2Success Profiles Magazine February 2019

I had the honor of interviewing Merri-jo Hillaker, who has been a successful attorney and entrepreneur, and used a $20,000 investment in a fish food company that eventually became a payout of $1.1 million. We talked about how that happened, as well as leadership, values and their impact on decision-making, faith, having a healthy relationship with money, and much more.

Enjoy!

Brian: Hi, Merri-jo, tell us about your backstory.

Merri-jo: I was raised in a family with four children. I was the baby and my parents had all four of us in three and a half years. We were a very poor family and, of course, because I was the baby, I learned that in order to get anything done I had to compete. Being competitive became one of my driving forces in my life, and it served me in many ways.

I went to law school, got my graduate degree in tax, and

then did very well in my work environment being in the number one law firm in Wisconsin. That’s where I was born and raised and spent a few years there. Then, I brought on a client to that law firm who was the largest corporation, New York Stock Exchange company, in Wisconsin and they ended up hiring me away as Vice President General Counsel at 28 years old.

Everything I touched in life was incredible, but I found out that competitive spirit was blocking me from having the kind of relationships I wanted because I had to compete for everything.

I went through some self-development courses and some educational courses in my 30s and early 40s, and all of a sudden I realized I can choose differently. I think people in this world don’t understand that. That was a huge awakening for me about “Why am I not choosing my beingness?” It doesn’t have to be chosen for me just because something in my life programmed me a certain way. That was an incredible shift in my life to allowed me to be very effective but have beautiful, wonderful relationships, and choose what I wanted to make out of my life.

Brian: Absolutely. What was it like being a woman in corporate America during the time when you were there? This was a while ago and there were not nearly as many women in corporate America then as we see today.

Merri-jo: There’s no question about that, Brian. When I came out of law school and entered the largest law firm in Wisconsin, they had over 200 lawyers and only eight of us were women—eight women lawyers. I was

definitely a minority, and I know a lot of people would talk to me about that, about discrimination and things that were going on or how they were treated. For me, because I was so tough and probably more like a tomboy as I grew up and always in a competitive environment, I really didn’t recognize much of that.

I know it was 40 years before the Me Too movement. Perhaps it was a psychology for me that I wasn’t going to accept anything but being the best. You could make negative comments, and you know what? It was like just water off a duck’s back. I wasn’t going to pay attention to it and it didn’t mean anything to me. Were comments made? Yeah, absolutely. I just ignored them. I looked at somebody and thought, “You know what? That doesn’t show much intelligence.”

Brian: Right. What were some of the other unique challenges you faced along the way? Certainly, being a woman in corporate America at that time certainly presented some challenges, but what else would you say was unique in what you had to face along the way?

Merri-jo: Well, I think that anytime you excel and are so successful so young, there are always people looking and wondering why. You always have that question. There aren’t too many 28-year-old women that become Vice President General Counsel of a multi-billion dollar company. They start questioning what you did to get there.

Brian: Exactly.

Merri-jo: You tend to get jaundiced looks once in a while. All I did was just be the excellent

by Brian K Wright

Leadership, Faith, Values, And Creating Impact In The World

3 Success Profiles Magazine February 2019

lawyer that I was. I didn’t have a problem with anyone trying to do that because personally, I’m going to tell you, I was shocked that at 28 someone hired me as Vice President General Counsel. If somebody ever questioned me I would say, “Well, that even shocked me.”

Brian: I bet!

Merri-jo: For me, a lot of the challenges I came up against in both the law firm and then being Vice President General Counsel of a multi-billion dollar company centered around ethics. I know that in my position that I held, a lot of times I would write legal opinions because some of the officers would do things, or try to do personal dealings, and buying companies through that publicly-traded company—and I would give them conflict of interest legal opinions. They would actually go to Washington D.C. and get a separate opinion from huge law firms in Washington D.C. on the same topic.

That happened probably three or four times in my three years with the company and I’m going to tell you, every single time, all they did was they billed them a lot of money for saying the same thing I told them.

Brian: What made you decide to be an entrepreneur versus doing something else for another company?

