Invest in People: Interview With Real Estate Entrepreneur Matt Andrews
I recently went one on one with entrepreneur Matt Andrews. Matt’s entrepreneurial ventures range from real estate to filmmaking.
Adam: Thanks again for taking the time to share your advice. First things first, though, I am sure readers would love to learn more about you. How did you get here? What experiences, failures, setbacks or challenges have been most instrumental to your growth?
Matt: I believe I got where I am today because I understand the value of relationships. I knew from the beginning that I wanted to focus on serving others rather than “what’s in it for me.” So, my overall business model is really simple—put people first. I ask how I can help and then, I find a way to deliver.
It’s worked out great because when you help someone, they tell people about it! People feel a sense of connection with you.
I ran with that and made figuring out someone else’s problem the key to my success.
And, after years of following that strategy, I can tell you that things almost always turn out well.
Additionally, I’ve made it a point to take the time to nurture my relationships and that’s caused things to kick into gear at an entirely different level. In fact, I started the Family Mastermind because I wanted to pull like-minded people in the REI community together to form strong relationships with each other.
For instance, when the pandemic hit, I knew that I was going to be okay, but I worried that others in my circle would be in trouble. My team members and I started making calls and we didn’t stop until we’d contacted everyone. We started the conversation by asking how they were doing. Then, we found out if there was anything that they needed help with and if I could provide it. If not, I made sure they got connected with someone who could.
I really didn’t expect the explosion of business that came my way because of that.
The pandemic caught everybody off guard. Many businesses closed last year, and a lot of companies are still struggling. If I were going to share some advice regarding overcoming failure and tough times, it would be:
Know that, at some point, you will experience failure—it’s inevitable.
Prepare by building relationships before you need them.
Make frequent deposits in the bank of human connection and you’ll be building relationship equity. When you come up against something that seems insurmountable, you can make a withdrawal from the relationship banks that you’ve been building along the way.
The pandemic is a perfect example of how that works. The ball started rolling when my team and I reached out to leaders in the different communities we’re a part of to see how we could serve them. What came from that was collaboration at the highest level—everyone pulled together and for many, it was a banner year.
Adam: How did you come up with your business idea? What advice do you have for others on how to come up with great ideas?
Matt: I made the decision to get into real estate right after I got out of college. I found out that my childhood hero, Rob—a family friend who was the coolest college basketball coach ever—had quit the greatest job in the world to start investing in real estate.
I was floored—but immediately decided that must be the career for me. Long story a little shorter, it took a bit of convincing, but I eventually talked him into being my mentor. I was working a full-time job and studying real estate in earnest. Rob taught me what I needed to know to start flipping houses and I did my first deal at the tail end of 1999. By my second deal, I was ready to go for it. I quit my job in corporate America and started flipping houses full time.
Real estate investing was my only business for nearly twelve years, but I always knew I wanted to help other people get started in real estate investing. When we started having buyers asking for advice on how to get started in real estate, the decision to branch out with an educational curriculum was a natural avenue for me to pursue. We offered a range of courses from short video courses to full-blown mentorship programs.
And, by the way, it turned out that our marketing plan created great synergy for both sides of the business. We’d go out and make hands-on videos—you know, “How to Remodel a Bathroom 101” kind of stuff for students. Buyers would see them too and want to see our properties!
Believe it or not, that branched off into a publishing company. I really loved working with all the people that put me in contact with. I started thinking that I should start a mastermind group of the top product creators, authors, speakers, and coaches in the real estate investing space. We could all work together at a higher level of partnership. That’s how the Real Estate Influencers, a live event company, came to be and from there, we started another mastermind group made up of the cream of the crop.
The Family Mastermind is the premiere real estate investors mastermind in the nation. Our membership has grown from around 50 members when we started to 85 today.
My advice for others who have an idea for a business is to follow your heart—or go with your gut—however you want to phrase it. Either way, don’t be afraid to jump into life with both feet. Keep your eyes open for opportunities because one thing leads to another and doors and windows—all kinds of things—open up when you’re determined to succeed.
Adam: How did you know your business idea was worth pursuing? What advice do you have on how to best test a business idea?
Matt: I never gave my decision a second thought—seriously. Following in the footsteps of someone I admired seemed like a perfect plan! I was inspired and excited.
So, those two things make my advice list for sure. If you’re inspired to start a business and the thought of doing it excites you, you’re on the right track.
I’d also advise finding a mentor because they’ll steer you in the right direction. Having someone you trust to offer advice is going to boost your level of self-confidence and lead to success.
Adam: What are the key steps you have taken to grow your business? What advice do you have for others on how to take their businesses to the next level?
Matt: Focus on creating opportunities and then vet those opportunities by taking the time to determine which present the best outcome for everyone involved.
When I’m deciding whether or not to move forward with a project, I ask myself three things.
