Chaunte Hall: Why You Should Consider the Trades

Chris Albert 00:00:01 (link to this point)

The Warrior Soul podcast is written, edited, and produced by me, Albert. Our mission is to provide tools, tactics, strategies, and ideas that help The US military veteran community to show up as the wisest, strongest, most capable versions of themselves in the civilian world. If you're not a veteran, stick around because anything we talk about will most certainly apply to you as well. This podcast is made possible with the help of F Bomb Nutrition. They make delicious packets of fats that you can carry around anywhere with you in little portable packets.

They make macadamia nut butters. They mix them up with chocolate. They mix them up with sea salt. They mix them up with coconut butter. They're absolutely delicious, and they're really good for you.

They don't have any sugar. They also make a lot of cheese snacks. They make meat sticks, and it's just a great company. These guys send packages of this stuff to the troops who who are on the front lines overseas to supplement their MREs, and we didn't ask them to do that. They just did that on their own initiative.

Really great company. If you wanna get 20% off your first order of f bombs, head over to www.dropanfbomb.com and use the code Warrior Soul at checkout. This podcast is also brought to you with the help of Save the Brave. Savethebrave.org is a five zero one c three charity for veterans. They run camaraderie events that include fishing, golfing.

They also do a lot of work with gold star families. And unlike a lot of other organizations, their board doesn't take a salary. Really great organization that is doing amazing work. So go and check them out at savethebrave.org. With that, thank you guys so much.

Let's get into today's programming.

This is Chris Albert, and I'm here to remind you of one thing. Someday, you're going to die. Now that's not some morbid statement or scary idea. It's solid fact. Your time here on this earth is limited.

And we need to be reminded of this as much as possible for one simple reason, to live your best life while you can. This is the Warrior Soul podcast.

What's going on, ladies and gentlemen? Welcome to the Warrior Soul podcast. This is Chris Albert. And today, I have a really awesome guest for you. And I'm excited about it because she's talking about something that more people should be talking about.

Her name is Chaunte Hall. She's from the Victory Trades Alliance, and she's a US Air Force veteran. She served for, I think, fifteen years. And what she's doing right now, she's making it her mission to inform the veteran community and introduce the veteran community to the trades. Now what am I talking about when I'm talking about trades?

I'm talking about plumbing. I'm talking about construction. I'm talking about HVAC. I'm talking about those professions that really keep our societies running. Those are essential professions that keep this world turning that we all live in.

And I feel like recently, there's been a lot of people, not just in the veteran community, but all around who kinda look down at trying to get into the trades. It's kinda like, hey. You're going to trade school. Why are you doing that? Why don't you go to a four year university?

And let me tell you something. These professions are where the money's at right now. You you will be earning a fantastic income. You will not be incurring the debt that a lot of these people who go to four year universities like myself incurred. You will have a fantastic career where you're gonna learn about things like sales, like marketing, learn how to run a business, learning about customer service, and you're gonna learn a skill that's essential.

And that's what people are looking for right now. And Chaunte is out there. She's trying to inform people about this. I really enjoyed speaking with her. We didn't have too much time to go into this conversation, but you're gonna learn a lot here.

You're gonna learn about how you can get into a career like this, why it's so lucrative, and why you might wanna be thinking about the trades as far as where your career path's gonna go. So with that, let's get into this conversation with Chaunte Hall from the Victory Trades Alliance. Chaunte Hall, welcome to the Warrior Soul podcast.

Chaunte Hall 00:04:41 (link to this point)

Thank you so much for having me, Chris.

Chris Albert 00:04:44 (link to this point)

Definitely my pleasure. So you we've talked a bit, I've heard a lot about you. For our audience, can you give them a quick synopsis of who you are, where you're coming from, what you do?

Chaunte Hall 00:04:56 (link to this point)

Absolutely. So my name is Chaunte Hall. I was in the military for fifteen years, ten years active duty, five years as a reservist. Got out, started my own gym, kind of had several different entrepreneurship tracks, much like you, Chris. Founded a nonprofit organization, Centurion Military Alliance that supports our military affiliated community with transition. And now also wearing the hat of President at Victory Trades Alliance, where we are striving to change the narrative of the trades. And so today, I come at you with fifteen years military experience, an MPA with an emphasis in government and policy, currently finishing a doctorate on the military population and basically how we are able to successfully reintegrate into the culture.

