Can Women in Real Estate Have It All?
Welcome to our Women's Series for Women's History Month! Today, Abigail sat down with Shelley Peterson. Shelley is the Rainmaker of Kahuna Investments and her main role is investor relations and onboarding. She gives us insight into how she transitioned from her corporate job to real estate, and some of the benefits she noticed in being a woman in the industry.
Key Topics
What do you think you learned in pharma sales that you now use in your role in Kahuna?
You are the rainmaker for Kahuna and take potential investor calls regularly, what are some objections you've been hearing?
You have a strong and bold personality, but do you think you have faced any challenges as a woman in the real estate field?
What are some benefits you have found to being a woman in your role?
Connect with Shelley Peterson:
-
SUMMARY KEYWORDS
people, Abbie, women, deal, kahuna, passive investor, property, real estate, American Dream, talking, life, role, mom, dad, Corey, investments, meeting, potential investor, grew, doctors
SPEAKERS
Abigail Thomson, Shelley Peterson
Abigail Thomson 00:01
Welcome to the Next Level American Dream Podcast brought to you by Thomson Multifamily Group. Your hosts, Abigail and Sean, will discuss how you can take your American Dream to the next level through real estate investing, business practices, and personal development. Join us as we share our experiences as a father daughter duo who are trying to accomplish our goal of financial freedom. We hope you learn more about how to define and achieve your American Dream. Here's another episode of Next Level American Dream. Welcome to the Next Level American Dream Women's Series in celebration of Women's History Month. We have an amazing guest for you today, but first, please make sure you have subscribed if you haven't already. We also love getting your feedback through likes, comments, ratings, and reviews. Today, Abigail sat down with Shelley Peterson. Shelly is the Rainmaker of Kahuna investments, and her main role is Investor Relations and Onboarding. She gives us an insight into her transition from her corporate job to real estate and some of the benefits she's noticed in being a woman in the industry. If you found any value from today's episode, and please share it with a friend to help us grow. For more information on our sponsor, visit: thomsonmultifamilygroup.com to start taking your American Dream to the next level through passive investing. Hi, Shelley, welcome! How are you?
Shelley Peterson 01:25
Well, I'm just doing super fantastic. Abbie, thank you so much for having me on this special women's edition. I love it so much. I'm all about women empowerment, and how we can get more women into real estate!
Abigail Thomson 01:36
I am so excited. You're going to be our first guest of this series, too! So, thank you so much for joining me.
Shelley Peterson 01:43
It's my pleasure, my dear. My pleasure.
Abigail Thomson 01:45
Okay, so before we get started, I just have to say, thank you so much. You have been a driving force in me believing in myself and knowing that I can do this in this business. So, I'm so grateful for you. And I just wanted you to know that.
Shelley Peterson 02:01
Oh, I think you made me cry. Got me all sentimental. Well, hey, I see talent very quickly and you are going to go very far. They can't be prouder of what you have achieved already. So, I am looking forward to some really big things that you're going to be doing down the road. So, kudos to you my friend.
Abigail Thomson 02:22
Thank you so much. Okay, so let's get into you. You started in pharmaceutical sales. How did you get into that field? What was the reasoning behind it? Some things like that. Tell us about your background.
Shelley Peterson 02:35
Okay, long story short, you guys are going to laugh. I am actually a registered dietician by trade. Yep. You heard it. I am the worst one you will ever meet because I love everything that's bad that you put in your mouth. Okay, chocolate, anything deep fried? That is me. And no, I'm not supposed to. But hey, I believe in moderation. So, yeah, so long story short, out of college, I knew that clinical work wasn't the thing for me. So, I ended up into Hotel Management. And I managed the front and the back of the house of their food service operation. So, a lot of dietitians can go into food operations. And then I was quickly promoted into sales management in a short eight months. Okay. And while I was a sales manager for the for the Marriott property, one of my clients was Merck pharmaceuticals. And I actually knew a gal that was at the meeting. And she's like, Shelley, you really need to do this here are yours, my manager, let me get you in contact with them. So, it was kind of a nice fit for me. I enjoy doing sales. I love meeting new people. And in a plus I was able to use my scientific background. So, I, I love I love science and anything that's scientific. Okay, so I will tell you jumping into the real estate world, it's almost like having a doctor become a lawyer. Okay, because the language is completely different. So right. Yes. So that's how I that's how I got. That's how I got going in the pharmaceutical career. And I had a nice career with Merck, the challenge with the pharmaceutical industry, you better be really good at interviewing, because there's not a lot of job security. in that field. They're always changing. downsizing, a product or a drug is going off patent. So, you're like, Okay, what am I selling next? From there from Merck, I ended up with a small little specialty company called Novan. And it's a women's health company and I probably have one of my best careers in women's health because anything that pertains to women, women's health, women empowerment, I am like, sign me up all day long, because I'm, they're very passionate about that. So that's why I'm so excited to be part of this segment. Because anything pertaining women empowerment, I'm all in, right?
