7 Years in Pharma until I Escaped the 9 to 5 | I Help 249+ People Build Financial Freedom ($29.3M+) by Passively Investing in Multifamily Real Estate

Concerned with the sobering reality that you're not on track to provide for your family.

No one to turn to develop a strategy to help. I get it, and that's why I am here for you.

Everywhere you look, people appeared to have mastered their finances, and yet no one talks about money or helps. 

Being in this situation is confusing.

In 2015, I was confused.

I had an average income...

and a high expense lifestyle. 

I viewed it as normal.

I was not on track.

Why do I share this?

Because it's a honest, simple and powerful realization that most people don't reach.

This reality is true for a lot of us, irrespective of income.

I say this backed by anecdotal evidence.

Everyday I help people redefine their relationship with money. 

I've done it for 277+ people. 

Making them $14.9M+ since 2018.

Growing their net worth by $31.9M+.

And the average client has a similar story. 

Looking to make money, but doesn't know where to start.

And no time to figure it out.

And so, I help people build financial security.

Using the tips and tricks that I've done for myself. 

I help people that are: 

- Tired of paying too much in taxes
- Confused with how to manage their investments
- Unsure how to grow their business
- Flustered with the myriad of options   
- Overwhelmed with where to start

Nothing is more important to me than adding value to those around me. This is why I actively work to understand pain points and how to turn them into the foundation for people to scale. 

What I do isn't for everyone. If you think we might be a good fit, contact me:

📞 https://calendly.com/mustafal/15min

📧 ml@velocecapital.com

Disclaimer: Please note that past performance is not indicative of future results and investing involves risks, including the potential loss of principal. There are no guarantees in any investment. Content is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as investment advice or a recommendation to buy or sell any security. Any forward-looking statements or forecasts are based on assumptions and actual results may differ materially from those expressed in such statements.

Before investing, carefully consider the investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses of the investment product or strategy. Each investor's financial situation and investment objectives are unique, and the information contained herein may not be suitable for all investors. Prospective investors should consult with a financial or legal professional to determine the appropriateness of any investment in light of their individual circumstances.

Mustafa Ladha

Here’s the crazy thing about personal finance

Sometimes it’s illogical 

Here’s what I mean

I have a client that’s living rent-free.

And he wants to give it up.

He sold his home in New Jersey

Moved to Texas, 

And invested with me.

His investments make him ~$56,000/year.

Passively.

His rent is ~$48,000/year.

His portfolio covers his housing — and then some.

Now he wants to pull everything out and buy a house, all-cash.

Sounds illogical.

Or smart...

Depending on your perspective 

On paper, it's a downgrade.

He'd be trading an income-producing asset that pays him

For a non-income-producing asset that has taxes, insurance, and maintenance.

On the other hand 

He's swapping cash flow for certainty.

And I get both sides of the story

There's real peace in knowing nobody can raise your payment, 

Nobody can foreclose, 

And you don't owe anyone a dollar.

That peace is real.

But most people chase "debt-free" without pricing what it actually costs:

1. Less monthly flexibility.
2. Slower compound growth.
3. Fewer options if life changes.

The right question isn't "Should I buy a house cash?"

It's "What am I buying... and what am I giving up?"

Because if your investments already pay for your lifestyle, 

Selling them might feel safer 

While quietly trapping you.

Freedom isn't just owning something outright.

It's what that ownership empowers you to be able to do.

If you're thinking about using a big cash pile to buy a house outright, DM me "CASH."

I'll help you see what you're really trading.

From 9–5 to Financial Freedom | Helping 277+ People | Generated $14.9M+ in Passive Income & Increased Net Worth by $31.9M+ | Learn How You Can Too

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Here's what no one tells you about money

Chasing money keeps you broke.

In 2016, I got my first "real" job.

Prestigious company.

$42,000/year.

I was 22 and obsessed with one question:

How do I help people at scale?

Here's what didn't help

Comparing myself to people making more.

Because comparing doesn't give you a plan.

Doesn’t give you actionable steps. 

It just gives you anxiety.

So I took advice from someone 2–3 steps ahead of me:

"Optimize for growth, not salary."

Life changing advice.

It can seem simple 

But it changed everything.

I spent nights learning to underwrite real estate deals.

Took calls with investors and real estate professionals

Reviewed 100s of opportunities before finding the right one... before saying yes.

Built relationships with people who saw potential, not a resume.

Within 5 years, my income and trajectory looked completely different.

Here's what drives me:

The fulfillment of actually helping people where it matters most...

Building financial stability 

Helping people build wealth 

So they don't have to trade their time for money.

This passion led me to create passive real estate opportunities.

Help 277+ investors make over $14,900,000+ passively.

It also pushed me to teach personal finance in a simple, real-world way.

I'm not a financial advisor.

I'm not from a finance background.

I'm just someone who built it for himself — and now helps others do the same.

If you're early in your career and feel behind, here's the shift:

Stop asking "How do I earn more than them?"

Start asking "What skill would change everything for me in 12 months?"

Questions like this built my career.

It can build yours too.

If you want my simple framework for growing income + building wealth without making your life more stressful

Comment or DM "GROWTH"

Most people don't lose trust because they ‘mess up.’

They lose it because they show up with an agenda.

On my podcast, Joshua Wilson said something I’ll remember:

Love is spelled T-I-M-E.

Not gifts. Not words. Not ‘checking in’ when you want something.

Time.

And honestly.....this applies to business even more than people admit.

Because a lot of ‘relationship building’ is just a nicer outfit for the same thing:

Hunting

If your warmth disappears the moment they don't buy...
If your follow-ups only happen when your pipeline is dry…
If the ‘care’ is tied to a transaction…

That wasn't a relationship.

That was a strategy.

And people feel it.

Not because they're cynical.

Because humans are wired to notice when they're being used.

Time is the receipt.

It proves intent.

You can't fake it.
You can't shortcut it.
You can't ‘value add’ your way out of manipulation.

Real trust gets built in moments that don't benefit you immediately:

When you follow up and there's nothing to sell.
When you help without keeping score.
When you show up the same way whether they buy or not.

So I use one filter before I reach out to anyone:

Would I still show up if they never bought?

If the answer is no…

I either change my approach, or I stop calling it a relationship.

Trust builds slowly.

And then it compounds.

What's your tell when someone is building a real relationship vs chasing a sale?

Here’s what no one tells you about money 

The most expensive thing my work costed me wasn't money.

It was bedtime with my kids.

I was home.

But I wasn't there - mentally.

Laptop open. 

Slack pinging. 

Mind on scaling.

My daughter would say goodnight.

I'd mumble something back without properly looking up.

That's not presence. 

That's proximity.

Your kids won't remember every lesson you taught them.

They'll remember whether you were there.

Not every rule.

But how safe they felt around you.

Not every explanation.

But whether you were patient when they were struggling.

Presence builds a kind of security no textbook can replace.

After helping 277+ investors build passive income, I've noticed something:

The ones who stay committed aren't just chasing a number.

They're chasing a lifestyle.

One client used to miss bedtime three nights a week.

Now his passive income give him peace of mind.

He crushes it at work.

And has the security to be home by 6.

Same job. 

Same title. 

Different mindset.

That's what financial freedom actually buys.

Not stuff. 

Not status.

Time with the people who matter most.

If you're earning well but still missing moments that matter DM me "PRESENCE"

Let's build a financial structure that gives you back your time.

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Here’s what no one tells you about risk...

And how it made 180k evaporate 

Every decision carries risk 

And usually the only way to understand that is to experience it

Here’s what I mean 

Two weeks ago, 

I shared why relentless learning separates those that build wealth from everyone else.

