1. From Non-Profit to Real Estate Entrepreneur

Find A Way with Matt Lavinder

About the Guest:

Phil Dunbar is a seasoned Philadelphia native with a strong connection and identity with his city, largely shaped by his experiences with sports. He spent his earlier career working for faith-based non-profits, focusing on leadership development and training. Phil transitioned from his non-profit endeavors to start his own construction company and later ventured into the real estate industry, where he discovered his passion. Leveraging his leadership skills, Phil has successfully expanded into the house-flipping market, growing a team and leading multiple project sites.

Episode Summary:

In this insightful conversation with Phil Dunbar, we delve into the depths of personal growth, city identity, and the hustle required to succeed in the real estate and construction world. Phil takes us on a journey from his childhood attachment to Philadelphia and how sports fostered a sense of belonging and community that mirrored his life's trajectory.

Commencing with the formative years of his career in leadership development, Phil discusses the transition to real estate investing and flipping houses. Emphasizing the importance of human connection, leadership, and making decisive choices, we explore the challenges and triumphs that come with managing construction projects and pushing them forward.

Key Takeaways:

• Identifying with your hometown, using sports as a unifying element, can have a profound impact on your personal and professional identity.
• Early career experiences in leadership development can be crucial in subtly shaping future entrepreneurial endeavors, especially in real estate.
• In real estate, the success of a project is often defined in the meticulous planning and critical decisions made in the initial stages of a flip.
• Balancing trust and control with contractors is essential; being present and leading decisively can make the difference between profit and loss.
• Achieving career goals, especially in hard-to-predict industries like real estate, is gratifying, especially when coupled with a context of personal significance like family time.

Notable Quotes:

"It's like, where do you want to be in five years? In real estate… the upside potential is there's a lot of places an average guy with an average amount of money, average intelligence, can go with it."

• Phil Dunbar

"I see these people with real estate… sitting in front of a stack of $100 bills… like, what a loser. Really? Is that a leader?"

• Phil Dunbar

"I got around a few good people that definitely, in my business life, I just got lucky to get around… that gave me some things I could execute that moved me from daydreaming to actual opportunity."

• Phil Dunbar

"The train is moving, that's the beautiful thing about real estate, is like, those daydreams, the dreams can come true, but it's not passive. It's getting your hands dirty."

• Matt Lavinder

For more information visit findawaypod.com

Thank you for listening!

Produced by Mitch McGarry with Maypop Media LLC