Abigail Thomson 04:43
That's the reason I asked you to be here too.
Shelley Peterson 04:47
you know, I'm passionate about it. Absolutely. And then from No, Ben, unfortunately in 2016, they said you know what, we are shutting down our doors. Oh, the products weren't doing well. They completely eliminated The Salesforce and the marketing team. And they shut down their home office in New York City, which was a really sad day of sad day for me because I'm like, what do I do next? Yeah, and but Cory, Cory was like, Oh, goody, I get mama Kahuna on board. And I'm going to tell you guys, I'm going to be very frank, I came into the real estate kicking and screaming, okay, I wanted no part of it, I didn't want to, you know, working with your husband. That's a whole different segment. Courtney and I are very similar to the point that we've actually taken a test is called the predictive index. And if you haven't taken this index survey, it tells you a lot about who you are, how you are, and how you manage people and what your leadership styles are. Well come to find out Corey and I are both Mavericks. I'll give you an example. People think, right? Do you think that we're arguing half the time or teams like, oh, gosh, Mom and Dad are fighting again? But we're really just talking. So, Mavericks are very, they have a very strong a very strong dominance. And what do you have to have those marks in the same row? Let alone being married to one? You can? It's a lot of fun in the Kahuna investments? Well, let's just put it that way.
Abigail Thomson 06:07
keeps you on your toes. And I totally understand that. I feel like my dad and I are the same way. We're very, very similar. And I came into the business just saying Absolutely not. And then I met you guys on its own it, and it turned everything around.
Shelley Peterson 06:21
Yep. We just took your world upside down. Didn't we?
Abigail Thomson 06:25
You really did! You touched on it a little bit. So, the reasoning you came into real estate was your company went out of business? What are you doing now? Like, how did you guys decide your role in the company?
Shelley Peterson 06:42
That's a very good question. So, we've always believed that you should always put people in the right seats. Okay, so if you haven't read traction, or adopted this EOS system, that is something I highly, highly recommend. And from day one, it's like, where are your strengths? Where do I think I would be best suited for? And so, for me, it made complete sense. Okay, Investor Relations. And so that entails meeting new potential and passive investors going to events, driving the bus of getting people together and sharing the story of what we're here to do in investments, and how we can help people find another way. That's an alternative to the stock market. And that's, and that's what I do. And I'll be happy to share that whole process. And talk to you more about that too, as well.
Abigail Thomson 07:30
Yeah, absolutely. So, as you said, you’re you do a lot of potential investor meetings, are there certain things that you think you took away from your pharmaceutical sales background that you have really found are amazing benefits to what you're doing with those meetings?
