Chris was a Canadian Tradesman turned entrepreneur. From humble beginnings working with his grandfather to founding his own construction company, Chris discovered a gap in the storage industry and took the leap to create Longyards—a revolutionary contractor storage yard concept. Overcoming obstacles and experiencing exponential growth, Longyards now boasts over 67 yards and 80 tenants, with Chris’s property value skyrocketing from $470,000 to $3,640,000. With a franchise model in place, Chris is ready to expand internationally. Tune in to gain insights and be inspired by this remarkable journey of resilience, determination, and entrepreneurial success.
Here’s some of the topics we covered:
- A Closer Look At The Storage Yard Concept
- The Why Behind Entrepreneurs Work So Hard
- The Importance of Moving Forward In The Face of Adversity
- Listening To Your Gut In A Potential Deal
- Relentlessly Attacking Your Goals Until Their Accomplished
- The Sacrifices Being Made Behind The Success
- The Most Important aspect of a New Partnership
To find out more about partnering or investing in a multifamily deal: Text Partner to 72345 or email Partner@RodKhleif.com
Full Transcript Below
Intro
Hi. My name is Rod Khleif, and I’m the host of “The Lifetime Cash Flow Through Real Estate Investing” podcast. And every week, I interview Multifamily Rock Stars, and we talk about how they’ve built incredible wealth for themselves and their families through multifamily properties. So hit the “Like” and “Subscribe” buttons to get notified every Monday when a new episode comes out. Let’s get to it.
Rod
Welcome to another edition of The Lifetime Cash Flow Through Real Estate Investing. I’m Rod Khleif, and I am thrilled that you’re here. And we have a very unique guest today. You know, from time to time, I bring you things that are kind of outside the multifamily industry, but things that I believe will add value. So the gentleman we’re interviewing today, his name is Chris Long, and he’s a Canadian immigrant and has kind of a unique business model that’s real estate related. And I’m intrigued by it, actually, I’m frankly interested in it. Haven’t told him that yet. Just told him now, but sounds very, very interesting, and excited to get into it. Welcome to the show, brother.
Chris
A pleasure to be here.
Rod
Awesome. So, why don’t you tell us a little bit about your story, you know, being an immigrant and all that, but then just talk about how this idea came to light and then describe it and we’ll go from there.
Chris
Yeah, great. Okay. So I’m I guess a bootstrapper. I basically selling chocolate bars when I was 14 just to make ends meet. And I gone to the trades really quickly.
Rod
When you say trades, you’re talking like construction. Right?
Chris
Construction.
Rod
Right. Okay.
Chris
So I’m a licensed carpenter.
Rod
Okay.
Chris
You know, did my apprenticeship and quickly came to discovery, I was in residential real estate. I had two houses, turned them into duplexes.
Rod
Okay.
Chris
I was loving it. It was good.
Rod
You turned the houses into duplexes.
Chris
Correct.
Rod
So you did the work yourself through the kitchens in, all that stuff.
Chris
All that jazz.
Rod
Got it. Okay.
Chris
Permits and all that fun stuff. So then wasn’t long after where I pretty much discovered in Ontario, Canada, is like, the tenant laws are a lot different than in Florida. Right? If they don’t pay, you have to nurture them and hold their hand. And we’re like, you know what? I’ve very quickly learned I don’t like that part of it.
Rod
And I will tell you not to interrupt, but we have blue states here in the United States that have similar, you know, and we’re not going to get into politics, but, you know, it’s much harder to do business there. They have rent controls. Harder in hell to get somebody out. Of course, you know, we’re not even talking about the excess taxation and all that that comes as a result of all that. But anyway, please continue.
Chris
Yeah, a lot of factors.
Rod
Right.
Chris
But I love real estate, and I love actually making change. It’s in my DNA, whether it’s a builder to put up walls or to change the landscape. So I had this commercial property I was sitting on, and I was sitting on it for a while when I was–
Rod
What was this commercial property?
Chris
It was an industrial property. It’s ten acres.
Rod
So it’s just land.
Chris
It’s just land.
Rod
Land. Got it.
Chris
But I got another house, it was grandfathered in.
Rod
Okay.
Chris
So it’s an old little blue house on the entrance, and it is quite literally a long yard. So it’s 200ft by 2000ft. So it all went together. Chris Long, long yards. And so I was sitting on it for a while, and I always wanted to do this concept.
Rod
Oh, I’m sorry. Let me explain what you just said. So his name is Chris Long. The name of his company is Long Yards. Okay? So if you didn’t understand what he’s talking about. Okay, so it literally is a long yard. Got it.
Chris
It is literally a long yard. That’s the third little pun.
Rod
Okay.
Chris
You know, I always wanted to do these contractor yards. I figured it was this very simple contract.
Rod
Contractor yards.
Chris
That’s it. If I need it, I had tools, trailers’ equipment, and I’m having a hard time storing them on all the jobs, kind of finding a place to call home for myself, for my construction equipment. So I was like, you know what, if I need this, then somebody else needs it. So I pretty much had to sell my houses to bootstrap it because no lenders, no investors would get behind me.
Rod
So you sold your houses to go after this business model concept that you came up with?
Chris
Correct.
Rod
Okay.
Chris
And everyone’s like, you’re crazy, it’s not going to work. We launched within five weeks, we released up.
Rod
Okay, so everyone said you were crazy. It’s not going to work. So, guys, there are some big clues in all of this. Are you going to encounter naysayers in your journey here? Okay? Are you going to encounter– and sometimes it’s family, you know they’ll tell you you can’t do something. I remember my dad telling me, get a real job. You know, this whole real estate thing is not a real job. You know, I’m getting a retirement I’ll have a retirement income. Do you know how much my mom got from his retirement income? $697 for working for 36 years at Continental Airlines. And he’s like, it’s a stable job. You’ll have a job. You don’t have to worry about the income fluctuation. He got laid off after 36 years. But anyway, so you talked about dealing with the naysayers, you pushed through in spite of that, you built this long yard, which is just a place for construction companies and or contractors to park vehicles and store things. Correct?
Chris
That’s it in a nutshell.
Rod
Pretty much it. Okay.
Chris
Yeah. I mean, we are going more in-depth. Then we build a small business community. We help everybody there, but it’s more or less most people just need storage.
Rod
Right.
Chris
They need safe storage. And this is for your industrial, you know, small business, economy-driven businesses.
Rod
Sure.
Chris
So that’s what we do. A lot of similar languages, like multifamily and self-storage, got multiple units, cap rates, NOI, and all that jazz.
Rod
Okay.
Chris
But yeah, that’s basically– and I’m bootstrapping.
Rod
We’re going to drill down on this a little bit. So when did you open up the facility? Was it in Ottawa?
