Ep. 31: San Diego Food Bank Chairman Steve Bernstein on Giving Back and Addressing Food Insecurity In America
In this episode, Darren Reinke chats with Steve Bernstein, Chairman of the Board for the Jacobs & Cushman San Diego Food Bank. Steve discusses why you need to help yourself before you can help others, the huge prevalence of food insecurity across the country, and why you should get your kids involved in philanthropy at an early age.
The Jacobs & Cushman San Diego Food Bank is San Diego County’s leading, local hunger-relief organization. Last year, the Food Bank distributed 28 million pounds of food, and served, on average, 350,000 people per month in San Diego County.
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SHOW NOTES
Steve’s Interests as a Kid [1:09]
How Baseball Shaped Steve’s Leadership Style [4:29]
How Steve Discovered His Purpose in Life and Career [6:53]
Steve’s Practical Tips to Gain Confidence when Asking for Favors [10:05]
How Steve Transitioned from Banking to Philanthropy and Non Profits [15:40]
Why Discipline is Paramount in Achieving Success [22:40]
How Steve Became Involved in the San Diego Food Bank [29:05]
The Key Misconception with Food Insecurity in America [34:26]
What Steve is Doing to Address the Underlying Issues with Food Insecurity [39:57]
COVID 19’s Impact on Steve’s Food Bank and How You Can Get Involved [44:37]
Steve’s Recommendations for Making Giving Easier [53:33]
SHOW LINKS
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PODCAST TRANSCRIPT
San Diego Food Bank Chairman Steve Bernstein on Giving Back and Addressing Food Insecurity In America
[00:00:00] Darren Reinke: Welcome to The Savage Leader Podcast, where I interview leaders from all walks of life so that you can walk away with tips to apply to your life and your career. But this isn't your traditional leadership podcast because I believe that leadership tips come from successful entrepreneurs in business executives of.
[00:00:21] Darren Reinke: But they also come from unexpected places like from Navy SEALs, successful professional athletes, sports coaches, musicians, entertainers, and more. So let's dive right in to today's episode. My hope is: You walk away with something tangible that you can apply immediately to your life and your career.
[00:00:42] Darren Reinke: Today's guest on The Savage Leader Podcast is Steve Bernstein. Steve is a chairman of the San Diego Food Bank. The food bank is a leading hunger relief organization in San Diego.
[00:00:52] Darren Reinke: Last year, the food bank distributed 28 million pounds of food to served over 350,000 people per month. Steve, thanks for coming on today.
[00:01:01] Steve Bernstein: Thanks for having me. It's great to be here, Darren.
[00:01:04] Darren Reinke: So, you have a really interesting background. I think you referred to it as a dynamic background. Take us back to your childhood.
[00:01:10] Darren Reinke: What was that like? What were the things that you were interested in?
[00:01:13] Steve Bernstein: I grew up in Ventura County, specifically Simi Valley, at the time. It was a small town. Honestly. I just love people. I played sports very active in school, growing up in a small town and kind of knowing, feeling like, everybody definitely gave me a lot of confidence, I think, to really connect to people.
[00:01:32] Steve Bernstein: And so honestly it was a great childhood, very safe community. Met a lot of great friends and great influences that really helped me kind of mold who I am today.
[00:01:44] Darren Reinke: I know you mentioned before that you had this toggle point where you had to choose between acting and baseball, which I think is pretty interesting.
[00:01:50] Darren Reinke: I don't know many folks who are, who have those unique sets of skills. So tell me about that a little bit in terms of how you broke away from one or the other,
[00:01:58] Steve Bernstein: probably one of the hardest decisions and, you, you put yourself in the situation, and you have to really analyze where the opportunity is and what the future could hold.
[00:02:08] Steve Bernstein: So it was a really defining moment in my life. Actually, my dad was a prop master and set decorator in the TV business for 37 years. And that's how I actually got connected to the industry. And as a child, I had opportunities to be an extra and really get, broaden my lens to see what that lifestyle is like, what it looks like.
[00:02:31] Steve Bernstein: And it, honestly, it was just a lot of fun. So, I naturally wanted to gravitate towards it. And so, my parents supported me. So, I spent a lot of times learning different ways of acting, connecting with different people. I was on some small shows back in the day. My first claim to fame was this'll date me, but the Waltons was my first show ever on.
[00:02:55] Steve Bernstein: Honestly, I fell in love with the industry itself about entertainment, really entertaining people and being able to be that type of individual. I was also an athlete. I was playing baseball and when I was 13, I was offered an opportunity for a role in a sitcom years ago. And I was asked if I'd make this decision, I have to give up baseball.
[00:03:22] Steve Bernstein: And at the time look, they were both very big passions of mine, but I felt like you only have so much time to become a baseball player, a professional athlete, and maybe I'd have the opportunity if I was still interested in it to pursue acting later. So, obviously baseball was my first passion and I made the tough decision, but honestly the best decision for me.
[00:03:47] Steve Bernstein: And so I chose the baseball route, and I had a very successful career in baseball. I played not through high school, but also college. I was drafted professionally. And unfortunately, my story ends there, as I was in a car accident. And that's what ended my baseball career, but definitely a great upbringing.
[00:04:06] Steve Bernstein: I think I was exposed to things that just not everyone is. And I think that really changed my perspective. Who I am today and where I was headed.
[00:04:17] Darren Reinke: What did you learn from those experiences? Obviously, I'm well familiar with sports and the benefits of team sports, but where do you gain from that in baseball, playing professionally and being an actor.
[00:04:26] Darren Reinke: And how has that really informed your leadership style? Now?
[00:04:29] Steve Bernstein: One of the benefits that I had for baseball is being a competitive athlete. It allowed me to travel. So, I think if I look back, and I think about my baseball career, also my time as pursuing a child actor, things like that, it exposed me to, I think, guiding principles that became my disciplines of success.
[00:04:50] Steve Bernstein: Understanding what work ethic really looks like, understanding, paying attention to detail and how that matters in both, whether it's baseball or in acting. Paying attention to detail is absolutely critical. The ability to communicate and connect with people. Being a catcher, I was a catcher playing baseball.
[00:05:10] Steve Bernstein: So that's the captain on the field, really? If you think about the position, it's the only position on the field where the game is played in front of you, and you also are the connected from the dugout to the field. So, it's absolutely critical that communication. So, I think of those things, my social skills, my attention to detail.