Merri-jo: Great question. There was a sense inside of me that I couldn’t find happiness. As much as I loved and was excelling both at the law firm and then at my next position, I felt like I was a fish out of water. I felt like this isn’t where I belong. I didn’t like having to report to somebody all the time

and have somebody else dictate to me what I was worth and what I needed to do, and the ethics around it.

Sure enough, when I left the huge corporation and I went out to buy my own company, that was the beginning of my entrepreneurial experience that I’ve taken on now for the rest of my life.

Brian: That’s fantastic. You invested some money in a fish food company. Tell us about that.

Merri-jo: After I left the New York Stock Exchange company where I was Vice President General Counsel, I purchased a company in San Antonio, Texas. I moved down there for weather reasons as well because Wisconsin gets cold.

In that turn-around company, I started rubbing elbows with a fellow who owned a huge corporation down there. He asked me to be Vice President General Counsel and I always tell people, “You know, Jim Rohn once said that you’re the average of the five people you spend the most time with.”

It’s always wonderful to find people who are almost intimidating to you in a way. Those are the people you want to associate with because that will totally change your life. Spend a lot of time with people who you really honor and respect.

This person introduced me to the opportunity to invest in a fish food company that was in Cibolo, Texas. They make fish food—the stuff you pour into the aquariums—and I knew nothing about it. We had the opportunity because they were doing a buyout of the company and they

were $100,000 short. There were five of us who had the opportunity to put $20,000 apiece into it.

All I did was spend some time with the guys who were going to buy it out, and I was impressed with their business acumen. I thought, “You know what? I know nothing about fish food, but I trust you guys. I like your judgment.” So, I put $20,000 in. Within five or six years of doing that, I started getting $20,000 checks every six months in dividend income.

Brian:` Wow!

Merri-jo: That was crazy, so I realized what had happened. I talked to some of the other investors and they had hooked up to a new corporation that allowed them distribution, and it was a tiny little company called Wal-Mart who became a customer of theirs. You can see what happened immediately.

Then, another four or five years later when they finally sold out to a publicly-traded company, my little $20,000 investment became $1.1 million. It was pretty awesome.

Brian: That’s amazing. When people get an opportunity to invest in a company like this and they’re told they have to come up with $20,000, some people snap their fingers and there it is. With other people, they think, “Oh, wow. That’s a lot of money. I don’t know if I can do that.” What kind of mindset did it require for you to be able to say, “I can find $20,000?”

Merri-jo: Absolutely great question. In fact, it’s one of my favorite topics to teach people today because we grow up having a relationship with money, and a lot of us don’t even know where

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we formulated that. We teach our children that money doesn’t grow on trees. We don’t tell them that to restrict them or cause them problems in life, we do it because we want them to go on to work hard in school, go to college, get a good degree, then get a good job. The lesson that we want them to know is that you have to work hard for money.

Well, the problem with that is that when you say money doesn’t grow on trees, you create a scarcity or lack mentality around money. What happens is when people have opportunities that

enter into their lives like the one I was presented with, I could have said, “Well, I don’t really have $20,000 available that I would ... “ But, the ridiculousness is that’s a lack concept. I can always create $20,000. I can create it again by just going out there and believing in myself and believing in my capacity to go out and create money because it’s everywhere. We just have to figure out how to get it.

Unless you overcome that by reprogramming your brain, you’re not going to understand why you have a fear of loss of

money or a lack relationship. There are more people than not who need to work on that. They don’t understand why they never become an entrepreneur because they’re so averse to risk.

Brian: Absolutely. I love that you say that you can find money anywhere. If we don’t have a healthy relationship with money, how can we cure that?

Merri-jo: Well, first of all, you’ve got to figure out that it exists. You look at your life and when you are averse to risk or scared about money, it shuts off opportunities.

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Even when people sit down for Thanksgiving, they look at a pie and they say, “Oh, my gosh. I’m not going to get a piece.” That’s scarcity. You have to recognize it exists. Then, what’s really important is that you sit down and you get some good coaching around it. Go through some experiential exercises to help you replace that program with something that’s effective for you.