Chris
Correct.
Rod
Okay.
Chris
Ottawa. We got the first one in Ottawa.
Rod
When did that open up? That’s the one you just described. Right?
Chris
Yeah, we cut the ribbon in October 2019.
Rod
Okay. So you’ve had it for three years already.
Chris
Yeah.
Rod
So October 2019 and you basically bought some industrial land. You bootstrapped a quarter million dollars worth of fencing on it, I think you said before we started recording, is that correct?
Chris
Yeah.
Rod
Because your brother had a fencing company. So you put in six-foot chain link fencing to divide things up. And you mentioned that in this model, that fencing has to be– it can’t be permanent. It’s like depending– because you may have one tenant that needs more square footage than another. Is that correct?
Chris
Correct.
Rod
Okay.
Chris
So part of our model is to always innovate, and then part of the innovation that we’re focusing on is these long boxes we can get into, but also making the fencing movable. So the yards move because long yards is a real estate play. It’s a land banking play.
Rod
Right.
Chris
So we find land, then as the city grows out towards that land, there becomes the different highest and best use. So we want everything to be, you know, modular, easily moved, and then eventually you know, you can do a new set of drawings for industrial flex or whatever the case.
Rod
Sure. Like what he’s talking about with industrial flex is like you know, you see this office warehouse. For example, you got a small office, you got a big warehouse, and that may be you know, could be more lucrative play once the market you know, shifts and it makes sense to do that. So you go into an outlying areas where you had this piece of land then?
Chris
Yeah, ideally, for corporate, what we’re looking for is basically anything outside the city close to a highway. That’s probably a good ten, maybe 20 minutes max drive to the core. And that’s where we’ll set up shop. And now also, I mean, as the city builds out, you increase your rates just like traditional multifamily.
Rod
Sure.
Chris
Increase the net, increase the value.
Rod
Okay.
Chris
So when you’re sitting on this cash cow and you’re just milking it, you kind of want to keep things simple as well.
Rod
Sure.
Chris
There’s always [inaudible]
Rod
So you say movable fencing, what do you do? Just like concrete squares to throw your poles in or what do you do?
Chris
Yeah, depending on the landscape. I mean, you can put like a T-frame that’s weighted down, you know, but obviously strong enough so the weather with the screening can’t move it. Or you can actually pound the posts into the ground, but the frames move along. So it would depend on the soil conditions and on the ground.
Rod
Okay, I’m getting a little granular here, guys. Sorry. I’m getting a little too detailed because I’m personally interested. So I’m getting some of the secret sauce here. But I love the idea. So you basically just lease this land to contractors, jobbers, and people that need extra storage. I mean, hell, I’ve got a trailer out my driveway you pulled past when you came in here. I’d love to get out of here. I mean, that’s more of a residential, I suppose.
Chris
But HOAs are a big problem.
Rod
Right.
Chris
And a lot of people, they automatically think, oh, boats and RVs, how much more equipment is there than a boat and RV?
Rod
Sure. You’re right. They all these storage needs and limited availability, and it can become a real pain. I mean, I went by my Nashville asset, and there was a semi– just the cab parked up on the upper level of the parking. I’m like, guys, we can’t have that here. But there’s an example of it right there. I ride my bike down our neighborhood here, and there’s this one house that always has three or four HVAC freaking vans parked in the front of it. You know, those neighbors hate that. I don’t think there’s an HOA is how they get away with it. Yeah. So there’s a real need for that. So I know this doesn’t tie into multifamily guys, but let’s talk about some of the things that you did that work in multifamily, just like they did for you. Like, I think you talked about seller financing on one of your deals, correct?
Chris
Yes. So the first deal, I had to be creative.
Rod
Okay.
Chris
I didn’t have the capital upfront. I was bootstrapping. I was a carpenter.
Rod
Right.
Chris
So we did a seller take-back mortgage.
Rod
Right. Seller finance, it’s called here. Right.
Chris
Seller finance. So, you know, we took back most of the loan and basically put down what we could and then finance it. Then at that point, okay, what’s the next step? We need money to develop. And then I pretty much went and raised funds.
Rod
Okay, so you raised some money. How much money did you raise?
Chris
In total, just over a million dollars.
Rod
So a million bucks. And you went to friends and family or–
Chris
Yeah, I went to friends, family, social events, and Halloween. I was talking about it any opportunity I could, and then the money started coming.
Rod
You did this in Canada. So I don’t know what the structure there is. I mean, did you do a syndication, or did you just set up an entity and give people pieces of the entity? How did you set it up?
Chris
So just strictly debt. So I was able to leverage my–
Rod
Okay. It was all debt. Okay. Fantastic.
Chris
Yeah. All debt. I rely 100% of it.
Rod
So I want to kind of dig a little deeper on you, Chris, as to– I mean, you lived in Canada. Why did you immigrate? Why did you come here? What’s driving, you know, this push to make things happen? You bootstrapped this by yourself. Did you have mentors in this? Did you just learn it yourself?
Chris
No, I had mentors.
Rod
Okay.
Chris
A great coach of mine was Bruce Firestone.
Rod
Okay.
Chris
So learning real estate at a young age. He was a great mentor of mine, and I’ve been fortunate enough to always kind of seek the guidance and the advisors that I needed.
Rod
Okay.
Chris
So in Ottawa, you know, I kind of felt like I was a bit of a goldfish and what I like to be in a shark in the ocean. So I always wanted something bigger. And that’s one of the reasons I was motivated to go to where the heat is, quite literally, Florida. An opportunity, more business-friendly. I didn’t know how I was going to make it work here, but I didn’t care. I figured I’m going to find a way to make it work.
Rod
Okay. Do you have a family? Kids?
Chris
I have three daughters.
Rod
Oh, wow.
Chris
I had nobody here. I’ve never even been to Florida. And we were packed with our vehicles driving here.
Rod
No, I kidding.
Chris
We did take a private jet because we weren’t even allowed to cross the border.
Rod
Really?
Chris
It was fun. Yeah. We didn’t even know how we were going to get here because Canada made it difficult at the time to actually leave the country.
Rod
You leased a private jet to come down here?
Chris
Yeah. We had to get a private jet to fly across the water because they wouldn’t allow us to cross the border.
Rod
Good Lord.
Chris
At one point in Canada, you couldn’t even leave your house past 08:00 PM without getting a fine in Quebec. Crazy, indeed.
Rod
Yeah, crazy to me. But anyway, so, how were you able to push through the fear of taking action on this?
Chris
I think the fear of not taking action would be greater than the fear of taking– of what could happen if I take action.
Rod
So how much did that land cost you just to get an idea?
Chris
470,000.