[00:05:31] Steve Bernstein: And then the third is my ability to communicate, not just from a broadcasting and presentation style, but really understanding the audience and putting myself into their shoes and really trying to engage in a different way than just telling my story or having a conversation.
[00:05:50] Darren Reinke: Yeah, so many great points there.
[00:05:52] Darren Reinke: I think about understanding the audience and the importance of empathy and putting yourself in their shoes. And then, a lot of the work that I do with leaders is about how do you adapt your communication style for the other person? Because most people are, tend to be self-oriented. I want to say self-absorbed, but self-oriented at least.
[00:06:08] Darren Reinke: And think that their style, the people that the way that people want to be communicated with is the way that they communicate. And that's obviously fundamentally a false assumption that most people make
[00:06:17] Steve Bernstein: exactly right. I think that you hit on a really important point. Knowing your audience, how to connect with your audience, but also putting them first.
[00:06:26] Steve Bernstein: And I think that's the biggest challenge that people face is, I think they, they feel excited. They want to share. And I think sometimes that hurts their listening skills and their engagement skills. When you react that way, you're not really connecting.
[00:06:43] Darren Reinke: You have a pretty interesting. Way or path that you discovered purpose.
[00:06:47] Darren Reinke: Can you tell me a little bit about how you discovered purpose in your life and your career?
[00:06:51] Steve Bernstein: Yeah, for me, I wonder if it was by accident or not, you, you live through life experiences and, going through as a child, I came from a divorced family, broken home at a young age.
[00:07:04] Steve Bernstein: I've been on my own since 13. So, my parents got divorced. I lived with my father, I had great support from my mom. But at the same time, is I really created a path of independence and really trying to figure out things on my own. And so, really it's trial and error meeting, incredible people.
[00:07:25] Steve Bernstein: And I think the one thing that I would tell you, I had confidence in being able to ask, so I think about, if I look back at my career, I didn't know what I wanted to do. After my baseball career was over, trying to figure out, what does the future hold? My number one thing I did was informational interviews.
[00:07:46] Steve Bernstein: I ran around to people I respected and that I admired or visibly. I could see some type of level of success. And I went around, and I wanted to just honestly get 15 minutes of their time. I wanted to learn from things that I couldn't learn, whether it was in school or something. Maybe my family or friends couldn't teach me.
[00:08:07] Steve Bernstein: And so going through those types of experiences is honestly how I found purpose. Because coming from a family where I think the first 10, 12 years, I felt like I had everything. And then having a broken home, you feel like you lost everything, and you're starting over. And as I went through, you go through a lot of emotions.
[00:08:29] Steve Bernstein: You, you go through a lot of experiences, and then you find. You hope to find something that's more meaningful than making money or, achieving something for yourself. And so, I've moved through my career. I think the way that I found purpose was literally fulfilling and achieving goals and setting goals and continuing to work at things.
[00:08:57] Steve Bernstein: And then finding that what I was really good at or successful at was a gap for a lot of other people. And so, it's an area where it's not taught. And so that really changed my lens in how I communicate and connect with people. I like serving. I like helping because there's so many people that did it for me.
[00:09:20] Steve Bernstein: And so it's a pay it forward. But at the same time is to keeps me intellectually stimulated, growing and engaged.
[00:09:30] Darren Reinke: Yeah, I think you said something really important is you had the confidence to ask. And I think that just really underpins our success in so many ways, for you, is about figuring out career paths and how you came upon purpose, but even more fundamental in terms of people growing their organizations, growing their businesses.
[00:09:47] Darren Reinke: It's just so important to have that confidence. What were, what are some practical tips that you can give to people in terms of gaining that confidence to, to ask someone for a quote, unquote favor, if you will.
[00:09:58] Steve Bernstein: I think the number one thing you have to ask yourself is why am I going to ask, and why is it this person I'm going to ask?
[00:10:04] Steve Bernstein: I think the other thing is you have to respect their time and understand where they're coming from. I think the really important factor that you're engaged for the right reasons and the right purposes. I think of mentorship a lot and sponsorship, in my career, I would say in the early years of my career.
[00:10:24] Steve Bernstein: And probably even the, five, eight years ago, if you heard the term mentorship, it was like trying to build a relationship with somebody that could get you somewhere opposed to building a relationship with someone that can invest in you and give you something to help you grow and actually get better.
[00:10:42] Steve Bernstein: And so when I saw those type of differences to me, the second piece is really critical. It's an investment in yourself that you're making. It's not an ends to a mean or a means to an end. It's not trying to get somewhere, it's trying to fulfill or fill something within yourself. And so to me, I think that's the biggest opportunity is one.
[00:11:05] Steve Bernstein: You think about why you want this individual, what are you looking for them to provide you? Two is you understand, and you put yourself in their shoes. I think the most important thing after. It's the preparation, right? Preparing to go into that meeting, whether you have a five-minute meeting, a 30-minute meeting doesn't really matter, but it has to be purposeful, and you need to be prepared because you're asking someone to give you something that they've earned.
[00:11:36] Steve Bernstein: So if I think about it, I went to San Diego state and that's where I ended up going to school. But for the last 20 years, I've learned from people that have gone to Harvard, Wharton, Michigan, Hilltop high school, you can gain from their knowledge and experience, but you definitely need to understand the why and be very prepared in going in into that.
[00:11:56] Steve Bernstein: So I think those are the three things. And if you have those things, then you can walk into the situation and stay in control. And I think that's an important factor, being in control into those types of conversations and getting what you want out of it.
[00:12:12] Darren Reinke: And I also liked the way you changed the lens.
[00:12:14] Darren Reinke: You changed it from. Not being so transactional. Okay. What can I get out of this person? What am I trying to achieve? But more of like an enduring relationship. I think about the mentors I've been lucky enough to have in my life and my career from someone early on that helped guide me into consulting that paved the way to what I'm doing now, and then to other people more recently in terms of just being there to support me.
[00:12:35] Darren Reinke: And I hadn't thought about it in that perspective, but also I think about the give and take is making sure that you're being respectful of their time at the very least. And you're providing other values to them as well.
[00:12:44] Steve Bernstein: Yeah. I think the one, one of the biggest things, I think really separates a lot of successful people and people that have all the skill and all the ability.