Chris Albert 00:05:44 (link to this point)

Nice, nice. So Victory Trades Alliance. What do you mean by trades? What are we talking about here essentially?

Chaunte Hall 00:05:52 (link to this point)

Yeah, so mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and trying to not just change the narrative. We're really in interesting times right now. And I'm so excited because it couldn't have been a better time to start changing the narrative of the trade opportunities. And so I'm working from home, I live in Houston, Texas, where it is extremely hot outside. So when I'm looking at the comfort of my home, when I'm looking at the electricity needs to work, as you saw today with technical difficulties, I need the plumbing, I need the AC on.

We're looking at essential personnel and these are available opportunities right now for our military service members to transition into.

Chris Albert 00:06:38 (link to this point)

Yeah, you know, and I can tell you're a Texas person because I could see your office back I'm in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, if you want to talk about the heat, it's pretty bad down here too.

Chaunte Hall 00:06:50 (link to this point)

But you have the beach.

Chris Albert 00:06:51 (link to this point)

Yes, we do. Yes, we do. You got you got water in Houston.

Chaunte Hall 00:06:56 (link to this point)

It tends to come off sometimes. Yes.

Chris Albert 00:07:00 (link to this point)

So so, you know, I love what you're doing here because, you know, I was I was brought up with the narrative like, hey, you've gotta go to college. You've got to if you wanna succeed, you've gotta go get this four year university degree. And when I went to join the Marine Corps, my mother was like, she I had to, like, make this bargain that I was gonna go get this four year degree afterward and all that stuff. And I think there's a lot of pressure on veterans out there to to do that afterwards. But, you know, let's face it.

If you look at the way colleges are these days, a lot of times people are going to school, they're spending a lot of money. A lot of times the degree they're spending money on isn't really gonna pay off in the end. But then, you know, I run into I'm I run into trades people all the time. I'm manufacturing myself. And I run into trades people all the time.

They're making amazing salaries. They're they're they're they're making great livings. A lot of them them don't have the financial burdens that these these students are are are coming into right now. Even if you are a veteran and you're you're getting the post nine eleven GI bill, there's there's still money you gotta take out. You gotta eat.

You gotta live. Right? And so I think it's really cool that you guys are bringing this to the light, right?

Chaunte Hall 00:08:21 (link to this point)

Yeah, you know, I think that's just a great point. I have a great example. I mean, I finished a bachelor's in business. I have an MPA with an emphasis in government policy as already shared. I'm an HR professional and executive coach, and now finishing a doctorate.

And if I wanted to go get a job today, who's looking for that level of academia? What would I go into? And same thing with you, Chris, you shared you have a doctorate's.

Chris Albert 00:08:48 (link to this point)

Yep. Yep. Have a doctorate in political science, which I went to, like you, I owned a gym, I was a personal trainer. And today I sell anchors, right? So it's like.

Chaunte Hall 00:08:59 (link to this point)

So it's changing the narrative, it's doing the research, it's looking at okay with these positions, not only we have to take a step back for a minute, I think all of us and we have to say okay, as military, as a military community, as service members, we raised our right hand to serve, defend, and protect. As we transition out of the military, I think it's wonderful that there were so many opportunities pre COVID, where we were hearing, thank you for your service, get a PMP certification, become brand new tech, become this, become We have to look at it now and say, okay, as a post COVID world, not knowing what it's gonna look like, what opportunities are we willing to step into? Now we've worn that hat before. We went from having various positions in the military. And so I'm trying to let the military community know, do your research, go to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics and look at on national average, you have the ability to make a 6 figure income in the trades.

Chris Albert 00:10:05 (link to this point)

Yeah, yeah.

Chaunte Hall 00:10:06 (link to this point)

It's phenomenal. It's again, single mom over here, doctorates. If I was an HVAC technician, I would have a job right now today, making 6 figures, not having to worry about the push on social media and so many other things that possibly come with being a human resource professional or talent acquisition, you know, fill in the blank.