This is what happens when you skip it.

There is a clear, consistent pattern:

Investments are calm. 

Returns are steady.

People stop paying attention.

Then something shifts.

A project underperforms. 

Rates change. 

Suddenly the investor is scrambling.

Googling terms they should've understood before they invested.

Asking questions they should've asked 18 months ago.

One investor I know fits this exactly.

Smart guy. 

High earner. 

Made his first few investments without much diligence.

Things went well. 

He got comfortable.

Then one investment went sideways.

He didn't understand the capital stack. 

Didn't know he could lose money.

Didn’t know that his investment wasn’t collateralized.

Lost $180K.

Now he studies everything. 

Obsessively.

This experience costed him $180K and 3 years of missed growth.

The strategic investors 

The ones who build wealth the fastest

They don't wait for pain to teach them

They learn from other people’s mistakes, saving time and money.

They find the right mentors, people with the experience to see around corners. 

They learn when things are good - because that's when you can think clearly.

After helping 277+ investors generate $14.9M+ in passive income, I've seen this truth over and over...

Reactive learning is the most expensive kind.

You pay, in dollars and time.

Are you learning proactively - or waiting for a painful lesson?

DM me "PROACTIVE" if you want to talk about building a process to strategically grow

The beliefs I grew up with nearly broke me.

As a son of immigrants, I was molded to believe:

1. Hard work is the only path forward
2. Taking breaks is weakness
3. Whatever I do isn't good enough

These beliefs built my career.

They’ve helped me scale beyond what I thought was possible. 

But, they also created blind spots.

I reached a point where I'd come home exhausted

But I didn’t understand why

I wasn't doing physical labor.

I was just thinking all day.

Eventually I learnt what was going on...

I was experiencing decision fatigue.

Your brain actually gets tired from making too many choices.

I dismissed it at first. 

Sounded soft.

But the evidence was hard to ignore.

I was home with my kids but not actually present.

My body was there.

My mind was still solving problems.

I started watching people I respected - high performers who seemed to have more hours in the day than I did.

They weren't working harder.

They were protecting their thinking time.

In 2025, I made one change:

Time blocking, doing my most draining tasks first thing in the morning.

LinkedIn content creation? 
I hate it.

So I do it at 6am before my brain has a chance to resist.

Then I take a break to be present for my kids' morning routine.

This shift helped me serve an extra 42+ people last year.

It helped create over $3.7M in value for clients.

And I got to watch my kids eat breakfast without checking Slack.

Retraining your brain isn't fun.

Addressing blind spots feels uncomfortable.

But the compound effect is unreal.

Were you raised to believe rest is weakness?

I'd love to hear how that shaped you.

Comment below or DM me.

If it triggers you, it's probably the truth.

If two missed paychecks would break your life, you are not okay.

You are in danger.

I'm talking about you, reading this on your lunch break or in the car.

Check yourself:

Your salary lands......and within days it's gone to rent, fees, debt, stop orders

Your chest tightens when HR sends a 'quick calendar sync'

You tell yourself it's fine, I'll fix it later - and another year disappears

From the outside, everything looks polished.

But if your salary stopped for 60 days, what happens?

-Do you start swiping credit cards to survive?
-Do you call family to borrow just until things settle?
-Do you downgrade your kids' school, your plans, your life?

That's not bad luck.

That's a system built on one weak pillar.

And here's the brutal part:

You don't control that pillar.

One decision in a room you're not invited to.....and your stability is gone.

After helping 277+ people generate $14.9M+ in passive income,

I've seen this pattern too many times.

-The fix isn't another budgeting app.
-It isn't spending less this year.
-It isn't waiting for a bigger bonus.

The fix is building income that keeps coming when your salary doesn't.

One client came to me exactly like this - high earner, two weeks of runway.

18 months later: $6,200/month in passive income from real estate.

Same job. Same salary. Completely different foundation.

You don't need 20 doors.

You need enough passive income that:

-One HR email
-One health issue
-One we're going in a different direction

…doesn't flip your whole life upside down.

If this feels uncomfortably accurate, don't just scroll.

DM me ENOUGH.

I'll help you:
→ See exactly how exposed you are today
→ Work out how many calm months you truly have
→ Map one practical, hands-off real estate path to actual stability

Two paychecks shouldn't be the difference between your life and chaos.

Here’s the dangerous truth that most people don’t realize 

Most people don’t burn out because they’re working too hard.

They burn out because they’re watching everyone else.

Andrew Coleman shared something on my podcast that I keep replaying:

If you focus on your journey and helping others hit their goals...

...you stop caring about unhealthy competition.

And you start building something real.

Your uniqueness is your strength.

This is the piece we skip.

We think the ‘edge’ is a smarter strategy.

But the real edge 

The one nobody can copy is

Your lived experience.

A mix of:

-what you’ve been through
-what you’ve learned the hard way
-who you’ve helped

The standards you refuse to drop

Comparisons make you feel behind.

But behind who?

-Someone with different goals.
-Different responsibilities.
-A totally different starting line.

I see this constantly in investing.

People compare returns.

They change their strategy too early.

They chase noise.

They reset the clock.

And they call it ‘being proactive.’

The people who build real wealth do something boring:

They choose a plan that fits their life.

They execute consistently.

They ignore the scoreboard.

They let compounding do the heavy lifting. 

That’s how 82+ clients made 29.74%+ over 2 years

Andrew Coleman - appreciate the timely reminder. 

It’s simple. 

And it’s real.

If you’ve ever caught yourself comparing…..

What helped you get back to focusing on yourself

Focusing on how you help people

Comment below or DM

Here’s the simple reality most people ignore...

2025 was the year you learnt

2026 is the year you take action.

Most people don't lack information.

They lack implementation.

After helping 277+ investors generate $14.9M+ in passive income, I've seen this too many times:

Another year passes.

More articles. 

More "I should really do something about this."

Same position in December as January.

Not because you're lazy.

Because planning feels like progress.

Spreadsheets built, but never used to make a decision.

Notes on opportunities, but no actual capital deployed.

Real progress is usually 20% planning, 80% action.

One client spent all of 2024 researching.

Zero investments.

In January 2025, she made one decision.

Asked the right questions.

Took a modest first step.

3 hours of planning. Then she took action.

By December 2025, she was generating $4,100/month in passive income.

Same person.

Same knowledge.

Different year.

Because she finally took action.

You don't need the perfect strategy to start.

You need a step that's proportionate to where you are right now.

Here's the math that should bother you:

Every month you wait is $400-$800 in passive income you'll never get back.

Not "might miss."

Will never get back.

12 months of "I'll start next quarter" = $4,800-$9,600 gone.

Not lost to a bad investment.

Lost to no investment.

That's the cost of waiting.

And it compounds — against you.

So here's my ask:

Stop researching. 

Start a conversation.

DM me "Action" and I'll send you the exact 3 questions I ask every new investor.

Takes 3-10 minutes to answer.

But it'll show you whether you're actually ready — or just comfortable planning.

December 2026 is coming either way.

The only question: Will you be in the same spot?