[00:12:53] Steve Bernstein: And honestly, probably sometimes better than the people that are in different roles is the fear. And so, how do you work on the confidence factor? I'm trying to do it with my children. I do it with, people that I come in contact with. I, from a coaching perspective, You really focus on strengths.
[00:13:11] Steve Bernstein: You try to help them understand the perspective, but I think that's a really big differentiator. It's not necessarily knowledge or aptitude or the want or desire. Sometimes it's just the fear. And that, to me, that can be taught through a process of just like I explained. I think you can teach that confidence by giving people tools that they can rely on.
[00:13:36] Steve Bernstein: So when they're in situations, they can Excel,
[00:13:40] Darren Reinke: it gets tools. But also I think removing some of those impediments, some of those anchors in terms of self-limiting beliefs, people have in their head because they don't have the right experience. They didn't go to the right school. They're not ready. They don't have the right skills.
[00:13:53] Darren Reinke: And so many times those are really the tapes that we play in our own heads. It's not necessarily supported by objective.
[00:13:59] Steve Bernstein: That's very true. It's very true. And I think when I look at that type of scenario, I think it's really important that, you take out the pencil on the paper, and you break those things down.
[00:14:09] Steve Bernstein: A lot of the stuff that I see and I, I talked to people, like I thought I was even talking to my kids about this going into high school. The fear of the unknown is sometimes what holds us back. And if we knew, maybe we wouldn't be so fearful. So, it's really trying to give a good visual, having those conversations.
[00:14:27] Steve Bernstein: But I agree with you, it's not as easy as people can present or maybe even I'm sharing today. I understand the effort and the work and the emotion and the legacy history that comes into each person's situation. But I think that's where a great leader comes from, right? If you're able to identify those things and invest in yourself and grow, then the, a way to pay that forward is to help others.
[00:14:54] Steve Bernstein: Achieve things. And that kind of what got me into service. That's what kind of keeps me in different industries and communities, that exact piece. Because I see there's value there to add. That's something that others don't have.
[00:15:07] Darren Reinke: Absolutely. Yeah. You talked early on in terms of purpose and a focus on serving and helping.
[00:15:12] Darren Reinke: How did you actually make that shift and get involved in philanthropy and nonprofits?
[00:15:17] Steve Bernstein: So I've been a banker the last about 23 years, I got into banking by accident. I was a political science, psychology major thing of state followed my path there and realized, it just wasn't the direction I wanted to head.
[00:15:30] Steve Bernstein: And so I went on a bunch of different interviews, and I interviewed at a bank back in the day called Western financial. And they offered me a job on their platform and on their platform, it was really to get licensed and become an investment type of banker and things like that. But I took the job for really one reason.
[00:15:50] Steve Bernstein: And one reason only, I did not have that background in finance. And, like I said, political science, psychology, I came from a broken home. I didn't really have that support to teach that. So, I actually saw that first job as an internship for myself mentally. And I said, you know what, they're going to pay me.
[00:16:08] Steve Bernstein: And I'm going to learn the finance side, the banking side. So, I can be successful financially. I didn't know how to really even manage a bank account, let alone finance a house or a car. And through that's where I also found even more purpose to stay in the industry. I was dealing with customers that had the same gap I did.
[00:16:26] Steve Bernstein: And so part of being in the industry, one of the things they ask you to do is to give back to the community. And it felt task-driven like it was part of my job, like filling out a report. And so, I did it without really understanding why I did it because of all the reasons we were talking about the mentorship kind of the same thing, when I got involved in the nonprofit space, what I realized was it wasn't just about raising money. There was a tremendous amount of value that I could add by helping the organization and helping the constituents and people we serve. So, I got into it by accident, but the reality is sometimes that those are the best reasons to get in because we actually find something that we didn't know we were really looking for.
[00:17:16] Steve Bernstein: And so when you talk about purpose, I tried to find purpose in everything. I do my real purpose in life and who I am as a leader and as a human being, I'm a servant leader. I'm a servant person. I like. Helping people achieve things that they didn't either know what's possible, things that they needed.
[00:17:34] Steve Bernstein: And I think the reason is because I'm fulfilled, I'm happy. I'm not happy and fulfilled by material things and money. I'm fulfilled with intellectual stimulation, connecting with people, watching and helping and being a part of something that's bigger than me and having, and having that type of purpose.
[00:17:52] Steve Bernstein: So getting in the non-profit space, one of the first non-profits I got involved with was the Alzheimer's association in San Diego. And the reason I joined them if my grandmother was going through dementia and Alzheimer's. And so, the reason I share that story is because the one thing I did know about getting into the nonprofit space was I wasn't going to choose a nonprofit that the company thought I should, I needed something that I could connect to.
[00:18:21] Steve Bernstein: And so when I joined that organization, I joined what I felt was for all the right reasons. But when I really got on the platform, that's when I found purpose because the need, wasn't just helping. In this case, the end user, there was so much need. That was whether it was operations, whether it was fundraising, whether it was, helping the organization, connect to other organizations, making real tough business and people, decisions, things that I was very good at and doing in my day job.
[00:18:54] Steve Bernstein: And so when you find, sound purpose, and then the other thing I would tell you is now in the non-profit space, I spend time and I focus hard and wear ways that I know I can deliver a large impact and areas that I can help thrive or help end the mission or fulfill the mission opposed to. I get asked a lot to be involved in a lot of organizations and I have to be very thoughtful of what they need and what I can deliver, but I think that's the ultimate definition of purpose is really putting the individual, the, cause the need, the problem at the center of everything you do and not thinking about any outcomes for you personally, just thinking about all the work and the value you can add to lift in return.
[00:19:45] Steve Bernstein: What my experience is, you get lifted just like everything else. We all rise.
[00:19:51] Darren Reinke: Yeah. I love that. It's very much a servant leadership view of purpose in terms of focusing on serving and helping other people.
[00:20:00] Steve Bernstein: I get caught sometimes, I've been an executive coach. I do a lot of mentorship and sponsorship, and sometimes you want to solve people's problems all in one sitting.
[00:20:10] Steve Bernstein: Sometimes you want to give them everything that they need right then, and you have to realize that nobody can really handle that much. And so, I really believe in incremental improvement. I believe in setting goals, I believe in not taking too much on, but understanding what you're capable of doing so, incremental improvement is a really important fact for me because it's part of a growth mindset.