Chris Albert 00:10:29 (link to this point)

Right, right, exactly. You know, I think that there was this kind of stigma around the trade saying like, you know, if you go into that, you're not going be educated, you're not, but some of the smartest people I know are in the trades. Some of the smartest people I know, some of the most successful people I know are in the trades right now.

Chaunte Hall 00:10:47 (link to this point)

Absolutely, it takes a strategic mindset to be able, I can't walk outside and look at the new AC equipment and fix it.

Chris Albert 00:10:58 (link to this point)

Right.

Chaunte Hall 00:10:58 (link to this point)

It absolutely takes a level of intellect. And I think that's why we're we're striving to change the narrative because we're doing each other such a disservice by looking at a position and saying, Oh, that's blue collar work or Oh, that's it's, and I love how Milestone University had put it. They said, No, it's new collar work. And so we have these schools, we've got Perfect Technician Academy in Dallas, Texas. We have all these available schools that are saying, we're willing to come in and actually support you as a service member to establish pathways, career pathways for you to finish your certification.

So the great thing is no experience is necessary. And we're able to walk into the trades today, go to school, get certified benefits start immediately. Then like I said, the I mean, you can't, it's a no brainer when you're, but it's changing the narrative. You know, Chris, pre COVID, I was on so many different military installations. And I would hear time and time again, well, Chaunte, the soldiers aren't interested in those jobs.

The military service members aren't interested in those jobs. And I thought, no offense, I don't care what jobs they're interested in. I'm telling you, this is what's out there.

Chris Albert 00:12:17 (link to this point)

Right.

Chaunte Hall 00:12:18 (link to this point)

And and so why do you shake it? You know, there's a part of you, Chris, PhD on your own gym, everything that you've accomplished. I think you actually love sales. Something about it that and so you have been able to establish a pathway and looking at look, I achieved that level of academia. So we're not telling people to not go to college.

That's not what we're saying. We're saying, look, we don't know what post COVID looks like. Here are some immediate available positions for the security and the safety of your family. Step up, answer the nation's call. Because as a nation, when you look at us, we will we're already in an economic crisis.

Chris Albert 00:13:05 (link to this point)

Right. Right.

Chaunte Hall 00:13:06 (link to this point)

If we don't if someone does not answer and say, no, this is a position I'm willing to take, we will fall.

Chris Albert 00:13:14 (link to this point)

Right. Yeah. And and you know, one of the things I I and I try to slam home on this podcast a lot is that, you know, that four year degree, it's great, right? It's it's a good experience. You go to the school, you you get that college experience.

But at the same time, if you want the education, it's out there for you no matter what you're doing. Right? It you don't have to go to to some private institution where you're they're you're gonna be paying this and that and and and and going into debt or anything like that. I mean, you could get a great education at a state school while working, while earning an income, not having not going through that poverty phase that all students go through. And and, you know, I there's a story.

When I was at the University of California at Santa Barbara working on my doctorate, some people in the veteran office were telling me there there are veterans there that were actually living out of their cars while they were going to school there. And, you know, that's I think that's awful. I don't nobody should have to go into poverty to try to get an education. At the same time, I mean, I think we get trapped into this narrative of saying that's what you have to do when there's so many other solutions out there. Right?

Everybody's talking about socialized education right now, trying to do this, trying to do that, but that's, in my opinion, not the way to move up in society. I think right now, we're seeing things change right now. And I think that in this world, the world we exist in right now, you need something that is gonna earn you an income and you need something that's gonna earn you an income in all environments.

Chaunte Hall 00:14:53 (link to this point)

Absolutely. And I think it comes back to, again, effective communication. For so many years, we've been telling the military community, thank you for your service, thank you for your service. And then it's okay, well, have the GI Bill. And I've witnessed this.