Shelley Peterson 07:47
Oh, absolutely. So, you know, what's coming on doctors is always such a fun, adventurous sort of deal. And, and so I was a drug rep for many, many years. And then I was promoted to run my own team. So, at the tail end of my career, I manage nine excellent women across the west coast, and I would teach them how to talk to doctors, how do you get doctors to buy? And how do you create impact with a short amount of time, right? Because when you're in these doctors’ offices, you probably got 30 seconds or less, to deliver a powerful message. And I think oftentimes as syndicators, we get so excited, and you hear, you know, raising money as a completely different game, than talking to physicians or doctors or high net worth individuals, but not really, I mean, at the end of the day, you're still talking to people, and people want to do business with people that they like, know and trust. And so, you know, going back into my pharmaceutical career, it was, you know, I always say, you know, when I was training my representatives, I'm like, Listen, it's very, very simple, you guys, it's really if you were to deliver your key messages, it's really four things that you have to focus on. And I call it the P’s, right? What's in it for the physician, what's in it for them forgot for the patient? Number one, right? And the three P's. Now there was not four, there was three, three P's. And so, if you come across that over two, they're really the same thing. What's in it for the passive investor? You know, how am I going to assure them that you know that their money is going to grow, that it's safe, that it's, you know, Now, again, you can't use those terms? Because in the pharmaceutical industry, we'd call that fair balance. We can never say, Well, this is 100% effective or 100%. safe, but you can show them the clinical data and do comparisons, right and say, doctor in a study of X number of patients, well, it's the same thing in the real estate game. Hey, passive investor, you know, based on my track record as our track record as a company. Here are the deals that we have done here the deals that have performed. Alright, so that's I mean, really, when you're talking to people, it's they need to know, more information. If they say, No, that's okay. It's just not right now. And I think that's where a lot of people get discouraged. Because, you know, dealing with people other people's money is very personal. Right? It's very personal. And it's very Yeah. So just, especially if you grew family household that didn't talk about money, you have to be very comfortable talking about it. Right. And a lot of people are not. So, it's a matter of just trying to give them enough information and asking the right questions for them to say, Tell me more. Does that make sense?
Abigail Thomson 10:35
Yeah, absolutely. You have to get them to feel comfortable speaking to you about some pretty difficult topics, especially because a lot of people are investments are high amounts. And so, this, some of this is their life savings. And so, it's very high stakes for us. But it's important for them to understand that what they're doing is the right choice for them. Absolutely. But bouncing off of that is people say no, like you said, what are some frequent objections that you're finding and a lot of potential investors right now?
Shelley Peterson 11:09
I would say probably the, the biggest objection that you can handle right from the bat is, is your money safe? Right? They want to make sure that we're parking it in a place on a good investment. That makes sense. So, when someone says no, not right now, typically, it's because there's something about the deal that they're not comfortable about. And so, it might sound a little bit something like this. Hey, Abbie, sounds like you might have a couple of reservations. Walk me through what is it about this deal that you are saying no to? And they'll say, Well, I don't think your capex budget is correct, or I'm not, you know, I'm a little uncertain on how your management team is going to bring this up to the occupancy where it needs to where it needs to be right. And a lot of these things, I mean, a lot of times Corey answers these questions very, very well, because in my role, my whole role is just getting to know I'm very nosy, so they call me the gatekeeper. Okay, so let me just kind of briefly walk you through our process and procedures on how we talk to our passive investors. Okay, so they come through all sorts of avenues, right? A lot of our passive investors are people that we know, and their referrals, but it's but sometimes I'll get a passive investor that came through quarries, podcasts, or someone said, Hey, they told us to check you out, are always asking, like, where did you come from? How did you how did you find us? What can we do for you, we'll see if we're a good fit? And that's typically through a zoom meeting, ideally, be nice to meet people one on one, but because of COVID, hey, zoom is changing. I mean, the face of the whole industry, I think that's great, because now you can meet with anybody, anywhere, anytime, with the technology we have in place. So typically, you know, when someone comes through a zoom meeting, I mean, my whole goal at that point for a brand-new investor, is to get them to do what and Abbie, you already know this is to get them to sign the accredited questionnaire, I'm sorry. So, you have to be very good to be very directive with people from the very beginning of set up those expectations. Okay. And I would say hey, Abbie, thank you so much for bringing on a call, you know, meeting with me today, we're just going to kind of get to know one another. See if we're right fit at the end of this call. I'm going to ask you to fill out this DocuSign accredited questionnaire it's going to come to you via email as a DocuSign that must be filled out before we can show you any deals and even prior to that after they even fill out the accredited questionnaire, we still don't know these guys I'm setting up an appointment with Corey because Corey now wants to see who these people are all about. Right? So, we kind of have about a check and balance system and it works beautifully. But you know throughout my presentation when I'm talking to folks it's you're going over your credibility kit. And you're kind