[00:20:36] Steve Bernstein: It's really about setting goals that are realistic and understanding building a strategic plan or building a plan, understanding your resources and really thinking about how you're going to execute. And so to me, incremental improvement would remove a lot of stress and anxiety and fear out of a lot of people.
[00:20:57] Steve Bernstein: But also even when you run a business or a non-profit, you can't raise it all in one day, you can't help everybody in one day. But if you continuously are measuring and progressing and moving forward and growing, then you're going to achieve it. And you're going to end up influencing and doing a lot more on the way.
[00:21:17] Steve Bernstein: And you're on your journey.
[00:21:19] Darren Reinke: Yeah. I think it's probably a little bit too aspirational, but I do believe that every day there's an opportunity to get better in every way. So looking out through the lens of realism, I recognize that there's not always in every way, but I think that incremental improvements really important, but that does take a lot of patience.
[00:21:36] Darren Reinke: It takes focus. It takes perseverance because I think most people, they want these overnight successes. They want it, they want to read a book. They want to do what an author says or what a Ted talk speaker says and get step change improvement overnight. And so, that does require some persistence and patience.
[00:21:52] Steve Bernstein: One of the things that I shared earlier, and I think I'll spend just a minute on it real quick, is one of the things that I've benefited in sports and in acting the word discipline and discipline doesn't mean getting in trouble. This is meaning that you have the ability to follow through with your commitment of what you said you were going to do.
[00:22:15] Steve Bernstein: And I agree with you. It's, let's say we're going to go on a diet and I want to lose weight. And I fall off one day and I, go get ice cream or whatever, the amount of stress or pressure someone might put on themselves because they cheated in their mind. It can be the derailleur of you achieving your goal, switching the mindset.
[00:22:40] Steve Bernstein: And saying I'm disciplined. I also need to have fun and balance in life. What does this small little cheat day really impact where I'm headed? The reality is, it means nothing in the long scheme, if you get right back on track. So, I think sometimes we are mentally tougher on ourselves because of that immediate gratification.
[00:23:03] Steve Bernstein: And the reality is that's where the preparation also comes to know, trying to understand how long should it take. So for someone, how long has it taken for you to be successful, to write your book, to build your brand. If someone saw you today, they make it, you make it look easy, but the reality is all of those, all that work and sacrifice that a lot of people don't see.
[00:23:25] Steve Bernstein: So I think it's really important. You create visibility and truth and transparency into, goal achievement and things like.
[00:23:34] Darren Reinke: Yeah. And I like to say it's a bumpy on the way up, and it's not always a linear path straight up, whereas, and I think you touched on a few things. I think it's giving yourself grace.
[00:23:45] Darren Reinke: And when you do have that, you have the ice cream, or you fall short of a personal goal or leadership goal you're trying to achieve. But also I think acknowledging yourself, acknowledging the fact that you're trying and doing these because change is hard for, I wouldn't say most people probably for everybody in reality and acknowledge the successes that you're having when you make those changes.
[00:24:05] Darren Reinke: But also just to acknowledge when you try, maybe it doesn't work out exactly the way you want it to.
[00:24:11] Steve Bernstein: I think the acknowledgement, I think is really important, I believe in accountability buddies, right? I believe in putting things out, out in the universe, to speak, I believe in saying what you want to accomplish.
[00:24:23] Steve Bernstein: And we all know. Whatever our success, what we want to accomplish. It's not easy, no matter what people can make it look easy, they might have more skill, more experience. You might not see the grind behind the scenes, but the reality is it's just not easy. And so, I think we need help, and we need support, and we need positive influences to help us.
[00:24:47] Steve Bernstein: And we also need people to tell us the truth, and I think that's a really important factor. And a lot of people, they want to surround themselves with people that make them feel good. And the reality is. They're not the ones to make yourself feel good. It's you buy your investment and buy the things you do for yourself will make you feel good.
[00:25:08] Steve Bernstein: I'll say this. I believe in there's a saying, when you go on an airplane and I think that's all the time and I hold myself to this and my kids and I teach it to anyone that I coach, or I work with. When you go on an airplane, and they start giving you the directions of what to do. The first thing I say is when the, if there's air cabin pressure and the oxygen mask drops, put it on yourself before you put it on someone else.
[00:25:34] Steve Bernstein: Even if it's your infant child, you can hear people arguing. I'll, I won't do that. I'll put that on my kid first. And the reality is it's such an important. Lesson and in such an important message, which is telling you, investing yourself, ensure that you are in the, you have the ability, the skill, the time, the commitment to actually go help somebody else.
[00:25:57] Steve Bernstein: So investing yourself first, before you help other people. I see a lot of times, a lot of people, they neglect themselves. They are fulfilled or feel fulfilled by helping others, but yet they're not doing the work for themselves. And to me, I think that's one of the biggest opportunities for people and growth for leadership, for success, for the confidence factor we were talking about, we're looking outward for confidence. And the reality is we have to invest in, build the competence inward and then bring it out. So, it's a little bit opposite. I've learned that through the years. That's what I teach. And I coach it's a self-discovery type of method. I think it's really simple.
[00:26:41] Steve Bernstein: That people start with them before they start helping others. You can't serve others unless you are in the best possible position for yourself. Yeah.
[00:26:50] Darren Reinke: A hundred percent agree with that. I think that points to self-care is self-development because you can't be a great leader, inspiring leader. If you're just totally burnt out, you're running on fumes, you're not centered.
[00:27:01] Darren Reinke: You're not patient. There are so many things that are really important to be a leader. And I totally agree that you have to work on yourself so that you can serve other people.
[00:27:08] Steve Bernstein: Absolutely. If not, there's major risk for yourself. And quite frankly, there are major risks for the people that you're trying to serve.
[00:27:17] Steve Bernstein: And you might have all the best intention, but if you're not prepared, or you don't have the skill or the time or the ability to do it, you're actually putting them in a worse situation than being able to make. Raise your hand and say, unfortunately, I'm not the right person at this time. So, I think that's where we, being in the business, I am observing.
[00:27:40] Steve Bernstein: That's where I always really keep the customer at the center of everything I do. And whether the customer is in business or customer is my wife, the person I am talking to, I'm talking my thought process and focus needs to be about their best interest, not where I put my interest into their interest.
[00:28:02] Steve Bernstein: That's where I think you have to be. And it takes time. It takes skill. It takes discipline, all the things we're talking about, but truly that's where you become selfless. When you can do something like that.