Rod
So you paid 470 grand. Was there fear associated with pulling the trigger on that?
Chris
Absolutely.
Rod
Okay.
Chris
What if it doesn’t work?
Rod
So how did you push through that? Because this will definitely help my audience because there are a lot of them sitting on the sidelines. They know they need to freaking do something. Incredible opportunities coming. I don’t care what they tell you on the news, it’s coming, okay? Trust me. But fear holds people back. How did you push through the fear?
Chris
The fear of regret is still more powerful. So I was like I wanted something bigger. And I knew in my body there was like this anxiousness of not taking action and I had to overrule those thoughts and push through the fear.
Rod
Fear of regret. Yeah. You know, I tell a story about this nurse in Australia, a hospice nurse, her name was Bronnie Ware. And so she’d take care of patients that are about to die and she would ask them, do you have any regrets? And she wrote a book about it. It’s called “The Top Five Regrets of the Dying”. And, you know, the number one regret was not living the life I could have lived, living someone else’s life, not doing what I know I’m capable of. I can’t think of anything worse than that.
Chris
Yeah.
Rod
You know, people fear failure. Hell, I’ve failed so many times. It’s crazy. I call them seminars. You know, I’ve built 27 businesses, several worth tens of millions of dollars. But most spectacular flaming seminars. Right? We fail our way to success. Have you had any failures?
Chris
I went bankrupt.
Rod
You went bankrupt? Wow.
Chris
I had a construction company. I was doing renovations. I got into commercial. We were doing multifamily commercial development.
Rod
Wow.
Chris
I was doing million-dollar contracts. I didn’t get paid from a large client even though I had to sign off. And at the time I couldn’t float it.
Rod
Wow.
Chris
So even then, I didn’t allow failure to get my way because I knew I still had a flame, so to speak, to build something bigger. And I just found a way. And the banks wouldn’t even finance me because–
Rod
So you did the seller financing.
Chris
I had to be creative.
Rod
You know, guys, I hope you get the lesson there. And that is you just don’t give up and you keep moving forward. I’m really glad I asked that question. I didn’t bankrupt. I probably should have because I had hundreds of foreclosures and I almost wish that I had because it would have been cleaner and easier. But anyway, I’m sure the why is the kids, the why is the legacy. Yes? Am I speaking out of turn? What’s your why?
Chris
I named my construction company after my grandfather Conrad.
Rod
Okay.
Chris
Conrad– and I ran that since 2012 and I put a lot of, you know, love and passion to that. But I wanted something for myself. That was on my mom’s side. So I wanted Long. You know, I wanted the name to be out there. And I want to feel like I just came from what I feel like is not the best background, not the best upbringing. So my why was to show an example that, you know, you could make more out of where you came from. And for my kids and for my family, just to see that you could be great, you could build something great. And that’s my why.
Rod
Good. Oh, wow. Okay. So to be an example.
Chris
To be an example.
Rod
Okay. Love it. Love it. So what future opportunities do you see for your yard thing?
Chris
Well, I believe in the future so bullishly, I sold my house and I was driving to the place of opportunity. And I also built a franchise out of it. So we are the franchise, or we have franchise systems and this can be copied and templated. We have the recipe book. We know where the best land, we know the best markets, we know the best revenue drivers. So, you know, I’m going in every direction I can to build it as big and as international as I can. I’m very hyper-focused in Florida for quality control. As I’m here organically, I can literally drive out to the sites, oversee construction, which is what we’re doing.
Rod
You’ve done the one in Canada and you’ve got the one now in Lake– where is it?
Chris
Winter Haven. So we’re building it out right now.
Rod
Okay. Winter Haven.
Chris
Right.
Rod
How big is that one?
Chris
That one’s six acres.
Rod
Six acres. Okay.
Chris
Yeah.
Rod
So you also have your construction experience.
Chris
Correct. Yeah.
Rod
To lean on. Let’s drill down on it a little bit because I think that’ll actually help my people that are buying assets that encounter you know, vendors, contractors that screw them around, you know, which is very common in this industry. You know, what are some things that you would suggest to a multifamily operator when they’re dealing with contractors?
Chris
It’s a really good question, and you experience a lot of pain points very often. Me as a contractor going through the trenches with it, I would say don’t take them at face value. If you’re meeting the contractor and they all sound great, there’s a difference between someone that sounds great and that can execute great.
Rod
Okay.
Chris
Go and visit their job sites. Take the time. If they say they’re operating at 1, 2, 3 Smith Street, go see 1, 2, 3 Smith Street. See how their trades are operating, see how they’re dressed, see how they communicate. When you go up to the job and, you know, is it well organized? Is it a clown show on the job site?
Rod
Right.
Chris
So the due diligence is really big, and there are a few flags at the beginning that will save you a lot of headaches later on. I’d say, that’s one of the biggest ones.
Rod
Like just what you just said, the organization and things like that?
Chris
Yeah. And you can kind of give them little check marks. So during your due diligence of just talking to them, do they schedule meetings? Do they call you when they say they’re going to? Do they send you a follow-up email after the conversation? You can actually have five to eight little trustworthy check marks to pre-qualify them before you even get face-to-face. So you have to kind of set your boundaries and set the expectation for the contractor. And a lot of people forget that you have to control the contractor. You know, if they’re not doing a good job, it’s a reflection of you and your company and your brand, which is obvious, but these are a lot of things you could do to really stay on top of them.
Rod
Yeah. You know, it’s interesting when you drove in, you probably saw they’re building a house right across the street. And you probably saw that I’ve got tarps all over my buildings here in my compound because Hurricane Ian caused a lot of damage. And the guy over there says, hey, let me bid on your roofing project. Well, I’ve been watching that shit show is really what it is over there, and the delays and everything else, I’m like, there’s no freaking way I’m going to let this guy do it. But if I hadn’t seen that, he had a nice little presentation, had a nice brochure, if I hadn’t seen just how, you know, the horrible job he’s doing across the street from me, I would never have known. So besides doing that due diligence, how does someone protect themselves you know, with the agreement and the payments and things of that nature? And any tips there?
Chris
Really good question, again.
Rod
Okay.
Chris
So during the contract, let’s say multifamily, you start with a demo, right? And you have your phases. First of all, get an itemized scope of work that’s as clear as you can, and then you have every– as more you could have signed off on the job, the better. Even from the type of cabinets, the countertops, the type of tile, get as much detail upfront as possible at 90% prep and 10% execution. The more prep, the less you have to worry about execution. So it’s on you to create this quality control with your contractor. Then once you have all of your line items specifically identified, you have your scope of work, right, from the demo, to the framing, to electrical, you actually line it up with your payment milestones. So it’s very clear, after the demo, you do a walk-through, ideally with the inspector or with the appraiser, with the contractor. Once it’s done, they get their sign-off, they get to pay, and you follow that process right through all the milestones, right? From final occupancy. And with final occupancy, what people should be doing is they should be holding back a larger chunk rather than a small because we all know that the last 1% can take 20% of the time.
