Real Producers

In 2019, Arnold Desena was a rockstar real estate agent, and he was about to be featured in Real Producers. Then a near fatal accident left him paralyzed from the neck, down, and his cover story became a very different tale.

In this business, a bad day can mean no one picking up their phone or a deal falling through. When a bad day means losing becoming paraplegic, we really have to think about what we feel down about.

A bad day changed Arnold's life forever, but not only has he kept his real estate business going, he has an incredible outlook.

In this episode, he shares what his journey has been like, how he got out of his darkest moment and how he chooses to live his life today.

I knew my body was destroyed and I wanted my brain to be sharp, so I had to refuse pain meds everyday while I was in tremendous pain. -Arnold Desena

Three Things You'll Learn In This Episode

-"I was a nice guy but not that nice"

How did Arnold so quickly and miraculously forgive the person who was responsible for his accident?

-"I didn't want the medication, but I didn't want the pain"

Arnold came really close to wanting to end it all. How did he claw himself up from his lowest point?

-Doing everything the doctors said he couldn't do

Arnold is living his best life as a paraplegic (including kayaking). What mindset got him there?

Guest Bio

Arnold DeSena is an associate in the Keller Williams Greater Columbus Market Center and he has been in the real estate business since 2003. He is a father, husband, and dear friend to many in his community and market center. In April 2019, Arnold was in a near-fatal accident while riding his motorcycle, which left him paralyzed from the chest down. He endured over eight months in the hospital and many surgeries. Follow @portraitsonpolaroid on Instagram.

Real estate isn't just about property values, commissions and transaction volumes. For many people, it's the thing that helps them find their worth after a traumatic experience. Stacey Taylor went through a difficult marriage and a nasty divorce, and real estate helped her get back on her feet, not just financially, but emotionally as well.

Her experience also makes her the perfect person to guide clients navigating similar life changes. Why was real estate a catalyst to finding her true worth? Why do clients gravitate to agents who have gone through huge life changes themselves?

In this episode, the top-producing Michigan agent and Real Producers Rising Star shares her story, and how it set her up for an incredible trajectory in real estate.

It's important to find something that provides not only the income that you need, but also nourishes your soul. -Stacey Taylor

Three Things You'll Learn In This Episode

-Not a salesperson

With a transaction volume of $34 million and 110 transactions, Stacey doesn't consider herself a salesperson, what's the secret to her success?

-The power of relatability in real estate

The best agents understand what a buyer or seller is going through. How did a nasty divorce prepare Stacey for working with clients going through what she did?

-Working with HGTV

How did Stacey end up on national TV and what was the process like?

Guest Bio

Stacey Taylor is a top producer with over 20 years of experience as a licensed Realtor in the state of Michigan. With a transaction volume of $34 million and 110 transactions, she is a Real Producers Rising Star and a hard worker. After getting out of an abusive marriage, real estate was a huge part of her healing process and finding her worth. For more information, connect with Stacey on LinkedIn.

Success in real estate gives us the platform to impact the world in a way that truly matters. Unfortunately, many of us don't know where to begin, so that passion gets left on the shelf.

Instead of having it all figured out, what if we just started with the intention and the action - even if it's not perfect? For Dennis Tuttle, the intention to make a deep impact began when his son said he wanted to be a LEGO Missionary at the age of 7. What came out of that is a ministry that is impacting kids all over the world.

What's the story behind this incredible ministry? In this episode, co-founders of Building Blocks 4 Kids, Dennis Tuttle and Dennis Tuttle Jr., share how they turned a dream for impact into a non-profit for and by kids.

If God gives you a job to do, you better do it or He's going to give that job to someone else and you'll miss out on the best days of your life. -Dennis Tuttle Jr.

Three Things You'll Learn In This Episode

- Perfect is the enemy of done

When it comes to starting something impactful, we don't need to have it all mapped out. How does the first right thing become the next right thing until we've built something big?

- Make what we're doing worth it beyond the paycheck

What does success in real estate enable and empower us to do?

- Why Building Blocks 4 Kids succeeded

People three times Dennis Jr.'s age with way more experience have struggled or failed to start a non-profit. What's his secret?

Guest Bio

Dennis Tuttle is a real estate broker and along with his son Dennis Tuttle Jr., the co-founders of Building Blocks 4 Kids. Building Blocks 4 Kids is dedicated to sharing the fun of building blocks by providing free LEGO sets and LEGO workshops to kids while sharing God's love and the hope that comes through Jesus Christ. Their mission is to bless a gazillion infinity amount of children around the world with LEGO sets and the Love of Jesus. Dennis Jr. has always wanted to be a missionary and he didn't have to wait till he was older to make an impact. He then set his heart on being a LEGO missionary (His passion other than Jesus) and teach kids how to build LEGO and then we can share God's love with them. For more information, head to https://buildingblocks4kids.org/ or join the Facebook group https://www.facebook.com/buildingblocks4kids.org.