[00:28:15] Darren Reinke: I love to switch gears a little bit. And what I'd hope to talk to you about is the food bank.
[00:28:19] Darren Reinke: And talk to me about how you got involved in the food bank, what you're trying to solve. And just also the problem of food insecurity. I was just blown away in terms of understanding the magnitude
[00:28:28] Steve Bernstein: of that. Absolutely. It's been nine years. I got involved in the food bank nine years ago, and my wife is a teacher.
[00:28:36] Steve Bernstein: She's a primary school teacher. She teaches kindergarten. And if you know anything about a kindergarten teacher, they are saints and angels. They, the patients, the commitment. And if you think about what they are tasked with every day, bringing in a precious child that really doesn't know anything, except what's been influenced around home and turning them into productive students.
[00:29:02] Steve Bernstein: And first-graders, that is a transformative all year. And so talk about patients and talk about service. I get a lot of that leadership and investment in coaching from my wife with that background. And what I learned to go through the educational side and understanding from my wife was the food insecurity problem at school.
[00:29:25] Steve Bernstein: And so what really got me into. To start in the food bank with the backpack program. And that connected me and gave me some purpose because I know many of those kids in the community that I live in. And I had no idea that my neighbors and people around me were food insecure or having challenges because there's no sign that says I'm having a challenge.
[00:29:49] Steve Bernstein: And so that's what it started. When I got involved in the food bank, it was a much different organization at the time. It was a much smaller organization. And, I think they, they had a vision and a mission of helping people with food insecurity, but I don't think they had a strategic plan.
[00:30:08] Steve Bernstein: And also maybe the vision of what potential. And so being involved in the organization, the first couple of months I got a good feel for the organization. I understood where the mission and the vision was, and it aligned with not only what I saw as an important factor in the community, but I felt value that I could bring to the organization in growing the organization to continuously helping to serve the needs.
[00:30:35] Steve Bernstein: When I started to uncover in the food bank, who we serve children, active military, service workers, you name it, seniors homeless. It's a really diverse segment. And in San Diego County, it's a large number. And so, really the opportunity. That has given me purpose was the food insecurity need is so great.
[00:31:01] Steve Bernstein: One organization can't do it on their own. And so, I saw an opportunity to not only help grow this organization, brings some business, acumen, some stability, a lot of nonprofits, they run like a nonprofit. And what I mean by that is they run like a charity, and they don't run like a business. And generating donations is like Jeff, Dan D generating revenue for a business.
[00:31:29] Steve Bernstein: And so what I really tried to help with the organization is help them understand that they're a business and not a charity. And if we're going to be able to really achieve our mission, we have to do things differently. We have to raise money differently. We have to collaborate differently. We have to partner differently.
[00:31:46] Steve Bernstein: We have to think strategically. So, that's, what's got me involved and kept me in the food bank. If I saw the impact, it was in my life. It wasn't my children, it wasn't my home. It was my wife and not just her school, but many schools and many children of that age. And so, I found a little bit of purpose there, but once I got in and saw what the organization, what was possible, then I found a different purpose.
[00:32:13] Steve Bernstein: And it's continued to build from there. And so, I looked back nine years. We were serving, a couple of hundred thousand people. Then it got up to a number of around 300, 350,000. We did about 12 to $18 million in revenue, which if you think about food and everything added in, that's what goes in there this year, we are feeding at a peak.
[00:32:37] Steve Bernstein: We were feeding over 600,000 people, and we are doing over a hundred million dollars in revenue in nine years. And that is for multiple reasons, right? Leadership strategy, the need, building out more awareness, leveraging better resources. We use our board, I think differently than most nonprofits.
[00:32:58] Steve Bernstein: We really leverage the communities that they serve in a, we leveraged their network. So, we really try to be strategic and creative, just like any other business would be because at the end of the day, we're not making widgets. And we're not selling anything. We're feeding people. And when you're feeding people, you have to be on the top of your game.
[00:33:22] Steve Bernstein: You have to be strategic because the need never, it never ends. That's what's kept me there.
[00:33:28] Darren Reinke: Can you define the term food insecurity for people? Because I don't think most people know. I know I didn't as of a few years ago, even. And just also the magnitude of the problem, not just here locally in San Diego, but nationwide across the U S I think the misconception is, or a very prosperous nation, but the food insecurity issue is a massive one for us.
[00:33:48] Steve Bernstein: It is massive. And I think that one challenge that a lot of people face is unless you can see it, feel it or taste it, you don't know about it. And so, it's really about bringing visibility to what the need is. So what San Diego has 3 million people, right? And we're feeding, combined with the other agencies, about a million to a million.
[00:34:11] Steve Bernstein: When you think about what makes up that population. I mentioned children, active military seniors, but the reality is what we've seen through the pandemic is we've seen unemployment impact. We've seen the service industry impact. So, a lot of the people that where you are today, where you want, maybe you walk to your local Starbucks and you get your coffee.
[00:34:33] Steve Bernstein: And the person behind the counter at Starbucks, who is making 15 bucks an hour, serving your coffee. And you go on your day. That could be a person that we're serving in this current environment, but you don't realize it because of the level of needs. The level of where the economy is, the impact, what it takes to, living wage wise.
[00:34:59] Steve Bernstein: So we hear a lot in the media, minimum wages, rising, things like that. There are impacts to all of that, just by weight, moving minimum wage to let's say 15 bucks an hour, doesn't solve the food insecurity problem. It actually could create more of an issue because maybe certain small businesses can't hire those people anymore.
[00:35:21] Steve Bernstein: But at the end of the day, when you actually break out $15 per hour, and you base that off a 40-hour workweek, no matter really where you're living in the country, you're at that poverty level or just above it. And so if you take that, and you scale it across the country, it's 10 50. You can go to LA, it's greater.
[00:35:41] Steve Bernstein: You can go to Des Moines, Iowa. I was talking to a food bank in San Antonio, Texas, that we've partnered with. We've learned a lot from the organization, same challenges and faced in San Antonio. So, it's not a regional issue. It's not something that's just in San Diego or in a community that you're at.
[00:36:00] Steve Bernstein: It's global, actually not to go off-topic, but one of the interesting subject matters that's up right now that I'm hearing in the news is Elon Musk came out and asked a really bold question and said, what would it take financially to end world hunger? And I think the world hunger association came out and said something around $6 billion.
