Today I had the pleasure of speaking with Chris Wooten, a retired marine turned successful real estate investor with a portfolio of 534 units. In this episode I want us to absorb everything we can from Chris who took his military experience and incorporated it into his real estate empire. Let’s dive right into Chris’ story and pick his brain about hitting above average in every aspect of your life.
[00:01 – 09:17] Opening Segment
Chris’ journey began when he was in high school. He joined the junior ROTC and their Sergeant Major told them something that became Chris’ words to live by until after decades later—“Consistent above average performance will overtake excellence in individual events.”
In other words, being consistently good at several things is better than being excellent at just one thing. You probably don’t hear this very often but this is the mindset that helped Chris get promoted ten times in 20 years of active military service. And after stepping out from the military, this is also the mindset that helped him become owner of over 500 rental apartment units!
Keep listening to hear more about Chris’ valuable pieces of advice on how you can also keep consistently hitting above average in every aspect of your life.
[09:17 – 22:43] Hitting Above Average in your Systems
If there’s one thing that all thriving businesses have in common, it’s probably an effective business system. But how do you, as the business owner/leader, make a system that will truly work and that’s truly effective? Chris also shares what he did.
As a good leader, one of your roles is to bring the right people together to your team and delegate as much work to them as possible since this will help increase your team’s productivity as a whole. However, you also have to have enough understanding of all the tasks that need to be done. As the leader, it’s your role to step in and still get things accomplished if for example, one of your team members need to be absent for a while because they got sick.
Additionally, you also have to have enough understanding of these tasks in order for you to be able to optimize the system. This way, if someone has to leave your team and move forward with their career, you don’t have to go back to square one. Also, optimizing your system can also increase your productivity and help you achieve more in the long run.
[22:43 – 35:00] Hitting Above Average in Your Deals and Strategies
At this point, you’re probably wondering, so how did Chris get to being owner of 534 apartment units? Like a lot of other real estate investors, Chris also started with flipping single family homes. He and his team got good returns so as their returns continue to grow, Chris did not want to just put that money in the bank. Because he was aware of the returns, he decided to invest in real estate even more.
Chris spread the word to people he know that he’s looking to buy an apartment complex. Not so long after, he found a seller who wants to get the property off their hands as soon as possible. Chris then bought the property, started improving a lot of things (including the culture of the tenants in that property) and the rest is history!
Chris’ advice to people who also want to grow their business and investments? You just really have to continue to improve. Also, think of why you started this business in the first place. In his case, he shares that this is his way of serving the community. More specifically, as he improves his properties, he serves its residents too. Doing so allows him to serve back the investors, which in turn, also comes back to him and allows him to do even more charitable things, like coaching people online for free.
“As long as I’m able to do those things, I’m achieving, and I continue to go,” Chris says. Make sure to not miss this part of the interview! There’s so much that can help you keep going and stay motivated from Chris’ story!
[35:00 – 40:23] The FOCUS FIVE Segment
The FOCUS FIVE are five questions I ask every guest on my show. Keep on listening to find out what book Chris gifts most often; who would he talk to if he can get an hour of any person living or dead, from the past or the present, and why; that one thing he believes but most people will disagree with; his morning routine; and lastly, where are the best places we can connect with him online. (See the links below for Chris’ social media links!)
Tweetable Quotes:
“To be a good leader you have to start with the foundation of yourself.” – Chris Wooten
“Consistent above average performance will overtake excellence in individual events.” – Chris Wooten
Resources mentioned in the episode:
You can connect with Chris personally on Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram. You can visit his website https://www.wootencapital.com/ to learn more about investment strategies.
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A few last words
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