Over the last decade, real estate teams have taken over the industry like a silent avalanche, providing value in the way brokerages used to. The truth is: the margins of brokerages have been squeezed so tight, most of them are doomed to go out of business. That is, unless they adapt, pivot and stop competing in a race to the bottom.

Is there a way for brokerages to survive in today's industry? Can brokerages reinvent themselves to be more valuable? What is the next iteration of real estate?

In this episode, visionary leader and entrepreneur, Eric Forney shares his journey from selling paint to becoming the youngest person to sell $100 million in Indianapolis. He also shares his vast knowledge on the state of the brokerage model, and what can be done to evolve it before it's too late.

The race to the bottom has really depleted the margins in the real estate brokerage business, so teams have stepped up to fill in the gap. -Eric Forney

Three Things You'll Learn In This Episode

- Why Gary Keller is passionate about teams

How did Eric end up running one of 96 teams owned by Gary Keller?

- What can never be outsourced or replaced by AI

Is technology bad for the future of agents or will it actually allow us to go up the value ladder?

- The silent avalanche

How did teams go from virtually non-existent, to competing with brokerages to completely dominating the industry?

Guest Bio

Eric Forney is a visionary leader, entrepreneur, consultant, and presenter with a passion for empowering entrepreneurs to thrive in today's competitive market. As VP of Industry and Innovation at Livian, he is renowned for his relentless dedication to growth and innovation across Livian's more than 70 markets nationwide. Connect with Eric on LinkedIn.

When someone close to us suffers illness or loses their battle with it, it often nudges us to make radical changes in our own lives. What if we made those changes because we wish to carry some of their pain while they're still here?

That's what happened to Bobby Wright. A wish to support his friends through a terminal illness led to a life-altering decision and the radical lifestyle he lives today.

How did a painful loss change Bobby's life?

In today's episode, our Direction of Product Growth, shares his story and why he chooses the hard option.

Life is tough, we ought to be tougher. -Bobby Wright

Three Things You'll Learn In This Episode

- From baseball to the sales arena

What was Bobby's journey from sports to real estate?

- The nudge of a loss

A lot of us are wired to wait for losses to happen to get it together. Can we get the same inspiration without tragedy?

- Appreciate tough situations

Why does Bobby keep a 20lbs vest around?

Guest Bio

Bobby Wright is the Director of Product Growth at Real Producers.

A lot of Realtors have huge followings online but that doesn't translate to the business they do. Ken Pozek doesn't just have the following and influencer status, he has the business to back it up.

What has come out of filming iMove videos with 2 views has turned into almost 40k subscribers and 600 deals.

What sets him apart from other agents with huge followings online? How do you turn YouTube into a deal source?

In this episode, Ken shares how he began his digital creator journey and how to become the digital mayor of your town.

We're a recognition, trophy industry. The recognition of online stuff does very little for me if I can't monetize it in some way back to real estate. -Ken Pozek

Three Things You'll Learn In This Episode

- A YouTube lead feels like a warm sphere referral every time

Why are leads from YouTube surprisingly much easier to convert?

- Be the digital mayor of wherever you live

Do you need to have a massive following to successfully turn YouTube into a lead generation pillar?

- They're not going to hire the best TikTok dancer

What's the biggest mistake Realtors make when they grow a sizable social media following?

Guest Bio

Ken Pozek is a Realtor, digital content creator and founder of The Orlando Real.

The Pozek Group is a specialized group of real estate agents, led by Ken Pozek, in Orlando, Florida. After helping over 2,000 buyers and sellers, The Pozek Group has become one of the nations' top selling groups. Garnering hundreds of 5 star reviews and helping clients from all over the world find a home in Orlando. For more information, head to https://www.theorlandoreal.com/ and subscribe to the YouTube channel.

No creature on the planet that can live in fight or flight mode chronically and survive, it will eventually kill you. Many people walk around in this state, and they have no idea they are dying slowly. That's what happened to Doug Steiny - his body was attacking himself and he was told it would take years to recover. Then Doug discovered a method that accelerated his recovery and he was symptom-free in months.

Our bodies are our personal universes and they are way smarter than any doctor on the planet. When the process that delivers what's important breaks down, our bodies attack themselves. If we hack that system through deep breathing, mindset focus and exposure to cold, we can heal life-altering illnesses in a short time.

In this episode, Doug shares his story and how he went from seriously ill to inspiring athlete in a matter of months.

Everybody should be doing this, you don't have to wait till you're sick. Get your autonomic system up off the couch and everything starts to work better. -Doug Steiny

Three Things You'll Learn In This Episode

- Unknowingly dying

How did Doug discover that his own body was attacking him?

- Symptom-free in months

How does the Wim Hof Method energize your cells and why is the cold such a powerful healing modality?