[00:36:23] Steve Bernstein: And they're talking about that right now, strategically. And honestly, it's not going to be about food. It's going to be getting the food into people's hands. We have an abundance of food in the country. It's a matter of distribution. It's a matter of education. It's a matter of figuring out ways to actually get the food to the people that need it.
[00:36:46] Steve Bernstein: So while the need is great, and it continues to grow logistically, how do you get the food into those people's hands? We talked a little bit about fear before, right? And ego plays a lot into food insecurity. It sounds like a very simple thing. Oh, go buy up, 59 cent tacos at Taco Bell or something like that.
[00:37:09] Steve Bernstein: That's not how this works. And I think we try to simplify that in our minds, but that's not how food insecurity works. Food insecurity works is a constant problem because a lot of people don't know where to go. They don't know how to get to the food. And if you walked into a grocery store and the affordability factor is not there.
[00:37:32] Steve Bernstein: You're not walking into a grocery store anymore. So, that's the real key. One of the other things I'll tell you is for our organization, for the Jacob and Cushman San Diego food bank. One of the things I'm most proud of is every dollar donated, every single dollar that's donated to our organization. We deliver five meals to people, five meals.
[00:37:55] Steve Bernstein: That's what high protein, all healthy products to deliver to the end user. So, they're not eating fast food. We're talking peanut butter, high proteins, like tuna chicken. That's the bowls, things like that. And so, a donation to a food bank goes a long way. I think it's 93 cents 94 cents of every dollar that is donated to us, goes to programs, goes to services.
[00:38:23] Steve Bernstein: So that's another thing is I think in this industry that they need us so great. But we run very efficiently, but it's still that gap is we have massive amounts of food, and how do you get it to the people that actually need it? That's the real food insecurity issue right now.
[00:38:45] Darren Reinke: So distribution, you also mentioned something interesting in terms of the mission and vision of your organization in terms of not just giving out food, but actually getting at the root cause and solving the problem.
[00:38:55] Darren Reinke: What are you guys actually doing to address some of those underlying issues?
[00:38:58] Steve Bernstein: One is we've expanded a little bit, right? So, when you think about food insecurity, or you think about people that are in the space of needs, of what I feel are our basic necessities, being a parent you're told, and you're taught that you have to provide food, a roof and clothing to your child.
[00:39:17] Steve Bernstein: And we stopped that at a certain point in this country. And the reality is the need continues, but yet the services don't. And for us. Number one is education, that is absolutely critical. Collaboration with other agencies and organizations to get to their constituents and the people that they can connect within the community to be able to ensure that people know they can get one, they can get food and two, they know where to get it.
[00:39:45] Steve Bernstein: And three, it is a process that is so simple. And we ultimately, the number one thing we make sure about our people and the people we serve is they have dignity, pride. They know that this isn't about getting, helping hands and services. This is about an investment in them and helping them lift and grow.
[00:40:05] Steve Bernstein: So it's really about the messaging as well because you want to make sure that those barriers to entry are easy for people, and they're not intimidating or scared. I think that the second thing we do is, like I mentioned earlier, we collaborate a lot with other organizations. We want to make sure that we can in San Diego, in this case, we serve the full county that we don't have gaps in key areas of where, unemployment or other things might hit at during times.
[00:40:33] Steve Bernstein: I think that. The third thing is this. We're really thinking about the full individual, a hundred percent of the individual. And so, when I think, or we think about someone that's food insecure, they're not just food insecure and, fruits, vegetables, having breakfast, lunch, and dinner. You think about it.
[00:40:52] Steve Bernstein: As many of these people have pets, right? So, you want to be able to support from a female sands, feminine hygiene products. Those are expensive. We're, we've become a diaper bank over the last couple of years. Diapers are extremely expensive. So, when you think about, a family going to the grocery store, and they've got $30 and their baby needs diapers, they need formulas, and they need food.
[00:41:17] Steve Bernstein: What are they going to choose, most likely diapers or formula for their baby. And they're going to sacrifice the food for themselves. Or, and a lot of times we saw even through the pandemic. People will sacrifice food to feed their pets and take care of their pets. And so, what we're trying to do is really ensure that we are connected with the community, and we collaborate, and we can have wraparound services, not necessarily be the ones that provide them, but make sure that we are connected, and we can provide those services and connectivity to the person.
[00:41:51] Steve Bernstein: So it's not just the wraparound services and the continued services and the education piece, as we continue to move forward. But it really is about ensuring that they can make the right choice at the right time, and it can really take care of their family and their true family needs.
[00:42:11] Steve Bernstein: So that's what we're working on and continuing to expand. So, when you think of any, the root causes of hunger or poverty, these are the areas. And then, like I said, our job as a food bank is not to be everything to everyone, but it is our job to ensure that we are building strategically alliances, collaborations with other organizations, with other agencies that are able to provide those full services.
[00:42:41] Steve Bernstein: So they don't have to get one thing from one organization and try to figure out how to get the other from another organization, it's really about us collaborating, working around. Because if you're talking to a person in need, you might only have that one opportunity to really help them with wraparound services, not just the food insecurity piece, that's your opportunity.
[00:43:05] Steve Bernstein: You have their ear, you have their trust because they need it. So, that's where we're heading. I'm really proud of it. The work that we're doing, the collaborations we're doing, we're seeing literally the true definition of collective impact. We're starting to see the fruits of some of that labor.
[00:43:25] Darren Reinke: So living in this pandemic, what are some of those impacts?
[00:43:26] Darren Reinke: Like what are you seeing beyond serving people, meals and food and feminine hygiene products? What kind of outcomes are you guys seeing?
[00:43:33] Steve Bernstein: We have tremendous stories where, the food bank, isn't just like many organizations. They're not set up to provide your services for the rest of your life.
[00:43:44] Steve Bernstein: The idea of non-profit services is to help you in the time of need to help you get to where you want to be, or get help you get back on your feet or help you just get to some normalcy or some foundational success. So, that's what we're seeing. We're seeing a lot more engaging. We're on the phone a lot.
[00:44:04] Steve Bernstein: And as a board member and a board chair, we always are very cautious and conscious of not separating duties of what board duties and what the organization operations should be doing. But I would tell you, I've never seen so many more active people involved, meaning active fundraising, active in idea generation, be willing to invest their time, to develop new strategies, to do things differently in this space.
