CLINT MCCULLOUGH, 36
Agent/Producer, Daniel & Eustis Insurance and Benefits
Much of what Clint McCullough has done in the community, his closest friends note, are extraordinary acts of kindness you won’t find on his résumé. Like arranging a team of people to move furniture into the new Gardere Community Christian School. Or organizing the construction of a playground for a couple of young boys who lost their father in an accident. Says David Beach, a regional trust manager at Whitney Bank: “He is a giver in the true sense of the word.”
Inspiring book: The True Measure of a Man
The corporate world has snookered many to believe your performance and the things you are experiencing as a result of your performance are what define you. Yet history is full of individuals whose perceptions of success, achievement, and recognition fail men in difficult times.
Major professional accomplishments: Becoming an owner/partner at Daniel & Eustis
Volunteer and community involvement: Elder, First Presbyterian Church; Gardere Community Christian School Caring to Love Ministries; Alpha Strategic Partners
PROFESSIONAL
When you were a child, what did you want to be when you grew up? I always wanted to be a fireman. My 4th birthday was at a St. George fire department station. I got to blow the horn and turn on the siren. To this today, I thank men and women associated with the fire department for their service to our community.
What was your first job, and what did you learn from it? In high school, two friends and I started a DJ service for our younger siblings dance parties. Parties were from 7 pm to 10 pm. We charged $150. The job taught us courtesy, responsibility, good service, and how to charge a fair price.
What is your favorite place for a business lunch in Baton Rouge? Serops on Corporate Blvd. Sammy and his staff are tremendous. Great food and ‘red carpet’ service.
What do you consider your greatest achievement? The network of partners and associates I have developed over the years. I have had the privilege of associating with great people, many who graciously call me their friend.
The old saying goes, “Be the change you want to see in the world.” Specifically, what are you “being” to make Baton Rouge better? I believe I am being a good steward of my resources (time, talent, and treasure). My oldest child attends a public school, my family serves the community with our time at church and other organizations, and one of my favorite pro bono jobs is finding and connecting folks looking for work in the capital area.
What is your best productivity hack? Get a desk you at which you can work while standing up.
What did you learn the hard way? In insurance as with life, overnight success takes many years.
What does your job entail that would shock customers or clients if they knew about it? Giving due respect to my attorney friends, I did not realize how many frivolous lawsuits are brought against good hardworking business owners.
TECHNOLOGY
Mac or PC? Mac
What’s your preferred mode of communication: text or phone call? Alexander Graham Bell’s invention is not obsolete. Communication 1.0: Do not deliver important news, good or bad, via text message.
How low will you allow your remaining battery life to get (in %) before you have an anxiety attack? I don’t get anxious over low battery life.
How many unread messages are in your inbox right now? 1,535
Are you quick to adapt to new tech, or did you hang on to that flip phone way after it became obsolete? Old school flip phone. I am a retailer’s worst nightmare.
PERSONALITY
How many times do you hit the snooze button? Only once.
Breakfast at home? Breakfast on the go? Breakfast at your desk? No breakfast at all? Home or at New York Bagel (Jefferson Location)
Is the glass half empty or half full? What’s in the glass? Always half-full, because I remember Colin Powell, the retired general, said, “It is never as bad as you think it is and it is always better in the morning.’ McAlister’s sweet tea.
If you could build a statue downtown, who or what would it represent? It’s just over 2 miles from the LSU Vet School to the USS Kidd. I would build a statue to the American Soldier and call it the ‘Freedom Walk’. At every quarter mile, from downtown to the LSU Vet School, there would be a tribute to a specific war that our country has fought.
What’s your motto? Do justly. Love mercy. Walk humbly with God.
When did you realize you had grown up? I was 21, a recent college grad, and my parents gave me my car insurance bill.
Which living person do you most admire? Robert Khayat, former chancellor of The University of Mississippi. Dr. Khayat is a contemporary study in leadership, who spearheaded the necessary changes at Ole Miss concerning its association with Civil War symbols. He was the right person, at the right time, who did the right thing amongst fierce opposition. Dr. Khayat lead Ole Miss into the 21st century to become a great American public university.
What is your greatest extravagance? 18 holes of golf with friends, uninterrupted by electronic devices.
What trend do you really wish would come back? Pride in the company for which you work and pride in the company man.
If you could choose your age forever, what age would you choose and why? 50. My dad only made it to 49 years and 2 months. I suspect I will be more grateful than most folks for 50 years of life.
What is your favorite journey? Walking nine holes alone as the sun is setting.
What is your greatest regret? I should have continued my music/jazz development in college.
When and where were you happiest? Happiness is not a time and a place to me. I am one of the fortunate souls who is able to find happiness each and every day.
Which talent or superpower would you most like to have and why? I have always been tall and skinny so ‘more powerful than a locomotive’ would probably come in handy.
If you worked for the CIA and needed a top-secret alias, what would yours be? MacGyver.
If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? My allergies can be an 800-pound gorilla.
What’s your most treasured possession? My faith in Jesus Christ.
If you could live anywhere on this planet and take everything that you love with you, where would you choose to live and why? Oxford, Mississippi. Andy Griffith is the town mayor, Norman Rockwell the painter, and John Grisham the writer. People don’t lock their doors, children play outside until dark, there is no traffic, and Oxford has all the culture that comes with a great American public university.
What do you most value in your friends? Trust
What do you miss most about the ’90s? Trapper Keepers, which is simply a reference to my educational years. The teachers and coaches at my school still have had a profound effect on me 20 years later.
If you had to be a teacher of something, what would you teach? Golf teacher. Golf is the game of Life.
What is your go-to karaoke song? My ‘go to’ karaoke would be “Bust a Move” by Young MC. I sang it twice, once at my brother-in-law’s bachelor party and again at my sister’s wedding. Burned both places down. It is still talked about today.
Who would play you in a movie? Jimmy Stewart
If you could go back in time 20 years, what advice would you give yourself? Don’t be in a rush to figure it all out. Take the hard Pre-Med classes in the summer.
What useless piece of information will you never forget? 1.21 gigawatts of electricity is a bolt of lightning.
What makes you laugh every time you think about it? All the adventures (and mis-adventures) with my brother bring a chuckle and smile to my face.
Who’s the most famous celebrity you’ve ever met? Julio Malara. I dare you to print that.
LOOKING AHEAD
Three things on your bucket list: Play Augusta National with my brother, play the Old Course at St. Andrews with my son, and take my wife to see Swan Lake at the Kirov in St. Petersburg, Russia.
What would be your advice for future Forty Under 40 honorees? Marry well, or like me, out of your league. Success without someone to share it with is worthless. Who you work with (for) is just as important as the work you do.
Do you plan to be in the Capital Region five years from now? Lord willing and the creek doesn’t rise, absolutely.
Why have you chosen to make your home in the Capital Region? Where else you can enjoy with friends and family, a warm community with such diversity of faith, world-class food, world-class hunting and fishing, outdoor recreation, and year round golf all within a few hours drive?
Have you peaked, or do you think you’ll still have it when we launch our hypothetical “Forty Over 40” awards years from now? My father-in-law tells me I am still just a puppy with spots. I, too, would like to think I’m just getting warmed up. However, if it all ended tomorrow, I have had a great run.
