 I noticed in your book that you originally were gonna open up practice in San Diego. That's where I'm originally from is it okay? Yeah, no, I made the mistake. I joke about that, but I went in January. I'm from Wisconsin and that was my T 8 so almost like the last year of school and I fell in love with it because obviously it was gorgeous out there And I'm like alright. I have to go there So I went back forth probably six times set up my last externship and then didn't go So it's all you know how it's supposed to work out But it was one of those things it was kind of hard on me for a little bit because I was like man I thought I was gonna be done with winter Yeah, San Diego is gorgeous. Yeah, it is but it's it's tough to get in there. It's pretty pretty crowded and Yeah, it seems like everyone's kind of a transplant there. That's yeah Yeah, I was born and raised my dad was born and raised there and okay. Do you think you go back? I don't know. I mean it's Every time I visit I just remember how beautiful it is and how warm and everything but Yeah, I don't just to just to move in and get a house or get a you know, get an apartment. It's incredibly expensive Yeah, for sure. So but that's that's cool, but glad things are working out for you Yeah, you know, I was one of the things where I Had a mentor who said this to me that when life gets rocky it's because you're not paying attention to where you're supposed to be, you know You're like banging your head against the wall kind of thing and that would have been that area of my life at that point Like I kept thinking that I needed to be out there and tried to set this all up and the problem I mean more than one problem kept flying in my face and it got down to the last week before I was supposed to move Out there. This is you know at your school. Are you guys in trimesters? We're in quarters quarters Okay, so this is my last, you know quarter, but it was a trimester The week before this woman that I was gonna rent from kept calling and changing everything about my lease And I remember like driving down the highway back to my parents house because I got rid of my apartment moved all my stuff back They're thinking I'm gonna fly out to San Diego that weekend and I'm like, oh my god What am I doing? You know, even the doctor I was working for that time is like lonely You're you're getting every sign that you're not supposed to go out there What are you gonna like wake up and at that moment? I was just not ready to hear and I think I Got down to the Friday and I'm supposed to leave on Saturday and I went to bed My mom's like, are we leaving in the morning? I'm like, you know, I'm gonna wake up and make that decision Oh, wow, and I didn't go and everything fell into place then but you know, that's testimony to like I really think Everyone has this purpose right and you can veer off from it at times But you'll end up back where you're supposed to be one way or the other it just has to get rocky for a while Yeah And you went to Northwestern I did so right I'm I haven't yet interviewed anyone from that school and I always confuse it with national But it is they're similar probably. Yeah, is it is Northwestern? Do they they claim to be more of a evidence-informed evidence-based school? Is that right? They're definitely like a many practice school. Yeah. Yeah Yeah, the reason I went to Northwestern, you know, I grew up in a chiropractic family We you know since I can remember we've gone I don't know we wouldn't we didn't go weekly by any means my dad probably did but you know as kids We probably went several times a year and I thought everyone went to the chiropractor I had no clue that other people I thought it was like dentistry, you know you have a chiropractor and your family goes and that's normal and I remember sitting day one in Northwestern and they said oh, this is gonna be a rough profession for you guys You always have to tell people why they have to come back and I was like literally perplexed sitting there Like what are they talking about? Why wouldn't someone come back? You know because it just didn't it wasn't part of my field of awareness at that point that you know what we were even up against sometimes and the reason I chose Northwestern is my chiropractor growing up had gone to Palmer and that was So I left and went to chiropractic school in 2006 And that was when the school had had a lot of changes and she used to be big pro go-to-homecoming every year You know pro Palmer person and she was like, you know in good faith. I don't know what's happening with that school right now So yeah, she's like, you know, you go to life maybe or and that was right when life I think had just gotten their accreditation back probably Life Georgia or West life Georgia Yeah, and then so she also said or if you go to Northwestern you got to go to a lot of stuff on the weekend So I looked at it. All right, Minneapolis is cooler than Palmer in Iowa That's why I chose it and you know, I really again didn't do my homework So I was lucky that I just ran into some people that really steered me in the right direction. That's awesome Yeah, I remember in fourth grade. I gave a like a sharing time presentation on chiropractic because I had already been going and Yeah, I was a bit surprised how many people in the class. I mean, they're all kids But they didn't know what it was Yeah, that's fun. Well, yeah, I don't want to beat around the bush How in the world did you pay off a hundred fifty thousand dollars in debt within two years? Well, you know, it takes discipline. That's for sure. It wasn't like it just happened kind of thing So I think that's the biggest thing for people that want to do similarly. I would assume most people do You know, it it's nice