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Ryan Reynolds
Ryan Reynolds here from Mint Mobile with a message for everyone paying big wireless way too much. Please, for the love of everything good in this world, stop with Mint. You can get premium wireless for just $15 a month. Of course, if you enjoy overpaying. No judgments. But that's weird. Okay, one judgment anyway. Give it a try.
Mike
@Mintmobile.Com Switch upfront payment of $45 for three month plan equivalent to $15 per month required intro rate first three months only, then full price plan options available, taxes and fees extra. See full terms@mintmobile.com people just on building a community and not a company. Yeah everybody says oh you need a good culture. You need a good culture. You need a good culture. Do you even know what that means? What we want is a community. And a community is a group of like minded people irregardless of where and what they're from that are operating together to complete the same goal. Communities used to actually physically build their community together. They used to eat together. They used to take care of each other's children together. That's what we built here.
Sharp French
Sharp French what up this one Luck. I let the pain inspire me. I put my all in. Everything I'm doing up until it's done, I'm me for the entirety. I put it in overtime. I'll be working. Just know I'mma go for mine cause I earned it. They watch and I know it's time I confirmed it the whole society determined.
Mike
Determine.
Edwin Rodriguez
What'S up everybody? Welcome back to another episode of the Determined Society. We are live here in Virginia beach at Iron Valley Realty. Such an amazing opportunity. We're here for an event determine your destiny. So many amazing things happening and in the in this course of three days. Can't wait for all of you guys to hear and see it. Before I introduce today's guest, I want you to take the time to subscribe to the show on Spotify. Appreciate Apple, YouTube Leave a review Leave a comment Would love to hear it. Today I have two amazing badasses that are making A massive impact and splash on the community here in Virginia. And it's just an amazing, amazing blessing we have on the show. So we have Edwin Rodriguez and we have Michael Little. Iron Valley. Hampton Roads, baby. What's up, boy?
Michael Little
What's up?
Mike
What's going on, man?
Edwin Rodriguez
I do. I'm g. Tell you guys if you're watching, if you're listening on Spotify, hit the video button because Edwin is a sexy son of a gun. He put beautiful shoes on with the buckles, the. He looks good. I'm not making fun of you.
Michael Little
Thank you, thank you.
Edwin Rodriguez
I'm not making fun of you. You look very, very nice, man. What's going on today, boys?
Mike
Everything, man. We got training. We got you and coach Burt in the house. We got. I believe Edwin's got some photo session with his daughter. His daughter was our rookie of the year last year.
Michael Little
Correct.
Mike
Over 7 million in sales. Year one, year one.
Edwin Rodriguez
Come on.
Mike
Yeah. So. But what I'll do is I'll let everyone go ahead and introduce himself and let you guys chop it up for a second.
Michael Little
Yeah. What's going on? It's great to meet you in person.
Edwin Rodriguez
So nice to meet.
Michael Little
I kind of feel like I already know you right through Mike and social media. So it's an honor to say and speak to you.
Edwin Rodriguez
Well, thank you, brother.
Michael Little
I received, but I would say 24 was a crazy year for me. It was a transition year. A lot of focus on the company growth. But one of the things that I'm very proud of is my daughter's success. You know, she came on. She just turned 22 in November, sold 21 houses and helped me with all 34 sales that we had on the.
Edwin Rodriguez
Team as a 22 year old.
Michael Little
Yes, man.
Mike
Yeah.
Edwin Rodriguez
That is amazing.
Mike
Killer.
Michael Little
She's a little different. She graduated high school a year early. She started college early. She left home at 17, got an apartment, wanted to live on her own. So she was on a path. I kind of didn't push her towards real estate. She seen me sell real estate her whole entire life. I've been licensed since she was 1 years old.
Edgar
Right.
Edwin Rodriguez
Wow.
Michael Little
So it was something I said, if you want to do this, I will help you, but I'm not going to push you. Real estate's not something that you can be pushed. It's something that's either within you or not. Sure. So very, very proud of her. She's still got a long way to go. And it's. It's funny because at most companies she would have probably been the number one agent yeah. Uh, and here at, you know, Iron Valley, she didn't even make the top 25. So it's something that, yes, she did phenomenal. But she also has more goals and more people to try to catch. And, you know, she has a long way to go to be at the top. You know, our top agents sold over 35 million to.
Edwin Rodriguez
Ask you a question real quick. Obviously, you've led from the front since she was 1 years old. She saw you do everything, and having your tutelage is probably a big component.
Edgar
Right.
Edwin Rodriguez
But what about her makes her so different than most rookies? I mean, $7 million in real estate sold as a rookie, that is not easy. Plus, helped you with 35 transactions that you've. That you did. Right. Like, what about her? So, I mean, like, she is.
Michael Little
So she was very athletic growing up. She had that competitive spirit growing up. So she kind of got that, you know, from me. We got very similar, you know, character traits where we're very competitive, not necessarily money driven. It's just, you know, she had a competition with Edgar. Right. Edgar's one of the owners.
Edgar
Yeah, yeah.
Michael Little
She's like, I'm gonna beat you. Love it. You know, and they're going back and forth, and that competitive spirit allows her to kind of just keep the pace going. Right. Keep that gas pedal pushed down. And it's just something that you can't really instill in someone. It's something you're either born with it or not, in my opinion.
Mike
Yeah. I think she has a knack for getting around the older crowd too, like those of us that have been where she's trying to go. She's very astute in the fact of, let me attach to those individuals and ask those people the questions. And she doesn't waste her time talking to people that aren't where she wants to be. I've noticed that that's such a major.
Edwin Rodriguez
Point, I think, with anything. A lot of people, when they get started with something, they reach out for opinions and ask for permission from people that aren't where they're wanting to go. As. As a young woman, starting at 21 and now she's 22, that's a vital piece of her success, is learning from the people that have already been there, done that. Right. In competing with them, standing on her own, getting their shoulders back and say, oh, hey, hey, girl, I'm gonna get you.
