I Spent A Day With Shark Tank Billionaires!

I just got access to one of the most exclusive rooms in business, the set of Shark Tank. And for the next few hours, I'm going behind the scenes with every single shark, and I'm going to steal their best advice on getting rich. Because these investors have seen thousands of businesses, and they've made fortunes from spotting opportunities that everyone else missed. So today, I'm asking the sharks the questions everyone wants answered. How do you become wealthy, and how does somebody become the first millionaire in their family? And by the end of the day, we're going to have a master class on how to build wealth from some of the greatest business minds on the planet. With that being said, let's get this video on the way. We just got to our destination. We're right now about to go to the set of Shark Tank. We're right now at Tyler Perry Studios, who's a billionaire media mogul, and this is where Shark Tank is being filmed. We're about to link up with some of the billionaire sharks, some of the sharks that have built nine, ten-figure companies, multi-billion dollar businesses, you guys. And all these sharks have invested in businesses that have become some of the biggest companies in the entire world, you guys. So come with us right now to meet up with some of the wealthy sharks alive. Shark Tank production right here, you guys. All right, you guys, so we are officially behind the scenes of Shark Tank. This is where all of it happens, man. You can see all the chairs right here. Look, we got Barbara Corkin right here, Kevin O'Leary, Lloyd Griner. Come here. Make sure that you've seen all the sharks. I mean, you guys are talking about the sharks right here. This is where Damon John sits, man, and this is where they are pitched on a regular basis, right? Not only have these guys built, you know, hundred-million-dollar, billion-dollar companies, sold those companies, made hundreds of millions, made billions of dollars throughout their career, but they're investing in the businesses that you see every single week on ABC, you guys. So this is crazy that we're doing this. We're going to be asking all the sharks their best advice on how to become wealthy in today's world, become the first millionaire in your family, you guys. I was the guy in the first coat. Yeah, you had to leave, and then it hit me that you were the guy in the first coat. Well, we're asking the Shark Tank moguls for a piece of advice on how somebody can become a millionaire in today's world. So who am I here with today? Barbara Corkin. And let them know, how did you make your millions? You made $66 million in a single day, is that correct? Yes, I did. I priced them. 88 apartments at the same price, and I sold them all within an hour because it was first come, first serve. It was $12,000 under the market, and people raced to buy them, even the overpriced ones they bought. If you were starting over in business today, would you go back into real estate, or would you do something else? I could do anything, honestly. It's all the same. It's all the same. It's just hustle your ass off, you know? And you have to think of solutions. When you hit a wall, you think of a solution, and you think of a cheap one, and you keep moving on. I don't think it has anything to do with real estate. I don't know a thing about real estate. Not a thing, but I own real estate, so I guess I learned things about it, but I didn't know a thing about real estate through my whole career, but I knew all about hustle. But you know what else I love is the fact that you had people that doubted you at multiple points throughout your career, not just in the business world, but even after you proved yourself. And I like the story about Shark Tank, about how even one of the producers in the show didn't want to give you that seat, but you proved them wrong. They're sorry now. I didn't take no for an answer, and I was the only one who objected to them. I was the only one who wrote Mark Burnett, who owned the show, a letter, and I told him he was making a mistake, and I told him about all my failures in my life and how I had overcome them, but I did it all within 30 words, and he hired me for the show. I love that right there. So let me ask you this. With all the business experience, the knowledge that you've collected, if there's one more piece of advice to the younger generation wanting to become a millionaire in today's world, what's your best piece of advice you would leave with the younger generation right here? It's all about overcoming failure. If you don't have that gene naturally in you, you have to develop it, or you'll never succeed in business. Just have to overcome failure. Get back up and get back in the game. And what are you investing in right now? Like, when you think about your last couple... Well, beyond Shark Tank, they're like, what industry are you saying the next one or two years is, you've got to get into this right now? I'm not one of those people that could tell other industries. I don't know. I invest here in Shark Tank. I invest in real estate in my own life, and that's what I stick with. Stick with my knitting because I make money at it. You know, I bought my first piece of commercial real estate last year. You did? Really? I did. My portfolio is not like you yet, but... Good for