because if you get yourself right and you start to realize that, you know the development of your practice and the income that it makes and You know that type of relationship between the growth and the practice and the growth financially is directly related You know, it's easier to think about serving more people and being excited about that than it is to probably really think about the money and I would encourage people to think about the growth of Getting yourself out there serving chiropractic to people That's why, you know, having a deep philosophy is really important because that's directly related to your success in practice So those two things together were what really drove me it was like I knew I needed to learn a lot and I had some great coaches and Through, you know, self-development and really knowing that I wanted to be successful That's when I could kind of start to see like alright My loan is coming due for the first time in June of 2010 and I said I'm gonna pay $1,000 and then in July I'm like alright. I'm gonna pay $2,000 and I just kept incrementally stepping it up every month Because it just seemed like while the practice is growing. I'm used to not living like a baller so I can just keep doing that You know, I for the first five months of my practice. I lived at home with my parents So talk about pride for the first few months, but it was great My parents are wonderful, but you know, there came a point when to where I was like and now it's time to move out but At the same time, you know, I got to the end of that year and and I had Substantially made a dent in the the loans already and so I really looked at it like alright I can get to the point where you know, I'm paying such a hefty sum every month after that And you know that was the focus for me It wasn't like I was doing that as well as saving a ton of money as well as like buying a Range Rover or anything like that like it was like I was focused on those student loans, right? So paying out the loans was the number one goal Yeah at the expense a little bit of saving You know that three months expenses that you want to save something So I always kept like my business bank account at a comfortable level so that I never felt real worried about that But I do think saving weekly even if it was like 20 bucks right then and then the rest of it is going towards Your student loan is a good habit It just gives you a different sense of power when you don't have to worry, you know what I mean And and that's where I think the synergy happens where you're really excited about what you're doing in your business and talking chiropractic And if you can get your financial house in order You you don't have that feeling or that icky feeling of like this person That's getting on the table has to pay for the you know the lights to be on next week kind of thing So if you can check yourself first and really look at what's important that person and serving that person The best that you can in this moment is the important thing right now But by the way on the side you've done your work to know like alright This is what I need to accomplish this month This is a goal I have for how much I want to pay on my student loan It almost becomes like a game and that game then drives the practice higher And so then when the student loans are gone you have you know So for me it was like I got to where there was probably about $10,000 a month I was paying on a student loan and that you know plummets it really fast and so You know all of a sudden it's like one day. I'm looking at my thing and I'm like I'm gonna pay off my loan today, you know and no one's there to like congratulate you really It's like that's probably the biggest thing you've ever done in your life really because it's like oh my god That was that's gone. You know it's like this huge monkey off your back But what was the feeling that next month when the pay date came and you were like wait a minute I've got $10,000 of extra cash So I should back that up. I'll tell you about that in a second But basically that I switched it then you have to do something with the money because money is energy, right? It's just energy flowing in energy flowing out And if you think about it that way as soon as that loan is gone You've got to divert that energy into a different stream Otherwise it's gone and it's weird to think about it that way and most people don't look at money that way but So so I had a mentor Tori Robeson who was very influential for me on business strategies And so he was like you know divert this into a profit chair or you know whole life insurance that type of thing So you're starting to save that $10,000 now or you know up the ante from there, whatever it is So that's what I did then and you know it almost is like when you lose that focus Because that focus was on the student loan was so easy to have because I really wanted it gone It's like if this guttural thing like you don't want it right and and then Saving for me doesn't have quite the same like guttural thing to I like doing it Don't get me wrong, but it's it's nice to like choose So some people might not feel so called to like pay off their loan then maybe they should work on savings first I don't know you know yeah, that's interesting. I'm curious why you weren't content to just do the normal thing and Pay them off in 10 years Well, I think the book that was really influential on me was Dave Ramsey's total money makeover And he just you know really hammers home that debt is bad Like it doesn't matter if you can write right off part of it It doesn't matter if it's a low interest rate like get rid of it And I like simplicity like I am not the person that wants things that are like really complex or difficult to think about