Michael Little
Yeah, I'll get you.
Edwin Rodriguez
But I can guarantee, though, that young girl did not think about beating him every day, she focused on what she needed to do in Order to be successful and make herself proud.
Michael Little
Yeah, absolutely. I'm very proud.
Mike
Right?
Edgar
Yeah.
Edwin Rodriguez
Damn, man, that's impactful. Yeah, it's everything.
Mike
Right? But before Edmund was training his daughter to be rookie of the year, he reached out to me. When was that, man? Was that 21?
Michael Little
It was January of 21.
Edwin Rodriguez
Because you brought him in, right?
Mike
So. Well, he reached out to me first. So Eric and I opened a company, February of 2020. He reached out to me, like, right around a year mark. And you're probably better at this than me as far as, like, reaching out to people and how we connected.
Michael Little
Absolutely. So I was. So I did 23 years in the military. A big.
Edwin Rodriguez
What branch? I'm sorry?
Michael Little
Navy.
Edwin Rodriguez
Okay.
Michael Little
There's only one.
Edwin Rodriguez
Okay.
Mike
Got you, baby.
Edwin Rodriguez
Yeah, my dad was in the Navy, too.
Michael Little
Oh, see, there's only one. The only.
Edwin Rodriguez
Screw you, army rangers.
Michael Little
No, but 23 years of service and a part of my success was always having a mentor, someone who's been there and done that. So as I transitioned into full time real estate, because a lot of my career was part time. Okay. I was looking for a mentor, and I had a lot of Success part time, 22 homes, part time my last year. And I needed someone who was doing better than me. And the people who I reached out to, they just wouldn't give me the time. They just maybe was because they were too busy, whatever it was. And finally, you know, I reached out to Mike. We were both previous chief Petty officers. And that connection when you're a chief Petty officer is just different. It's like an unexplainable connection. And within five minutes, he responded to me, hey, let's meet up. We set an appointment. And I'm a lot older. I'm the oldest in the group.
Edwin Rodriguez
How old are you?
Michael Little
I'm 46.
Edwin Rodriguez
I'm 46 as well. For dinosaurs.
Michael Little
Well, you know, Mike and Eric are in their 30s. So I go to this meeting with an, you know, preconceived notion of what a top producer is, right? So in my mind, I'm like, all right, shirt, tie, and I'm coming.
Mike
I'm coming off a 20 million year.
Michael Little
Cool. Yeah. You know, I don't know. I don't know Mike.
Edgar
Yeah.
Michael Little
You know, I don't know him from anything.
Edgar
Yeah.
Michael Little
You know, I come in, he has a hoodie, Jean sneakers on, you know, rash, very direct. And within five minutes, I'm intrigued. Like, five minutes, I said, who is this guy? Yeah, what the fuck? Who is this guy?
Mike
Right?
Edgar
Hoodie.
Mike
Yeah.
Michael Little
I said, I gotta I gotta come to see this office. And, you know, we cut lunch short, came over here to this office, and I always explain it as if when you walked in back in the day, that picture of Wall street, people running around crazy, talking about deals, you know, sharing information, it wasn't something that I was used to. And I've been in the industry for, at this point, 16, 17 years. So I was like, I have to be here.
Edwin Rodriguez
That's awesome.
Michael Little
You know, I came over, had another meeting with him. I said, listen, I want, you know, just to settle with some expectations. I just want to grow. If you can help me grow, I'm coming over.
Edwin Rodriguez
Yeah.
Michael Little
He looked at me, he said, I got you. I believed him and here I am. Damn.
Edwin Rodriguez
How has your life changed since then?
Michael Little
Oh, man. The biggest difference is I would say my network and the people who I'm around. One thing that I would say, the biggest shift in my life, professionally, personally, is surrounding myself with. With those people who are just caliber humans, high operating, high functioning, high moral compass people. Because prior to that, you know, I'm from New Jersey and I'm Puerto Rican. That was my crowd. Latinos from up north, really. Not as far as where they're heading in life, but more of what we had in common. Sure. And the shift came because of Mike and Eric, to be honest with you. Like, straight up, yeah. Here it is, a white guy from Ohio. Stop what he's doing, helping me establish my business. That changed everything for me.
Edwin Rodriguez
Yeah. The diversity, right. Of who you put yourself in front of is everything, man.
Mike
Well, that's the thing is, yeah, I'm sure we enriched his life, but he also contributed to us greatly.
Edgar
Yeah.
Mike
He had contractor connections, he got flip connections, he got hard money connections, he got local connections, Right? Like, he brought a whole team over. He didn't come by himself. He brought a group of guys that are now all top producers or associate brokers. You know, a lot of them team leads. Now some of them are even coaching clients of mine at this point. Like, so he's also was a value add, Right. And that's why there was a point where it came when we had to remove an original partner. And me and Eric had a conversation. The only, you know, maybe five names came up, Right. And him and Edgar were clearly atop the list.
Edgar
Yeah.
Mike
Because you brought people here, you contributed to the brand, you repped the brand. And it doesn't matter what I tell you if you don't execute it right. These guys came hungry. Like, how do I properly structure a team?
Edgar
Yeah.
Mike
How do I properly structure my business.
Edgar
Yeah.
Mike
Oh, I didn't know this about health, you know, wealth and finance management stuff, you know, because I'm. At some point, I don't know, a couple years ago, I just kind of set everything up because I hired a financial advisor and I was like, I need a trust, I need a will. I need all my ownership and all my companies in this trust. So they were looking for that guidance more so than like just selling a house. It was more about how do you structure the team and then how do you grow that. And then amazing. Eventually that turned into they both became managing brokers and then now they both are owners and, and then Edwin and I, he's a certified instructor as well through Glover U. So we own our, we own and licensed our training program through them.
Edwin Rodriguez
Right.