- Hack your breathing system, energize your cells

Oxygen delivers everything that's important to every cell in your body. How do we make that delivery more efficient?

Guest Bio

Doug Steiny is a licensed Realtor with over 30 years of experience and an official Wim Hof Method Instructor. Doug was introduced to the WHM by his son when he had a very serious autoimmune disorder. After just a few months of practicing the WHM he was free of all symptoms. If you're interested in the Wim Hof Method, go to https://www.wimhofmethod.com/instructors to find an instructor near you.

When your parents ran a funeral home and you go on to become a real estate coach - you understand the relationship between what people do and the end result.

Life and income become a mathematical equation. You know that getting what you want comes down to your activity. You're acutely aware of the ingredients that need to go into the oven to get the cake you want.

What are some of the biggest things that derail people from achieving what they want? Can you transform your business with one meaningful conversation every single day? In this episode, I'm joined by real estate coach, Hank Avink.

He shares what he learned from growing up with a family in the funeral business, going bankrupt and coaching people.

People usually lack patience or they lack urgency and they need to identify which one. -Hank Avink

Three Things You'll Learn In This Episode

- Make your dreams mathematically possible How do you know if the things you're doing now will lead to the outcome you want?

- Financially fit for the ultimate end What did Hank learn about people when his parents ran a funeral home?

- The 50-20-5-1 movement How can you build relationships and tap into the influence and relational capital of your connections?

Guest Bio

Hank Avink is a real estate coach and the developer of the 36 to life / 50-20-5-1 movement to help agents who are stuck in a business rut develop an actionable roadmap for the business growth they desired and the Life balance they wanted to achieve. Visit https://coachhank.com/ for more information.

"Your nightmare just begins." That's how Samantha Tov describes living through the beginning of the 1970s Cambodian Genocide.

As a child she witnessed and experienced the Killing Fields, moved to America, saw her family achieve the American dream only to suffer more tragedy.

Samantha may have suffered a lot of loss at the hands of people, but she still has a huge heart for helping people.

In this episode, she shares her story, why real estate is so important to her and her plans as incoming president of the Women's Council in Sacramento.

Life is a wave, it keeps pushing me down but I keep coming back up for a purpose. -Samantha Tov

Three Things You'll Learn In This Episode

- You flee your home and go wherever you can find safety What was it like living through one of the greatest atrocities in history?

- The dream of homeownership Buying a home is such a huge milestone for a lot of people, why is it such a huge purpose in Samantha's life?

- Giving back in a big way What does Samantha want to achieve as president of The Women's Council?

Guest Bio

Top-producing agent Samantha Tov is the founder of Portfolio Real Estate, a brand she created to serve the community with selfless, straightforward, open-hearted professionalism. She is also the incoming president of the Women's Council in Sacramento. For the past fourteen years, she's been one of the go-to real estate professionals in Elk Grove. She's led number-one teams, won many high-level awards, and trained countless top-producing agents.

Entrepreneurship is in Sam's DNA. She is the daughter of asylum seekers and grew up helping her parents run their businesses after school and on weekends. Sam started her first restaurant at eighteen and got her real estate license in 1999. Twenty-six years of business expertise make her a formidable negotiator and fierce advocate. For more information, head to https://portfoliore.com/ and follow @samanthatov on Instagram.

Before the age of 20, Justin Ford was on a path of destruction that would have ended badly. Trauma and abandonment led to drugs, mischief and jail. Only one thing could stop this downward spiral - hitting rock bottom and turning to God.

Today, Justin is a top agent in one of the biggest cities in the country, and he brings his story of redemption and faith to his business.

How did he end up on such a destructive path? How does he use it to help others? In this episode, the agent, leader, entrepreneur, speaker, coach and author of UNLEASHED shares the life-altering events that created his marketplace ministry.

Your purpose is always attached to one of two things - you influencing and helping others or making the world a better place. -Justin Ford

Three Things You'll Learn In This Episode

- Mischief, misdemeanors, bad decisions What were the worst and darkest moments on Justin's path to rock bottom?

- Why Justin wouldn't change what he's gone through How do we turn our most painful experiences into our purpose?

- Divine intervention and influence What contributed to Justin's self-destructive path and what finally got him to make the turnaround?

Guest Bio

Justin Ford is an agent, leader, entrepreneur, speaker, coach and author of UNLEASHED. He is one of the top inspirational youth and marketplace speakers as well as leadership trainers in the United States. He has spoken to thousands of students and business professionals both young and old. As an experienced speaker and leadership trainer, Justin uses real life examples and a genuine approach to energize and help individuals reach their highest potential. Listen to his podcast Unleashed on your platform of choice and buy the book here (https://www.amazon.com/Unleashed-Principles-Breaking-Free-Through/dp/B0B34V8VR9)