you. What's the secret to creating wealth in real estate? It's leveraging. It's like getting a big mortgage, a swell-down payment, and the minute the tenants are paying more rent, you go back to the bank and you ask them for a second mortgage, and you keep taking the cash out. I've never sold any real estate before. I just keep taking cash out as we go. The bank's so willing to give it, so I take it. You know that they don't teach this in school, right? No, I don't know that because I haven't gone to much school. You haven't gone to much school. Barbara, thank you so much for your time. I appreciate that. Thank you. All right, you guys, so we just crushed it with Barbara Corbin. She was giving the game on real estate, but now look who we got behind us right here. We got Mr. Kevin O'Leary, Mr. Wonderful. This guy sold a software company for several billion dollars. I'm about to get some gay from him right here in the chair out in Atlanta, you guys. Come on. My man, I'm doing just a quick little behind the scenes with you real quick. So it's one question I'm asking all the sharks right here. Let's talk to a young person, the 20-year-old version of Kevin, and you had to give him the blueprint to becoming wealthy, a multi-millionaire in today's world. What would you tell him? The number one thing you got to do, and I've learned this the hard way, and now if I have to go back through 20, I'd make sure I didn't make this mistake. You got to pick three things every day to get done. Three things. That's called the signal. Everything else that stops you from getting your three things done, that's the noise. What's the ratio between signal and noise? 80% signal, 20% noise. You don't do anything else to get your three things done. That's how you advance your mandate, your business, and your personal self become successful. Get focused. What are those three things, those money-making activities that you'd be focused on in today's world? Every day you get three new things. You know who taught me this? Steve Jobs years ago. He told me, look, if you get the three things done every 18 hours you're awake, you don't have to worry about the long run because you're going to be so effective, so powerful, but nothing can distract you. The problem with it is it makes you kind of a mean guy because you don't waste your time. Somebody walks in and says, hey, what about the Knicks? You say, I don't give a ---- about the Knicks. I'm getting this thing done. A lot of people don't realize, but you were part of a software company that sold for how much money? 4.2 billion. How do you preserve that capital? They say it's easy to make a lot of money. It's hard to keep a lot of money. That's the period when you're an operator and you're focused on getting that business a place But once you get that diversification and get your cash, you get a ton of cash, you diversify. You invest it in 11 sectors of the economy for the most of it. Take 5 million and put that in T-bills. That's your safety nut. I've never touched that five. It's always there. I look at it every night and go, oh, it's just fantastic. It's so hard to get 5 million as an entrepreneur and put it aside. Everybody says, I'm really rich. I was very successful. I say, do you have 5 million cash in T-bills? No. It's tied up in a boat, in a car, in real estate, in stocks and bonds. I say, then you're not rich. You're just taking risks. I mean, that's a different way to think. But believe me, it's what you want to do. I love that right there. Thank you, my friend. I really appreciate that. You got it. Thanks. Guys, this is one of the most insane videos that we've ever filmed. We're literally spending the day inside Shark Tank right now with some of the greatest business minds on the planet. Every single one of these sharks have built, bought, and invested in thousands of businesses. And you want to know the one thing that every single shark understands that almost every beginner entrepreneur misses. They understand that a great idea, a great business idea, it may get attention. But having the right foundation is what allows that idea to grow. Attract investment and become a real company. And that means choosing the right entity, getting your EIN, handling the paperwork, staying compliant, and making sure the business is actually prepared to operate professionally. And that's why I tell every entrepreneur about Busy. Busy is the one-stop shop every business owner needs in today's world that helps take care of the entire business setup without needing a crazy expensive lawyer or five different services. Busy helps you launch your business correctly, stay on top of important filing, and spend less time dealing with red tape so you can focus on the product, the customers, and the growth. Because understand this, the sharks aren't just investing in ideas. They're investing in real businesses set up the right way that are built to survive success. We partnered up with Busy to give you access to a list of 50 businesses that you can start for less than $500 in today's world. So now you have the ideas and the platform to build the foundation behind them. So wasting more time, go down right now, click the link in the description of this video to get access to that list and start your business with Busy today. With that being said, let's get back to the