Mike
Myself, Edwin, Eric are all instructors. And then you sat with Julian and LJ earlier. They're getting certified this year, so. So the team just keeps growing. But it's just based on that. Like, I didn't feed him any bs, right. I told them everything I know and he turned around, told me, and taught me everything he knows. So we both grow. I think that means the company grows.
Edwin Rodriguez
Yeah, that's, you know, that's the co creative environment we were talking about last night. I talked to, you know, Julian and LJ a little bit about it today, this morning, I believe. It's, it's, it's. What can you do in order to enrich and grow and, and enhance what somebody else is doing? And there's so many people that are afraid to tell their secrets, I'll give mine away.
Mike
Yeah, that's what we say here. Our secret is there are no secrets.
Michael Little
Correct.
Edwin Rodriguez
Yeah.
Mike
Like, will you do the work? We'll give you the tools. You got to know how you got to use them, though, you know, like.
Edwin Rodriguez
Yeah, I, you know, and I tell people that, you know, come to me, like, I need you to help me grow my Instagram brand or. And that's not even what I do. I just.
Mike
Right, right.
Edwin Rodriguez
But I can help them. Right. Because I know all the failures and all the shit that I went. They have experience, experience with it, you know, so I'm like contemplating on my mind white labeling a service and using it as something that I can provide.
Mike
Absolutely.
Edwin Rodriguez
But the other thing that I learned, man, and, and I, and I said I was helping people and they were not taking action.
Michael Little
Yep.
Edwin Rodriguez
And so I got this from the book I'm reading called the Go Giver. I'm not going to take the idea, but I'M going to implement it.
Michael Little
Right.
Edwin Rodriguez
And I want to share with you guys. Someone reaches out to me, I need your help. All right, great. I would love to meet with you. We can do a zoom, we can do a phone conversation, whatever you want to do. If they're local, I'll meet him in person. I say, I have conditions, though, and I tell them the condition after we meet. But I'll lead it in and say, I'm willing to help you as long as you always follow the conditions of me helping you. And they go, well, I just don't. I go, don't say anything. It's not what you think. I know what you're thinking right now. You're thinking about money. That's the wrong response. Not talking about that right now. Right, okay. And what I've done is when I meet with them and I, you know, hear what they want to do, I said, okay, well, I would love to help you out now. Or a woman I like, I'd love to help you out, but are you ready to hear my condition?
Edgar
And I say yes.
Edwin Rodriguez
I go, as long as you are coachable in every single thing I tell you on that day, I'll give you one main component. You have to execute it that day, or I'm out. I'm out. Because if I'm going to give you my time, I need you to go out there and do.
Mike
Absolutely.
Edwin Rodriguez
And they're like, that's it. I'm like, it's harder than you think. Yeah, you would probably rather pay me 20 grand.
Mike
It's the hardest part, actually.
Edwin Rodriguez
Yeah, it is. For sure, it is. But that's the. That's the goal. Right. So you can come in and tell him what. Whatever it is that's made you successful and vice versa. But if you guys do not take action immediately, it doesn't. It doesn't matter.
Mike
Absolutely. But we take action.
Edwin Rodriguez
Yeah.
Mike
I mean, you know, that's. And that's really what it is. But it's been a collaborative effort from that point because him and Edgar were running top producing teams, you know, And I just looked at Eric like, man, we. We need help, bro. We're growing at a pace and also dealing with that situation at the time where it's like, we can't do all this alone, and these guys are already all in. So they decided to come on board. And since that time, we've gone from 150 agents to 340. We went from two offices to seven franchises. We now have the ability to sell franchises. We're the number one Iron Valley real estate franchise in the country. Over 900 million in sales last year throughout the companies that we've opened within four years.
Edwin Rodriguez
Wow.
Mike
So this year is your.
Edwin Rodriguez
You're about that billion points, so.
Mike
Well, like, I have a concept, you know, zero to a billion, five year plan to success. Something like that. You know what I mean?
Edwin Rodriguez
Something like that. Something small.
Mike
But if.
Edwin Rodriguez
For this whole thing.
Mike
But legitimately, you know, if we hit a billion in sales this year, which is actually more important about our goal of 3,200 units, because that means we will have assisted 3,200 families. Right.
Edwin Rodriguez
That's the main thing.
Mike
And as a kid that grew up as a homeless orphan to assist tens of thousands of people in creating homes for their families, like that's where it ties together for me, you know, it doesn't tie together on the money. However, if we can go from something that's self made and built from scratch to a billion in sales annually in less than five years. None of us are from here. We're all military transplants. And we literally have chopped the tree down, built the table, set the table. You know what I'm saying? Put the food on it. Yeah. And we do other things too. You know, we connected it to the title company. I know you interviewed Matt from Noble Title. And we. We also have connection with Goosehead Insurance. Edwin's wife is actually the owner of that franchise through Goosehead, you know, and we just have so many things connected that are feeding so many more people than just us. Right. Look at the employees, look at the staff, look at. I mean, it's just. It's cool to see, man.
Edwin Rodriguez
You know, it's funny, you mentioned something yesterday when I interviewed you one on one and. And I'm sure you're going to echo the. Out of this one. He said the reason why we're so successful, other than the fact that we focus on the people and the impact in the community, is that in the Navy, it didn't matter. You had deadlines, you had a job to do, and you had to have it done. And it's the same thing bringing those concepts over. Right. Non negotiables into business. What are your thoughts on that?
Michael Little
I mean, I say it all the time. A huge part of our success is our military and our discipline and our administrative acumen.
Edwin Rodriguez
Yeah, right.
Michael Little
In order to be at a position where Mike and myself, we both made chief, there's a lot of administrative duties. Okay. And that translated perfectly into what we do now. Even our ownership meetings are very similar to A planning board for training, which what we did every single week in the military. Right. So a lot of our success is based off that and the background that we all have. There's no, how can I put this? No one ever has to call us and ask us, hey, are you going to be in the office tomorrow? Right. Those are non negotiables.
