Perseverance, Patriotism, & Turning Profit in Real Estate
Perseverance, Patriotism, & Turning Profit in Real Estate
How can business owners build and sustain momentum for success?
I’m at a point where I feel very prepared. Let me explain it this way: when you’re merging onto a highway, you need to press the pedal to catch up with the traffic flow. You’re going from 30 miles per hour and need to reach 70, or in Texas, maybe 75. But once you’re at 75, you don’t have to keep pressing the pedal hard—just a little bit to maintain speed. That’s what momentum feels like. Once you build it, it carries you forward.
I don’t wake up every day thinking, “I want to do this or that.” I signed up for these commitments, so it’s my responsibility to see them through. For example, I’m building apartments right now, and that’s a four-year process. The fire to start the project was lit a long time ago. Now, I focus on how to complete it on time, within budget, and how to keep investors informed.
I spend at least two hours a day reading—not books, but industry news and what the big players are doing. I focus a lot on macroeconomics because if you don’t understand macroeconomics, you won’t know what’s coming. It helps me predict what’s ahead so I’m not constantly surprised. Right now, my goal is to provide value for my investors, which has been challenging with rising interest rates.
The key question for me is: What does the future look like? What worked two years ago may not work today. So, what should I be doing now to be successful in the future? That’s what drives me—the journey itself.
What mindset helps business owners stay resilient in tough economies?
In 2008 and 2009, I genuinely thought America was finished. Every day after work, I’d turn on the TV, and Glenn Beck would come on with his charts and stencils, predicting the end of America. I believed him. I was 29, still new to investing, and didn’t know any better. At the time, China, India, and even Russia were doing well, and the BRICS concept was emerging. I thought America’s best days were behind us. But that’s not how things turned out.
We need to have confidence in this country. Problems come and go, but fundamentally, we’re doing something right. That’s what got us here. I changed my mindset. Even now, you’ll see people on LinkedIn saying, “It’s over. We’re spending too much,” which may be true, but it’s not the end. We’re America. We’ll figure it out. I’m not talking about presidents but our institutions and resilience. We’ve been through world wars and brought peace to the world. We’re working in the best country possible, so we have some confidence that we’ll survive this. Yes, interest rates and other challenges exist, but they’re just something we have to deal with.
Why should business owners see downturns as growth opportunities?
As they say, history doesn’t repeat, but it often rhymes. I started talking to older, experienced people with gray hair and war wounds. They reinforced —America always bounces back. They reminded me of all the challenges we’ve faced: the crazy inflation of the 1970s, world wars, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. Yet, we always survive.
These conversations shifted my mindset from fear to opportunity. In the past, the issues might have been inflation or job losses, like in 2008, but there's always something. When I talked to these seasoned individuals, they helped me see that when everything is priced high and stable, there’s less excitement. The real opportunity comes when prices are lower. The basic principle of business is to buy low and sell high, so why wouldn’t we be excited about these opportunities now?
How can business owners step back from daily operations successfully?
One thing I’d say is that we live in a capitalist country, and for good reason, but sometimes we lose track of time and forget to stop and enjoy life. We don’t always realize when we’ve already won. Life is finite. For example, I’m 43, and the average life expectancy in this country is around 76, though it dropped after COVID. So, if I’m generous, I might have 30 more years, which is roughly 1,500 weekends left. That’s it—no more or less if you think of it that way.
Yes, work hard and be successful, but as you progress, things should get simpler. You should gradually pull yourself out of the day-to-day operations. At some point, businesses need to run themselves so you can focus on your health. Health is the most important thing. What’s the point of all this success if you’re not healthy? We know stress kills people. It lowers life expectancy by damaging the telomeres in our DNA, which accelerates aging and leads to death. As long as you're grinding, the stress speeds up the clock on your life.
I understand that stress is part of the journey, but eventually, you have to step back. You need to plan your exit—not necessarily from business, but from the daily grind. The goal is to reach a point where you have good health and low stress. Too many people just keep pushing and pushing, not realizing the toll it’s taking. My plan is to exit day-to-day operations. Right now, I’m fully involved, but by 50, I want my businesses to run on their own, with asset managers reporting to me. I aim to reach the point of a "four-hour workweek."
What steps should someone take to prepare for entrepreneurship if they don’t have capital or credit?
The first thing I’d do is take a piece of paper and honestly write down my strengths and weaknesses. As Warren Buffet says, invest in yourself first. You need to improve yourself to become useful to others. If you don’t have the credit or capital to start your own business, you’ll need to work for someone else. People often make 9-to-5 jobs seem terrible, but they’re actually a great opportunity. I see them as apprenticeships where you can learn, experiment under someone’s guidance, and get paid while building capital to eventually start something on your own.
Don’t undervalue the experience you gain in corporate jobs. I worked for 14 years in corporate America for companies like Bank of America and PepsiCo. The soft skills I gained, like pitch analysis and dealing with complexity, are invaluable. Many people shy away from complexity because it’s overwhelming, but after years of exposure, I handle it with ease. These are skills that prime you for success.
The key is to improve where you're lacking and become useful to someone. Offer to work for them, learn the necessary skills, and fix any credit issues along the way. Without good credit, starting a business becomes unnecessarily difficult, so addressing that is essential. Also, network and talk to people, especially those with experience. Nothing happening now hasn’t happened before, and seasoned professionals can offer valuable perspectives.
In 2006 or 2007, when I was starting, it was harder to find networking opportunities. There were no Facebook or LinkedIn groups, so we were mostly on our own. Now, it's easier to connect and learn from others, so take advantage of that.
*This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.*
