West Des Moines native Josh Reel, 36, says though he used to “chase the almighty dollar for 10 years, seven days a week,” he is at the point in his life where the real rewards come from family, church and community involvement, which includes being on the board of Big Brothers Big Sisters, teaching Junior Achievement classes and more. Reel, who has started his own companies and is currently an investor in eight businesses, says his focus on work-life balance may surprise people who only know him by his name or resume.

Did you always know that you wanted to have your own business?

Ever since I was a kid, I’ve been an entrepreneur. In high school, I had a car-cleaning business. I would pick up doctors’ cars from the hospitals, detail them and return them spotless before the doctors got off work.

What was your plan for the future when you went to college?

I was a marketing major at the University of Iowa, but I always thought I would be an attorney. I started at Drake [University] Law School the summer after I graduated from Iowa, and it didn’t take very long for me to see that I was not going to be an attorney.

Law school wasn’t what you expected?

After all those years of thinking of being an attorney, I knew, in a very short period of time, that I was not going to be an attorney. I thought I was a big failure, but it turned out to be a very positive thing. That same year [1990], a friend of mine and I decided to move out to San Diego.

Why San Diego?

We were two guys, out of college with no commitments. We literally went to the library and looked through books to see what place had great weather and would be somewhere we would want to hang out.

Do you think that because you had an entrepreneurial mind that you were more open to doing something like that?

Definitely. Things like that don’t bother me a bit. It didn’t bother me that I didn’t have a job. It was kind of the same thing when I started my first company. I figured, what do I have to lose? I’m young. If it doesn’t work out, then I’ll go get a job.

What did you do for work in California?

I stumbled into the telecommunications industry, and a year into it, I thought, I can do this. I can do it better. A year into it, I quit my job and started my own company, Communications Management Services, as a brokerage for long-distance service.

So you jumped into it without really having roots?

I didn’t know anybody, but I knew I could sell. I got a laptop, a printer, two filing cabinets, a countertop and some business cards and went to town calling on people in San Diego and also in Des Moines. That was my first real business, and I haven’t worked for anybody since then.

What brought you back to Iowa?

We couldn’t afford California, and my wife and I wanted to raise a family in the Midwest. I started a long-distance resale business called International Telecom, sold it and then launched NexGen [Integrated Communications] in 1999.

Have you become any less of a risk-taker since you got married and started a family?

I’ve invested in businesses and real estate all along, but I’m a little more conservative on investing, but it’s only because I don’t want to make stupid decisions. Every single week I have somebody approach me about a business opportunity. I look at them all the time.

Who are your role models?

Certainly, Bill Krause [fellow board member for Liberty Bank] has become a great role mentor, which I never really had working for myself. There’s been many great businessmen whom I’ve had an opportunity to learn from, and on the personal side, I always looked up to my grandpa. He was the real deal. He lived the moral life and made a huge impact in my life.

What are you involved with outside of work?

Truly, people would probably look at me from the outside and say that I’m really into business, but my life outside work is 10 times more important to me than my life at work. Hanging out with my kids is an absolute priority in my life.

How do you make the time?

I just clear my calendar and do it. Yeah, our businesses could probably be more successful and make more money and provide more service, but you have to have balance in your life. For me, balance is spending time with my kids, my wife, being involved in the community, working out and church.

And you don’t feel you’re stretched too thin?

I feel like that all the time.

You think that’s just part of living a full life?

My mom said, which has really meant a lot to me, that certain people are given gift. Certain people are given a very fortunate life, like I have had, so it’s my responsibility to use those gifts and my responsibility to give back. A little divine intervention doesn’t hurt any business.

Do a lot of people ask you, ‘How do you do it all?’

Yeah. I asked that same question once to a friend of mine, Doug Reichardt, and I’ll never forget his answer. He said, “Aw, it’s easy, Josh.” He went into a two-hour explanation of how it’s so easy. Well, it’s not easy. You just have to recognize what’s important. You have to learn when to say no. You have to always make sure you have your priorities straight.