shark tank. You guys enjoying? We're having a great time. It's our first time out here. Are you? Yeah. I want you to know I've seen your stuff. Thank you so much. Like I was looking at you and I was like, okay, this guy is totally familiar. I appreciate that. Yeah, it means a lot to me. I really appreciate that. The one question I'm asking all the sharks, right? If you could talk to the 20-year-old version of yourself and give yourself the blueprint on how to become a millionaire in today's world, how can somebody become wealthy in today's world? Wow. Well, in today's world, so we're going to go out of the blueprint of myself. But listen, I think that if you have a dream and you have drive and you're willing to do whatever it takes and you're smart and you're scrappy, in today's world, it's easier because there's so much that you can do that doesn't cost you any money. And that means like what you're doing, social media, creating your own videos. You are only limited by your own creativity and imagination. Whereas back when I was doing it, I needed to find resources. I need to figure everything out. And now today you can Google. So it's completely different. So I think that if I were starting today and I had some brilliant idea, I'd say just don't be afraid of risk. Go for it. Take calculated risks and be smart. And then if it doesn't work, you're going to pivot to something else. It's not a failure. You're just learning. It's lessons. One more thing. One of the things that you did in your career that I think is so powerful that a lot of people can learn from is you mastered the art of getting patents for your products. You have what, 120? I have 120 patents. And so I just recently interviewed the founder of TheraBody, the massage gun, and he had the exact same thing. How powerful and important is it to own the patents when you have an invention or a product like that that is so specific in your industry? Well, I believe in patents if you have something that is revolutionary, unique, no one's ever done it before, because you know you will have knockoffs. You know others will follow. And there's nothing worse for an entrepreneur than seeing they've worked so hard on something. They've risked so much. They've put their heart, their soul, and their money into something. And then you see someone knock it off. And that is a horrible feeling. So I like to have power to do something about it. And that's why I did my patents. And frankly, I was knocked off and I had the power to fight them. You have amazing advice. Thank you for your time. I appreciate that. Thank you. All right, you guys. We just interviewed the mogul, Lori Greiner. I want to be very clear. She had the highest return on her investment in shark tank history. She invested in the Scrub Daddy. Still owns 20% of that company today. And I think it's like a nine-figure business, you guys. So crazy good interview out here, you guys. We got to keep this thing rolling, man. Come on. How you doing, my friend? What's up, man? How you feeling? You feeling good? Eating your vegetables, aren't you? I've been doing a little bit of working out, my friend. We're asking all the sharks today if you could give one piece of advice to the younger generation watching this, wanting to become the first millionaire in their family. They want to become the first millionaire in their family. They want to break the cycle. How can somebody become wealthy in today's world? Give them the blueprint. They got to do the homework first, which is free, which is time invested in. And anything they buy, they can sell. And anything they do for free, they can get paid to do. Just like you, interviewing a lot of people on your quest to understand wealth. And all of a sudden now, they want to interview you. So they got to put their homework in. That's the first thing they got to do, put their homework in. You were in the apparel business. Yeah. You built that company to do $400 million in a single year, which is fascinating. How did you find a winning product to be able to generate that much revenue? How did I find a winning product? I found a culture and a community that I was providing for. I created the first hashtag of clothing. And isn't that any business? I don't care what type of business it is. If you are recycling, you're getting a lot of people who want to recycle. If you're selling socks, Bamba socks, people who want to give at the same time they're purchasing. So again, it's finding a community. And what do you think is the best industry people should be investing in today's world? The best industry to invest in is what you're obsessed with. There's more people that make money selling widgets and or things you've never heard of than there is all the gajillionaires out there. We got somebody here who invented Elf on the shelf, which is ridiculous. I think they're doing like two, $300 million a year. That's crazy. Final question for you. I just interviewed Aliko Dangote out in Nigeria, and I asked him the same question. He's the richest man in Africa. Oh, okay. He owns the largest oil refinery in the world. Yes, yes, yes. According to Forbes, it's worth like $35 billion. I wanted to ask you, when you think about your network, what is that one trait they all have in common? They will never, ever stop educating themselves. Love it. Thank you for