It's part of the reason why I actually went back to school and I'm finishing this doctorate's because what you see is service members get out and think that they have to pursue, like you said, that four year degree or they go to a local community college and they're taking classes here and there never actually achieving a degree and they get it just because they wanted the GI Bill and so they get that cash every month and then they're still left at the end of the day, no degree and now no certification and they're trying to find something to do. And so I believe that we have to establish not only changing the narrative and effective communication but establishing career pathways for service members to understand, look, when you join the military, when you raise your right hand to serve, defend and protect your recruiter gave you a list of jobs. Right now, it's not different. It's just and you know this, Chris, it's a lie. So it's a it's it is huge societal lie.

And now you're looking at 250,000 transitioning service members annually on top of an economic crisis.

Chris Albert 00:16:21 (link to this point)

Right.

Chaunte Hall 00:16:21 (link to this point)

We, I believe as a military community, we have to step up to the plate and say, you know what, we'll take it from here. And so my plea to our military community is look, never before have we had the opportunity to showcase and highlight what we are able to do at the home front.

Chris Albert 00:16:45 (link to this point)

Right.

Chaunte Hall 00:16:45 (link to this point)

Right now, and you know this as well as I do, our war is right outside these within the walls of our homes. We need you to answer the call. We need mechanical, electrical, plumbing, construction, you know, the again, to rebuild, or we're going to just continue on this path that I don't think any of us are enjoying this.

Chris Albert 00:17:08 (link to this point)

Right. Right. No, you're exactly right on that. And, you know, again, I think that when we think about where we want this country to go, I think the veteran community is the sleeping giant in this country. I think that there is so much that we have to offer here.

I think there are so many leaders amongst us. And I think that in order to be a leader in our society, you have to be in position to be a leader. And what that means is you have to be financially set. You cannot be crippled with debt. You cannot be putting yourself into a situation where you're living in a bubble for four years while you're trying to earn this degree and kinda turning your brain off to everything else.

You have to know what's out there. You have to know how to deal with people. And in the trades, you do that. If you're an HVAC person, you're learning customer service. You're learning how to to to run your own business.

You're learning about marketing, because all these things apply. And then if you do that for a few years and you and you're earning some money, you know, the sky's honestly the limit there, right? You can transition that to anything. And you're going to learn a lot more from that experience than you will from a four year marketing degree, honestly.

Chaunte Hall 00:18:17 (link to this point)

Absolutely. And again, it's not saying don't go to school. My goodness, I'm getting a doctorate's right now online. I'm a doctoral candidate, almost finished, able to do and leverage all my research from the comfort of my own home while also running two businesses and So single I hear all the time, Oh, Chaunte, I couldn't possibly. What do you mean you couldn't possibly?

You know, and I go back to my military days where I joined logistics prior to September 11, September 11 rocks our military world. Next thing you know, I'm sitting in an office doing education and training. The next morning, no joke, I get a phone call saying, you're deploying tomorrow morning, be here at six and this is what's gonna happen. Then we go deploy with the army. I'm in training for thirty days in Colorado in the snow, and then I'm in Iraq.

It's consistent. And then you're gonna tell me as a service member that you don't have the bandwidth or the capability to look at a different viewpoint and to answer what positions are currently available. You know, I had a great call with a retired Chief Master Sergeant in the Air Force the other day. And retired Chief Master Sergeant Todd Simmons said this, he said, When did we become so in a sense, hottie totty thinking we're so above it, that we snub our nose at the trades, or we snub our nose at truck drivers, or we think, you know, that as military, we're owed this corner office with when did that happen?

Chris Albert 00:19:54 (link to this point)

Right. So You're exactly right. You're exactly right. When when somebody comes to Victory Trades Alliance, what what what do they do? So so they could get in contact with you? And then and then what do you do for them?

Chaunte Hall 00:20:10 (link to this point)

Yeah, so if you are interested in what is it just let's just start talking about what's a day like in the trades? And what does it look like? And so whatever industry specific that they're actually interested in, mechanical, electrical, or plumbing, we'll ensure that they are paired with someone to actually take them through what the training looks like, how long the school is, and then looking at the salaries and the available opportunities further on down the road. We pair them with, we had someone today from Illinois interested in a position in HVAC. So we paired them with someone with a school out there and then we'll pair them with a few different local employers.