Your subconscious is carrying this program and you can’t just say, “Okay, I’m not going to believe anymore,” because that’s in your conscious state, not your subconscious. Your subconscious will continue to carry it forward unless you bust through it. So, I work with people on replacing things with “Money grows on every tree, I just have to figure out a way to pick it.” That’s one of my favorite things to replace it with. That’s exactly what I did with my two step-daughters. I trained them about money. I’m doing the same thing with my grandchildren today. In fact, my two step-daughters have both become millionaires in their 30s.

Brian: Let’s talk about something else that I know is really important to you, knowing your vision and knowing what your value structure is. When you know what order your values are in, it guides every decision you make. If you value people more than money, you’ll make one set of choices. If you value money more than people, you make a completely opposite set of choices. How do you discover what your values are?

Merri-jo: Oh, great question, too. I love that because it really is so important to understand that. I actually have an exercise I do with people to help them establish what their core values are. Let’s

start with the reason it’s important first and then I’ll do the exercise.

Brian: Yes.

Merri-jo: The reason it’s so important is because you’re going to be bombarded throughout your life with people asking you to do different things, every day, especially if you have a wide breadth of people that you interact with. People are going to come up with ideas, concepts, programs, and all sort of things that will enter your life, and how do you know which ones to pursue and which ones not to pursue? The way you know that is by having the right rudder in the water.

The rudder in the water is like saying, “I know these are my most important core values. If it’s not consistent with these three or five most important core values, then I know to say ‘no’ to it.” It really gives you a direction in life where you’re going to find the most fulfillment, because you’re really feeding your most important values.

Brian: Wow.

Merri-jo: I actually do this on Zoom with people now. I have people pick out what they think are their 10 most important ones. I tell them do it before the class because it might take somebody a day just to isolate because it can take awhile. Then, we end up having an exercise about separating ourselves from the value. When you separate yourself from the value, your emotional reaction will really isolate for you what’s most powerful for you.

Brian: Right, I love that. Let’s talk about leadership. I know this is another really huge topic that

you like a lot. Developing leaders is a huge key to succeeding on a much larger scale. Would you agree with that?

Merri-jo: Yes, 100% because what’s most important in our life is how we lead really, isn’t it? If you have children, you better know how to lead. You get a job, you better know how to lead. You want to advance in anything you do, you better know how to lead because leading is how we have impact on other people in our lives through leadership. I think if you’re learning how to do that, there’s some tremendous courses out there and classes to help you. There’s also some awesome books to read up on leadership. I tell people to start from a perspective that “I have no leadership capacity so I’m going to be open to learn”.

Our big problem is we think we’re coming from so much knowledge that we can just be dismissive of things because of pre-programmed information that we already have. You need to practice blank slate learning or blank slate listening where you blank out your brain, you just wipe it clean like you have a clean chalkboard. Nothing’s there, just absorb. It’s a wonderful approach. Then, learn and understand what kind of qualities it takes to be a great leader.

Brian: Fantastic. You are a certified health and nutrition coach. I want to ask you about that. What is it that you think prevents us from experiencing the level of health that we want and deserve? Is it education? Is it habits? Is it desire? Is it mindset? Is it that we feel like we’re too busy, not making it a priority? What do you think it is?

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Merri-jo: Well, it’s a combination of everything you’ve said, Brian, but really when you boil it all down, it’s truly conviction and mindset which go together as well. There are very few people that I come across that don’t understand what’s good and what’s bad for your health. They have some basic understanding, especially today because there’s so much information out there.

When I see somebody stop at McDonald’s a lot of people understand that’s not healthy.

But, why do they do it? Well, it’s quick. I like the flavor. I like the taste. So, it’s a mindset about “I’m not important enough” is what you’re really saying. My health isn’t important enough. It’s about getting people to elevate their mindset and helping them

shift whatever that program is running them, whatever it is in their life, why they concluded that, then saying, “You know what? You are important enough. Even if you don’t think you’re important enough, your presence is important enough to your children or grandchildren that you really don’t have a right to leave this Earth earlier than you are supposed to.”

For me, some of us have a spiritual perspective. When I work with people on a spiritual perspective, especially the Christian realm, I say, “This is the temple of the Holy Spirit. What are you saying to your Savior if you’re abusing your body?” It’s about discovering how to shift that mindset. Then, it’s about developing habits that will serve me the rest of my life. That’s important.