Rod
Right.
Chris
So what you want to do is you want to get really organized near the end and create a very clear execution– expectation of the punch list line item at all and hold a reasonable amount back, which I would suggest around 10%. And then it gives the contractor a lot of– you know, incentivizes them to really finish it.
Rod
To finish it, to get it done. Yeah. Quit screwing around. Yeah. As kind of an overarching response to this question based on, you know, my listeners, who my listeners are, what advice would you give the listener that hasn’t taken action yet, that knows they want to do something for their family? Maybe fear or limiting beliefs are holding them back, or maybe they’re super analytical and they need to check off every single freaking box before they make a move, you know. And you know who you are. If that’s you. What advice would you give them to maybe start taking action in some fashion?
Chris
Try to visualize the life that you dream of living. And then ask yourself, do you have the ability to live that life? And if you’re being honest with yourself and you really want it, well, then that’s what you’re risking not having by not taking the leap.
Rod
Yeah. Do you have a team or is it just you?
Chris
No, we have a team.
Rod
Yeah. So talk about how you built your team and maybe what qualities you looked for when you put your team together.
Chris
Pioneers.
Rod
Okay.
Chris
People who are brave, action takers, hard workers, people that are very specialized in their field. So I built it pretty much by sticking my neck out there.
Rod
So talk about the different components. So what sorts of people do you have in it?
Chris
So we have operations officers who deal with your daily ops, and we have advisors as well who are more high-level. We have business development, marketing, and sales, technology. So this is helping us with all the market–
Rod
These are all different people or–
Chris
All different people.
Rod
Wow.
Chris
Yeah.
Rod
That’s a lot.
Chris
Yeah. So it’s all like you know, we have an acquisition officer, so he’s mainly focused on getting off-market deals. You know, those two deals, but there’s a law in the works, and as you know, it’s like planting a tree. You got to put a lot of roots in and then water them and then wait for them to come to fruition. So it’s a lot of work in the back end before people see the results. It’s like a foundation for a multifamily. You spend a lot of time going backwards and down before you start seeing the surface. And that’s what we’ve been doing for a long time. It’s just building a great team, building good systems, spending a lot of time on the due diligence. After I got my butt kicked in construction, I’d rather cautiously take one step forward at a time than get hit and take five steps back. So we’ve been building the right people around us, taking the right steps, but we’re moving forward.
Rod
How are you funding this big of an operation? It can’t be from one site. There’s no way.
Chris
Well, the one site it– so I bought it for 470.
Rod
Okay.
Chris
In total, we put around 700,000 into it.
Rod
Okay.
Chris
And it’s over 4 million.
Rod
Okay.
Chris
And it’s cash flowing good.
Rod
Okay. And that’s based on the NOI?
Chris
That’s based on the NOI. Correct.
Rod
Wow. That’s good.
Chris
So that was my very first deal, and frankly, I kind of didn’t really know what I was doing.
Rod
So that’s some good cash flow. Okay. That’s some good cash flow to get you in [inaudible].
Chris
And the other deals are looking even better.
Rod
Okay.
Chris
So we kind of have, like, the blue ocean. Everyone’s focused on a few spots. We have lots of opportunity. So what everyone loves that’s joining our team about it is there’s so much money in the deal that they will be deal specific to the opportunity.
Rod
I see. Interesting. Okay.
Chris
And that’s what holding people back with fear. Like, how do I get started? It’s so simple. The deal is how you get started.
Rod
Right.
Chris
Find the deal, you know, and then if you have a good team or you’re motivated and have somewhat experience, find a deal and you’ll find the money. And sometimes it’s not that complicated.
Rod
No, you find the deal, you’ll find the money. Absolutely. No question about that. So, you know what? Everybody thinks these paths are easy. Now, you’ve only been at it really about four or five years as it relates to this new business that you’re doing. But talk about a time you got your butt kicked, you know a setback, a failure, and maybe the lesson you got from it.
Chris
Like, I did a million-dollar contract, and I had ten employees. I was a carpenter, and then I didn’t get paid.
Rod
Yeah.
Chris
Lost it all. I couldn’t even afford to put gas in my truck.
Rod
Wow.
Chris
So what did I do? You know, you sit there for a day or two. Okay, you get past it. I put the tool belt on by myself, and I went back to one employee, and I built it up, and I built it better and more efficiently. I was making more money with two employees–
Rod
Than you were with ten.
Chris
Than ten.
Rod
Isn’t that funny how that works? I’ve had that happen to me more than once in my business career. I told you, I’ve built 27 businesses where you just cut back everything, and you’re lean and mean, and you just kick absolute butt, you know. It’s very interesting. So what’s some of the best advice you’ve ever received?
Chris
May I say, just go for it. Like, I’m a little fearless, but it’s sometimes if you spend too much time thinking, like you have to go with the information you have and the gut. Like, you have your gut, you know you have your stomach.
Rod
You got to trust your gut.
Chris
You got to trust your gut.
Rod
I talk about that a lot because if your gut doesn’t feel right, your brain is incredibly powerful. It can pick up on these micro nuances, especially with other people.
Chris
Yes.
Rod
If you meet somebody and your gut’s like something feels off, trust it, because your brain is that strong. And, you know, I give the example of– there’s a book called “Blink”. They talk about your– like art experts, best in the world. They can see a painting, and they know it’s a fake, but they don’t know why they know it’s a fake, and your brain is that powerful. So, yeah, your gut’s super important. Is there, you know, from a business standpoint, is there a book– you know, because I’m sure you have people come up to you that ask you, you know, what can I do? How can I make money? How can I be a success like you? Is there a book that you gift more often than another?
Chris
I’d say a great book is “Money People Deal”.
Rod
“Money People Deal”?
Chris
Yeah.
Rod
Okay.
Chris
And that’s by a Canadian entrepreneur. I always mess up a lot. I think it’s Stefan Aarnio.
Rod
Okay. Oh, yeah. Oh, I know he died. I know exactly who he is.
Chris
Black Card Elite.
Rod
Yeah.
Chris
Very great–
Rod
He had me on his show, or I had him on mine. I can’t remember, but I know exactly who you’re talking about. And they just started rolling his stuff out again as an aside. I saw something from Black Card. What is it? “Money People Deal”.
Chris
“Money People Deal”.
Rod
Okay.
Chris
And that’s such a simple philosophy, because, you know, going back to why you’re not taking action, you’re overthinking everything.
Rod
Yeah.
