a marvelous time together.

And so, they're all doing tremendously well. And so, we just count our blessings every day, you know. It's a special time of the year to do that, to think about it, but we certainly try to remember, you know, an old phrase I've loved for and tried to model my life after is, an attitude of gratitude flavors everything that you do. And you know, we all have challenges, right?

We all have things that go on, and things that don't seem fair, and things that just seem to pile on us. And my great dear friend, Bob Proctor, who I've known for 40 years, and in fact we're going to spend New Years together, you know, he taught me the value of creating a gratitude list and writing down the things regularly, you know, at whatever interval. But writing down the things that you're grateful for, and boy does that put a slant on all the things, like you said, in this crazy world that we're living in right now, it puts an incredibly great perspective, I think, that can help people get through each day. Well that's, and I know you are a wealth of, really honestly, knowledge and from things you've learned over the years.

Say that saying one more time for our listeners. Absolutely, an attitude of gratitude flavors, like food, flavors everything you do. And it really is, you know, it really is true, because we can get, you know, there's a lot of platitudes, and a lot of phrases, you know, the glass is half empty, the glasses have full, things like that. It really is tough, and you know, we live in a fallen world, right? And one that is challenging for everybody today, probably more so certainly than I can ever remember in a long time, and yet if you take some time in your quiet time, your devotional time, whatever it is you do, and you reflect on the things that you're grateful for, boy does that, it sets your day off in a whole different direction than thinking about the issues, and the problems, and the relationships, and the things that are challenging. It does, doesn't it? I mean, it really, and I want to, I'm glad you encouraged the audience with that, you know, our listeners, and that if you'll start your day, I mean, of course you can do it any time of the day, right?

I mean, there's different times of the day. I mean, I might read a devotional in the afternoon, and you know, or even in the evening, or read a psalm before going to bed, or you know, read some of the proverbs when I first wake up, but all that to say, to drive your point home, that man, if that's your foundation, and the Bible being the rock, and the living word, and we just, we embrace that, we internalize that, it does, no matter, I mean, again, as you said, I mean, we're all faced with, it is a fallen world with a world full of imperfect people, right? And even the ability to extend grace, or extend mercy to others, if we're grounded in the word, and have that internalized, man, it just seems like, no matter what the challenge is, the trial or the tribulation, that we seem to be able to navigate life just slightly better, right? Well, it's really true, you know, and I learned an extension of that from really listening and studying Dr. Charles Stanley, and when you listen to Dr. Stanley, when he prays, you know, when he closes a message with a prayer, or opens a message, or whatever it might be that you're listening to, he always starts it the same way. He says, Lord, how grateful we are. Every prayer opens up that way. He begins with gratitude. He begins by thanking the Lord. Lord, how grateful we are for, and then goes from there. And boy, did that ever change my quiet time and my prayers in terms of how I, you know, how you approach the throne, right? And how you come to God every day. And boy, it's easy to talk about, not easy to do, right? You always have to, you always have to kind of correct yourself and focus on that, but that sure changed my perspective and my approach when praying as well. Yeah, it's daily.

I mean, right? It's daily. In fact, pick up your cross daily, and man, we'll embrace that and do that again. Easy, not easy, but easier to navigate life's journey, right? Well, hey, I want to transition here and talk about kind of your background. Some might get the impression that you yourself are a pastor, but, you know, so your wife was the PK, the pastor's kid, but you were, and you can correct me if I'm wrong, but you are what I call a marketplace guy, right? So you've been out there, really, if you want to say exercising or flexing your spiritual muscles out in the marketplace as a businessman. Tom, if I remember some of the story, in your early days, you were in essentially traditional business. Is that kind of where, like, was it high school, college, or where?