So to think about that's why when I talk to people is like they want to know like should I consolidate? That's if I'm like I'm not a financial advisor. I don't know any of that stuff I didn't because it just didn't make sense to me I was like I can see what they are there was like five of them five loans And I just want to pay them down like I want to go on immediately and the way Dave Ramsey explains it in the book Is you pick the low the lowest amount and you pay that one first? And then you just make the minimum payments on the rest So you attack one of them and when that when that one's gone Then you go on the next one and it's a bit of psychological warfare because once that first loan is paid off There's a feeling of victory of accomplishment and then it kind of adds to that desire to keep the energy. Yeah. Yeah, 100% That's awesome What do you think students should do right now to prepare for paying off loans and opening their practice? Sure Saving in in chiropractic school would be huge. So I always worked. I worked in undergrad and I worked during chiropractic school And so I can't remember the exact amount It was probably somewhere around 12 to 15,000 that I had to go to the bank to get my business on the first one and They want that, you know, they want to see that you're gonna invest in what you're asking them to invest in So if you have a desire to open your own practice You know, you got to have your financial house pretty set as far as like good credit And then some money that you're coming with unless you have an angel lender or something like that But the habit is really the big thing, right? So the habit of You know having the discipline to put some money aside when you especially may be doing it when you get your tuition check And some people would say but yeah, it's just it's my loan money. Anyways, what's you know, what's the difference? But if you're saving some of that, you know, they used to give us like $7,000 every Four months or whatever it was three months And so, you know, I would try and take a chunk of that plus than whatever I made from working I would take some of that and save it I think I usually would save like 75 bucks a month for sure and then anything else I could do on top of it I would and that's pretty doable. I've been I've been battling with myself with this idea of do I take the full amount of loans and Save some or do I take the minimum that I can get by on and and I do work I have a couple jobs on campus And then use that cash as savings or even to start paying off the loans now so that the interest doesn't accumulate and it's a tough decision I Know and I don't think there's a right answer But I think it depends on what you're trying to do afterwards because you are gonna need a Substantial chunk probably if you are going for a loan and so and if that was not something you had I would suggest just saving it until you know like what you know What your scenario is going to look like after you graduate? I don't read it or to get money when you don't have any Yeah, I've been in some meetings with bankers lately and And that's their deal is you know, we want to see some income We want to see that you have some Collateral or some money in the bank and I'm like well, I How am I doing that? I'm living on loans. They want to see that you're willing to sacrifice some You know what I mean? Whether I even the banker said to me the fact that you're willing to live at home for the first However long shows me that you're serious about this because most 25-year-olds don't want to do that But the reality was I didn't have income at that point, you know And my dad actually said something to me that I thought was really good too And he's been a small business owner too But you know, I was like do I bartend for a while while I'm first starting that practice, you know I was thinking then I'd have an income stream and he said one of the sooner you get serious about this business and the sooner You get those doors open and you're seeing people That's months ahead of the time of when you would start making money Basically, like you're moving your income stream forward then because you're getting more serious about it at an earlier stage And he was right, you know, so I think The the people that don't commit are the people that struggle Yeah, I was just about to read this section from your book where you talk about that and you Thing I have highlighted is putting my energy and time into getting the clinic together and open in record time with all things in Order was the best decision. So it was about six months. I think that you were full-time opening your practice nope, I graduated November 2009 and I opened January 2010. Okay, so a lot less. Yeah. Yeah, but with that said my t10 Because I didn't go to San Diego was in St. Paul, which was only about an hour and 15 minutes away from where I opened So three or four days a week. I was in St. Paul three or four days a week I was in Chippew Falls looking around looking at, you know options for rent Going into banks, you know, just getting a feel for like would this actually work here? So, you know, and no one can give you like all the final answers That's the hard part too is I think sometimes especially when we're about to do something We've never done before we just want someone to like push us over the edge And you kind of got to give yourself that push so I Was thinking about that because I'm on two weeks break right now in between quarters And I'm almost just imprisoned in my apartment because I have no no spending money And so I was a bit curious about how you were able to get around and and work in a way When you weren't getting any income Are you talking about when I first opened up the practice? Yeah, for