Sometimes the schools already have those relationships built, which is great. But all we're trying to do again, is to change the narrative and to share these available opportunities. I'm on LinkedIn, and I see it all the time. All these people looking for, you know, project management, HR, everyone's a project manager. I'm sitting there thinking, again, do we change the narrative?

So if you're a transitioning service member, if you're a veteran and you're looking for a new opportunity, we try to just simply have a conversation and pair you with a mentor who's going to give you real relevant advice. We make sure all the schools are vetted within the Department of Education and the VA guidelines. And so we don't have anyone coming in with bad intent. And then the schools and then the businesses also reach out to us to ensure that they're apart and they have the available opportunities to speak.

Chris Albert 00:21:52 (link to this point)

What are some of the biggest pitfalls you see veterans running into when they want to go down this path?

Chaunte Hall 00:22:00 (link to this point)

Honestly, it's it's opening up the aperture, you know, and thinking outside of the box. I simply don't understand what so many think they want to go into IT. I I see that a lot right now. It's IT is just the big push. But the thing with IT is that if you have a certification from a few years ago, or now even yesterday

Chris Albert 00:22:24 (link to this point)

It's already obsolete.

Chaunte Hall 00:22:25 (link to this point)

Yeah. It's our it's already obsolete. And so I think sometimes service members get out and they think, oh, I'm done with professional military education. I'm done with learning kind of check the box, or I've got this bachelor's degree or even some I have a master's degree and they just think they're done. And so again, I'm constantly trying to change that. We are lifelong learners. I'm never done. Someone asked me today, what are you gonna do after this doctorate Chaunte? And I said, I don't know, go get a JD. And they're like, why don't you start living life? And I'm like, I don't think you understand.

I am living life. I am. I'm educating and I'm able to educate others. What greater gift than to tell someone, look, I'm not a know it all. I'm striving to learn and to grow and to change.

What's constant? Change.

Chris Albert 00:23:18 (link to this point)

Right. Right. Exactly. Exactly. And so they come to you guys and and they go through your process.

And you said that there's companies that actually come to you and try to get people for placement as well.

Chaunte Hall 00:23:34 (link to this point)

They they do. They come and they they wanna kind of talk. And now we're not a placement service. We truly are an organization that's simply trying to change the narrative. I love how many veterans have already reached out and how we are able to say, Hey, here's a mentor.

Just start the conversations. So we're not pushing schools, not, you know, we are simply opening up the aperture to start having these real conversations and to understand this isn't my opinion. And it's one thing that I always share with people. It's amazing to me how you will spend hours on social media platforms reading opinions when you could be reading statistics and facts that are applicable to you. And so it's looking at your own pathway, looking at the future, and none of us have the answers.

None of us know what the future looks like. What we do know is more and more companies are realizing that, oh, wow, we can just have them work from home. And if I don't have the health and safety of my home, how am I gonna be fully operational? And my final point, you know, Chris, United Airlines and I know several others just laid off so many of their pilots. And so tomorrow I actually have a training session with almost 100 pilots that have been And let they're now looking for work.

Chris Albert 00:24:58 (link to this point)

Yeah. Yeah. I mean, it's rough times for them. It's rough times for a lot of people. Because no I mean, this is a black swan event.

Nobody ever thought something like this would happen. Right? It's crazy. It's crazy. And do you get a good mix of men and women who apply to the program?

Chaunte Hall 00:25:17 (link to this point)

We do. And that's what I love is being able to come in as president of Victory Trades Alliance and to be able to share and again, not only change the narrative from the blue collar to new collar, but to be able to say, these are phenomenal opportunities for women. As a single mom being at my house and knowing that I have two little kids, when I go and I request a technician, if I see, wow, female veteran, and you start to look at because you're able to see their bios, what's going to make me feel possibly more comfortable with who I let into my house. And so I actually my neighbors here in Houston, Texas, they own their own HVAC electrical and plumbing business. And they're sitting in a gated community. They have a swimming pool, you know, just had a brand new baby living a great life.