Edgar
Yeah.
Michael Little
Even on holidays where most people are off, there's not a question on, hey, are you guys going in? There's no, there's not. Those conversations don't happen because we know we're on. There's no excuses.
Mike
Usually more of a question like, why aren't they here? I haven't seen them. There's something wrong.
Edgar
Yeah.
Mike
You know.
Edwin Rodriguez
Yeah, but, but I think it's also, I think it's great because you guys are focused on service. Right. And you have removed the focus from yourselves and I think that's big. But dude, like the other thing is, is those types of things don't happen if the culture and the overall feel in the office isn't collaborative and respective.
Mike
So I tell people, I feel like that work culture is kind of played out. People just need to focus on building a community and not a company.
Edgar
Yeah.
Mike
Like cultures. Everybody says, oh, you need a good culture. You need a good culture. You need a good culture. Like, do you even know what that means? What kind of culture do you buzzword?
Edwin Rodriguez
Sure.
Mike
You know, what kind of culture do you want? And what we want is a community.
Edgar
Yeah.
Mike
And a community is a group of like minded people, irregardless of where and what they're from, that are operating together to complete the same goal, the same task. You know, communities used to actually physically build their community together. They used to eat together. They used to take care of each other's children together. That's what we built here.
Edwin Rodriguez
That's a mic drop, dude.
Michael Little
I guess I'm with this guy every day, right? Multiple bike drops, out of regular.
Edwin Rodriguez
They're making me want to move the family from Florida to Virginia Beach. Other than the fact that I can't get a Coke Zero anywhere.
Mike
Oh, Edgar knows where to get that zero. Edgar knows.
Michael Little
This is the first time I ever heard that the Pepsi product thing. I honestly, my, my. Because I'm a Coke guy, I'm a Sprite coat guy. And I've never thought of that, having that accessible.
Mike
I know that Edgar knows where to go to come.
Edwin Rodriguez
I'm, I'm laughing because, you know, I, I love Coke Zero. I feel like there's more carbonation. It's less Syrupy than Pepsi. But the funny thing is, is my. My buddy Mike out there, he's on my production team. Everywhere we go, he's like, hey, can I. Can I get a 7Up or, like, a Sprite? They're like, sorry, only Pepsi products. Like, we have a star. He goes, yeah, no, I'm.
Edgar
No.
Michael Little
No, that is not listening.
Mike
Well, absolutely not.
Edwin Rodriguez
And then finally at dinner last night, at one point, poor guy, you might not have noticed it, but I looked at his face, he was so defeated. Yeah, I'll just. I'll have a Pepsi, please. Diet or regular? Just regular.
Mike
Yeah.
Edwin Rodriguez
I love it, man. But no, community is huge. Right? And. And you. And you. You made a great point about communities. Used to eat together. They used to build the community together. And I think that when you have an office or a bunch of people rowing in the same direction, it makes the boat go faster.
Mike
Absolutely.
Edwin Rodriguez
And that's what you guys have had, that light speed, you know, revenue growth, but also franchise growth, people that want to be a part of it.
Mike
So that's. The bigger piece, I think, is, you know, I just said yesterday at a team meeting, LJ was talking about the law of the lid and. Sorry. So John Maxwell wrote 21 irrefutable laws of leadership.
Edwin Rodriguez
Yes.
Mike
And the law, the lid, essentially, is this company or this brand will only go as far and high in this region as the leadership does. So, like, Evan and I have the same coach. Kathy Schweitzer. She's the CEO of Glover U. Right. I coached with her for a little over a year, and then Edwin hired her. But she's got, you know, as many years in real estate as I have alive, you know, And I was seeking somebody that could take me to the next level because nobody in this area wants to help me. Right. Like, we're.
Edwin Rodriguez
You're a threat. Come on.
Mike
I don't like the word, but, you know, because I'm more of a collaborative person, I'm actually trying to help the whole market and the industry, but people fear that their agents may leave or what have you. And that's fine. That's their prerogative. But I told the team yesterday, and it was just based on what you and I have learned from Kathy is like, every team lead, even though you're not running a brokerage, you should still have a mission statement, a vision statement, core values. Right? And for us, we rewrote our core values. We rewrote our mission and vision statement. And when you recruit to those things, that's when you're building the proper Fiber. Right. So, you know, for us, it's ingenuity, independence, fearlessness, humility. We added authenticity and fearlessness. So those are the core values of the company. So what that means is, if you come to us and you're not an independent person, Drought. This may not be the place for you. Right. Like, we. We expect independent contractors who are not on payroll to do their job. Right. Like, we provide training, we provide technology, we provide. But we're not hand holding.
Michael Little
Yeah, exactly.
Mike
Fearlessness. You know, you could look at anything that we do, even just hiring a coach. You got to be kind of fearless to, like, get vulnerable and have somebody address you regularly or. I don't know, what was it last? 23? 2023. We opened three offices within 90 days.
Edwin Rodriguez
Jesus.
Mike
That's. That's fearlessness. Right? But having the humility to still come to work every day. Like, we got the lunch pail to still wake up and train our people every day to show up, to try to. Like, we. Me and this guy, for sure. And Edgar's a very doer personality. It doesn't matter what's happening in the company. One of us always tries to make it there. We're very big on management by walking around. Leadership should be around, like, something. I'll say for Edwin and I, that's different than the Navy that we left. Because the Navy we left. A lot of people leave behind a computer desk these days. Edwin and I. I credit Edgar for this, and even Eric as well. Eric moved to California. My original partner. But we all are very like, I'll pop in your office and say, hi, I'll call and check on you. I'll drive 40 minutes just to pop into training for five. Just to have that presence. And you're probably worse than me when it comes to that. I've let it go a little bit.
Michael Little
But when I came in the military, there was a term that we use. It's called deck plate leadership.