Give us a little backdrop on the very early days post-education. All feet agree, Clements carpet is where you need to be. With carpet, vinyl, tile, and hardwood from the top brands, Clements carpet does it right from beginning to install. Voted number one by you in the Reader's Choice Awards. Doug, Chad, Benny, Pee Wee, and the team at Clements carpet look forward to seeing and serving you soon. This is Nikita Koloff, and I want to thank Clements carpet for supporting my new show, Man Up, Saturday afternoon at 1230 on the Truth Network. If you would like to support Koloff for Christ Ministries, for a gift of $25, Nikita will send you his two CDs, Adoration and Declaration. For a gift of $50, Nikita will include his book, Wrestling with Success. And for a gift of $100 or more, Nikita will include a signed copy of his newly updated life story, A Tale of the Ring and Redemption.

Go to www.koloff.net and donate today. So, you know, I attended the University of San Francisco and graduated from there with a Bachelor of Science degree, and this was back in 1974, and I really did that from the standpoint of wanting to be employable. You know, I wanted to have the ability to come out and get employed out of college, and so I came out as an entry-level programmer and grew up in San Diego area and went to school in San Francisco, came back to San Diego and began to work a couple of different companies there, but that was 1975-76 in that kind of time frame, and I picked up something that, and I'm sure, you know, I hope everybody loves what it is that they do, but I looked at it after about a year's time and I thought, boy, I'm not sure I want to do this. I don't know how to do this the rest of my life, right? Yeah, for the rest of my life, exactly, and so again, you know, you can never, my good friend and mentor, Bob Proctor, always said, you know, you can never connect the dots looking forward, you can only connect them looking backwards, right? And so I would look back, I look back on it now, and I thought, you know, that attitude gave me the opening to the opportunity of owning my own business.

Now, I never had a business. I mean, growing up, I never had any orientation that way. I was always pretty shy, pretty withdrawn, and so the idea of starting my own business or being in my own business was something I had to learn, and of course, again, you know, I think we're a product of our environment, right? So much that I look back on the key people that made a huge difference early on for me in teaching me and helping formulate attitudes and habits. So yeah, I came out in traditional business, Nikita, and then transitioned into self-employment.

Yeah, and which is where we met, where we met up, you know, and in that world, you know, you are, and I introduced you in being legendary, and that was not tongue-in-cheek or just a nice cliche time. I really, I view your, if you want to say, your status in that world of business ownership, entrepreneurship, you know, at the time, and for a familiar term with some, and which this term, you know, takes on, you know, a different perspective depending on who you are, but I've always been a big proponent of this industry, and that's the industry of network marketing, and, you know, people have different views of that, but on that note, you have made an entire career and been one of the, really anywhere you've gone from what I'm aware of, one of the top income earners along the way, but more important than the money that you earned that impressed me, Tom, when I met you and certainly wanted to sit in on any time, you know, you were doing instruction and teaching, and was your love and your interest in other people, and your desire to help them be successful. So it wasn't just about your success, it was how you embraced others, that newest person, and how you had a desire to want to see them be successful or as successful as they wanted to become, and talk for, you know, a minute or two about your experience in that industry and being an entrepreneur.

Yeah, yeah, absolutely. Well, you know, it's definitely, like you said, a lot of people have different conceptions and attitudes and opinions about that industry. It really, I learned from the mentors I had early on that that industry is really a, it's a people business, you know, a lot of people associated with products and services and things like that, but it really is a people business. And so again, I had the great fortune of being mentored early on by a gentleman by the name of Dennis Beecher, and Dennis, his wife Kay, actually ended up introducing Bethany and I, because I entered that industry as a single man in 1975. But I watched Dennis, you know, I studied him and I watched how he interacted with people. And you can learn so much, right, if you just study and you learn and you observe. And I watched how he treated people, and I watched how he reacted to people.

And, and so in that, you know, that style, it just fit for who I was, you know, I think there's an old adage, right, that says you can have anything you want out of life if you first help enough other people get what it is that they want. Have you heard the news? The Man Up radio show and podcast will now be available on television.

