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The path of a wealthy real estate investor is never a straight line. Often we’ll set up goals we deem worth chasing, then somewhere along the way, we’ll pivot to a more refined goal. Without knowing where we want to go, we can’t get the proper footing to start the journey. This is exactly what snowboarder, skater, real estate investor, and lender, Chris Naugle, talks about with us today. Chris grew up in chilly Buffalo, New York and knew he wasn’t the employment type of guy. So, after quitting his first job, he decided to start a clothing company in his basement. Then, with some of the profits from his clothing venture, paired with a loan from his mom’s equity line, he opened up a skateboard shop. Everything was going well, until the dot com crash, prompting him to become an advisor on Wall Street. As an advisor, Chris found that more and more of his wealthy clients were investing in real estate. This prompted him to take the leap and start flipping, buying commercial real estate, and investing in rentals. But, Chris wasn’t borrowing the right way, leading him to have to get rid of his 37 unit portfolio or go bankrupt. After losing years' worth of work and a massive amount of equity, Chris started to draw up systems and procedures that could work as a safety net for his investments. Now with a smaller portfolio of around 23 units, he works mostly as the bank that lends other investors their money. All of this was made possible when Chris stopped and thought about what his “perfect day” was and what he needed to do to make it a reality.

What happens when you’re pinned to the floor in the middle of a fight? Someone has you in a locked position and you can’t move. You’re sweating, you’re angry, and you start feeling the will to fight flow through your whole body. Although we’re talking about Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu with the legendary trainer and black belt, Ryron Gracie, we could easily be talking about real estate. So many new real estate investors come into this space being scared of discomfort, wanting to be hand-held, and feeling like there is no way to hit their investing goals. That is until they’re put in the proper position, scenario, or matched up with a great teacher. These are the exact lessons that Ryron shares with us today. As a lifelong Jiu-Jitsu practitioner, and now a teacher himself, Ryron knows that the same lessons applied on the mat should be applied in everyday life. Lessons like: be comfortable with discomfort, never get pulled into anyone else’s fight, and change the game to fit your needs. This not only makes Ryron a financially successful individual, but a master in martial arts. Even if you’ve never done martial arts, had any interest in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, or started real estate investing, this episode will help you change your mindset to thrive in situations where you feel lost and helpless, which is something all of us need throughout our lives.