Mike
Yes, sir.
Edgar
Okay.
Michael Little
And that is being by your people, showing them what to do, finding out how they are as a person. Not just as a sailor or soldier or an employee. But, hey, how are you? Not just like, oh, just in conversation, but no, no. How is your family? How are you?
Edgar
Yeah.
Michael Little
How can I assist you? Is there anything that I can assist?
Edwin Rodriguez
I love that man.
Mike
Absolutely.
Edwin Rodriguez
It makes people, you know, really understand that they're a part of it and they feel seen. And I truly believe that most employees, or however you look at it, want to feel seen and want to be valued enough by their leadership.
Michael Little
Question, Right?
Mike
Yes.
Michael Little
Included inclusions.
Mike
So that's something else that really, honestly came with the coaching. Like, that was natural in the Navy, but there's also, like, a part where your opinion kind of doesn't matter. Right. Like, you just do what you're told. That's why the coaching piece in the civilian side. And I'll credit Kathy again. She gave us that term. Mmfi. Make me feel important. Now what you realize in life is that's all anybody really wants.
Edgar
Yeah.
Mike
You know, and then I told you about the story about me, my grandfather, and how he was a real real estate educator.
Edwin Rodriguez
That was wild, man.
Mike
Literally, his saying. And when I think back, I'm like, dang, I've heard this my whole life, but, like, my grandpa's 86, so, you know, I don't know when this came out, but care. Central Arizona Realty Educators. Their slogan. People don't care how much you know until they know how much you care.
Edwin Rodriguez
We just. I just literally said that, like.
Mike
Like the last. He was pressing that, like, before we were born, you know, and it's just like, I didn't even know any of this. This is. That's who I am right there in a nutshell. And I believe that we've aligned with people that feel the same way. Like, you know, Edgar the other day, hey, guys, I got a jet because I'm going to my son's spelling bee.
Michael Little
Yeah, bet.
Mike
Go do that.
Michael Little
Go do that.
Mike
You know, me out of pocket for almost 10 days. This guy's telling me every single day, I got it. Take care of your kids.
Edwin Rodriguez
It's amazing.
Mike
He got something going on. It'll flip. You know what I mean? Like, it. It's just. We just take care of each other, man. And. And the staff, like, Lori Christy, like it. Without our staff, we wouldn't be able to be as nimble as we are. Right. Like, the ability to come meet you at a conference and sit down and chop it up with ET Derives from the backbone of the company being here, making it happen every day.
Edwin Rodriguez
Right, man. That's the concrete foundation. Right. Without great support, we can't do what we do, and we cannot absolutely. Have a couple more questions as we. I can't. Can you believe it's almost been an hour already?
Mike
I could do this all day.
Edwin Rodriguez
I am. You do it all day. So one question. The first question I have is more of a serious question. Right. As it pertains to your business and how you've grown and gelled together. You mentioned multiple times you had the same coach, so they're teaching. She's teaching.
Edgar
Yeah.
Michael Little
Guys.
Edwin Rodriguez
The same thing. How do you feel, each one of you feel how important to having the same coach has led to the success of what you guys are?
Michael Little
Well, I want to tell you. Yeah. So I hired Kathy because I had a front row seat of what she recommended to Mike. Okay. And in reality, I'm already at a certain level. I'm an owner of seven brokerages.
Edwin Rodriguez
That's wild.
Michael Little
So, you know, not many people are going to have the information that I want.
Edwin Rodriguez
Yeah, right.
Michael Little
Just, you know, not trying to sound. Anyway, it's reality. The reality. Right. I'm not going to get a coach who does worse than me. And I needed someone who. She's just a pit bull.
Edgar
Yeah.
Michael Little
You know, she knows what to tell me, how to motivate me, and she don't. You know, I needed someone who was stern and who had a different perspective, and she's just have so much life experience. When my coaching sessions go from real estate to helping my personal problems, I just knew she was the one. I don't necessarily think it was because Mike had her. It was just. I seen the results.
Edgar
Yeah.
Michael Little
Right. I've been around her. She's the type of person that if she's in a room, she has the attention everyone in when we go to these Glover events. Right.
Mike
Kathy is love.
Michael Little
Catherine is a boss of bosses. You know, he's up there. You're just like, yeah, that's my coach. You know, I turn into a group.
Mike
Really.
Edwin Rodriguez
You turn into a fanboy.
Mike
Really good. But I will say him doing the coaching and being along my side when I started it and into things that we were implementing in the company. Edgar too, man. You know, And Eric didn't shy away from me either. He went and hired a different coach because that's his style. But he was supportive as well. And it was just like everything that we would implement, it would work.
Edgar
Yeah.
Mike
You know, and I'm not the type of guy that's going to take an idea if I think it's stupid.
Edgar
Yeah.
Mike
I was never a Kool Aid drinking cat, like, like, ever. You just. If something's stupid, I'm out. They. You can't, like, tell me it's not. Yeah. Like, that's just how I'm wired, so. And I'll tell you about it, too. Like, I'm not. I don't care. Oh, your feelings are hurt. Nobody cares. Like, let's move on.
Edgar
Yeah.
Mike
We don't want to do that, you know, or this is great. Let's crush it. Let's do it. But as we were doing that, he was like, okay, this stuff is really working. And then when we both are doing it now, when we have a recruiting meeting, we're on the same page, we're speaking the same language. When we go train are our. The certified training program that we white labeled through Jeff. So he has a program called Sales Rocket. We white labeled it and created Peak Performance Elite Sales training, which I told you about. It also helps us when we're instructing and teaching. Because now we're so on the same page. It's the same material. We're getting the same information, we're giving the same information. And by proxy, your brand now has uniformity as well, right?
Edgar
Yeah.
Mike
Just like in the military, everybody has a standard operating procedure. When you're running a company, you should have a standard operating procedure. You should have a standard training procedure. You should have a standard onboarding procedure. So us being on the same sheet of music is helped tremendously.