of telling so for me I always like sharing our Kahuna story like why the name Kahuna what is Kahuna all about? And I would say we got started we got started 20 years ago when Corey and I went to Hawaii specifically and we the richest man that we've ever met because we both grew up poor okay, I’m not I’m not saying middle class weak girl. We were poor. Okay. Corey was country poor, and I was city poor! Everything's Oh, you're from Tulsa, Oklahoma. Your country girl. Nope, nope, nope. No worries country. He grew up on 188 acres of that his country and I've been to his little town of West Plains, Missouri. Let me tell you, when you see billy goats on top of cars, we have arrived. We our country. I grew up in urban. And we're like, there were like knockout drag out fights in the playground. Okay, that's how I grew up. But anyway, long story short, I cracked myself up sometimes Abbie asked. His mom said, Shelly, you want to come to Hawaii. I just met this woman like oh my gosh, yes. I would love to go to Hawaii. We've never flew a because we never have the means to do it. But meeting Bruce, Corey calls a Bruce Wayne. He wasn't Batman, but he was but he was loaded. But he provided the ideal of what it would look like to have time and to have freedom, money, freedom and time freedom. And let me tell you it was it was beautiful this his place on the beach was absolutely spectacular. The It was one of those moments that Corey and I just sat hand on him on the beach. We're like, how can we live this life? How could we How can we build something to have a life like this? And so curious, like, what is this guy doing? I don't know, babe, but you need to ask him or whatever he's doing, we're going to do and lo and behold, he does apartments. So that's, you know, Cory, and I left the island thinking Bruce was the big kahuna. And you know, we want to be we want to be the big kahuna someday, right? So, there you go, Kahuna investments was born in 2005. So that is the story. But when you're walking through your presentation, we call it a credibility kit. And people call it a pitch deck, there's different terms that go out in the industry. your credibility kit is what you're going to talk to investors, potential passive investors and to brokers. Okay. And so, you want to have a nice story behind like, who are you? Now? You guys are the Thomson Multifamily Group? How does your story begin? Right? So, you have to be able to share that story and get personal with people. And then from there, we talked to them about, you know, we call the buy box, I think your dad is one that coined that term, the buy box, you know, what, what's the criteria that we look for 100 units or more, you know, B and C assets, right? So, we define what we're looking for, then we walk them through. And you know, when you're talking to a potential passive investor, I think it's very, and this is a sales technique. So, if you're listening, take notes. Right here. Okay. So, given that some good nuggets, you really are going to want to check in. All right, if you are, if you're doing more of the talking, something is wrong. And let me tell you guys, as a self with a sales background, this this piece right here is the hardest for me, because I will talk your ears off, right? I will just, I will just keep going and going and going. So, but when you are presenting to a potential investor, you really have to shut up and check in. Abbie, does this make sense? Do you understand our management process? Do you understand what we're looking for? You know, I will also say, because we do what's called tax depreciation on all of our properties, because we do cost segregation studies. Be very careful talking about tax depreciations. With that passive investor, you can get yourself caught up in the weeds. Because, you know, I always say, talk to your CPA or talk to your tax expert, don't ever, you always want to just keep on focus on your processes and procedures, and what makes you different than other people that are in the industry. Does that make sense?
Abigail Thomson 17:52
Absolutely. Yes. And that was incredible. Thank you so much for walking us through how you approach that.
Shelley Peterson 17:58
You bet. And so, to go back to your question, what other common objections do we get when you're doing? Yeah, when you're going through your presentation, you're going to bring you have to be careful what you can say or can't say, due to the SEC guidelines. Okay? Now, if this is someone that's a family member, or your sister or a friend that you know, for years, you can tell them everything, okay? But if it's a brand-new person, you really need to be careful, because you don't know who these people are, they could be working for the SEC and testing you. I swear, I think I had one on a zoom call. And he was asking me some questions. And I said, you have to sign the accredited questionnaire, like I stopped them, right. They're like, I can't talk to you about a deal. So really the bottom line when you're talking to passive investors that you've never met, you cannot rephrase this. And be very, very clear. You cannot talk about the specifics of a deal. You can't say, Abbie, I have a 500-unit deal that pays, you know, 18%, you know, annualized, and this is how you cannot do that. Does that make sense? Just put a disclaimer there. That was that was just an example, if anybody who is watching don't have that deal, but I'm just giving an example. Okay, but what you can talk about it, you could talk about your past deals you could about how your management companies different you could talk about what you do as an investment company that may be different or what makes you stand out. So, for example, our company, we do what's called a financial dashboard. So, some syndicators that are out there. They only show a snapshot, not good investments. No, no, we show you the whole 133 pages, depending on the deal of everything that pertains to that asset. Right. So, if you want to see what checks are written at the on the property level, guess what? On the financial dashboard, you can see it right. And so those are some of the things that I like to highlight. Yeah, I like to highlight what I'm talking about. And I also like to encourage them like listen to your talking to other people make sure that they have this for you. Make sense?