Chris
Find the deal. And then that’s the biggest chunk. And then once you have that opportunity, and then you’ll notice you’re in the game, things happen.
Rod
Right.
Chris
And that book is a great example of that. It’s just you need the three– you need the money, the people, and the deal.
Rod
Yeah.
Chris
And you need to typically have two, and you’ll find the third one in whichever order it comes.
Rod
I see. Interesting. Okay. So what’s your definition of success? What’s success look like to you?
Chris
Doing what you want, when you want, with who you want.
Rod
Love it. And going wherever you want. Add that to it.
Chris
Yeah. And I’m not by any– you know, a multimillionaire like–
Rod
Right.
Chris
But for me, just to get up and go to Florida with my family and say, you know what? I’m living my own path. There’s freedom in that. I don’t depend on a boss to tell me what you can and can’t do. I don’t ask for a week off.
Rod
Right.
Chris
I follow my own path, and that is freedom. And I wish people would live up to their opportunity to experience that.
Rod
Yeah, it’s sad. So many people, they get caught up in comfort, and no one’s ever been hugely successful that’s in the comfort zone. And the two don’t correlate.
Chris
And talking about comfort, one thing that I went through, I was in Union at 18 years old. I was making $27 an hour.
Rod
Wow.
Chris
I’m like oh my God, this is great. And I grew up less fortunate.
Rod
Those are called golden handcuffs.
Chris
And that’s what it was.
Rod
Yeah.
Chris
I left it for $12 an hour to be an apprentice carpenter. And everyone, again, they’re like, Chris, you’re crazy. Sure enough, I was then making $1,000 on the weekend because of the skills I learned. So it’s like sometimes, you know, you got to–
Rod
You take a step backwards to take five steps forward. That’s how it works.
Chris
Take your skills.
Rod
Absolutely. So, besides getting really clear on what someone wants, I think that’s what you said, for someone sitting on the sidelines– oh, you’ve said, picture how you should be.
Chris
Visualization. Very powerful.
Rod
What action steps, besides that, would you recommend someone take if they know they want and deserve more for themselves and their family?
Chris
It’s great– and sometimes it’s so simple, yet so powerful. Create a checklist. And I did this when I was 19 years old.
Rod
Right.
Chris
It was very simple. I wanted to have a duplex. I wanted to have a certain amount of savings. I want to have commodities, gold, and silver.
Rod
So you’re talking about a goal list, really.
Chris
A goal list.
Rod
Okay. Not a checklist. We’re talking about a list of goals.
Chris
Okay, so a goal list.
Rod
Okay.
Chris
And that’s it. And then you– what do I need to do to get there? So you visualize the high level. What’s the North Star? And then you got your goals list, and you just relentlessly attack those goals. And you say no more than you say yes. You shut out the noise. You get super focused, and you get really clear, and that’s how you get there.
Rod
You shut out the noise. That’s good too. Yeah. I mean, I just had a boot camp this last weekend, had hundreds of people in it, and the first thing we do is goal setting. Because how the hell do you get anything if you don’t know what it this? You got to know what it is you want. You got to know what you want with clarity, and you have to know why you want it. The why is even stronger than what you want. Do you have any routines that you live by? Like a morning routine? Like this morning, I got my ass in that cold plunge again. I got a cold plunge back here behind my guest house. And I’ll tell you, this is like the 6th time I’ve done it. Now I’m actually starting to enjoy it. Believe it or not. I know that’s crazy, but I got Wim Hof’s book about the iceman guy that gets cold.
Chris
Oh, yeah.
Rod
Yeah, I got his book. But do you have any routines that you do?
Chris
I’m not crazy with routines.
Rod
Okay.
Chris
I’m a little bit unorthodox in many styles, but I mean, I hit the sauna, I hit the gym.
Rod
You do.
Chris
I walk the dogs.
Rod
Okay.
Chris
And I’m pretty religious with that.
Rod
Okay.
Chris
But it’s not like, you know, 6:30, cold plunge. No, I wake up, grab a coffee, go to work, crunch my goals, and that’s pretty much my routine.
Rod
No, that’s good. No, that’s good, man. But that is a routine, actually.
Chris
You know what it is.
Rod
Yeah. So let me ask you this. If you could teach schoolchildren one thing for an hour a week, what might you teach them?
Chris
Finance.
Rod
Finance. So what do you mean by finance?
Chris
Well, I think the school system teaches people how to work a job rather than create freedom.
Rod
Yeah.
Chris
And it’s counterintuitive because, as well, I’m more entrepreneurial and just driven on my own goals. But I think the school system just foundationally doesn’t do enough of a job to teach kids to kind of live their own path, to create their own future.
Rod
Definitely doesn’t. I mean, yeah.
Chris
And it starts with finance. It starts with them understanding it’s like, hey, how come both my parents work jobs? We’re in a typical, you know, nice area, and we can’t have the life or do what we want when we want? Well, it comes down to money. It comes down to creating enough income, passive income, ideally, that exceeds your expenses. And I think that framework doesn’t get engraved in kids and in school to really mold them, to see that in the future. It’s just harder to learn that as you’re older, and it would be easier as they’re younger, I think.
Rod
No question. And I think it’s a travesty, frankly. They don’t teach entrepreneurship. They don’t teach finance. They don’t teach how to raise money, how to find money. That money really is just thought. They don’t teach any of that.
Chris
Yeah.
Rod
Emotional management. They teach very little there and you’re seeing– you know, and there’s this hold entitled mentality as well. You know, with hey, instead of giving you a trophy for winning, you’re getting a trophy just for being there, you know. And it’s creating really– and Stefan talked about this a little bit. The guy you mentioned, but it’s creating weak–
Chris
Weak men.
Rod
Weak men. It really is.
Chris
Yeah. What’s the saying? “Hard times create strong men. Strong men create weak times. Weak times create weak men”. And I think we’re in that cycle.
Rod
We’re in that cycle for sure. Yeah, we’re in that cycle for sure. So let me ask you this. When you think of the word successful, what are some of the people that pop into your head when you think successful? Just curious.
Chris
Elon Musk.
Rod
Oh, God. Yeah.
Chris
Jeff Bezos.
Rod
We are so on the same page there.
Chris
You got some of the high players. I mean, like, look at what– we’re talking about real estate. These people are– yeah, he wants sent people to Mars. It’s a whole different level.
Rod
Right.
Chris
But what he’s gone through is an inspiration.
Rod
You bet. He almost went bankrupt, you know. And I love that. You know, the fact that he had the courage and the tenacity to buy Twitter and take on all that hate, you know.
Chris
Yes.