Edwin Rodriguez
It's so funny you mentioned sops, dude, because I think before I brought on my partner, Pat Sickens and hired my production team, Grit, that's here with us. It's doing a bang up job, by the way, to freaking incredible. There was no SOPs. It was just me.
Mike
Mayhem, bro.
Edwin Rodriguez
It was like, what are we posting today? And now that we have it down to a science.
Edgar
Yeah.
Edwin Rodriguez
You know, Sunday slides about the show. Monday, the show launched, clip. Tuesday another clip. Wednesday, a Twitter quote, show launch. And then on Friday, which is I think today's Friday.
Edgar
Yes, it is.
Edwin Rodriguez
Today's a flashback Friday.
Mike
Got it. Where you play a clip from old.
Edwin Rodriguez
Yeah, and that's how we do. There's an SOP, right. But they have their own SOPs and that's why the show moves so freely now.
Mike
Like how he was editing while shooting. Oh, dude, that's crazy.
Edwin Rodriguez
Yeah, like the switcher they have. Their technology is insane. And they're always like, they're always talking about the next thing they got, like, oh, this new lens. I'm like, I'm like, but, but, but, dude, like, for me, it makes me smile because I know that my team is literally so damn good, but shooting for more greatness every single day. And that is the fucking brand. Like, that's what we do.
Mike
That's. That's 100%.
Edwin Rodriguez
So I. You can put. You can participate in this next question. You answered it yesterday. You may have some more to add to it if you want. Feel free.
Mike
We'll let everyone go first.
Edwin Rodriguez
Yeah, absolutely. So this is the determined society, right? In my dream, when I created this, it was a Facebook page just to begin with, and then it was a podcast in my car with a stupid iPhone. My goal was to wake up in a society that was determined to chase their dreams no matter how they felt emotionally every single day.
Michael Little
But.
Edwin Rodriguez
So my question to you is, what does determination mean to you?
Michael Little
Determination to me is operating no matter what's going on. What's the noise? I use a term that one of our realtors uses. It's life, be life. Him.
Edwin Rodriguez
I love it. Right?
Michael Little
Like a mother. Life, be life. And, yeah, those who are determined will execute no matter what's happening in their personal life. Now, we all have setbacks.
Mike
Sure.
Michael Little
That's not the same as just giving up or just not executing. Yeah, you may have an off day. Cool. Mental health break, whatever. But the next day, you're back on it. Yeah. So I would say that determination is the ability to execute no matter what's going on in your life.
Edwin Rodriguez
Dude, I love it, man. And I think that a lot of people look at determination as something different. Right. As this massive action taken every day. And I don't think that's it. To your point, there's days where I'm like, I just cannot today, you know? And, you know, I'm. I'm blessed enough to where my wife's a teacher, my kids are at school. So if I have to take a few hours and just lay on the couch and watch something and just veg, I'm going to do it. Right. But I'm not going to do it two days in a row.
Michael Little
Correct.
Edwin Rodriguez
You know, and all the while, I'm also recharging my brain to be like, okay, what if we did this? And then I can take some notes and I'm still kind of in it. Right. I never turn my phone off and disconnect. Like, I'll. I'll respond. But there's days where I'm just like, I'll wake up and I'm like, yeah, not today. You know, I need something different for me today. You know? And I think there's a big misconception on that, too. Like, the hustle culture says, no, no, you can't do that. That's weak. That's. That's your. It's your bitch voice. No, it's not. It's not.
Edgar
It's.
Edwin Rodriguez
Okay.
Mike
Yeah.
Michael Little
And then also, part of the determination and I just to put it in perspective, is your network. Right. The people who are you around. Yeah. If they're constantly executing. Right. You're not going to want to fall behind.
Edwin Rodriguez
No.
Michael Little
Right. So that assists with that determination.
Edwin Rodriguez
Yeah, man.
Mike
Right.
Michael Little
All my partners are highly executing individuals in all aspects of life. Being a father, a good person, a top notch real estate professional, business owners.
Edgar
Yeah.
Michael Little
So I can't lack. There's no lacking. Yes. I might take a couple hours off. I may take a day. Life may be. Life be life. And sure.
Edwin Rodriguez
Right. And.
Michael Little
Yeah. But at the end of the day, that network is going to kind of give me that extra motivation when I'm down, and that's going to assist with my determination.
Edwin Rodriguez
It just reminds you that you're not in it for yourself, you're in it for the people. And you have people to lead and you want them to be successful and they will not move unless the leader moves.
Mike
Yeah. I. I'm not even sure that I know what taking a day off is, to be quite honest with you. Or an hour, for that matter. Like, no matter what is going on in my life, like, high level tragic.
Edgar
Yeah.
Mike
And these guys will reach out to me. Like, why are you still working, bro? We got it. You don't need to do that. Like, but for me, yes, the I do. There are seven franchises that have stemmed from a brand that I brought to this city. There's over 350 professionals that depend on me every single day. These people feed their families.
Edgar
Yeah.
Mike
With what we provide, like, it's too serious.
Edgar
Yeah.
Mike
Like. Like I'm not. I don't. I don't have a. It's all good. It's gonna be all right. Bone in my body. No, we make it all right.
Edgar
Yeah.
Mike
We make this happen every single day. And the determination. See, the thing with determination is it's kind of like happiness. It can fleet. Yeah, right. Just like you said. Well, if I need a day, cool. For me, I might be a guy that takes 30 minutes or an hour, whatever. But to me, I tie the determination to the tenacity to the beaten. Be tenacious because it's the how I defined it, you know, the sustained superior resilience. And that just means over and over again, no matter what, I'm going to be determined every single day and every single task that I do. Like, if I can't feel that fire inside me about what I'm doing, I'm not gonna do it.
Edgar
Yeah.
