NUTS & BOLTS COACHES CORNER
STRATEGIES: REITs Think Realty Coaches
HARPER GARY LESSONS IN LEADERSHIP
ful and to what extent. “Those six things are the key to real freedom in any entrepreneurial endeavor,” he explained. “I’m passionate about my business, but I also have the freedom to spend time with my family, to be a Little League baseball commis- sioner, and to help my local church. Those things would not be an option if my business did not generate good returns using effective systems that do not require me to spend every waking moment making sure they are working.” WHY HE’S HERE “My purpose is helping business owners with leadership, vision, peo- ple, processes, data, and communica- tions. Real estate investors and entre-
preneurs often struggle with leading their teams of people who participate in their investing processes because we tend to work really hard and equate that hard work with success. Hard work definitely plays a role in successfully generating returns, but if you are just winging it with the people you work with and in your processes, then you are going to end up working yourself to death. Working yourself to death is not why most real estate investors get into business!” Harper believes that his six focal areas are the missing link for most investors, which leads him to passion- ately reach out to the real estate sector with information and insight in every way possible. “My whole drive in life "WORKING YOURSELF TO DEATH IS NOT WHY MOST REAL ESTATE INVESTORS GET INTO BUSINESS!"
TITLE AND AFFILIATIONS President and founder of Sharper Business Solutions, Founder and CEO of Monster House Deals LLC, Area Manager at Canon Business Process Services, National Accounts Manager for the Army Research Office (ARO), and Integrated Account Manager at IKON Office Solutions.
THINK REALTY COURSES Personal Growth: 5 lessons
Vision: 6 lessons Goals: 6 lessons EXPERIENCE
Gary Harper spent nearly 17 years in management for Fortune 500 compa- nies in the Chicago area before getting into real estate full-time, but he always knew that his heart was called to en- trepreneurs. “My desire to help others came through investing in real estate myself,” he explained. “I started out buying rental properties in 2004, and around the time I had 15 in my port- folio, I started a property management company. In 2012, I partnered with my brother-in-law to buy and sell proper- ties throughout five Midwestern states. We were part of a team that did more than 1,000 real estate transactions be- tween 2012 and 2015, and we did more than 300 transactions just last year. “Throughout that success, though, I realized that I really wanted to reach out to other real estate investors and help them with their businesses so that they could scale and grow properly. From the beginning, my heart has been knitted into real estate.” During Harper’s own evolution as a real estate investor, he brought his experience in management and busi- ness systems to bear on his investing processes. Harper believes that all successful entrepreneurial endeavors, real-estate-related and otherwise, may be reduced to six main areas of focus that determine if the project is success-
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