Rod
And all of that to try to create a platform that would be honest and truthful and not censored. So I couldn’t agree more on him. He’s my hero. And Jeff as well. Jeff’s extraordinary. He asked himself, Jeff, he said, you know, if I didn’t do this, how would I feel versus if I did it and failed? And he said I had to do it. And I remember when people were laughing at him because he was going to sell books online, and then he became the wealthiest guy on the planet. I mean, he buys– you know, now that guy that has the luxury brands. A little Arnault is wealthier. But, you know, talking about so much money. Let me ask you this. Are there things that you had to cut out of your life to achieve what you’ve achieved? And if so, what did you cut out?
Chris
This is a very good question. Growing up in a difficult neighborhood, you know, I couldn’t go out because it’s just gang violence at a certain age, and I had to cut out a lot of the people that are just poisoned and toxic to your vision. And, I mean, you know, you are who you surround yourself with. So you kind of got to shed a skin to get to a new layer, to a new level.
Rod
Yeah.
Chris
And that’s one of the things I had to learn really young, is to separate myself from people that were not aligned with the vision and the goals that I had. And that’s hard. It’s easy to say, it’s hard to do, but you’ll find yourself trapped. It’s like an eagle wanted to fly that’s stuck in the chicken coop. You just got to get out there.
Rod
Oh, that’s a good analogy. Yeah, you know, it’s interesting. I just had a coaching call with the person that’s helping me prepare for a TEDx Talk, and that peer group is exactly what just came up, and I talk about it a lot. You know, who you hang out with is who you become, and that you don’t allow naysayers to influence what you’re doing. And so many people default to a peer group that they grew up with or went to school with, which may not serve you, you know, and you’ve got to be really careful who you allow to influence you.
Chris
Absolutely.
Rod
And sometimes it’s family, you know. So, you know, you love them, but you really clearly define who you allow to influence you. Who do you think has been the biggest influence in your life?
Chris
I’d say, my uncle.
Rod
Yeah? What lessons did he teach you?
Chris
He was so jolly. And it’s a positive attitude. It’s very powerful, yet very simple. You know, no one wants to be someone around that’s like a naysayer or Debbie Downer. So no matter what obstacle you’re facing where you are on your goals list, if you’re feeling hard on yourself, it’s like you got to look on the upside of things, got to be positive. You got to be upbeat. People want to be around someone that is positive and encouraging. So I’d say that’s really powerful. He influenced me to be very optimistic in life.
Rod
That’s a fantastic thing that he taught you, and huge. And, you know, I tell people, play to your strengths for that very reason because if you’re playing to your strengths, you’re doing what you enjoy. And if you’re doing what you enjoy, you’re not even working. You’re loving life. You’re not working another day in your life. And if you’re doing what you enjoy and you’re playing to your strengths, which ties in together, you’re going to be passionate. And if you’re passionate, you have the ability to influence people and raise money like you raise money for your deal. They have to see that passion, and people want to be around people that are passionate.
Chris
Exactly.
Rod
So playing to your strengths is such a huge piece of that optimism. Why do you think people give up? Why do you think people fail or give up? What are your thoughts on that?
Chris
I think there are a lot of voices in people’s heads that are actually discouraging them from the opportunity that they have. And it could be their parents, it could be their friends. It could be an old boss because a lot of people project their fears on you.
Rod
Right.
Chris
Because if you’re on your way up and you are going to exceed people around you, they want you to win, but they don’t want you to win.
Rod
No. They may claw you back because they’re afraid of losing you, too.
Chris
Crabs in the bucket.
Rod
Right. Or they may claw you back because they don’t want to feel less than if you succeed.
Chris
Exactly.
Rod
They’ll feel like a failure. And so you got to be so careful who you allow to influence you. Right.
Chris
You live in your head, so you have to really protect your thoughts, protect the people– protect who you allow in your thoughts, who surround you. And I think that’s what really traps a lot of people. They live in that dark space, and they allow these voices and shadows to live over them without allowing their own voice of strength to just overpower that, to do what they need to do.
Rod
So how has your life been different than maybe what you’d have imagined?
Chris
Well, I never imagined living in Florida. I never imagined being a franchise or I never imagined being–
Rod
Why Florida, by the way?
Chris
Well–
Rod
Was it political? Was it the warmth? Was it all of the above?
Chris
A little bit of both.
Rod
Okay.
Chris
I mean, it’s great for the family.
Rod
Right.
Chris
I mean, you know, my daughter sometimes was like, we’re having a family day, and I take the girls and we go to Disney, and there’s magic in that.
Rod
Right.
Chris
You can’t put a dollar figure, especially having the freedom A, to do that, B, to be able to drive an hour.
Rod
Nice.
Chris
So as a young dad, I’m like–
Rod
And you live in Tampa, is that where you’re in?
Chris
Yeah, we live in Tampa.
Rod
So you’re an hour from me. Okay.
Chris
It’s beautiful. In Florida, there’s massive migration. Right?
Rod
Right.
Chris
So my business is an incubator for small businesses, so I figured, you know, on the up and up, I’m coming here for business. Let’s stay on the ground.
Rod
For business reasons. It’s a lifestyle reason.
Chris
It’s everything.
Rod
Okay. All of that. All of that. Do you have any regrets?
Chris
You know what? I don’t think I do have many regrets.
Rod
Okay.
Chris
You always ask yourself, like, what could I have done differently? But I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t live the life that I lived every decision.
Rod
Great answer. Great answer. You know, I’ve had lots of failures and lots of setbacks, but they are what made me who I am, made me strong enough to endure damn near anything at this point. And so, no, that’s a great answer.
Chris
And going back to– like your thoughts, I was in a five-year relationship, and my partner at the time, she didn’t support me being an entrepreneur and, you know, going home and feeling like you want to just express your excitement with the business, but feeling dead, it’s like, I wish you had a job. These are the things you heard. And then I had to midnight move. I had to break that chain. But it allowed me to catapult who I am and where I am today. Sometimes it’s your partner that’s actually closest to you, which is the biggest reason holding you back. And that is the most painful thing that I think someone can go through to break that chain.
Rod
We actually talked about that on my boot camp this last weekend on Saturday. And I asked actually, that people come on. I said, how many are dealing with this where their partner doesn’t believe in their vision, says, okay, you know, that may be great for you, but no way I’m– you know, and I said, who has gotten past this with their partner, with their spouse? And I had several people come on and talk about how they got past it. You know, more communication, showing them the benefits, you know. And just holding their hand to get them past their– because it’s their fear. I mean, with your ex-partner, it’s just fear.
Chris
It was.
Rod
It was all it was.
Chris
Yeah.