Here’s how I made investors ~15.73% last here
 
This is something I don’t talk about
 
And there are a few reasons why
 
1. I don’t want you to assume you’ll make money
2. I don’t want you to assume making money is easy
3. I don’t want you to walk into things without understanding the risk
 
A few years back I launched a fund
 
A fund is basically when people pool their money to invest into something together
 
Think of a partnership
 
Everyone wants to invest in real estate
 
Some people don’t know how
 
So, they partner with someone that can do it for them (me)
 
The fund was a 506(b)
 
For most people this legal designation is useless
 
The reason why I mention it is that it’s open to accredited investors
 
And 35 non-accredited investors
 
The people that invested in this fund are everyday people:
 
1. They’ve never invested in real estate before
 
2. They probably don’t know what the word ‘accredited’ means
 
3. They’re looking to invest on an all cash basis
 
The 3rd point is unique
 
There are certain people that want to make money without leverage
 
This fund is actually built for those people
 
The fund has made 14%+ each year for ~3+ years
 
Imagine investing $100,000 in 2022
 
And it growing to $148,154.40 by the end of 2025
 
48% growth in 3 years
 
Awesome, but honestly
 
Here’s the legal disclaimer
 
This is just an illustration
 
If you want to see actual performance reach out and I’ll send you the information
 
The point here isn’t how people are making a lot of money passively
 
The point is actually what I mentioned last week
 
Wealthy people are disciplined
 
Making 14%+ feels amazing
 
But if you’re doing it year after year it can get monotonous
 
Discipline isn't flashy. 
 
We’re not investing in real estate to be flashy
 
We’re investing in real estate to build financial freedom
 
If you want to join the 277+ people scaling
 
Comment or DM

You don't need another strategy, you need clarity...

Here’s what I mean

On Friday I asked a simple question

A question I’ve asked over 277 people

How do you make investment decisions

I recently asked a 21 year old making 250,000+ a year

His brutally honest response was that he follows his gut

This 21 year old makes more than everyone in his family

High income.
Smart.
Serious about building wealth.

And completely honest about the chaos behind his choices.

The Friday poll had 4 options:

- Research deeply and decide
- Follow a trusted mentor/advisor
- Copy friends/colleagues
- Gut feel / FOMO

In real life

Most portfolios are a blend of all four.

A little research.
A little "my friend made money in this."
A little "my advisor said it's good."
A little "I don't want to miss out."

That's how people end up with:

A crypto position they don’t understand.

An angel investment because their friends said it was the next best thing.

A "passive" property that became a second job.

Different assets.

Same root problem: no clarity.

Here are the 3 questions you need to ask 

Before any new investment

𝟭. 𝗗𝗼𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝗺𝗲 𝗰𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗼 building 𝗳𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗼𝗺?
Not "does it sound exciting?"
Does it actually support the life I'm building?

𝟮. 𝗖𝗮𝗻 𝗜 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘆 𝗶𝘀 𝗺𝗮𝗱𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗹𝗼𝘀𝘁?
If you can't explain the model simply, you're borrowing conviction.

𝟯. 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗮𝗺 𝗜 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 — 𝗺𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘆, 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲, 𝗼𝗿 𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗴𝘆?
Many "great returns" stop being great once you price in stress and hours.

Same person.
Same income.
Completely different decision process.

If your portfolio looks more like "friend / mentor / FOMO" than you'd like to admit...

You don't need more noise.

You need a filter you can trust.

Want help pressure-testing your next investment decision?

DM me "INVEST"

We'll walk through it together.

Here’s what you don't realize

FOMO kills more portfolios than bad markets.

The people who quietly build wealth don't have a secret strategy.

They have habits most people skip.

After making 277+ people $14,900,000+, here are the three behaviors that repeatedly show up:

𝟭) 𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆 𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳-𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲
They do the boring things

Reviewing their numbers monthly.
Honoring commitments even when it's inconvenient.
Sticking to a plan when it's no longer exciting.

Discipline isn't flashy.

But it’s at the heart of how people aggressively scale.

𝟮) 𝗪𝗵𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝘀𝗽𝗮𝗰𝗲
They time block

Create space to think without noise.

Good decisions rarely happen when you’re stuck in the beautiful chaos of life

Family, back-to-back meetings and late-night commitments.

A few protected hours a week changes the quality of choices over years.

𝟯) 𝗥𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴
They keep learning even when things are working.

Not from panic.

From respect for how quickly the world can change.

The best investors I know read more when they're winning, not less.

You don't build these skills in a weekend.

You build them one decision at a time.

Which one do you need to work on most?

Drop it below — sometimes naming it is the first step.

If you want help building these habits into your investing approach,

DM me "HABITS"

Here’s what most people don’t realize

You're probably wasting time learning about investing 

Here's what to do instead.

Not more threads.
Not more podcasts.
Not more "passive income" ideas.

You don't need more information.

You need to take action.

After helping 277+ investors generate $14.9M+ in passive income, I've seen this pattern hundreds of times:

Smart professionals who've consumed everything.

But still haven’t invested.

Or they’re stuck at one investment.

The issue isn't discipline or laziness.

It's that they lack conviction

They’ve never felt certainty.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 investment 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹𝘀 scary.

Your brain screams:

What if I lose everything? 

What if I'm missing something?

What if I need to "research a bit more"?

You reread everything.

You draft questions, delete them, then ask anyway.

You almost pull out twice.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱 investment 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹𝘀 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝘃𝘆, 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗳𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗮𝗿.

You know the process.

You know what it feels like to invest and wait for your investment to make you money.

Fear is still there.

But it's no longer the driving force.

𝗕𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗿𝗱, 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗳𝘁𝘀.

You stop asking: "Is investing safe?"

You start asking: "Does this investment fit my plan, my risk profile, and help me build freedom?"

One client — high earner, had two weeks of savings— made his first investment in 2022.

Took him three weeks to pull the trigger.

By his third investment, he was in within 48 hours.

3 years later: $5,100/month in passive income.

Same person. Completely different operating system.

You're no longer consuming information about investing.

You're operating like an investor.

That shift isn't bravery.

It's momentum.

And momentum compounds faster than money.

So here's the hard question:

If someone looked at your last 12 months, would they see a person thinking about l investing — or a person who became an investor?

There’s a subtle but powerful difference.

If you're earning but still on the sidelines, DM me "MOMENTUM"

I'll help you define a realistic first position.

The best time to start was yesterday. 

The second best time is today.

Speak soon

The best salespeople talk less than you think.


Silence isn’t awkward. 

It’s empowering. 

It gives you the information you need to help.

🧠 Shannon Smith, J.D., M.S. 🚀 dropped this on the podcast 

And it's a powerful insight that will help you scale

Last year someone came to me ready to invest.

Had the capital. Had the stability. Said all the right things.

But something felt off.

So instead of selling or pitching, I asked questions.

Turns out he was about to go through a divorce. 

Didn't actually have the access to money he thought he had. 

He was looking for a distraction, not an investment.

I told him no.

Not "not right now." Just no.

He was confused. Maybe frustrated.

But setting up an investment opportunity for him would've been the equivalent of financial and personal malpractice.

It would have been wrong.

Most business owners are taught:

Get into as many inboxes as possible.

Push the offer.

Handle objections.

Close.

That's a transactional approach to life, it’s transactional selling.

It might make money in the short term. It rarely builds trust in the long term.

Consultative selling sounds different:

"What's the real problem you're trying to solve?"

"What have you already tried?"

"Is this actually the right move for you right now?"

Sometimes the honest answer is:

"No, I'm not the right person to help you."

The fastest way to lose trust is to push a solution to a problem someone doesn't have.

Or worse — to a problem they're trying to escape from.

You don't need more aggressive conversations.

You need cleaner intentions and better questions.

And if you want an honest conversation about whether passive real estate is even right for you, DM me "FREEDOM."

If I can help, I'll show you how.

If I can't, I'll tell you that too.