Is it fun?
Does it help people?
Do I value working with the people that I will be working with on this project?
If I can answer those three questions with a yes and it makes a lot of money too—awesome!
Adam: What are your best sales and marketing tips?
Matt: The best marketing tip I ever received came from Frank Kern, a master marketer and copywriter. He said, “If you want to grow a community, sell a great product, or provide a service go out and authentically help somebody. Afterward, go out and tell everybody how you helped them and ask the people that you told to share the news. Then, find someone else to help that looks just like them.”
You can apply that marketing tip to any type of business—and it works.
As far as sales go… get out there and talk to people. Cold call, knock on doors, and if you have an existing business, go to your existing clients and communities and ask them what would make their business better. Listen to their responses and use their ideas to scale.
I believe the best sales strategies are to really listen to what your people are telling you and, then, over deliver. If you do that, they’re going to refer others to you.
And, remember, don’t let failure get you down. Reframe it. Failure isn’t a representation of who you are. In business, failure is part of the process—you're constantly testing to see what works and what doesn’t. When you identify something that doesn’t—otherwise known as failing—it’s putting you a step ahead in the process not behind.
Trial and error.
It’s how Thomas Edison invented the light bulb…don’t give up on your idea either.
Adam: What are your best tips for those in and interested in real estate?
Matt: I feel like I’m starting to repeat myself, but I’m sticking with what works.
If you’re just getting started, finding a mentor would be a huge benefit because they’re going to pass along a wealth of information. Acing a real estate course is a notch in the belt too though—educate yourself as much as possible. When you’re ready to make your first deal, keep your eyes on the prize! And, lastly, be prepared to reinvest your profits into the business so you can start to scale.
Adam: In your experience, what are the defining qualities of an effective leader? How can leaders and aspiring leaders take their leadership skills to the next level?
Matt: One of the natural qualities of a true leader is serving others rather than expecting others to serve you. Some people get that turned around and we all know what kind of a boss they turn out to be.
John C. Maxwell, someone whom I admire a lot, would say being a strong leader requires:
Learning how to serve others at a high level
Approaching leadership in terms of service from every aspect
Being willing to empower other leaders
Leaders who realize the importance of nurturing and growing other leaders, thereby, empowering them to succeed create an amazing dynamic within the company. It will be buzzing with a positive vibe for sure.
Adam: What is your best advice on building, leading and managing teams?
Matt: As far as building and managing teams, the first step is to have your SOPs fully documented—as in you need to have every step you take written down from start to finish. Do that for everything you do throughout the day.
Store the information in your task management software—there are a lot of good ones to choose from these days. Then, you bring in your talent, introduce them to the fully built system, and they’re set for success from day one.
As far as leading your teams, I believe you need to create a winning company culture from the top down. Define your company’s values, develop your mission statement, and as you onboard people into your system, incorporate those concepts into your hiring process.
You have to work at establishing and maintaining a positive culture, it’s not happening on its own.
Adam: What are your three best tips applicable to entrepreneurs, executives and civic leaders?
Matt: No matter what you do, put people first because when you do, everything else falls into place. Expect failure and treat it as just another step in the process. And, lastly, look for opportunities to pursue that will make the world a better place.
A big part of what I do is providing the people in my sphere of influence with opportunities to participate in humanitarian projects. My wife and I are founding board members of three charities and we encourage the people we know to get hands on with them like we do. It’s life changing—in a good way.
Adam: What is the single best piece of advice you have ever received?
Matt: Invest in people, not things. Always lead with serving others. Don’t put your faith in tangible business tools because when you truly invest in people first, you will always win.
And, I’m going to share some practical advice my grandfather shared with me a long time ago too. He said, “Matt, never argue with an idiot because people looking on can’t tell who is who.”
He was right. People won’t know the particulars of what’s going on in the heat of the moment, all they take away is that they saw two people wallowing in the muck—that’s not the lasting impression you want to make.
Adam Mendler is the CEO of The Veloz Group, where he co-founded and oversees ventures across a wide variety of industries. Adam is also the creator and host of the business and leadership podcast Thirty Minute Mentors, where he goes one on one with America's most successful people - Fortune 500 CEOs, founders of household name companies, Hall of Fame and Olympic gold medal winning athletes, political and military leaders - for intimate half-hour conversations each week. Adam has written extensively on leadership, management, entrepreneurship, marketing and sales, having authored over 70 articles published in major media outlets including Forbes, Inc. and HuffPost, and has conducted more than 500 one on one interviews with America’s top leaders through his collective media projects. A top leadership speaker, Adam draws upon his insights building and leading businesses and interviewing hundreds of America's top leaders as a top keynote speaker to businesses, universities and non-profit organizations.
Follow Adam on Instagram and Twitter at @adammendler and listen and subscribe to Thirty Minute Mentors on your favorite podcasting app.