Your Network is Your Net Worth

It’s been said many times before, but your network truly is your net worth. Who you hang around with really matters. I’ll go over that in this episode. 

My name is Kenny Wolfe and I’ve been a real estate syndicator and investor for over eleven years; in this time, I’ve built a successful real estate investment firm, Wolfe Investments. If you’re new to the show, make sure to subscribe so you’re notified when a new episode comes out. 

Website: https://www.wolfe-investments.com

Email: investors@wolfe-re.com

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Transcript

It's been said many times before, but your network truly is your net worth. Who you hang around with really matters. I'll go over that in this video. 

Welcome to Real Estate Investing with Kenny Wolfe, the show with weekly topics designed to help you learn how to build your ideal life through real estate investing. My name is Kenny Wolfe and I've been a real estate syndicate and investor for almost 12 years now, and in this time, I've built a successful real estate investment firm, Wolfe of Investments. If you're new to the show, make sure to subscribe so you're notified when a new episode comes out. 

Networking--what is it? The definition is the action or process of interacting with others to exchange information and develop professional or social contact, which makes it sound really boring. The true value of networking events is something that you either learn from someone else, that's doing what you want to do, or it's making a connection to a future long-term friend or a business partner, or even collaborating on ideas to help you grow, and help others grow within that network.

I know without the networking events that I went to early on in my real estate investing career, I wouldn't be anywhere near what I've built with Wolfe Investments today. By going to those events and interacting with others who were doing what I wanted to do, it pushed me to go bigger, and inspired me to take my dreams and goals to the next level. It just opened my eyes to what the possibilities could be. The famous quote is, "Your network is your net worth". Porter Gale wrote a book and title of just that, and it's a great read. If you get a chance, make sure to go check it out. The premise is that those you surround yourself with really have an impact on your wealth or net worth. It can also affect other aspects of your life as well, from eating habits, exercise, education, life goals, et cetera.

Your friends around you really impact your life, so choose them carefully. Be intentional of who you surround yourself with. They'll either push you up or drag you down. I know I personally work out better in a class setting as there's no way some 20+ year old is going to beat me on the run. When we host our various networking events throughout the year, we're bringing in nationally recognized speakers to join us on stage. For one, it creates massive value for those that attend our M F I N conferences, and I also get to learn things from other experts in the real estate field. Networking with others in the space you want to grow can really lead to big ideas and net worth gains, but that all happens once you start exchanging ideas. Those sparks of ideas can really lead to something big, but you must be in the room, in the circle, in the game and be there to take part of any growth that may happen.

Alright, you're at the networking event--what do you do? You've shown up to the big event, and that's the biggest step--you've got to go, you've got to show up. If it's a business networking event, then make sure to have plenty of business cards ready and on hand. Yes, we all still use business cards and I'm not really a fan of the digital versions, at least not yet. If it's not tangible and in my hand, then it gets lost in the ether of my phone. You're there to network. Again, depending on the subject you are networking around, make sure you dress appropriately. If you show up to a yoga networking event in a business suit or a business networking event in yoga pants, it may inhibit you from making those key connections. For those introverts, this next point is going to be pretty tough on you, but yes, you actually have to get out there and shake hands, fist bumps, and meet people.

The whole premise is to jump in and introduce yourself, and really see where you may have connections with other people. Share what your goals are related to that networking event with others. Those folks may have ideas of how you can shortcut to your end goal, or they've been through the process of achieving your goals and can give you some great pointers. The same thing goes for you. If you hear someone who has an idea or goals that you have some insight into, then share away. I've always found that giving to the group has paid off in dividends; make sure to not have a limited resources mentality and guard what you've learned. By everyone giving to the group, you can always learn something and the whole group can benefit and be better off, and that includes you too. You'll meet a lot of people and gather a lot of business cards.

What I like to do is right after that networking event, is to go back to the hotel room or whatever and sort through those business cards and mark down any notes from that day's conversations, so I can follow up with them the next day. Where do you find all these networking events? Networking events are everywhere it seems these days. Meetup made an entire business model about bringing people together. Now, not all those networking events are created equal, but they can also be deciding which other networking events are the best in the space. Meetup is a great place to start, or a simple Google search should bring some options up. You're going for networking events that are related to things you find interesting and something that you would like to grow in and around. We co-host the M F I N conference three times a year.

Every single year we created this event around multi-family investing. The whole premise is that there is no guru thing to buy at the end. It's solely networking and education. I've been told a few times that our multi-family investing event is in the top two events in the nation that are out there every single year for multi-family investors, and I really think it all goes back to our not selling a $35,000 mentorship package at the end. Our intent is all about providing an event where people can come together and trade ideas about multi-family investing. It can learn from industry leaders, and we also provide breakout sessions in the afternoon where folks can pick and choose from different educational speakers, and that ranges from insurance folks, rehabs, CPAs, et cetera. Get out there and go find those networking events where you'll get value and can help you get to your goals faster, whatever those may be. Networking is such a key tool to personal growth, no matter the subject. We can all learn from each other and if we're willing to share our growth stories and then help others grow too and in kind, they typically do the same. Life is a team sport, so go out there and find your team. 

This has been Real Estate Investing with Kenny Wolfe. Thanks so much for listening.