Mike
Right, right, right. So it's just like if. If you know that this is your purpose in life and you wake up and chase that purpose every day, you can find that determination, even if it's not there. Like, you could find it. You Know what I'm saying? I could look at a picture of my kids and find it. I can look at a picture of my father in his coffin and find it. I can look at a picture of, oh, I met my grandfather for the first time. Time last summer.
Edgar
Yeah.
Mike
And now I have repurpose. Right. Because I. Now I know I'm doing everything I was born to do. Sure. Like, you can find it. What are you going to do to find it? You know what I'm saying? Like, even for you, like a flashback Friday, you probably see clips where it's like, that's where it started.
Edgar
Yeah.
Mike
You know, Or I just saw some. Some pictures of last year's summit that we went to. Right. And it's like, I can't wait to go because, like, I kind of need this break, even if it is work. Right. Like, because the thing is, I work with people that I love.
Edgar
Yeah, man. Yeah.
Mike
I don't. I work with people that I choose to work with. Right. Like, so it's not like I'm going and answering to somebody. No. Like, I'm going to talk to my people.
Edgar
Yeah.
Michael Little
Yeah.
Edwin Rodriguez
Like, you know, it's easier when that. When that.
Mike
Absolutely. Because I. There were days in the Navy, like, dude. Where I just absolutely could not stand who I worked for, where I worked, the environment, but I still had to perform.
Edgar
Yeah. Yeah.
Mike
Here I have the luxury of being surrounded by people that I know actually give a. About me.
Edwin Rodriguez
Love that.
Mike
That will lift me up when I'm down. So I'm tenacious every single day. I'm determined literally every moment of my life. What I had to learn was not to expect that from other people. You're allowed to be at whatever frequency you're at, but don't hate on me because I'm up here all the time.
Edgar
Yeah.
Mike
I'm up here for a reason.
Edgar
Yep.
Mike
And if you don't know me, you probably shouldn't judge me.
Edwin Rodriguez
Yeah.
Mike
Right. Like, but I could tell Ed was from Jersey. He's got a little street in him. Right. Like, I. I have that in me. Edgar. Like, that dude's life has been crazy. Right. Like. Like, we all have kind of a little bit of a rougher background, which leads to us all loving our families harder and working harder to give a better life. You know what I mean? Yeah. So it's like none of us are here to just sell real estate. If that was the case, we wouldn't drive the training so hard. I wouldn't spend, I don't even know, like, maybe 100 racks something like that on this event that we're putting on. Right. Like, people have no idea. They just think you're out here getting paid. No, I'm trying to break even if that, you know, like, I'm actually bringing you tools. I'm bringing exposure to our area. Yeah. Why? Because I'm tenacious enough to do so.
Edwin Rodriguez
I love it, dude.
Mike
Right. Because I'm determined enough to know who and what I am, truly, authentically. Like, I don't want to just go on stage and talk about selling houses. Like, let's talk about real life.
Edgar
Yeah.
Mike
You know, no one gives a.
Edwin Rodriguez
About just the selling of a product.
Mike
Correct.
Edwin Rodriguez
I don't know how you're.
Mike
How can I impact your life? You know? And I think that that's what. I don't think I know that's what keeps me going. And I believe that that's kind of what trickles down to everybody else is like, well, if Mike never quits, no matter what, why should we?
Edgar
Yeah.
Edwin Rodriguez
I think that's a big point, you know? Right.
Mike
That's like.
Edwin Rodriguez
That's true leadership.
Mike
I will hurt for everyone else to win, whether it's my family, the company, my people, the employees, whatever. And they all know that.
Edwin Rodriguez
Yeah.
Mike
You know what I'm saying? Like, but that's just. This is what it is. Maybe it's kind of like, you know, Ohio State and Ohio against the world right now. That's why I'm wearing a hat.
Edwin Rodriguez
Yeah.
Mike
You said something yesterday. I'm like, man, I'll break something out.
Edwin Rodriguez
You know, big game on Monday. Big game on Monday.
Mike
But, you know, I kind of. There's always something going on in the background that helps me champion to that next level as well. Right. Like. Like that. These last two weeks, I was going through all that. Little baby dropped the album. Ohio State went on this crazy run. I find something to cling to that will that will, like, adjust my mental. Right. Kind of. Why, you know. Hey, son, you'll come to the office with me today. Hey, you're going to come to this conference. Because I know he's a little down right now. Right. And I know that your environment can change your mindset.
Edwin Rodriguez
Absolutely, man. It can help you up, man. It's so important. But, guys, thank you so much for coming on today. It's a pleasure seeing you in person. I know we're going to have a lot more interaction this weekend.
Michael Little
Absolutely.
Mike
Oh, we about to go tear this training down.
Edwin Rodriguez
Yeah, I got.
Mike
Yeah, we should have a full house. We've been gassing it up very excited.
Edwin Rodriguez
But so you know, for the audience, like, listen, I just really hope you gained a ton of value added today. Just listen about what tenacity means to Mike and how Edwin has built, built his brand and his companies, his seven brokerages. And I just think it's an, it's a great story, you know, behind the success of, hey, it's all about people and what can we do to serve others. I think that if you guys truly every single day look at your goal, but break it down into steps to serve the community and other people, you will get there a lot quicker and a lot more joyfully than you would if you're focused on you and your pocket. So thank you all for listening again. Please share this episode with someone you know love and trust. And please don't forget to subscribe on the YouTube, Spotify or Apple for podcasters and and really just please reach out if you guys need anything. Let me know what you want to hear. Until next time, stay determined.
Sharp French
Sharp French what up? This one Luck. I let the pain inspire me. I put my all in. Everything I'm doing up until it's done. I mean for the entirety I put in overtime. I'll be working Just know I'mma go for mine cause I earned it. They watch and I know it's time I confirmed it. The whole society determined determinism.