Brian: I would imagine that a lot of people have limiting beliefs around deserving a good body or good health. Again, it comes back to mindset which is what we talked about earlier. Awareness is the key to changing anything.

Merri-jo: You need to value yourself, that is foundational. If you have a limited self-value, then you don’t feel you deserve much. But when you know you deserve the best with your health, then all of a sudden, what you eat, what you drink, and how you treat your body really doesn’t matter. I love to work with people because they bring their history into where they are today, and I emphasize today is the first day of the rest of their lives.

You can’t do anything about your past, you can only do something about today. When today’s gone,

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you can only do something about tomorrow. Starting to live your life on that premise instead of carrying the baggage from your past is really a huge step forward in terms of shifting that mindset and then you’re valuing yourself.

Brian: Absolutely. Tell us about International Nutracom and how that has made such a difference for you.

Merri-jo: Great. The reason I got in it is because of my Dad. My father became incredibly sick and probably didn’t have much time left. I knew nothing about health at the time. It was the early 1990s and so I started researching because when you’re a daughter, you’re going to do whatever it takes for your Dad.

I spent four years researching everything there was in nutrition and I came across a breakthrough in science and I just thought, “Wow, maybe this will make a difference. It’s so new.” I went to the company and interviewed the doctors. Thank goodness other people don’t have to do that to take a nutritional supplement, but I chose it for my Dad and I thought, “Let’s give it a try.” It was all 100% plant-based so there’s no negative things could happen.

Sure enough, in a very short period of time, he started seeing a difference. He was living in Sun City West and within a year, he was back on the golf course again. He hadn’t golfed in four or five years. It was miraculous. I just wanted to share this with the world.

I walked away from what I was doing at the time. I sold my interest in a business. I quit practicing law again and I jumped in with both feet. That became a

multi-million dollar business in a period of about four years. I just love helping people with health. It’s overwhelming to me how you can shift people’s mindsets and help them with concepts around nutrients missing in our diets today that really, totally impact who we are.

Brian: Tell us how important your faith is to your journey because I know that’s very important to you.

Merri-jo: Absolutely. It’s number one because your soul is really so critical to who you become and the impact you have on this world. My faith has been a part of my life since I was a little kid. I put God first in my life. I spend time in scripture every single day because it’s what really leads, guides, and directs me, and then allows me to be the person I am today, and of course, grow into the person I want to become.

Brian: Awesome. Before I forget, how can we find you?

Merri-jo: I have a number of Facebook pages so just look up Merri-jo Hillaker and you’re going to find those, and we’re in the process of building a couple of websites. It would be great to have you find me, and I’d love to have you be a part of our tribe.

Brian: Here’s the question I ask everyone. Who inspires and motivates you?

Merri-jo: Well, I start with my walk with the Lord. That’s the ultimate, to be as Christ-like as possible every day of my life. I aspire to be more Christ-like in everything that I do, so that’s number one. The other people that inspire me are those in the full contribution arena. I look at people like Mother Theresa and people that have

given their lives, as well as a lot of missionaries because I spend a lot of time in the mission field as well. They inspire me.

Brian: Thank you, Merri-jo Hillaker for being here today.

Merri-jo Hillaker has owned and operated two corporations and both of them did $10 million in sales. She started in the nutrition field full-time as a result of her father’s miraculous health recovery. She’s now currently president of International Nutracom, Inc. She’s a certified nutrition and health coach who now teaches educational seminars on various health topics, educational tours, children’s health programs, and nonprofit, sustainable funding programs.She invested $20,000 in a fish food company and 10 years later when they sold out to a publicly traded company, they gave her a check for $1.1 million. She proceeded to give it away, 10% to her church, the other 90% to a foundation she established and then immediately funded with this money. When she started as an entrepreneur, she spent the first six months trying to figure out how to make it work and she realized she wasn’t where she wanted to be and that she was the reason. Then, she invested heavily in leadership growth and within one year she tripled her business. You can find her on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mjhillaker

Many people dream of writing a book someday, but most of them never get around to doing it. As the author of multiple books, I can help you make this happen!

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Having a book is critical to growing your business.

38Success Profiles Magazine February 2019