But both of them together are all three. They're mechanics, they're electricians, and they're plumbers. And it blows my mind because what a great pair, what a great couple. They're able to work, you know, when the work is there and it's constant, and they're able to shut down when they wanna shut down. And I think that's the biggest incentive that I see is, you know, as well as I do in sales, we are constantly running and working and social media and answering emails. This is a no brainer. The work is there when the work is there. Then it's

Chris Albert 00:26:44 (link to this point)

Well, the other thing I'll tell you is there's a lot of people who want to get in a real estate investing, you see all these courses out there on that, they need people who are in the trades. They need people who understand plumbing, who understand HVAC. They need people who understand construction. I mean, there's so much demand for good contractors, for people who understand this stuff because a lot of this stuff got lost along the way. People don't don't fiddle around like their grandparents did, right in the garage with their tools.

A lot of most people don't even have tools anymore.

Chaunte Hall 00:27:19 (link to this point)

It's it's it's so, so true. You know, one of my really good friends, he was executive director of a nonprofit and he actually during this pandemic, just switched roles, woke up, decided I'm going to start my own construction business. And it's construction, more so on the consulting side. So he goes in and sees, you know, he's not the one out there with the hammer and nails as I'll tease him, but he has the background and the understanding, army background, and now just up and is running here in Houston, Texas, tough construction, And he's doing great because the need is there. And so construction, mechanical, electrical, plumbing, it takes you, if that's not your end result, you know, because again, we understand that might not be your lifelong dream, but you take that coupled with a bachelor's in business, coupled with a master's and MBA with an emphasis in marketing, future, mean, the sky, like you said, the sky is the limit, but it takes that first step of saying, you know, I really don't wanna do this right now, but how many, and I think I'm so impressed and amazed when you look at our country on a whole and you look at who's been essential workers. You look at, you know, Chick fil A, and you look at some of these young guys and gals at the grocery store who continue to step up and go into work. Yeah. We're asking people to step up and take positions that possibly they never thought of, But again, up to a 6 figure income.

Chris Albert 00:28:50 (link to this point)

Yeah. Awesome. Well, Chaunte, number one, I want to thank you for for coming on here today to talk to me. Number two, I just want to acknowledge you. Thank you for doing this work.

Thank you for for putting out there for the world and thank you for helping this community. I think that's awesome.

Chaunte Hall 00:29:07 (link to this point)

Well, thank you for sharing it. Your background, Chris, is absolutely phenomenal. You know, brother and sister, soul brother and sister.

Chris Albert 00:29:18 (link to this point)

Well, appreciate that. Don't give me big headed. But I you know, a lot of respect for what you're doing. And, you know, you you've been grinding away. So that's awesome.

That's awesome. Where can people find you?

Chaunte Hall 00:29:34 (link to this point)

So please, victorytradesalliance.com. One, if you're a veteran or you're a business that's interested in being a part of Victory Trades Alliance, I'm also on LinkedIn. Very easy to find me, Chaunte Hall, c h a u n t e, and and just reach out and let's have a conversation.

Chris Albert 00:29:54 (link to this point)

Awesome. Awesome. Thank you so much, Chaunte. And to everybody out there, definitely check this out. I mean, there's a lot of misinformation that goes on of what you should be doing after after you get out.

And I think that this is a great role. It's a great path, and that there's a lot of benefit to seeking it out. So with that, guys, thank you so much. We'll be back at you next week with some more awesome content. This is Chris and Chaunte, and we are out.

Get out there and live your best life as well you can. Awesome. Alright, guys. There you have it. That is my conversation with Chaunte Hall from the Victory Trades Alliance.

I definitely suggest you check her out, and you definitely should check out all the things we talked about here in this podcast. If you're in right now or if you're just getting out, trying to think about what you're looking to do, the trades are a fantastic option. An option that honestly, I think could put you ten to fifteen years ahead of those in your cohort who are sitting at four year universities right now. So, again, always do your own research. I'm not not I'm definitely not the be all end all of career paths or anything like that.

I'm just telling you about some of the mistakes I made like going to school and living in a bubble for four years and incurring a lot of debt. You'll still incur debt even if you're on the post nine eleven GI bill. You gotta live. You gotta eat. So definitely something to think about here, and I hope you guys got a lot out of it.

This is Chris Albert, and I will be back at you later on this week with some more awesome content. Get out there and live your best lives while you can, and I am out.