Caleb Christopher on Life, Lessons & Legacy

We’re looking forward to introducing you to Caleb Christopher. Check out our conversation below.

Caleb, it’s always a pleasure to learn from you and your journey. Let’s start with a bit of a warmup: What is a normal day like for you right now?
“Hurry up and wait” is the theme for now because I am dependent on others to open my next business. Licensing delays and follow up meetings only move as fast as other people. My priority is not their priority, and that’s OK, but it’s funny to realize how little control I have over the timelines when it comes to opening a licensed business.
Licensing: Hurry up and study/test, then apply and wait for review; if they ask a question, hurry up and answer so you can wait another week for their response.
Proposals: Hurry up and send followups and presentations, then wait for people to evaluate and respond.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I make things better for people. My domain is real estate. I’m the guy who believes there’s always a better way, so I’ve built 2 companies that make transactions safe, legal, and ethical.
I’ve built a team of excellent people and that’s what makes the difference. We’ve earned over 200 five-star (only) reviews, which is unheard of among any direct competitors. I’m proud of my people.
I’m opening a title company now, and will operate statewide.

Appreciate your sharing that. Let’s talk about your life, growing up and some of topics and learnings around that. What part of you has served its purpose and must now be released?
I have to let go of my insistence on doing things myself. I’m generally capable of doing anything I put my mind and time to, but if I’m going to accomplish great things with and for my people (family, partners, employees, clients), I’ve GOT to delegate. I have a great vision for how things should be in real estate, and I’ve got to go from being the guy who works with a few to do great things on a small scale to being a vision-caster who draws many people in to work together on building that vision.
I can build a better future for tens of thousands of people if I let go of doing things myself. If I learn to clarify and cast my vision to people, I can inspire them to join me and take things off my hands so I can focus on the big picture.

What did suffering teach you that success never could?
I’ve posted a raw YouTube video called “Firing Sucks.” It’s me after having to fire someone: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xg2k6firjng
It is absolutely heart-rending to have to cut a team member, not because I want to, but because I have to do that to protect my customers. It hurts to fire someone you like; someone who NEEEDS that job; someone who begs for yet another chance…

That changed me. That changed how we do things. I’m now MUCH more stringent in my hiring screening because not only do I want to waste thousands of dollars on a bad hire, but I don’t want to hand the wrong person to my customers, and I don’t want to tear someone’s life apart by having to fire them.

So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. Is the public version of you the real you?
Yes. Who you see is who I am. I often get comments from people who sincerely appreciate that. And I’m also very misunderstood because people are looking for “the other side” of me, ha!

Before we go, we’d love to hear your thoughts on some longer-run, legacy type questions. How do you know when you’re out of your depth?
When I start asking questions like “How will I ever accomplish ___? Why am I even DOING this? Where will I get the capital for that? How will I have enough time for all this?”
But as an entrepreneur and someone others rely on, I don’t have any business not always being at least a little out of my depth and pushing to grow. Even when I fail, it produces progress via learning. I owe it to my people to constantly be out of my depth.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://calebchristopher.io
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/fcalebhristopher
• Linkedin: https://linkedin.com/in/calebchristopher
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/calebchristopherhimself