your time, my friend. I really appreciate that. Thank you, man. Keeping your business. Thank you, sir. Absolutely. How you doing, my friend? Come over here and like. Absolutely, man. We're just doing like a quick kind of like a YouTube video with all the different charts. For the people that don't know, how did you make your millions, man? What was your main company? I'm a finance entrepreneur. So my first 12 years, I was on Wall Street. Made my first million when I was 24 years old. I got you beat. I was 23. And then I became a venture capitalist. I made a lot more millions. I was an early investor in Coinbase, Robinhood, Dropbox, Lyft, Ring, Casper, and PillPack. Those were all multi-billion dollar exits. Do you have to have a ton of capital to get started in private equity? Because you hear all these like big billionaires, a lot of the ones that I interviewed that you know, right? And obviously yourself, they're buying businesses. Yeah. But what do you think is the best way to get started in private equity or venture capital? Is it going out and finding the deals and being able to attach yourself to some equity that way? No, you need three things if you start in private equity. You need a strategy that makes money. You need access to money. Like where are you going to raise it from? If you have a billion, you don't need to raise it. If you don't, you have to find it. And then you need a team of people who can execute against that strategy. So usually what happens, people go from Wall Street, then they go to business school, and then they start as a junior person in a private equity firm. But in some cases, if you're just having your own money and you are investing your own money, you can then bring other money along with you, which is what I did. I was investing my own money. I was making money. Then I showed the returns to others. They decided to invest with me. And what did you learn about money when you were on Wall Street that really fascinated you? Wow. Always find the arbitrage. So there's an arbitrage in everything. And how do you find a way to make money repeatedly where everyone doesn't know about it? And it kind of came to this question that if you have a business, that I always ask entrepreneurs, tell me something that's right that almost no one agrees with you on. And if you have an answer to that, you're going to make money on it. That's the contrarian view. I'll give you an example. When Uber was pitching, they told people that, hey, everyone's going to ride in the backseat of a stranger's car one day. And they're going to use their phone to call this car. They're not going to call cabs. No one believed them. Airbnb said, you're going to actually stay in other people's homes, in their living rooms, and in their guest bedrooms. You're not going to stay in a hotel anymore. No one believed them. So if you find the answer to that question, that's where the money is. That's game right there. I want to talk about deal making. What is your best sales and negotiation tactic for anybody in business? My best tactic is no one likes to be sold, but everyone loves a good deal. I always give people a good deal up front. I don't want to sell anybody anything, right? Second thing is there's no such thing as bad deals. It's bad prices, right? The third thing is you've got to find the arbitrage. What do you think is the most tangible in the next one or two years, the best industry people should be investing in right now? I think it's sports teams. The reason why, particularly NBA, NFL, and MLB. How do you invest in those? Through my fund. So right now, sports private equity firms are raising money from individuals. Evaluations are going insane to some of these teams. Evaluations are not going insane. The revenues are going insane. Their revenue multiples are flat. So you're going to pay 10 times revenue. But guess what? If I told you that these teams are doing billions of dollars in revenue, it would shock you. And the reason why sports teams are so valuable is it's not correlated to the equity markets. It's not going to be disrupted by AI. The vast majority of the revenue is annual reoccurring contractual revenue. They've been around for 100 years. They're legal local monopolies. And as long as people watch the Super Bowl, NFL teams will make money. That's what you're betting. What was the most amount of money you made in a single year? I put 50 grand in Coinbase and made $20 million in seven years. That's incredible, man. That's a good one for me. You've got amazing advice, by the way. Thank you for your time. I really appreciate that. Can I get your contact? That's a wrap on today's video. We just filmed with all the sharks out here in Atlanta. I need you to stop right now. Like, subscribe for amazing content coming every single week to the School of Hard Knocks. But I want to go a step further. I'm going to give you direct access to the 8, 9, and 10 figures, the billionaires I interview on this channel. I host live calls with them every week inside of my private entrepreneur community that you can join right now by going down to the link in the description of this video and becoming a member of the School of Mentors today and getting access to my billionaire network. So I can't wait to see you on the inside. With that being said, I'll see you in the next episode.