Why Your Network Determines Your Net Worth: Growth, Support, and Community
Relationships · From Student of the Game
Why Your Network Determines Your Net Worth: Growth, Support, and Community
After his conversation with Jamie Miller of Gold Key Home Inspections, Brad Noll recorded a Huddle to unpack what stood out. Jamie has been a friend and business partner to the Noll Team for years, and his episode was about the long road to business success: perseverance, adaptability, and the support of a strong community. "You all have a story," Brad tells listeners. "And the story's not over."
Released just before Father's Day, the episode opens with a shout out to dads, uncles, grandfathers, and every strong male figure in someone's life. Then Brad lays out three takeaways from Jamie's story: invest in personal growth, build a support system, and value community and mentorship.
Invest in Personal Growth
Betting on yourself and investing in your own development is essential, Brad says, whether through a coach or a mentor who is further along the journey. "Find those people and get them in your lives as fast as possible."
When Brad and his wife, Lindsay, were newly married, they joined a married couples class. It was not taught by another newlywed couple. It was taught by people a phase or two of life ahead of them, who helped with things like planning the holidays when both sets of parents want a visit.
Over the years Brad and Lindsay have invested heavily in travel to conferences, seminars, and events. He remembers telling Lindsay they did not deserve to be in rooms full of people so far ahead of them. He still feels that way sometimes, and he thinks that is a good sign, because you cannot grow without taking those risks. "It's never too late to start investing in yourself," he says.
“Set a goal, not just for achieving the goal, but becoming the person you have to become to hit that.”
Brad Noll
Who Is Your Support System?
When we face a challenge, most of us go straight to how: how do I get out of this, how do I get better? Brad believes the how matters, but the who matters more. Who has already been where you are?
A friend once told Brad he kept a personal board of directors. Brad sees life in five circles: faith, family, business, finances, and personal, which covers mind and body. His friend did not rely on one guru for everything. He had a different person he admired in each area. Brad suggests starting with just one area where you need support:
- Faith: Is life bigger than you and what you are going through today?
- Family: Are the people you say you are working for actually coming along with you?
- Business: Who is ahead of you on the journey that you can learn from?
- Finances: Who has already been where you want to go?
- Personal: Who can help you care for your mind and body?
Family taught Brad a hard lesson early. Working 60 to 80 hours a week before they had kids, he kept telling Lindsay he was doing it for them, and she felt lonely. He realized that if the two of you do not get to come along, you are not really doing it for you both. Today he calls Lindsay his number one support system and biggest fan. Their marriage is not 50-50, he says. Each of them gives 100.
Become the Person the Goal Requires
Jamie credited his wife for supporting him through the hardest years, and Brad points to Thomas Stanley's finding that a supportive spouse is a top attribute of millionaires. Life can be isolating, Brad says, and nobody should go it alone. "If you're doing this by yourself, please reach out and get help."
He shares an idea he believes deeply. "Set a goal, not just for achieving the goal, but becoming the person you have to become to hit that." Maybe it is a sales number, or a family vacation bigger than anything your family has done. Getting there might mean watching your finances, protecting your sleep, or training your mind and body. A good support system, like an accountability partner, challenges you to become that person.
The Value of Community and Mentorship
The third takeaway is community and mentorship. Jamie's turning point came in 2009, in a season of financial scarcity, when he took a leap of faith and invested in a business coaching program called the Millionaire Inspector Community. Three months after faxing in his application, he quit his factory job to inspect full time. Today he gives back by teaching and training others.
Brad and Lindsay have a saying: life gives to the giver and takes from the taker. Brad is happy to be called a wise businessman, but never a taker. That is part of why he does this podcast. When a server stops by his family's table to say they love the show, it reminds him that sharing his struggles and successes from more than two decades in business might shorten someone else's learning curve.
Why Doesn't Personal Growth Ever Stop?
Investing in yourself has no finish line, Brad says. Grow constantly is one of his team's core values, and it can be hard to swallow because it can sound like you are not good enough. But every new level brings new adversity. "What got you here won't get you there."
He points to Caitlin Clark, who transformed women's basketball and is now facing a new set of challenges in the WNBA. Brad lived his own version of it. In high school he averaged 25 points a game. At 19 he was a better player than he had been a year earlier, but at IPFW he was the rookie carrying the seniors' bags on road trips. Adversity comes at every new level, whether you invest in yourself or not.
Brad closes by thanking Jamie and his wife and encouraging homeowners, even those with no plans to move, to schedule a re-inspection every few years. He and Lindsay have done it several times in their own home to stay ahead on maintenance. And as always, he reminds listeners that in the game of life, relationships win.
▶ Listen to the full episode
The Huddle with Brad Noll: Why Your Network Determines Your Net Worth, The Value of Community, on Student of the Game.
Work with the Noll Team
Ready to make your move?
Since 2003, Noll Team Real Estate has been helping people in the Fort Wayne area find the freedom to live the lifestyle they want. Tell us where you are headed and we will build the plan around your life.