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  • Writer's pictureJohn Casmon

How to Leverage Your Network and Raise Capital with Brian C. Adams


Today’s guest is Brian C. Adams. He is the President and Founder of Excelsior Capital, where he spearheads the investor relations and capital markets arms of the firm. He has ten years of experience in real estate private equity and has advanced knowledge in best practices for strategic real estate investing.

Let’s dig in to learn more about Brian’s inspiring experiences in raising capitals, leveraging networks, and the abundance mindset. LISTEN HERE:


[00:01 – 12:30] Opening Segment

  • Brian shares the story about his background and career journey.

  • Do’s and Don’ts of capital raising for newer operators.

    • Ego-oriented pitching approach vs. empathetic pitching approach

  • If you ask for advice, you will get money; if you ask for money, you will get advice.

  • Providing what people need and what they will be looking for in the investment opportunity.

  • The scales of people’s privilege in networking.

[12:31 – 17:10] How to Leverage and Build Network to Raise Capital

  • How to leverage whatever we have and build our network if we are starting from a place where most of the people we know are uncredited and do not have the funds to invest.

  • Understand what people want, what else is out there, and who you are competing with.

  • Create content, do some co-branded and thought pieces to address the issues, and try to solve the problem.

  • The best way to preset and presale your marketplace.

  • Become the resource for people.

  • Visit https://www.excelsiorgp.com/ to get your free online course download on ‘How to raise capital.

[17:11 – 27:20] The Team Mentality and Abundance Mindset

  • The first step of educating ourselves on real estate investing.

  • Listen and learn from other people’s experiences in real estate.

  • Vibe to certain people frequencies.

  • Approach and start some short conversations with real estate people on platforms like LinkedIn to learn from them.

  • The sense of community in commercial real estate.

  • The team mentality and abundance mindset.

  • Brian shares about the impact we make in raising other leaders.

  • If you are interested in multifamily and want to review a sample deal, check out our special download of a sample deal package on casmoncapital.com/sampledeal, and join our mailing list to get tips on exclusive investment opportunities.

[27:21 – 44:24] The Mistakes and Lessons

  • Brian shares some of the biggest mistakes he has made on the operator side.

  • Understand the two risks involved with investing in small deals.

  • The disconnection between investing in real estate and building small syndication businesses.

  • If you do not take your business seriously, serious investors will not take you seriously.

  • The institutional mindset.

  • The importance of being transparent, clear, and communicative in setting expectations with your investors.

  • Brian shares some thoughts and tips for someone who has done a deal but is not working out and how he conveys it to his current investors.

  • The challenges and advice for limited partnerships in vetting deals and opportunities.

  • Brian talks about the strict ‘No A-hole’ policy.

[44:25 – 50:39] The Bull’s eye round

  • Apparent Failure:

    • Failure to be a successful attorney.

  • Digital Resource:

    • Juniper Square

  • Most Recommended Book:

    • Atomic Habits by James Clear

    • No Rules Rules: Netflix and the Culture of Reinvention by Reed Hastings

  • Daily Habit:

    • Wake up early, do a little bit of meditation, and hit the gym.

  • Current Curiosity:

    • The democratization of access to alternative and the fractionalization of ownership of real assets

    • The ability to use blockchain and crypto to enable more people to participate in real estate investing.

    • Everything that is happening in the tax space currently.

  • Wish I Knew When I Was Starting:

    • How to raise capital.

  • Best Place to Grab a Bite in Nashville.

    • BBQ 12 south Nashville

  • How to connect with Brian.

    • See links below

  • Final words from me

Tweetable Quotes:

“If you ask for advice, you will get money; if you ask for money, you will get advice..” – Brian C. Adams.

“Oftentimes people over-complicate a simple asset class. ” – Brian C. Adams.

“If you do not take your business seriously, serious investors will not take you seriously.” – Brian C. Adams.

You can connect with Brian on Linkedin; you can also send him an email to badams@excelsiorgp.com and check out his website at /www.excelsiorgp.com/

Thank you for joining us for another great episode! If you're enjoying the show, please LEAVE A FIVE STAR RATING AND REVIEW, and be sure to hit that subscribe button, so you do not miss an episode.

To enhance your multifamily knowledge and achieve greater success in your business, you can connect with me on LinkedIn.

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