Rod
That’s all it is. So you got to get them past that fear. And I had the same dynamic in my first marriage. I mean, she was afraid of what I was doing and didn’t want to grow, and that was a deal breaker for me, candidly. So let’s talk about leadership for a minute, because, I mean, you’re a young guy, but you’re a leader. So what do you think are some characteristics that a leader should have? Because as we get into this business, you know, guys, when you take off your employee hat and you put on your entrepreneur hat to become a multifamily investor, you’re going to become a leader as well. And frankly, honestly, if you’re listening or watching me, you’re already a leader because you wouldn’t be here if you weren’t. And let me just say this before you answer the question. As a leader, you know, for me, one of the biggest things you got to pay attention to is your focus, because there’s so much crap out there right now. Negativity, the news. Don’t get me started on politics. I even get sucked into it. I got sucked into it this morning. And, you know, you just really got to stand guard at the door to your mind to maintain your focus because there are people watching you. So if you’re watching or listening to this, you’re already a leader, so be very careful about what you focus on. So I maybe took some of your thunder away, but what are some other characteristics that you feel like a leader should have?
Chris
I love these questions. I think a great leader leads by action and example. Very simple. You can have a great leader that’s talking all this fluff, but what are they doing? How are they pushing the goals forward? What’s their daily activities like? And, you know, there’s accountability. A leader is going to say, hey, I effed up. I did this wrong. They’re going to take action. They’re going to have to have their team make sure they’re accountable to what they’re supposed to be doing. But, you know, at the end of the day, I’d say a foundation of a great leader is one that’s taken action and is willing to lead the charge and to be accountable for any mistakes.
Rod
Great. Fantastic. I would also add that they have a vision and they can get people behind their vision.
Chris
Large vision.
Rod
Yeah.
Chris
Absolutely.
Rod
And I don’t know if in your organization you’re implementing any business strategy. We’ve used EOS. Are you familiar with EOS from the book “Traction”?
Chris
Entrepreneurial Operating System?
Rod
Yes. Are you familiar with it? Are you implementing it?
Chris
Yeah.
Rod
It’s fantastic.
Chris
We have a three-year strategy plan.
Rod
Fantastic.
Chris
And we have a vision and we’re– yeah.
Rod
Fantastic. So you’re absolutely doing it. Good for you. So what did you have to give up to be where you are? What did you have to sacrifice? I kind of asked a version of that question but–
Chris
You know, I sacrificed a lot of–
Rod
Any time with the kids, things like that.
Chris
No party time.
Rod
Okay.
Chris
No weekend clubbing, like none of this fun. There was no fun.
Rod
Yeah.
Chris
When I was an apprentice, I’d work seven to five, and I’d work evenings and weekends. I did that for about eight years, and it was just sacrificed, grinding two jobs. Even in high school, I was selling chocolate bars, and I was going and selling asphalt on the weekends. Then I had a job on the weekend pushing grocery carts. So I sacrificed my time and been in the trenches just to allow the opportunity to buy real estate to get to where I am. And, you know, you stack these skills underneath your belt that allows you to catapult to the next level. So you got to sacrifice the luxuries of kind of the good life, and you have to eat crap for a little bit. And I think that’s just the pain of the entrepreneur. Everyone loves this entrepreneurial lifestyle. They think it’s great looking at it. But have you gone through what the entrepreneur has gone through? Have you eaten crap? Are you willing to give up your weekends for five years? That’s what I’ve given up to be where I am.
Rod
It’s fantastic. You know it’s interesting, I remember– just prompted a memory for me. I remember when I had hundreds of properties in Denver, but I still lived in a one-bedroom apartment and the rent was free because I had this balloon business, and I put up a balloon every weekend. I climbed up on this three-story roof, risk my life to put this damn balloon up that said move-in special at an apartment complex which is kind of ironic because now that’s what I teach people how to buy. And you know, it’s funny. This is really triggering some memory. I remember seeing the owner of that apartment complex drive up in his Ferrari. This is in Denver, and we’re talking CM 60, this is 40-plus years ago, and thinking to myself, man, that is so freaking cool. He’s got a Ferrari, owns his complex. That’s so funny. And looking back on what I’ve done since then is just– there’s a lot of irony there. So let me ask you this. You know, you talked about leadership. Is there a unique skillset or superpower that you have that you feel like contributed to your success?
Chris
I don’t know if it would be the greatest answer, but it’s like a stubbornness to persevere. It’s like, I will just not allow failure. It’s a lesson. So by allowing myself to be okay with failing and knowing that it’s just up in road–
Rod
It’s feedback.
Chris
That’s all it is.
Rod
That’s it.
Chris
So I think you got to lower the expectation. You got to be very vision-focused and create the goals and the goal check marks. But on the day-to-day, you have to accept that there are going to be failures. And it sucks learning new things. It’s hard. Like, I’m learning all these software and technologies, and I’m like, oh, my God, I was a carpenter for 15 years.
Rod
Right.
Chris
Here I am learning all this tech and it’s– but it’s going to help us catapult the business. So it’s okay to learn and to get frustrated, not doing things you want them to, but just keep at it. You’re going to get better and you’re going to push through it.
Rod
Have you gotten any bad advice along the way?
Chris
It’s just not finding out people’s true intentions fast enough.
Rod
Not trusting your gut maybe. Even a little bit.
Chris
Not trusting the gut.
Rod
Yeah.
Chris
Because you have people around you’re like, oh, no, you got a bad vibe. This person’s not good for you. This person is not good for the [inaudible]
Rod
But you ignore it.
Chris
You ignore it.
Rod
Yeah.
Chris
And then you kind of sweep it on the rug. And then it takes a while to creep up. And then you got a bigger issue than it [inaudible]
Rod
And it always does. It always comes back around. You know, I always bring my wife around when I’m doing a really important decision on somebody because women have better intuition. I hate to say it, guys, but it’s the truth. You know it’s the truth. But can a man answer intuition? Absolutely. But you got to listen to it. That’s the problem. We don’t listen to it very often.
Chris
My wife meets my partners now.
Rod
Yeah, same here. Same here. You know, I try to go to dinner and have a couple of drinks and see how they act, and, you know, I tell the story. I had this one guy, COO is going to be, you know, big, big money. I remember we went to Fleming’s Steakhouse here in Sarasota, and it was just something in the way he ordered his drink. And I actually picked up on it. My wife didn’t. But something the way– there’s just kind of the aloofness and the– you know, just not treating the server the way I like to try to treat a server. And I remember he gave me his resume and one of the jobs that he had, he said the guy had cancer. And so maybe probably shouldn’t get a referral from that guy. You know, don’t call him, he’s got cancer. Well, I’m like, bullshit. So I called him. He didn’t have cancer. The guy had stolen from him. And so, you know, it’s just that trust in your gut thing. Yeah, definitely, guys, please listen to that. And by the way, guys, if you are getting into a partnership, I have a resource for you. It’s “Questions To Ask Before You Get in a Partnership”. And it’s on Rod’s links, right? If you go to “RodsLinks.com”, it’s right there as one of the free books. Because, you know, we get excited about getting into a partnership with somebody, and we allow emotion to get in and we don’t ask all the hard questions upfront. You got to ask all those hard questions before you move forward. And that book has them all. So it’s a free resource.