[00:44:36] Steve Bernstein: And so if you asked me three years ago, and this goes for honestly, not just the food bank, but really any nonprofit, how many nonprofits do you work with and collaborate? They would say, oh we partnered with a couple or, or we do similar things as them, or those would be the types of conversations and feedback you'd received.
[00:44:58] Steve Bernstein: And today what I hear is who we can better partner with to help serve the mission instead of trying to be everything to everyone or creating that industry competitiveness? That really, when you think about, especially in the non-profit space, when two nonprofits become competitive, the only loser is the person that needs those services.
[00:45:24] Steve Bernstein: And so that's what I'm seeing. I'm seeing that dynamic change. And then with the dynamic change and that education and people having more conversations, I'm starting to see more confidence in whom we're serving. I'm starting to see more people ask for services, opposed to us having to find them. I'm starting to see improvement in some of those gaps that I think we had to the last 10 to 15, maybe even 50 years actively go after, I'm seeing people start meeting in the middle because as we continue to educate and lift and meet people and lean in, others are moving in, and we're doing it collectively.
[00:46:10] Steve Bernstein: So the reality is this, that person I couldn't get to three years ago, I might not have to get to them directly anymore. Someone else in the organization or someone else in the industry or someone else that has an interest in helping and serving knows our, knows what we're capable of doing. And they're an extended voice now making those collectivities and connections.
[00:46:33] Steve Bernstein: So that's why we're also helping and serving more people because we're able to find and engage with people that need this.
[00:46:42] Darren Reinke: What a great example of scaling your impact. So, it's not just, you're just getting more out of each person through partnerships, through greater collaboration, through affiliations, between nonprofits so much outstanding work.
[00:46:53] Darren Reinke: You guys are doing
[00:46:54] Steve Bernstein: you. And you know what, it's honestly allowing us to do what we do even better. And that's the thing, we were able to connect differently. In the community, we're able to focus really and have laser focus on the key priorities that make the tremendous impact in the community. And that to me is a lot, we've removed some of the minutia, so to speak, and we're able to create a little bit more velocity, a little bit more laser focus, and honestly, what I saw and what I'm most proud of, I'm seeing a, more of a trust in the community.
[00:47:32] Steve Bernstein: And because that's the most important thing, if, you asked earlier, like how do we, a food insecurity, how do we get closer to solve. It's relationship, it's trust. It's the same thing. We would be doing coaching and developing a sales team in an organization. It really comes down to those foundational things.
[00:47:52] Steve Bernstein: You have to create an environment that fosters it. You have to communicate appropriately, meaning that your audience has to understand what you're trying to communicate and who and how, and then collectively working together towards that greater purpose. It's really interesting. Every board I've been on, you have term limits, you go through, and you might have two three-year terms or something of that sort.
[00:48:18] Steve Bernstein: We've had people roll off the board after full service, and we don't necessarily have, a subcommittee for them to join. They can enjoy advisory councils and things like that. But many of them have stayed connected to the work. They're still very active in fundraising, very active in distribution because we have agencies and sites that we work with and very actively engaged.
[00:48:43] Steve Bernstein: And some of them have rolled off a year ago that would not have happened in my opinion, in the nonprofit space several years ago, maybe that pandemic has really humbled and grounded a lot of people. And I hope so to put what really is important in life and maybe finding meaning and purpose for them.
[00:49:04] Steve Bernstein: But during this time I've seen a lot more involvement, engagement, continuity, people asking to be involved, but asking to be involved for the right reasons. And that to me is meaning we're on the right track. Keep influencing what we're doing, and we'll make changes. One other thing, I'm sorry, but one other thing I'll add to this, Darren is it's, we're in an interesting dynamic in the economy and how the makeup of our population is we hear a lot about, where the wealth is right now, right?
[00:49:39] Steve Bernstein: Most people over 70 are holding on to the wealth. And so, there's a wealth transfer. There's a generational shift that we're moving through. One of the things I'm really proud of, and I think is influencing the environment that we live in today and why people are wanting to get involved and give, is our new generation.
[00:50:02] Steve Bernstein: Those grandkids of these wealthy individuals are making the influential change of their grandparents. I've seen where a lot more of the younger generation, the kids that are in high school today, middle school, high school, college, they want. A different type of life and pursuit of happiness. Then I think the previous generations did, which was probably a wealth, abundance, and wealth preservation and wealth spill, and they want to see impact.
[00:50:36] Steve Bernstein: So a lot of the things, people on talking to of our donors, they want legacy impact today. They want their money to go to the organization, but they want to know what our strategic plan is. They want to know that we're collaborating with others and that we're actually in it for the mission. And that, to me, isn't a generational influence that's happening right now.
[00:50:59] Steve Bernstein: That is a huge opportunity to listen to multiple generations because they all are heading towards the same place. And you need to leverage that influence to get there. But I'm working with three donors right now that probably five years ago, they wouldn't have come in the same room together.
[00:51:22] Steve Bernstein: Now they're like, how do we do something bigger? So I like the legacy feel that's in the marketplace right now. I also like the younger generation influence, I think with that. And the other things I mentioned, I'm bullish and really confident that we're going to continue working towards really solving this tremendous issue.
[00:51:46] Darren Reinke: Yeah. You make a great point. And I think a lot about how many problems we could solve or at least make a dent. And if more people actually gave back, and I love that you gave some, a wide range of examples of how people can get to get involved from fundraising to idea generation to their time, to thinking about how you can do something differently, relationships, collaboration.
[00:52:08] Darren Reinke: What do you say to people? Because I know there's probably so many people that are listening and who are out there. Who wants to give back, especially during a holiday season, you're thinking about it. And they have, I believe people have very good intentions, but it needs to be easier for people to actually give back whether it's to the food bank or other philanthropies or their nonprofits, like what are some recommendations, so people can get involved and make it easier for those people.
[00:52:30] Steve Bernstein: So I'll tell you two things. I think number one, if you're talking about from a donation standpoint or financial standpoint today, I think the number one thing that's helping the non-profits space is technology. The ability to connect with customers differently than using just the traditional mail system and using mailers, being able to donate and connect to the, to an organization electronically or technology is huge.
[00:52:56] Steve Bernstein: But honestly, the number one thing that anybody can do is get involved. I don't know if most people know this, but if you look at the balance sheet and income statement of your financials of nonprofits, you talk about. Doing more with less money is not being invested into the employees and the people that work there.