40+ Linkedin Money-Making-Influence Resources I Toxic Boss Immunity I Frequency of INFLUENCE: ETHICAL PERSUASION I $20k Brain-Based Sales System | HarvardX Neuroscience Research I Keynote 🎤 I X-Microsoft I Captain ⛵

Here’s something crazy you can implement in 2026.

You can acquire customers for $0.

Not a hack.

A strategy.

Become a micro-influencer before you launch the thing you want to sell.

I was talking about this recently with Domingo Valadez and it clicked.

AI already made building products easier than ever.

So the moat isn’t the product anymore.

It’s distribution.

And distribution comes two ways:

1. Pay for it (ads, partnerships, sponsorships)

2. Build it organically (free)

Most people default to option 1.

They launch first.

Then scramble for attention.

The smarter play?

Start posting now.

Share what you’re learning.

Document your thinking.

Help real people solve real problems.

Every post is a free lottery ticket.

Every follower is a potential customer.

Every piece of content compounds.

The founders who win won’t just outbuild the competition.

They’ll out-distribute them.

Start today. It costs nothing.

I started in 2024 on LinkedIn.

I focused on financial literacy.

Since then, I’ve watched people completely redefine their relationship with money.

Along the way, I’ve helped people invest passively in real estate.

I’ve helped people make money in their sleep.

That started with simple posts.

When will you start?

How will you help people?

Comment below or DM me if you want to:

1. Get clarity on your money
2. Explore how passive real estate can fit into your plan
3. Or just share where you’re at right now.

Co-Founder & CEO @ Homebase | Helping real estate sponsors close deals faster

One investor made 15.47% last year.

Another lost $280K.

The difference wasn't intelligence.

It was which levers they pulled.

Mentorship. 

Skills. 

Opportunities. 

Consistency.

Four different words. 

One common thread:

Money rarely grows just from working harder.

It grows when you pull the right levers, strategically.

After helping 277+ investors generate $14.9M+ in passive income, here's what I've seen:

𝗠𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽
Helps you avoid mistakes you don't even see.

One client skipped a "great" deal after a 15-minute call with me. 

That deal went sideways 8 months later. Saved him $75K.

The most expensive lessons are the ones you could've skipped with the right guidance.

𝗦𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹𝘀
Make you more valuable in whatever environment you're in.

Not just technical skills 

Knowing how to evaluate deals, read operators, and ask the right questions.

One client had zero investing background. 

She learned these skills. 

Last year she made 15.47% annualized. 

Passively.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗼𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀
Position yourself to see opportunities others never get access to.

The person who lost $280K had access to capital. 

The person who made 15.47% had access to the right deal flow. 

Capital that isn’t invested strategically won’t grow and create financial freedom.

𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆
Stops all of that growth from evaporating when life gets hard and uncomfortable.

One investor I work with has made 12 investments over 4 years. 

No home runs. 

Just steady 14-21% returns, compounding quietly every year.

One good decision doesn't build wealth. 

A hundred boring ones do.

Most people don't fail because they lack potential.

They get stuck trying to do everything alone, without structure, in too many directions.

The ones who build wealth?

They stack the right levers and stay patient.

Which lever do you need to focus on most right now?

Drop it below or DM

Growth starts when you know where you stand

The author can see how you vote. Learn more

Most high performers don’t realize what they’re trading until something breaks.

Curious what it is for you right now

Right now, which do you feel you’re sacrificing more?

Real Estate Investor and CEO at MAK Capital | Luxury Storage Developer | 200+ CRE units | Financial Freedom Mentor

I’m Marc Kuhn and in 1994 I started my construction career with my Dad. I started at $1 per hour and got a $1 raise every year as I worked for my dads construction company. 

In 2010, I left my hourly job with $2,500 in my bank account. 

I started my entrepreneurial path and opened MAK Construction, my first business. I’ve grown the construction company to over $25 million a year. We develop commercial projects both 3rd party and investment projects for our investors. 

Since 2018, we have added over 200 units in the Midwest. The benefits of real estate have given me the freedom of time. My goal is to help investors reach financial freedom through real estate. 

Today I own and operate three successful companies that do eight figures a year. 

https://linktr.ee/marckuhn?fbclid=PAAabPuGTp9yBQf1LtvPMccAGv2W9DDPWjJCYvxn3mKnV12VKxsr7s0g8Lc18

2010: MAK Construction: Build and Manage Construction Projects. 
www.makconstructiongf.com

2020: MAK Capital: Let’s passive investors invest in real estate projects beside us! 
Unfollow the herd newsletter: 
www.makcapitalgf.com

2020: CK Agency: Manages Multifamily and Storage properties. 
www.ckagencyllc.com

Marc Kuhn

2025 was a hell of a year. Hit a lot of business goals!

Also lost my Dad to lung cancer at 63.

Here were the highs, the lows, and the perspective changes for me this year to have a strong 2026:

Our teams crushed it this year at MAK Capital + MAK Construction LLC.

Built a $15.4M workforce housing project in a town that hasn't seen new housing in 30+ years.

Started a drilling company from scratch and did nearly $1M in revenue.

Developed $23M in new luxury storage facilities.

Ran $30M through our construction and concrete companies.

Raised $6M from investors and grew to $70M in assets under management.

But losing my Dad overshadows it all. 
It put life into perspective.

I grew up in the concrete business right next to him. We worked together for years. He taught me everything about hard work, grit, and showing up when it's hard.

When he got sick, all the business success didn't matter. 

He told me:

"It's not always about money, Marc. When you're sick, throw money out the window. It doesn't matter anymore. Purpose is what matters—why you do what you do. Lean on God when you need to find it."

Easy to say. Hard to do.

So here's what I'm changing in 2026:

Yeah, I've got business goals: 

• Develop $100M in projects
• Raise $10M for storage
• Hit $100M in assets under management. 

Those are still there.

But I'm being more intentional. Better leader. Better husband. Better father. Better friend.

I'm 37 and my biological age is 33.8 (I wear a Whoop watch and have worn it for 600+ days straight). 

I use 10x Health for blood work every 6 months to catch problems before they start. If you don't know what those are, look them up. Game changers for your health.

You have one body. Take care of it.

I know most people follow me for business content, and I love the game. But this year reminded me there's more to it than that.

I create content for free because if I don't share during the journey, I'll be irrelevant at 60 trying to give advice. I'm in the trenches with you right now.

I'm not here to compete or brag. I'm showing you what's possible when your mindset shifts.

If a kid who grew up poor in North Dakota can build what we've built, you can too.

I appreciate everyone who's been part of this journey—my team, my investors, my family, and everyone following along on here.

Here's to a more purposeful 2026.

Happy New Year!