Chris
And I think a great thing to add to that is to date before you get married in a partnership.
Rod
Oh, that too. That, too.
Chris
Have a memorandum of understanding. Create your expectations. Both of you sign it. And it’s going to be a simple conversation. You both craft. Here’s the vision of the company. Here are our strengths, here are our weaknesses. Here’s what you’re going to do. Here’s your 30/60/90-day plan. Here’s your three-month structure.
Rod
Yeah. Love it.
Chris
And then three months, give them at least the three-month probation. See how they communicate, see how they follow up. See if they’re executing on what [inaudible]
Rod
Yeah. See if they– see what their work ethic is. I mean, they’re actually doing anything, you know. And communication, like you said, critical. And, you know, in the multifamily business, maybe you just do one deal together and see how that goes before you get married, you know. The dating could be one deal. Very important. So yeah, no, absolutely the case. So in this journey of yours, have you had any epiphanies? Like any aha like, okay, now I get it kind of a thing.
Chris
I had a few of those. I mean, the biggest one was with Long Yards when I leased up my last yard. And I was like, aha, because I didn’t even think about going you know, bigger with this. I was like, this is good. It’s eight minutes from my house, I can be financially free, cash flow, one deal, life is good. But the aha was like, you know what, this works– and this is going to be bigger than I even think it could be. And I have a pretty big vision. And that was probably one of my biggest aha moments. And that’s when I went all-in.
Rod
Right. So what excites or concerns you about this current market that we’re in?
Chris
Great question. What excites me is the opportunity.
Rod
Okay.
Chris
There’s going to be deals coming in. I think there needs to be a new cycle. It’s been crazy. It’s too much low-interest rates, too much money in the market. Deals are just multiple bids. It’s been really hot for a long time. So there needs to be a bit of a recycle, I think. So the opportunities where that are going to pop up excite me. What I am worried about and it’s a little bit over my head, is everything that’s going on with the US dollar, with China and them getting off.
Rod
And Brick and all that. Yeah.
Chris
What does that mean for us in the future?
Rod
Right.
Chris
What’s our dollar backed by?
Rod
Nothing. I actually had an interview with somebody that sat right where you sat about that very topic and, you know, it’s a train heading towards a brick wall at some point. I mean, they can keep kicking it down the curb, but right now as we do this interview, we’re facing a debt ceiling here and, you know, I don’t know if it’s almost– I don’t want to go too far down that rabbit hole. It’s almost like it’s intentional to me, but, you know, we’ll see what happens. I think some of the stuff that’s been happening is a travesty to this country. Inflation. Inflation is caused by one thing and that’s printing money. And they’ve been printing money like freaking crazy and that’s what causes inflation. And so, you know, it’s really painful, you know. And then they try to curb it by raising the interest rates, which is we’re heading for a commercial real estate calamity. I’m just going to tell you right now. I mean, there’s 1.6 trillion in commercial real estate debt that comes due by the end of next year. And real estate, it’s not selling. And you have to either refinance or sell. What’s happened with the rates and if you don’t have the income, the NOI to support a debt service coverage ratio, basically, commercial real estate is based on the property’s ability to service the debt, not the person’s. And if you can’t cover that debt service coverage ratio, you’re going to have to throw a lot of money in. A lot of people don’t have a lot of money. This is why I know there’s going to be an incredible opportunity in this business. It’s inevitable. It’s going to happen. But there’s also– you know, we could see a lot more bank failures because a lot of that debt is with banks. And so, you know, I think there are several things that could be a catalyst for this calamity. But, you know, I’m a bear. I really believe it’s coming. I don’t know, you know, if you feel otherwise if you’re more of an optimist. I know you’re an optimist, but as it relates to the economy.
Chris
I mean, you see it coming.
Rod
Yeah.
Chris
There are writings on the wall, and you can only print so much money. I mean, everything–
Rod
Right.
Chris
Every currency that’s been backed by nothing has gone to zero.
Rod
No. And, you know, they’ve put this brick currency together that’s backed by golden commodities, and that makes a hell of a lot more sense.
Chris
Yeah.
Rod
But I will tell you, I did see an interesting article where there’s still so much that has to happen before the reserve currency could change just because there are a lot of things that China does with their currency that manipulates it, which is why, you know, it’s dubious to hang your hat there, because they manipulate it so badly. You know, we do as well. But I think maybe it’s a little more transparent because we just print money. But anyway, is there a question that I didn’t ask that you wish I’d asked you?
Chris
No, I think it’s been great. I asked a lot of your– you know, trying to encourage listeners to take the leap, but no, it’s been good.
Rod
Okay. Well, I really appreciate you coming on the show, brother. It’s been a lot of fun.
Chris
Yeah. It’s great.
Rod
You’ve got a really unique business. Yeah. I actually want to talk to you about it a little more, but I think I’m going to get too micro for this podcast.
Outro
So one other quick thing. We encounter so many people that are frankly frustrated. They’re looking in the mirror and they’re frustrated that they haven’t been able to escape the rat race. They haven’t been able to build cash flow to the point where they’re able to have financial and time freedom with their families. And maybe they see other people buying real estate and creating incredible cash flow and they think, well, it’s just scary. You know, buying apartments is intimidating. And I get it. But see, that’s why we created our Warrior Mentorship Program. They’re our coaching students, and they’ve had extraordinary results. My students, I’ve been teaching about five years and own upwards of 140,000 units now that we know of, right? And we feel like it’s just getting going. Now, we’re looking to grow this group and really take it to the next level and honestly believe that the greatest transfer of wealth could be upon us right now with this current economic environment. Everything’s going on sale. So we’re looking for people who want to follow a proven framework, really, like a blueprint or a map, literally, step by step. And then they’re able to leverage our systems and our incredible network to raise money and equity to find deals and close those deals and build partnerships really nationwide. So if you’re interested in finding out more about how you can become more in our incredible network and take advantage of the unbelievable opportunities that are upon us, you can apply to my Warrior Mentorship Program by texting the word “CRUSH” to “72345”, or you can go to “MentorWithRod.com”. And what we’ll do is we’ll set up a call so you can check us out and we can check you out and see if it’s a fit. Now, again, you can go to “MentorWithRod.com” or text the word “CRUSH” to “72345” to apply, and we will speak soon.
