Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Lyonell Lee. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Lyonell, appreciate you joining us today. Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?
It’s summer 2008 and I’d just graduated from Norfolk State University in Norfolk Virginia fall 2007. I was running out of money and unable to find a job in the area that would allow me to use my degree (Exercise Science/Kinesiology). This meant either the military or the naval shipyard (fun fact Norfolk Naval Shipyard is the largest shipyard in the WORLD….google it!) Running out of options, I decided to meet with an army recruiter, an air force recruiter as well as look up shipyard positions. I felt that serving my country could almost be as satisfying to me as serving people. After taking the ASVAB (aptitude test for the military) I determined that the Air Force was the best option. The shipyard was a dead end for me. Days away from signing to enter the Air Force, I received a call from the Veteran Affairs Hospital in Dallas, Tx. I forgot that I filled out this super long, super detailed application for a Kinesiotherapy position. BTW federal job applications are VERY complicated, so I figured I didn’t have a chance in hell. They set up phone interviews over the next 3 days and offered me the position with moving bonus! Here’s the catch….I needed to be at the VA by Monday to check in and it was Thursday! AND I wasn’t going to get paid for 1-2 months. I didn’t care about any of that, I GOT A JOB!!! I packed up everything I jumped in Scoin TC on 18s (I kept em clean) and drove from Virginia to Texas with nowhere to live once I got there. Admittedly I could’ve asked them for more time to prepare but I saw that check, so I just went! lol Thankfully I had someone in the area that was kind enough to let me sleep on the couch for a couple weeks, but after that time was up I had to sleep in my car and wait for my first check to come in. It took about three weeks or so…maybe more I’m not sure anymore lol. During this time I used the facilities at the VA Hospital to bathe and prepare for work. Once the check came, I was good!
Had I not moved, to Texas, I wouldn’t have been as successful in my career as I am today. I learned sacrifice, humility, determination and perseverance during this difficult (but necessary) time in my life. It allowed me to believe that I can LITERALLY do ANYTHING I put my mind to. Which is how I somehow managed to start a Car Club and a few other businesses 4 years later (with the help and sacrifice of my beautiful wife Antwanette) AND transition into a completely different career 13 years later (I’m currently a Client Implementation Manager). I truly believe that I can do anything thanks to this experience and the other very difficult situations I’m had in my life. I have several other risks I could talk about when it comes to my Car Club and the other businesses….but maybe that’s a story for another time! :-)
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I’m Lyonell…or “LL”….or “Lee”….it depends on what time in my life you met me…lol Growing up I always felt I was good at helping people. I felt I needed to…. In grade school, I helped my fellow musicians become better musicians (which, in turn, helped me become a better musician). This led to me becoming Drum Major in High School and a Section Leader in College….but I realized early in my college career that I wanted to go into Healthcare instead of music. Music was/is my passion, and I didn’t want to tire of it by making it my job. So I decided to turn my focus to helping people heal. This led me to an Exercise Science/ Kinesiology degree. In turn, this degree landed me a Kinesiotherapist (Corrective/ Rehab Therapist) position at the VA Hospital, a Health Coach with Cigna, then a Team Lead and now a Clinical Implementation Manager with the same company. Early in my career, I realized I had more to offer the world than just my job, I started working on founding C3 Car Club Inc. in 2012 and its standalone non-profit, C3 Cares Inc in 2015.
C3 is by far the greatest achievement in my life. This car club changed the car scene for the better and helped people all over the country connect with others in their community in a meaningful and positive way. We’ve inspired others to work to improve their community as well as start their own organizations (other car club, social clubs ect). Our members have been creating positive change in the community for over 10 years now with NO signs of stopping. I feel the next step for me is to find a way to help people with a vision and bring that vision to life….at least help with the paperwork. I don’t want to see other small business owners make the same mistakes we’ve made. This is how I see myself servicing my community for the near future.
Do you have any insights you can share related to maintaining high team morale?
People want to enjoy their roles. I think the best way to allow them to do that is to be transparent, positive and solution oriented. Most morale killers come from an unsolved problem or a lack of communication between two or more people. If you’re clear about your expectations and you LISTEN to the expectations, wants and needs of your team, it’s hard to lose!
Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?
“Cigars, Whiskey and Winning from General Ulysses S. Grant” – Al Kaltman helped with leadership “Never Split the Difference” – Chris Voss helped with Negotiation
Oddly enough “Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus” -John Grat, Ph.D. helps with understanding my teams needs by helping me understand why people make certain decisions.
And learning conflict resolution techniques from various sources helped ALOT! lol
Contact Info:
- Website: c3carclub.com
- Instagram: @sowambitiouslee
- Facebook:
Contact Info:
- Website: c3carclub.com
- Instagram: sowambitiouslee
- Facebook: Lyonell Lee