Marc Kuhn

Unfollow the Herd

📌 𝗜𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂'𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝗽𝗼𝘀𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁:

• Building wealth
• Investing in real estate
• Entrepreneur lessons

Give me a follow and check out my free newsletter: marckuhn.substack.com

MAK Capital

📌 𝗝𝗼𝗶𝗻 𝟰𝟬𝟬+ 𝗮𝗰𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗱𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗻𝘃𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗽𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗹𝘆 𝗶𝗻𝘃𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝗹𝘂𝘅𝘂𝗿𝘆 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗮𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝗺𝗲: https://api.leadconnectorhq.com/widget/form/ilq2Nf6VqqoHiGoYaTl3

Free Guides

📌 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗹𝘂𝘅𝘂𝗿𝘆 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 ↓

https://open.substack.com/pub/marckuhn/p/why-im-investing-millions-in-luxury

YOUTUBE

📺 𝗦𝘂𝗯𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗯𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝘆 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗧𝘂𝗯𝗲 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗹 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗱𝗲𝗲𝗽 𝗱𝗶𝘃𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝘄𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘁𝗵 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗲.

www.youtube.com/@marckuhnmak/videos



YouTube video

📌 𝗖𝗵𝗲𝗰𝗸 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗺𝘆 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗧𝘂𝗯𝗲 𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗼 𝘁𝗼 𝗴𝗼 𝗱𝗲𝗲𝗽𝗲𝗿 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗼𝗽𝗶𝗰:

[LINK]

Course

📌 𝗚𝗼 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗭𝗘𝗥𝗢 𝘁𝗼 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝘃𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗺𝘆 𝟭𝟬-𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝗶𝗻𝘃𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿 𝗯𝗹𝘂𝗲𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗻𝘁:

✅ 2-hour video course
✅ Zero to real estate investor
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Get instant access here: https://marckuhn1.gumroad.com/l/realestate

📌 𝗔𝗿𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗻 𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗲𝘂𝗿 𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗱 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗰𝗮𝗻'𝘁 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗽 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝘀𝘁𝘂𝗱𝘆 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗯𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂?

Source

📌 Are you getting deals done in the last 4 months of 2024? I'm aiming for one more!

[img:au4tNGlOi]

Coaching

📌 𝗟𝗼𝗼𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽?

Here's what you'll learn with me:

- How to invest in real estate
- How to scale your W2 or business
- How to develop a entrepreneur mindset

I'm taking on 3 coaching clients in March.

Apply here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSf32zZYq19VTz8BSMSwZrs4WQBn9Knwo4AzmgeE5pSS6ws-9A/viewform

CEO @ MAK Capital | CRE Developer | Guiding You to Wealth with Passive Investments in Luxury Storage & Multifamily Real Estate

Tony Robbins owns 110 businesses. $10B in revenue.

Guess what his favorite asset class is?

He says private equity returns the highest on anything he's done.

I believe him.

I was listening to him on The Iced Coffee Hour podcast with Graham Stephan when they asked him about his investment strategy.

Private equity.

• Not stocks. 
• Not bonds. 
• Not crypto. 
• Not even real estate funds.

Direct ownership in businesses.

You know what's crazy? He pays fees. Management fees. Carry. All the costs people complain about.

And it still returns more than anything else in his portfolio.

This is what the wealthy have figured out.

Because when you own equity in a real business, you're not hoping the market goes up. You're controlling the asset that generates cash flow.

Public markets: You own a piece of paper that goes up and down based on what other people think it's worth.

Private equity: You own a piece of a business that produces cash flow every month regardless of what CNBC thinks. 

And if you own enough of it, you have a say in who is running the business, what strategies they use, and how to make it more efficient.

Stocks on your Robinhood app are great because they're liquid, you can buy and sell anytime you want. 

But safe and liquid also means you're playing the same game as millions of other people. 

All reacting to the same news. 
All getting the same returns.

Private equity is different:

→ You control the asset
→ You improve operations
→ You increase cash flow
→ You decide when to exit

That's why the wealthy put money into boring businesses nobody else wants.

Construction. Hotels. Drilling companies. Storage facilities. HVAC companies.

Not sexy. But they print cash.

And cash that you control beats a stock portfolio that moves based on Fed announcements.

I've tried it all. 

Built a stock portfolio. Built a real estate portfolio. Operate businesses.

My businesses always outperform.

Because I can control the outcome. I can't control what the S&P does tomorrow.

If you had $100K to invest today, would you put it in the stock market or buy equity in a boring business?

---

♻️ Repost to start the conversation with others

Follow me Marc Kuhn for daily posts on building wealth with real estate, boring businesses, and ownership mindset

AI won't fix your overflowing toilet in 2026.

And it won't show up to mow your lawn.

It won't pressure wash your driveway.
It won't build your local housing development.
It won't lay a slab of concrete or roof your house.

There's a lot of doom and gloom on the internet saying "If you don't bet on AI, you'll lose your job. If you don't bet on AI, you'll never build real wealth."

It's going to transform a lot of jobs and almost every industry.

But if you don't want to bet the farm on AI and robots…and you still want to build wealth…

Choose "boring" ways to make money.

• We'll still need trades.
• We'll still need construction workers.
• We'll still need lawn care companies.
• We'll still need apartments for people to live.
• We'll still need self-storage for people's stuff.

While everyone's panicking about AI...there are plumbers, HVAC, and roofing companies printing millions in cash flow that aren't worried at all.

These aren't venture-backed apps with no revenue. They're boring businesses in boring towns that print cash every single month.

The wealth gap isn't between people who understand AI and people who don't.

It's between people who own businesses and people who trade time for a paycheck with no ownership.

You know what wealthy people are actually buying right now?

• Landscaping routes. 
• Pressure washing businesses. 
• Construction companies.
• Boring self storage.

Not because they're sexy. 

Because they're profitable, scalable, and impossible to disrupt with code.

The real opportunity isn't in the thing everyone's talking about.

It's in the thing everyone's ignoring while they're busy talking and chasing hype.

Boring stil = wealth in 2026.

What boring wealth-building opprtunities are you eyeing up this year?

--

♻️ Repost if you agree and follow me Marc Kuhn for "boring" wealth building ideas this year.

DM me if you want to learn about my favorite boring, cash-flowing asset: luxury self storage.

My goal as a Dad with 2 daughters:

Teach them "high-agency" life skills.

By the time they're out of the house and off to college, they'll know how to:

• Change a flat tire.
• Back up a truck with a trailer.
• Climb a roof and put shingles down.
• Read and analyze their personal finances.
• Fix what’s broken, and walk a construction site with confidence.

We're raising them to rely on themselves to get through life.

The cool kids on the internet call it "High Agency."

High-agency people don’t sit around waiting for permission, perfect conditions, or someone else to solve the problem. They assume it’s on them to figure it out.

One day, I hope they marry husbands who take care of them. And we'll always be the first to help.

But that’ll be a luxury, not a requirement, for them to solve problems in their lives.

My dad helped me develop this skill from a young age, watching him run a business and working beside him. 

I learned the value of figuring it out, doing the work, and taking responsibility.

That’s the same lesson I want for my girls.

Because if they grow up capable, they’ll never be at the mercy of anyone. And that confidence will carry into everything—family, business, and life.

For the parents out there: 

What’s one skill you want your kids to leave your house with?

--

♻️ Share this with parents in your network
🤝 Reach out if I can be a resource Marc Kuhn

10 financial lessons that took me 16 years to learn.

You can learn them in 2 minutes:

1. Don't diversify when you're broke.

Pick one thing. Master it. I did concrete for 5 years straight. Boring but it built the foundation for everything else.

2. Live like a monk for 5 years.

Live like you're poor for the first 5 years of your career so you can live like the 1% the rest of your life. No fancy car. No upgraded house. Just compound your skills and capital.

3. Reach higher than you think you can.

In construction, a $5K residential job is just as hard as a $500K commercial job. But one pays 100x more. Stop playing small, even before you feel you're ready.

4. Easy to buy = hard to sell.

Mobile homes are easy to buy, hard to sell. Quality assets in good markets are hard to acquire but easy to exit. Think about your exit before you buy your first property.

5. Play Monopoly, not Salary.

Optimize for equity, not income. A business that loses $10K/year for 5 years but is worth $5M at year 10? Play the long-term game of ownership.

6. Make money while you sleep.

If you disappear for 30 days and your business falls apart, you don't own a business. You own a job you bought yourself. Invest in people, process, and systems that run without you.

7. Real estate takes a decade.

You make money when you buy. But the real wealth comes in years 5-10 through appreciation and debt paydown. Play the long game.