Abigail Thomson 19:57
Yes, absolutely. Exactly. You want to have clear and transparency with your investors? That's what makes you a good syndicator you have nothing to hide?
Shelley Peterson 20:08
Well, you want to be as transparent as possible. We always say we don't have, you know, the good, the bad, the ugly news, it's always just the news of where we are. Right? And so, a lot of times, people ask me about how are you doing through COVID? I'm very, very upfront and say, Okay, we have two properties that are suffering right now. Here's what we're doing right now as a COVID. Okay, I know it's, you know, it's COVID. I'll give you a sample we have a 508 bed 508 bed property at the student housing property in Evansville, Indiana. It's gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous property been 100% occupied for the past three years with a waitlist with a waitlist. We have people waiting to get into this property for the past three years. You want to know what is that right now? That 45% 45% Dang. COVID. So how so? How do you as an operator, like how you? How do you maneuver through that? And that? So, I'm going to say it's not always sunshine and roses being in this space? Right? Yes, good words are the rewards are high. But there's also some risks. I mean, who could predict a frickin pandemic? Right? Yeah, so, but the good news is, we're on track, it's going to get fully leased back up by fall, it's going to take us a while to get back to its former glory, but it will be there. So, but you know, that's a whole different segment Abbie, a whole. That's a that's an operation maker.
Abigail Thomson 21:36
you are more than welcome to come back. And we can dive even more deep into that if you want. But yeah, like you said, life happens. And you can always predict things. But you can have plans in place to make sure that you're continuing because apartments are businesses, you have to make sure that your business continues to run. And so, it's, it's good to share that with people because people can very easily look at what we do and be like, oh, everything's perfect. It's so easy, but it's really not always, and things can go wrong. But the reason that we're successful is we have processes and procedures in place in order to combat some of those things.
Shelley Peterson 22:17
Right. And listen, nothing with great rewards doesn't come easy. Okay, our success did not come overnight. But you guys just takes one apartment deal to set you free. I tell you what, the first time we exited from our 144-unit property in Greenville, South Carolina, that was the day that I had the freedom saying goodbye to corporate America, I had the freedom to do what I wanted to do on my terms. Right? And so, it's changing if you're willing to work for it. And especially for women away, I feel like women, this is this is the I want to hit on a gut-wrenching point. Because, you know, for me, it was how do I spend more time with my kids? How do I how do I balance my life where I'd be a good wife, a good mother, a good friend. And I don't think we recognize as much but women carry a lot of roles. Right? We carry out a lot of burden on our shoulders. And I think real estate can set a lot of women free, if done properly and surround yourself with the right people and the right mentorship and coaching. You definitely want a coach to get you there faster, only, not only to get you there faster, but to make sure you don't make the same mistakes that they did. Right? Because you can learn a lot from other people. You really tell anyway. It's Yeah, so it's been super life changing. And I'm just so proud of how far we've come as a company and how you guys have come far. It's just awesome. To see the growth. And listen, there are more women today that I've seen in real estate and I'm like, super pumped my good for you. You go girl.
Abigail Thomson 23:58
Right? I have been having the exact same feelings that I want to come back to what you said just a second ago, women have so many roles. And it's really hard to fulfill those roles and many career paths. And that's one of the reasons why I really like real estate for myself is so many women battle with how can I have it all being a wife, a mom, yes, being up being a good person to yourself and everybody around you. And then also having a successful career. It's hard. But I think real estate is a great avenue in order to do that if that is what you want with your life. So I love that. That's what you said. And you echoed that for me. But to kind of go off of that even more. What are some challenges you found as a woman in the industry and in your role that have almost been hard to overcome? And then what did you do in order to like, get through those difficult times?