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Podcast Summary: Building a Community, Not a Company | The Power of Determination & Leadership in Real Estate
The Determined Society with Shawn French hosted by Shawn French delves into impactful conversations surrounding personal development, entrepreneurship, and business growth. In the episode titled "Building a Community, Not a Company | The Power of Determination & Leadership in Real Estate," Shawn engages with real estate leaders Michael Little and Edgar to explore the essence of building a thriving community within a business framework. This summary encapsulates the key discussions, insights, and conclusions drawn during the episode.
Timestamp: [01:54] - Edwin Rodriguez
Timestamp: [03:20] - Michael Little & Edgar
Timestamp: [20:03] - Mike
Mike emphasizes the shift from traditional company culture to building a community. He critiques the vague notion of "good culture" and defines a community as a group of like-minded individuals united by common goals, irrespective of their backgrounds.
"What we want is a community. And a community is a group of like-minded people irregardless of where and what they're from that are operating together to complete the same goal."
— Mike [20:03]
Timestamp: [20:35] - Edgar
Timestamp: [08:57] - Michael Little
Michael Little shares his transition from the military to real estate, highlighting the significance of mentorship and leadership. His partnership with Mike has been pivotal in their collective success.
"In my opinion, it's something you're either born with or not."
— Michael Little [05:24]
Timestamp: [19:01] - Edwin Rodriguez
Timestamp: [22:59] - Mike
Mike discusses the "Law of the Lid" from John Maxwell's 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership, emphasizing that a company's potential is limited by its leadership. He highlights the importance of having aligned mission and vision statements to foster unity and direction.
"Our secret is there are no secrets."
— Mike [13:09]
Timestamp: [16:18] - Mike
Mike outlines the exponential growth of Iron Valley Realty, mentioning the expansion from 150 to 340 agents and from two offices to seven franchises. Their collective efforts have propelled the company to over $900 million in sales within four years.
"We're the number one Iron Valley real estate franchise in the country. Over 900 million in sales last year."
— Mike [17:07]
Timestamp: [24:41] - Mike
Timestamp: [29:03] - Michael Little
Michael Little discusses the impact of their shared coach, Kathy Schweitzer of Glover U., on their business strategies and personal growth. He credits her for fostering a unified approach to training and leadership.
"Cathy's just a pit bull. She knows what to tell me, how to motivate me."
— Michael Little [29:27]
Timestamp: [24:35] - Edwin Rodriguez
Timestamp: [34:14] - Michael Little
Michael Little defines determination as the ability to execute tasks regardless of personal circumstances, distinguishing it from mere perseverance.
"Determination is the ability to execute no matter what's going on in your life."
— Michael Little [34:14]
Timestamp: [35:24] - Edwin Rodriguez
Edwin adds that determination also involves balancing action with self-care, debunking the myth perpetuated by hustle culture that one must always be in constant motion.
"There's a big misconception on that, too. Like, the hustle culture says, no, no, you can't do that. That's weak."
— Edwin Rodriguez [35:24]
Timestamp: [38:29] - Mike
Mike reinforces the concept by linking determination to tenacity and resilience, stating that it's about sustaining effort and passion even when motivation wanes.
"It's like, if you know that this is your purpose in life and you wake up and chase that purpose every day, you can find that determination."
— Mike [38:29]
Timestamp: [09:04] - Michael Little
Timestamp: [16:35] - Michael Little
Mike shares a personal anecdote about his commitment to the business, illustrating his unwavering determination to support his team and community.
"These people feed their families with what we provide. It's too serious."
— Mike [36:26]
Timestamp: [41:06] - Mike
Mike discusses how personal motivations, such as family and legacy, drive his determination and leadership, ensuring that his efforts resonate beyond mere business success.
"If Mike never quits, no matter what, why should we?"
— Mike [41:21]
Timestamp: [33:50] - Edwin Rodriguez
Edwin reflects on the essence of The Determined Society, emphasizing the importance of serving others and breaking down goals into community-oriented steps for accelerated and fulfilling success.
"It's all about people and what can we do to serve others."
— Edwin Rodriguez [33:50]
Timestamp: [41:52] - Mike
Mike concludes by tying determination to purpose, expressing that their relentless pursuit is not just about selling real estate but making a meaningful impact on individuals and the community.
"We make this happen every single day. And the determination... how I defined it, you know, the sustained superior resilience."
— Mike [36:14]
Timestamp: [43:53] - Shawn French
Shawn French wraps up the episode with a motivational closing, reinforcing the theme of determination and resilience.
"The whole society determined determinism."
— Sharp French [43:53]
Mike [20:03]:
"What we want is a community. And a community is a group of like-minded people regardless of where and what they're from that are operating together to complete the same goal."
Michael Little [34:14]:
"Determination is the ability to execute no matter what's going on in your life."
Edwin Rodriguez [35:24]:
"There's a big misconception on that, too. Like, the hustle culture says, no, no, you can't do that. That's weak."
Mike [38:29]:
"If you know that this is your purpose in life and you wake up and chase that purpose every day, you can find that determination."
Mike [41:21]:
"If Mike never quits, no matter what, why should we?"
Community Over Culture: Building a unified community within a company fosters collaboration, mutual support, and shared goals, surpassing the traditional concept of company culture.
Determination Defined: True determination transcends constant hustle; it embodies the resilience to persist through challenges while balancing self-care.
Leadership and Mentorship: Strong, disciplined leadership rooted in shared values and continuous mentorship drives business success and personal growth.
Strategic Growth: Implementing standardized procedures and fostering uniform training ensures scalable and sustainable business expansion.
Personal Motivation: Leaders' personal motivations and dedication inspire their teams, creating a ripple effect of determination and excellence throughout the organization.
This episode of The Determined Society offers profound insights into the symbiotic relationship between determination, leadership, and community-building within the real estate industry. Michael Little and Edgar's journey from military backgrounds to leading a top-tier real estate franchise underscores the transformative power of resilience, strategic mentorship, and a community-focused approach.