8. Riches are in the niches.

Don't just "do real estate." Get specific. I'll spend a decade going deep on luxury storage before diversifying into other assets.

9. You become what you hate.

I used to think mini storage was inferior to luxury storage. Now I use both. Don't be so rigid you can't adapt. Your ego is the biggest enemy in business.

10. Don't buy yourself a job.

The coffee shop owner working 60 hours a week for the same pay as their old job? That's not freedom. Become an owner over the long-term, not just an operator.

These 10 lessons took me 15 years and millions in mistakes to learn.

You just got them in 2 minutes.

What lessons would you add to this list for your 20-year-old self?

---

♻️ Repost to help others build their wealth

Follow me Marc Kuhn for daily posts on building wealth with real estate, boring businesses, and ownership mindset

The secret to making your family's wealth last 100 years (and your marriage last for life): 
 
Consistently talk about money. 
 
• With your spouse. 
• With your children. 
• With your grandchildren

I didn't grow up with money.
It wasn't talked about much in my house.

For many families, it's a "hush-hush" topic. Which is how it becomes a problem that doesn't get fixed.
 
Every year my wife and I sit down to talk about our goals for the year. 
 
- Goals for our businesses 
- Goals for personal finances 
- Goals for parenting our kids 
- Goals for family and ourselves 
 
We both get aligned and decide what our roles will be for each goal. 
 
Without her support and teamwork... 
 
I wouldn't be able to focus on: 
 
- Building 3 companies 
- Managing a growing team
- Showing up for our kids' sports 
 
If you want to be the best version of yourself that you can be in life... 
 
Find a life partner to set goals with! 
 
And talk about money, business, and goal-setting with your family.

Most wealth is destroyed in the 3rd generation...

Because grandparents didn't teach their kids...
Then they fail to teach their kids...
And the lack of education...

Is what ends up destroying the financial success and spending it all, leaving nothing for future generations.
 
How do you handle money, investing, and wealth conversations in your household? 
 
Share your ideas with me ↓

Everyone thinks "Luxury Storage" is for supercars. 

Here's why our tenants pay premium rents:

There's a lot of people on LinkedIn telling you how to build wealth in different ways.

Chasing the newest shiny object. Raising millions from VCs. Thinking wealth has to be flashy or complicated. 

But if you're like me and would rather build quiet, boring, resilient cash flow...

Then visit one of our Mega MAK Storage sites in North Dakota at 9 am on a Monday.

Here's what I see when I show up for work:

(Built MAK's new office next to our luxury storage)

✅ Contractors launching businesses out of their climate-controlled units
✅ Amazon and Shopify store owners treating their bay as HQ and inventory
✅ Business owners storing seasonal gear because industrial leases are unaffordable
✅ Blue-collar operators, plumbers, landscapers, roofers, the guy laying tile all day...

A lot of the people who choose to pay for premium space are entrepreneurs growing their businesses.

Reminds me why I'm building, looking back 15 years from a solo concrete guy to a 50-person construction and development team.

Plenty of demand for more of these flex spaces as entrepreneurs and companies flock to business-friendly, affordable states like North Dakota.

The boring cash flow is nice, too.

What's your favorite "underrated" asset class to invest in right now?

--

P.S. If you want to learn more about luxury storage, DM me to connect and check out one of our locations here: https://lnkd.in/gwSmVgcm

If building a real business was as easy as it looks on social media…everyone would be rich.

Social media is the highlight reel.

But here's the reality of running 3 companies:

• Up early, get the kids ready for school
• Warm up the truck in -20 North Dakota winter
• Squeeze in a workout before heading to the office
• Meet with the MAK team, pushing projects forward
• Traveling to meet investors, bankers, project sites

Sure, we get to go ice fishing with some of our investors and it's all smiles for the camera.

But make no mistake about it...

Most of the time, founders are in problem-solving mode.

→ Developments taking longer than expected.
→ Unexpected problems come up that need solving.
→ Team is growing, vendors delay, projects hit roadblocks.

That’s the real game.

The reality of a successful business isn’t sitting on a beach with a laptop.

It’s grinding through setbacks, adapting to market shifts, and making high-stakes decisions daily.

Success isn’t about avoiding problems.

It’s about getting so good at solving them that nothing phases you.

So next time you see an entrepreneur flashing the highlight reel, remember:

The real ones don’t just post wins. 
They're persevering through challenges.

What’s the hardest challenge you’ve had to push through in business? 

Let’s talk about it in the comments.

--

Follow me Marc Kuhn for practical tips on business, real estate, and investing.

I run a $30M ARR company + $70M RE portfolio and still feel like an imposter (and that's good):

I talk to young entrepreneurs, and here's the dangerous trap I see them fall into.

• They build the courage to start a business
• They make the leap to owner-operator
• They get some success over 2-3 years

Then they get stuck.

The mindset that propelled them to start and build to their first success milestone ends up being the mindset that holds them back from getting to the next level.

If you don't feel like an imposter, you're probably not growing enough.

I like to be at the edge of "Can I really do this?"

If I find myself in a place of comfort, only doing things we've done in the past, only pushing myself to do the same thing we did last year...

Then I'm in the wrong place.

Imposter syndrome is not a problem to fix. It's a sign you are growing to a new level you've never been to before, which forces you to grow (and it feels super uncomfortable).

If you've:

• Mastered your current stage.
• Mastered the skills for $1M revenue. 
• Mastered the small real estate deals.

Then for me, that's a sign to get uncomfortable and figure out what the next level is.

The best sign you're growing is thinking "Sh*t I don't know if I can do this"

What got you to $1M won't get you to $5M.
What got you to $5M won't get you to $20M.
What got you to $20M won't get you to $100M.

Imposter syndrome means you're operating at the edge of your capability. You're in rooms you haven't "earned" yet. You're making decisions without a proven track record.

That's exactly where growth happens.

When I hit each major milestone, I felt totally out of my depth:

→ First $1M job? Had no business being there.
→ First $10M storage development? Terrifying.
→ Raising capital from big investors? Who am I to do this?

But here's the truth: You'll never feel ready for the next level until you're already there.

If you wait until you feel like you belong, you'll stay exactly where you are.

I'd rather feel uncomfortable at $70M than comfortable at $20M.

I'd rather question if I'm capable than know I've stopped pushing.

So if you're feeling like an imposter right now? Good.

That means you're aiming big enough.

Do you see imposter syndrome as a problem or a sign you're growing?

- Marc Kuhn

In construction, you pay $200,000 in labor and materials...and the client pays you $0.

Next month, you pay another $300K. The client pays you $150K.

Third month, you pay $250K. The client pays you $200K.

That's just how construction billing works.

You're always in the hole until final payment. 
You're the bank on every job.

A $5M project means you're financing $500K-$1M at any given time out of your own pocket.

On a $20M project? You're financing $2-4M.

That's not just 4x the revenue. 
That's 4x the financial risk.

Most contractors hit a ceiling and think it's a skills problem. They think they need better estimators, better project managers, better systems.

But it's not a skills problem. It's a cash flow problem.

They physically cannot carry the financing burden of bigger jobs.

Either the bank won't extend them enough credit. Or their operating capital can't handle being $2M in the hole for 90 days.

So they stay stuck doing $5M jobs forever, even though they could execute $20M projects.

This is why I vertically integrated MAK Construction with MAK Capital.

One feeds the other, smoothing out cash flow so we can take on bigger projects without waiting on slow-paying clients.

If you're stuck at a revenue ceiling, ask yourself:

Is this a skills problem or a cash flow problem?