Shelley Peterson 24:58
Well, I mean, I can't speak for gals that are out there, but I will say that I think there might be like a stereotype or a stigma attached to women like they can't do it better than men. And I'm not here to man hate or man bash because I love it. I love my man; my man is awesome. Okay, Corey Peterson is, is solid rock star, I love him to pieces. And he, you know, one of the things that he has always done for me, he's always believed in me no matter what, no matter what I do, and he's very supportive. He's like, honey, which mountain to move, I will freakin move it like that's how he rolls and vice versa. So we do have a really good relationship in that sense. But I will say going to these events and watching other women up on stage, or I think that the biggest challenge of maybe, and I don't even know if this is true or not, but I haven't seen it personally, maybe a couple of times were like, Oh, she's cute. She's or I get labeled, oh, that's Kahuna's wife. And she really doesn't like I don't contribute as much, right, or I don't have anything to bring to the table, and which that is fine. So I always say that, you know, when people don't really know you, I mean, you're, there's a saying, and I forgot how it goes. But people will always be more drawn to your conviction and passion versus the depth of your knowledge. That was the quote!
Abigail Thomson 26:19
You remembered it!
Shelley Peterson 26:21
Does that make sense? We just we just, we just went deep right there. And that was very powerful. So people will be more convicted by your passion of what you believe in versus the depth of your knowledge. Okay. And I think that, especially women that are just starting out, they may think, Oh, my gosh, they're not going to, you know, take me seriously, especially if they're talking to brokers, brokers can be very, very tricky, right? They're like, Oh, well, she can't, they're not going to close. You know, brokers want to share to close when they're talking to potential investors when they're finding their deals. But I will also say the advantage, the advantage that women can have, let me just let me just share that that's very different from the men's role is that we are great at connecting and nurturing, and, and being able to quickly connect with people, because we are women. And most people feel safe, feel more comfortable, in a sense that if a woman talking to a potential investor, they'll open up, I can't even tell you how many times I've talked to people and they tell me their whole life stories, okay, they're divorced. They're, they're in health problems at home, women can quickly connect and be friends with people. And I will say, if you are in this space, that is the number one driver right there is building those relationships and rapport quickly.
Abigail Thomson 27:41
Yeah, you're trusted, I found that also, I just feel like people, they open up to me in a way that they don't to my dad.
Shelley Peterson 27:51
Right. And, and and I think another common factor too, is that women are just by their innate nature, they're just they love on people. And I think that's a gift from God, that He gave us that, you know, we we are meant to be the nurturers where we are meant to love on people. Now, I will say this now, if you're a mean nasty woman, you had no joy in your life, it's going to be really hard to come across the that type of behavior, right? Because I've known some women that are just kind of ugly, right? So if you're if you feel like you have that negative Nelly attitude, that is self-improvement, you got to you got to dig deep inside and just find what brings you joy, okay, because I found women that don't have joy in their life, they're not going to be as successful. Ooh, that's powerful too.
Abigail Thomson 28:39
That is very, very, very powerful. Joy is such a driving force. And I wake up every single day, loving my job, and it really helps, especially as an entrepreneur, I have to have that drive in order to make this business work.
Shelley Peterson 28:53
Yes, I will say that the entrepreneurship can be a very lonely profession, because you're in your head a lot. And so if you don't have a team in place, or if you're just starting out, it is vital that you reach out and be part of a network that can help you maneuver through those things. Because really, it's it's kind of a, it's a mental game, right? You're you're battling with yourself. Half the time, I would say not even half the time, most of the time. second guessing should I've done this or should have done it this way. Or, you know, we have a saying in our in our company, like when we're working on something new. It's like version one is better than version, none. And a lot of times people get so stuck analysis paralysis, they can't even move forward. So I used to say this to my team. Lots and lots of times is like just get into the activity. Just do the activity. The results will come.
Abigail Thomson 29:46
Something that we've found is this is this is like family business. So my whole family is in this and we take it this is our lives. This is what we do every day. We take it so personally and it's like you got to get out of your own head and Realize that like, just go and do it, and it'll work out. But we're like, it has to be good for us. Like, this is what we're providing to the world. And it's like, No, it's okay. Just keep going.