[00:53:16] Steve Bernstein: These organizations are run because of volunteers. So, the number one thing you can do is volunteer. The food bank is run a hundred percent on volunteers. We have, I think 70 employees, but literally if we don't have volunteers every single day, we can't open our doors, we can't do our distribution sites.
[00:53:37] Steve Bernstein: We can't do the things that are necessary. Volunteering is easy. All you have to do is sign up. All you have to do is show up. And I believe once you volunteer one time in any organization, it doesn't matter what it is, whether it's the children's museum, the Alzheimer's association or the food bank, you'll find some type of connectivity there.
[00:54:00] Steve Bernstein: And you'll see that there's hopefully you'll look for an opportunity of where you can add value and. To me, that's the number one thing you can do to volunteer, just get involved. So, this holiday season, if you're in an Albertson's or bonds to the food bank, you can donate five bucks, and you can donate an entire that's a, what did we say?
[00:54:22] Steve Bernstein: That's 25 meals for five bucks. You could do something as simple as that. But the reality is I guarantee you, if you're listening to this, and you don't live in San Diego and you live in another community, and I promise you, your community is having the same challenges, we're having call your local food bank and get involved.
[00:54:41] Steve Bernstein: I guarantee you'll find purpose there, and you'll continue to find ways to stay engaged and continue to help. It might be your time. It might be your resources. It might be your knowledge. It might be you just, honestly, you might have a great social media network and great platform. And by you just adding an and creating some awareness of the organization, That could be enough, so it can be as little or as much as you really want to get involved.
[00:55:11] Steve Bernstein: But one thing I will promise you this, every organization needs your help. Absolutely. So align it with something you're really interested in, something that you feel passionate about. And then if it were me, I would highly suggest to that local organization in your community and just ask, how can I help if the first question is just raise money, ask why, get a better understanding because a lot of organizations in the non-profit space need money.
[00:55:45] Steve Bernstein: And when they ask for money, it could be a turnoff because you might be showing up to do more or wanting to add value in a different way. Don't get caught off guard by the ask, understand the why. And when you understand the why, then you're going to be able to figure out where you're going to add value.
[00:56:01] Steve Bernstein: That'd be my plan.
[00:56:04] Darren Reinke: That's great. So many great suggestions, just everything counts. You gave an example of five bucks feeding 25 or providing 25 meals, providing ways to get in there using your social media platform. Or you're just, if you have a platform you speak or, but giving back in time because I think everyone needs to volunteer in the way that's authentic to them and make sense for them.
[00:56:25] Darren Reinke: I know there's a wonderful nonprofit I'm involved with called the honor foundation. It helps Navy SEALs and other special operators transition into the civilian world. And I don't always have the time to partner and coach one of the fellows for the transition, but I do have time to always promote the foundation to bring awareness, to do events that raise money for it, even if I don't have that time.
[00:56:47] Darren Reinke: So I think it's really important if you do have that inclination to give back in some way to something that really resonates with you to find a way and be creative.
[00:56:56] Steve Bernstein: I agree. One of the things we talked about earlier was, I got involved in nonprofit work one because I thought I had two and two was my passion and my purpose, I really uncovered through my wife.
[00:57:07] Steve Bernstein: And one thing I will tell you that I'm really proud of, and I would highly suggest this to anyone that has children, get your children involved. Getting involved in nonprofit work is not to benefit you or benefit your business or benefit, your personal gain. Those are all outcomes that will and can happen.
[00:57:27] Steve Bernstein: But I think one of the things I'm tremendously proud of is my kids are heavily involved. And my 17-year-old, my 14-year-old boy, both boys and my daughter, who's nine, they're involved. They want to be involved. They ask really important questions. They don't understand why. Maybe some of their friends or others are food insecure.
[00:57:50] Steve Bernstein: They might not see it. They might not be aware of it. But the reality is, it's never too early to learn. And if you are going to want to be in this space models, what success should look like. And so, it's not, we talked about leveraging your platforms, man. My best platform that I've modeled and invested in is my wife and three children because when they're somewhere, or they're asked a question, and they're like, oh, my dad does this.
[00:58:18] Steve Bernstein: Or where were you on Saturday? And my car, my son Carson would be like, oh, we were at a food distribution. And we were able to give turkeys and fresh produce to families in need. And that is such a shocking answer. At one of his peers. And what's what I love about it is it's engaged a lot of his friends.
[00:58:43] Steve Bernstein: If it's important to my son, it's now become important to some of his friends. And so, it does continue to have that domino effect. I also will tell you, I feel like it's had a really profound impact on my children of valuing things that are in life that are really important, in opposed to maybe the way I grew up in and thinking about physical things or, the abundance of what you thought you needed to make you happy.
[00:59:09] Steve Bernstein: I'm really proud of that. So, I would tell you that's the one area. I think people just continue to model it, but share it with the people you work with, shared with the people, whether you go to church or temple you're part of other organizations, but most importantly, share it at home and get your family engaged.
[00:59:27] Steve Bernstein: It is one of the things that you can do for your family. It'll bring you even closer together, in my opinion.
[00:59:35] Darren Reinke: Great advice and just a way to pay it forward and really amplify your impact. Steve, I really appreciate your time. I know you're a busy guy, and I do appreciate you coming on today.
[00:59:45] Steve Bernstein: Hey, absolutely. Thank you for having me. I've enjoyed not only today, but honestly, the process of getting to know you and engaged. You're an exceptional leader and there's obvious so many reasons on why you're successful, but the reality is for you to do something like this and really get to the root and the case where people can learn and grow.
[01:00:05] Steve Bernstein: And you're doing it in a tremendous service for a lot of people. So, I'm honored that I was chosen to be a part of this, and I just thank you. And I look forward to continuing and building off of our relationship. So thank you.
[01:00:19] Darren Reinke: Yeah, thank you. I appreciate those kind words. Definitely.
[01:00:27] Darren Reinke: Thanks for listening to today's episode of the Savage leader podcast. My hope is: You're walking away with tactics that you can apply to become a better leader in your life and in your career. If you're looking for additional insight into. Be sure to check out my book titled, The Savage Leader, 13 Principles to Become a Better Leader From The Inside Out. Also be sure to subscribe to the podcast and I would truly appreciate it. If you left a review and also rate the podcast. Thanks and see you all on the next episode.