Nine times out of ten, it's cash flow.

Have you ever had to turn down a project because you couldn't finance it?

-

If you want honest advice from someone who's been through the good, bad, and ugly of scaling boring businesses, follow me Marc Kuhn for daily posts.

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Why is a 50-person company is easier to run than a 5-person company?

And a 300-person company is easier than a 50-person company.

Sounds backwards.
But it’s true.

When I started MAK Construction, I thought scaling would get harder at each level.

More people = more problems.

Wrong.

I used to be the guy saying, “If you’ve got 5 people, it’s really hard.”

Those first 5 employees felt impossible. You’re still the best at the work, but now you have to take care of yourself and make them better.

And you have to let them make mistakes. But the stakes are so high because one big screw-up can take down the whole ship.

That’s why most entrepreneurs never make it past 10 people.

Then a guy told me, “Wait till you get to 50. It’s so much easier.”

I didn’t believe him.

Holy shit, he was right.

At 50 people, you’ve got good people who think like you. Culture is set. Systems are in place. You’re not the one solving every problem anymore.

Then another guy told me, “Get to 300. It’s even easier.”

Same thing.
He was right.

At 300 people, no one relies on you for the day-to-day. The ships run without you. No key man risk.

You’re building the business, not running the business.

The hardest part is getting from 5 to 50. That’s the valley of death for most entrepreneurs.

You’re not small enough to do it all yourself anymore. But you’re not big enough to have real systems and people who can run without you.

You’re stuck in the middle:

→ Too many people to manage directly
→ Not enough people to have real departments
→ You’re still the bottleneck on everything
→ Can’t afford to hire senior talent yet
→ Junior people need constant oversight

This is where most businesses die.

They either go back to being a 5-person shop where the owner does everything. Or they try to scale too fast and implode.

The ones who make it through build the operational capacity first. Get the systems in place. Train people. Let them make mistakes when the stakes are manageable.

Then you can scale.

We’re at about 50–60 people now depending on the season. Starting to feel that shift where it’s not all on me anymore.

Next phase is getting to where nobody needs me at all.

What’s been the hardest employee threshold for you?
And what changed when you got past it?

--

♻️ Repost for other founders building right now.

Follow me Marc Kuhn for daily posts on building wealth with real estate, boring businesses, and ownership mindset

The thing that kills your business fastest = YOU.

How to build as an Owner > Operator:

To grow past a few employees and survive, you must remove "key man risk".

Your biggest risk when you're building a business is not competition or the economy.

It's you.

Because you’re the key man. And key man risk is a death sentence.

I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately across all our businesses. 

• Construction
• Drilling
• Capital Raising
• Storage Development

If I disappeared tomorrow, which ones would survive?

At 5 employees, the answer is none. You’re the one who knows everything, does everything, fixes everything.

At 50, you start to have people who can run without you. But you’re still critical for big decisions.

At 300, the business runs itself. You’ve built systems and people who can handle almost anything.

The shift happens when you stop being the operator and become the builder.

Most entrepreneurs never make that shift. They stay stuck as the key man forever.

My focus in 2026 is reducing key man risk across every business we run.

Not by adding more overhead.
But by raising the capacity of the people we already have.

Chris in drilling? He’s the key man right now. He’s the best driller. He knows how to run every job.

But we can’t scale that business past $1M revenue if everything runs through Chris.

So we’re building the process:

→ Training programs for every crew
→ Systems so jobs run the same way every time
→ SOPs so knowledge isn’t in one person’s head
→ Authority pushed down so Chris isn’t bottleneck

Same thing in construction.
Same thing in capital raising.

Delegate to the people already there. Raise their capacity. Give them authority to make decisions.

Process reduces key man risk more than people do.

You can hire 10 more people. But if they all need you to make decisions, you’re still the bottleneck.

Or you can build the process so the people you have can operate without you.

That’s the goal. Not to work less. But to build businesses that don’t need me to survive.

Most entrepreneurs confuse being busy with being valuable.

If your business can’t run without you, you don’t own a business. You own a job.

And you’re the highest paid employee who can never quit.

Where’s your biggest key man risk right now?

And what’s one thing you could delegate this week to reduce it?

--

♻️ Repost if this resonates

Want business advice from 16 years of building a business?

I wrote it all out and sent it to 6K+ people this morning: https://lnkd.in/gfVw8HpQ

I learned a lesson in my 20s that helped me build a $60M real estate portfolio in by 36:
 
Nobody is going to do it for you. 
 
• Making money 
• Starting businesses 
• Leveling up your skills 
• Figuring out how to grow 
 
But here's the good news: 
 
You can ask for help and speed things up. 
 
In my 20s I was a concrete guy. 
 
Dropped out of college and built a 7-figure business that was drowning me... 
 
• Doing all the jobs 
• Micromanaging my crews 
• No clue how to delegate 
 
Result: I ended up in the hospital from exhaustion with a Doctor asking me: 
 
"𝗪𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗲𝗻𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗲𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗸𝗶𝗱𝘀 𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘄 𝘂𝗽? 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗜'𝗱 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝘀 𝗡𝗢𝗪." 
 
This wake-up call led to a new skill stack. 
 
• Self-education 
• Hiring mentors 
• Reading books 
• Going to conferences 
 
Nobody is going to succeed for you. 
Self-education is the only way. 
 
How are you investing in self-education for 2026?

Tell me in the comments.

--

I started a newsletter to teach what I've learned about business, real estate, and financial freedom.

Join 5,200 who read it: marckuhn.substack.com

"If you're not growing, you're dying."

In construction, that's B.S. (here's why):

2025 goal: $30M revenue at 5% margin.

2026 goal: $30M revenue at 7-10% margin.

We're aiming for the same revenue, but at higher margins, and it'll look like a totally different approach.

Most people think growth means adding more volume every year.

• More projects. 
• More employees. 
• More equipment. 
• More revenue.

That’s what we did for 15 years. Chase volume. Keep growing. Keep pushing.

But we learned something this year.

If I stopped growing today and just maintained with the personnel we have, we could make millions more in profit. In construction, this is the growth path.

To grow, you reinvest nearly every dollar or profit back into the business.

This year we’re doing something different.

$30M in revenue again. But we’re not adding a bunch of new stuff.

We’re plateauing intentionally.

We’re growing our operational legs instead of just adding more jobs:

→ Better processes so jobs run smoother
→ Less chaos, fewer mistakes
→ Same teams getting more efficient
→ Higher margins on the work we’re already doing

Then next year?

We grow again.

This is the cycle nobody talks about.

Grow, then plateau.
Grow, then plateau.

If you only grow, you never build the operational capacity to handle it. You’re always scrambling. Always putting out fires. Always thin on margins because you’re throwing bodies at problems.

But if you pause to build the machine, everything gets easier.

Then you grow into the next phase.

It’s a vicious cycle. But it’s how you build something sustainable.

Most entrepreneurs think they have to keep growing or they’re failing.

Sometimes the smartest move is to do the same thing...and do it better.

What's your growth strategy for 2026? 

More of the same but better? Or are you in growth mode?

--

P.S. If you want to see how I build my companies in public, I write a newsletter every week showing you how.

Check it out: https://lnkd.in/gfVw8HpQ

What do The British Crown, Catholic Church, and McDonalds all have in common?

They are all in the category of the largest commercial real estate owners in the world.

Most people think of McDonalds as a fast food business. A large one at that ($220B market cap).

But McDonalds is really a real estate empire.