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That's MorningStarTV.com. And so, you know, and you can, I think you can make a spiritual connection here, right, in terms of what our Lord did. You know, he fed people's hunger first, then he talked to them about the Spirit, right? And so he, it was interesting how I could see a parallel in that if you really got to know people, and if you really got to know, you know, who they were and what they were about and you know, the challenges they had, the skill set that they had, you could help people then, you know, translate that into some form of economic success in this kind of an endeavor. So it became really a relationship for us, for Bethany and I, it became a relationship business.

It was a business where, you know, you've got to, you know, get your eyes off yourself and get your eyes on the other individual first. And so we just, we followed the leader. I mean, we followed some of our mentors who had done that really well. And following that, not too many years beyond that, well, actually, I was a great friend of mine who has since gone to heaven, Ben Baraco Sr. Ben Baraco was another one who I studied and learned from in terms of how I in terms of how he treated people. And so that kind of became our style, you know, and that certainly is different.

I mean, people could probably share a lot of different nightmares of people they've run into in this industry or, you know, associated with or whatever. And so, you know, people are definitely different. But we found some principles and we found a style that really fit.

And it was about putting other people first and then, you know, and then working, you know, working like it all depends on you and praying like it all depends on him. And that's been a very good, very great combination for Bethany and I. Well, it's been a great niche for you guys. And certainly over, well over 40 years in that you ended up spending it in that industry, yes? That's correct.

Yeah. So, you know, so for those listening out there, I mean, I think just hearing your story, Tom, at least I can hear your heart and I'm believing our listeners will as well that you personify what you just spoke of and you really did help a lot of people a long way. And obviously, if you spend 40 years plus in any industry, one, you must have a passion for it, you must love it and enjoy it and or you're good at it if you're going to spend that length of time. And you certainly were, in my view anyway, one of the best of the best of the best. I know I learned a number of things, again, from you and being a part of that and enjoyed, you know, getting to know your family.

And you mentioned the Baraco family, of course, BK Baraco, the son, carried on the tradition of his dad, who you've made reference to. And so, you know, we just got a couple of minutes left here, believe it or not. It's amazing how this time flies. But so I just want to, I'm glad our paths crossed, you know, through that industry and no matter for you listening out there, no matter what view you might have, you know, there are a lot of people like Tom Alkazin out there who have a heart for people and whether it's that industry or any other industry that they may be involved in who just want to help people. And you personify the, what Jesus talked about.

He came to be, he didn't come to be served, he came to serve, Tom, and you personify that. So thank you. Thank you. Absolutely.

My pleasure. Well, and so, you know, I know you're out wedge. You relocated to Las Vegas now? Is that where you're living now? That's correct.

We live in Las Vegas now. So you're out there and just enjoying the latter part, you know, and enjoying life, and well deserved to say the least. And so I look forward to, if I for some reason don't see you on this side of heaven, I look forward to just rubbing elbows with you, Tom, and spending eternity with you and that lovely bride of yours and family.

Amen, brother. I hope to see you, Nikita. You've always, you've been so special in our lives and, you know, even in the connectivity of how you stay connected with us. I mean, it's so impressive about the man, Nikita the man, and how you've always reached out to us and we've always enjoyed that and appreciated that about you.

And of course, your ministry is even personifies that and displays that even in a greater fashion. So it's been awesome visiting with you today. Well, I really appreciate it.

I'm just trying to take a page out of your book. You mentioned the word connectivity and just enjoy celebrating, you know, whether it's your anniversary, you know, every year in network marketing or just yours and Bethany's anniversary and birthdays or anything else that comes along. So, well, it's so great to have you on the Man Up show today. You are a man's man and I know you've helped so many people along the way and I sense you're going to help even more into the future. So thank you, Tom. And thank you for listening in to another episode of It's Time to Man Up. Tune in again for another great interview. God bless you. This show, Man Up with Nikita Koloff, is made possible by the grace of God, your faithful prayers, support, and gifts. May God bless you for your continual contributions. Go to www.koloff.net today. Nikita Koloff here.

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