Shelley Peterson 30:19
It's so true. I actually did that to my dad a couple weeks ago. So I'm helping my parents move. In my dad, God loves him. So his role I understand why he is the way he is, is because he inspects parts, okay, for airplanes, and so everything would be very pristine and perfect. Well, because he has that OCD quality, do can't make a decision to save his life on my dad, which bucket Do you want this in? You want to keep it, throw it away? Or don't? So I'm helping them move. And it was very, very challenging for them. I'm like, Okay, dad, version one's better than version, none. Let's just keep moving forward. And I love my dad, my dad's awesome. But I see that there are a lot of people that are like my dad, and that they gotta have all the information in the world and talk to, you know, 100 people before they even get started. Like, dude, no, just move, just keep moving forward. Right? There's also saying, right, have you ever seen that meme where it says entrepreneurship, like someone jumping off a cliff, and then they're building their airplane downrange? Like, that is so true, right? Like, you jump off the cliff, and you're just gonna build the airplane or your glider on the way down? On the way down?
Abigail Thomson 31:32
Yes, no, that is so true. I feel like I'm constantly having to build my my ship, my airplane, just any form of transportation as we fly through this crazy adventure. It's really, really insane. Okay, last question I have for you, and you touched on this a little bit, but what does the American Dream mean to you?
Shelley Peterson 31:54
I love that question. Abbie, you know, my core is family. And so the American Dream is being able to have the freedom to provide for your family to be with your family to at any point, you know, you know, for us, it's being present at our kids games, you know, they're in the high school years right now. And you know, what's sad, Abbie is that there are parents that are out there working their butts off, and they're going to be missing all those kids games, the things that matter the most, that shouldn't matter the most in your life is, in my opinion, it's all about your family and what you can do for people. And so the American dream is that we are able, we are provided an opportunity to be able to do those things. They say that money isn't everything. But let me tell you it's it's not that money can provide opportunities in such a, such a bigger form or fashion than anything else, right to be able to sponsor my daughter's soccer team. You know, I'm providing the away game meals, like the being a donor to put to give my parents a frickin house. I mean, this is what this life has brought us. My husband. And I have given our both parents not just one set of parents, both parents, a house. Beautiful. Yeah, that's not the American Dream people I don't know. I mean, you're everybody's American Dream is different. But that is our American Dream and to be able to provide that it's to see and it's not about it's us, it's more of seeing the joy that our parents have and and they're just and and watching them enjoy the rest of their years. out in front of them. That is the American dream, my friend that hits so home close to home to me, because my mom came to this country with nothing Abbie, she was an American, Filipino. She married my dad, who was a GI the time. And my dad long story short, my dad was a very abusive, and almost killed my mom. And so you know, the only memory that I have in my real father is, when I was one years old, my mom was holding me and I turned my head and I get smacked really hard. And my mom said, Your dad met to hit me. She goes, that was the day I left him to imagine marrying the love of your life coming to this country, barely knowing the language. You don't have family. You're you're pregnant, and you have a baby. And you know, I just don't even know how my mom my mom did it. And so she has raised my son, my sister and I had to be very strong, independent women to make our own mark in this world. But I look at that and like my mother was able to overcome all those obstacles. Okay. And so I'm a firm believer that if you believe believe in anything that you want in this life, you you can make it happen. You can make it happen. I said to be able to get my mom this dream house of hers because her house was falling apart. She just actually moved in a couple weeks ago and she said honey, thanks You you'll use all good data in our Asian accent you could daughter. Yeah, Mom, Mama Lucy.
Abigail Thomson 35:07
Thank you so much for sharing that. That was a gorgeous story!
Shelley Peterson 35:09
Oh, thank you for having me, Abbie. I look forward to hearing the segment soon.
Abigail Thomson 35:15
Before you leave, how can people get a hold on you if they want to reach out and learn more about Kahuna Investments?
Shelley Peterson 35:23
Yep, you can reach me at: shelley@kahunainvestments.com or you can visit us on our website at www.kahunainvestments.com
Abigail Thomson 35:33
Fantastic. Thank you so much for joining me! I'm so excited to have you as our first Women's Series guest in Marchl I am still so grateful to you and your role in my business and my life.
Shelley Peterson 35:48
You're so welcome. It's my pleasure!
Abigail Thomson 35:50
Thanks for joining us for another episode of next level American dream. If you would like to learn more about what we talked about today want to contact the team directly or interested in passively investing and being a part of our deal room. Head over to our website at www dot Thompson multifamily group.com before you go please leave a review your comments help us create more episodes for you to enjoy.