those first couple months. All right, so Because I had like the 15,000 or whatever that I invested in I took I think there was five of that that I took as personal expense that was that was gonna get me through until You know, we were starting to actually see income So I didn't you know, you live at home with your parents. It's pretty much free rent free food for the most part So it wasn't like it it wasn't glamorous, but it wasn't that big of a struggle. Do you know what I mean? and I think like that There's a degree of like if you can just get your mind at ease with some of it Like this is just what I have to do right now and like live in that It's like the money will be there Maybe not loads of it but enough for like today or tomorrow so that you can like keep your energy up and and Just keep moving ahead. I don't know if that makes sense But it's kind of like if you stare at what's not there you get more of what's not there And if you just realize like I'm doing this for a reason and more is gonna come to me and it's all all right That's exactly what you get as well And you've got a wonderful practice Growing strong You're seeing in the book you mentioned seeing up to about three to four hundred Patients a week yep is is your success and is is a success of future students paying off loans dependent on having a high-volume Practice that's really philosophy driven. I personally think so I mean Okay, it depends on how you look at it. I mean there's different business models that probably work right but I look at like what we offer as chiropractors and the really amazing part of chiropractic is its philosophy really and Teaching people vitalism teaching them that their body is meant to be a healthy and that so much every second is happening Right with your body. That's a message. They don't hear, you know, we turn on the TV and it's all disease and sickness and you know You're degrading every day kind of thing when that's not that's just a different picture of it and so when I look at subluxation based chiropractic where we're teaching people that by Maintaining or ensuring that connection between brain and body. They're able to live like a more alive Day or like their life is more turned on It's just so much more rewarding to me and I think that's what grows the Volume practice or the practice that sees lots of kids not everyone needs to see, you know 200 300 400 500 a week kind of thing to be happy I don't think or to be successful in a financial sense either because you know if you keep your overhead low You can do pretty well at you know a lower stage than that but Yeah, I think it really is about our philosophy and what do we offer that no one else offers? You know correction of subluxation and teaching people vitalism That's what sets us apart and if we lose that you know, we really aren't We aren't doing chiropractic So there's other models that work within our field that are called chiropractic and are deemed Underneath the umbrella of what chiropractic especially with our education calls chiropractic But I think the more that we can like invite people in to understand why Infants need to be checked why kids need to come in for routine chiropractic all that stuff Then the more we like spread this message of you know Focusing on the good that's happening in your body and uplifting that versus letting people sink into all the other stuff That's happening out there in in the medical world What's next for you do you have any big plans big ideas new books? That's a great question. I feel like I'm gonna take a little break from I've been doing a ton of traveling and and Doing some speaking so this summer. I'm looking forward to not traveling quite as much but I have started doing a four-week course with other new chiropractors and It's a workbook really that goes along with four modules And then you can take it as a self-study or you can take it where we speak one-on-one Each week for about a half hour and my goal with that is to just help people open up some of the principles that growth Circles around you know, so the four four modules are based around these four principles The first one is awareness. The second one is simplicity congruency and energy and Those seem kind of nebulous if you just hear the words But it's really what we come back to each time we look at where we're at and where we're trying to go is like alright You got to know specifics about what got you to this point right now So that you have a jumping off point to go to something different Otherwise if we just keep repeating the same patterns, we do you know, we get what we got And then so if we can streamline plus make yourself more congruent with our vision and you know Sometimes it's just a little tweak in our head space that creates all the difference And so I feel like these are the things that I've constantly gone to over the last four and a half years and It's just amazing to see how much can change in a short time And so I want to help other people not not to be me I don't need them to like do what I did but to open that up in themselves so that they create their vision and Can learn how to like teach themself how to elevate each year or every month towards a different direction That's awesome. And I think I noticed that book starting the tick is the the workbook. That's the workbook awesome Where can students find more about you? If they just go to our website, it's just dr. Lonokook calm All right, and are you on Facebook and Twitter where they can follow you? Yep, it's just my name. All right. I'm gonna cook. Yep, friend me up Great. So looks like you got a patient waiting. I do. Okay, so I'll let you go. Thanks a lot, dr. Cook. It's been a pleasure talking with you. Yeah, you too All right, bye