Here's how their genius business model works:

• They own more than 38,000 locations worldwide
• Franchisees pay McDonalds above-market rent
• Predictable cash flow outside of food sales

As of 2025, McDonald's owns $30B-40B in real estate assets.

The founders of McDonald's started a burger stand.

Ray Kroc saw the massive opportunity and transformed McDonald's into a real estate empire.

Today, they're bringing in ~$9B in annual rental income.

Genius.

If you haven't seen the movie about this "The Founder", highly recommend checking it out.

Did you know this about McDonalds?

--

Follow me Marc Kuhn for daily tips on real estate, investing, and business.

Repost this if you enjoyed this one ♻️

If I were in my 20s or 30s and had to start real estate from zero today, here's what I'd focus on:

Cash flow. That's it.

Not appreciation.
Not "hot markets."
Not trying to time anything.

The first deal isn't about winning big—it's about surviving and repeating.

I remember my first deal clearly.

Used almost all my savings. Confidence disappeared overnight. Every possible doubt showed up at once:

"Did I mess this up?"
"Will it actually cash flow?"
"What happens if the market tanks?"

That discomfort is normal.

What matters is how you respond.

Most beginners obsess over the wrong things:

→ Perfect timing
→ Getting the best price
→ Picking the next hot neighborhood

None of that keeps you in the game.

You know what does?

A property that pays its own bills.

Cash flow buys you time. Time lets you learn. Learning compounds.

If the deal only works when everything goes right, it's not a deal—it's a gamble.

Here's what I'd look for:

✅ Cash flows with conservative assumptions
✅ Still works if rents stay flat
✅ Still works if expenses increase
✅ Still works if rates change

Boring? Yeah.

But boring properties don't keep you up at night.

The debt conversation nobody wants to have:

Bad debt = You pay for it
Good debt = Tenants pay it off

That's the only leverage I care about.

If the tenant can't cover the mortgage, the property owns you. I've watched too many people learn this the hard way.

Your first deal teaches you how to invest:

→ Rely on appreciation? You normalize speculation.
→ Underestimate expenses? You normalize surprises.
→ Stretch too far? You normalize anxiety.

Those habits don't disappear as deals get bigger.

They explode.

Real estate isn't a race.

You don't need ten deals.

You need one deal that doesn't break you.

I've built a $60M+ portfolio, one boring property at a time. No shortcuts. No fancy markets.

Just tenants paying down debt over decades. Not flashy. But it leads to skills that build you future freedom.

The pattern that works:

Cash flow → Patience → Experience → Confidence

That's how real wealth gets built in real estate.

If I started over today, I wouldn't try to look smart.

I'd try to stay alive long enough to get wise.

What did your first real estate deal look like?

--

♻️ Repost to help someone skip the expensive lessons

I break down boring deals that build wealth every week → marckuhn.substack.com

Made $260K profit buying a "boring" business.

Kept exactly $0 of it. Here's why:

People see "profitable business" and think you're cashing checks.

That's not how it works (at first) when you acquire a boring, cash-flowing business.

We bought a drilling company with 2 rigs in 2025. Made $260,000 profit year one.

Every single dollar went right back into growth.

Bought 2 more drilling rigs for about $500K.
Now we've got 4 total.

→ Peterbilt truck to haul them
→ Flatbed trailer for transport
→ Support trucks for each crew
→ Still need another truck and trailer

That's just the equipment side.

Then you've got people.

Each rig needs a 2-man crew to operate it.
Can't just buy the rig and expect it to print money.

Someone's gotta run it.
Someone's gotta maintain it.
Someone's gotta manage the jobs.

This is the part nobody talks about when they sell you on "buy a boring business for passive income."

Boring businesses aren't passive when you're growing them.

They eat cash.
Lots of it.

You're profitable on paper.
But you're reinvesting faster than you're pulling out.

That $260K profit?
Gone before we could even think about distributions.

And we still need more equipment to hit our $2.5M revenue goal this year.

Most people who buy businesses think profit = cash in pocket.

Profit = fuel for the next phase.

You're either growing or you're dying.
Can't sit still in a services business.

The payoff comes later.
Year 3, 4, 5 when you've built the machine and can finally start pulling cash out.

But years 1–2?
You're building. Not harvesting.

If you bought a business expecting year-one cash flow, how long did it actually take before you could pull money out?

--

♻️ Repost if this resonates

Join 6k+ in my newsletter learning to build wealth with boring businesses:

👉 https://lnkd.in/gfVw8HpQ

I turned family vacations into storage due diligence.

Last summer: Lake Okoboji, Iowa.

Not for the beaches. Because we're building a 100,000 sq ft luxury self-storage facility there.

My wife thinks I'm crazy.

My kids think it's an adventure.

I think it's the only way to actually know if a market works.

Here's what most real estate developers miss: They pick locations for their next project sitting at their desk.

• Cap rates. 
• Demographics. 
• Population growth charts.
• Pro-forma spreadsheets.

All important. But they don't tell you what's really happening from the eyes of someone who lives or spends time in the location:

→ Does this town feel alive or dying?
→ Do locals talk about the town's growth?
→ Are businesses investing here, or just surviving?
→ Would I personally want to spend time here?

If the answer to that last one is no, I don't build there.

Because if the town feels dead to me, it'll feel dead to tenants too.

Real underwriting happens on the ground, not in spreadsheets.

Talk to the guy running the hardware store. 
The woman managing the hotel.
The contractor who's been here 30 years.

They'll tell you more about market trajectory in 10 minutes than a consultant will in 200 pages.

This is how we've built a $70M CRE portfolio at MAK Capital without the "oh sh*t" moments that many developers see too late.

I don't just visit markets.

I vacation in them. Eat in them. Let my kids run around in them.

If I can't see myself coming back, I'm not putting millions into the ground there.

The numbers get you in the door.

The boots-on-the-ground tells you if you should walk through it.

What's your move when evaluating a market - spreadsheet first or boots on the ground?

--

P.S. If you want to learn how we find and develop self-storage in markets most investors overlook, DM me "storage" to hop on a call.

“I don’t know what I just did...but I need $250,000.”

I made my first big investment in 2016.

A new office building for MAK Construction.

I was unsure.
I wanted to stop renting, start owning.
And I needed $250K cash to close on the deal.

It took our profit for the year to close…

And then I had to cross my fingers that it would work out.

We had a government entity that leased out the majority of the space and paid the majority of the mortgage, which felt like enough risk mitigation to me.

But looking back (and in the moment), I was terrified for what might happen.

The moral of the story?

You’re never going to be ready to start.
You just have to get started.

You’re never going to be ready to take risks.
You just have to take risks.

You’re never going to be ready to go bigger.
You just have to go bigger. 

What was the first "big" risk you took in your business?

--

P.S. Join 5,200+ subscribers getting my my real estate deal breakdowns and strategies here: marckuhn.substack.com

You want a 6-figure passive income stream

But you're going about it wrong.

Step 1 to passive income:

Get less passive.

I'll tell you from experience:

Most of my "passive" investors got to this point by being anything but passive.

- They built businesses.
- They saved aggressively.
- They worked incredibly hard.
- They climbed corporate ladders.

The reality is that most successful passive investors put in years (sometimes decades) of active work before they could become truly passive.

I see this firsthand with our luxury storage investors:

- High-earning professionals
- Successful business owners
- Entrepreneurs who've had exits
- People who've built wealth actively

They didn't start with passive investing...

They earned their way there.

So don't start by trying to be passive.

Start by being as active as you can be.

The passive income will follow.

--

P.S. If you're interested in passively investing in our luxury storage developments, DM me "storage" to learn more about upcoming opportunities.

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