Empire Building

Hosted by Keller Podcast Network

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About the show

It’s no secret that business owners face a unique set of challenges, often juggling marriage, parenthood, and career aspirations. Empire Building brings together five influential women who are unapologetic in their goals to build big businesses and live big lives. Another common goal? Helping others do the same. Tune in for authentic, unfiltered conversations with Wendy Papasan, Seychelle Van Poole, Sarah Reynolds, Kymber Lovett-Menkiti, and Tiffany Fykes, as they invite you to be a part of their journey.

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36 min

337. 7 Real Estate Negotiation Mistakes That Are Costing You Money

What if the thing costing you your next commission check isn't the market, but the way you're negotiating? In this episode, we're breaking down seven mistakes that can leave money on the table and keep good deals from coming together. We talk about why our job is to solve problems instead of predict the future, why the first buyer deserves more attention than most sellers realize, and how even a small counter can keep valuable momentum alive. We also dig into the communication habits that separate professionals from everyone else. That means knowing when to put down the text thread and pick up the phone, negotiating the entire deal instead of fixating on price, and helping emotional clients slow down long enough to make informed decisions. And when a transaction hits a roadblock, we share why curiosity and creative problem-solving can uncover options that aren't always obvious, from seller concessions and rate buydowns to occupancy agreements and alternative terms. If you want to put more deals together, create better outcomes for your clients, and keep more opportunities from slipping away, these are negotiation skills worth practicing. Resources: Check out Her Best Life: www.herbestlife.com Learn more about Empire Circle Connect on Instagram: Seychelle Van Poole: @seychellevp Sarah Reynolds: @sarahreynoldsoji Wendy Papasan: @wendypapasan Kymber Lovett-Menkiti: @kymbermenkiti Tiffany Fykes: @tiffanyfykes Produced by NOVA This podcast is for general informational purposes only. The views, thoughts, and opinions of the guest represent those of the guest and not Keller Williams Realty, LLC and its affiliates, and should not be construed as financial, economic, legal, tax, or other advice. This podcast is provided without any warranty, or guarantee of its accuracy, completeness, timeliness, or results from using the information.

33 min

336. Is Your Business Your Identity?

When someone asks who you are, how quickly does your answer turn into what you do? As entrepreneurs, we invest so much time, energy, emotion, and financial risk into our businesses that the line between our work and our identity can quietly disappear. In this episode, we’re talking about what happens when business ownership shifts from an assignment into an identity. We share the warning signs we’ve experienced ourselves, including tying our moods to sales, feeling personally rejected when an employee leaves, losing touch with our interests outside of work, and resisting the delegation our businesses need to grow. We also explore the costs of identity fusion, from achievement addiction and defensiveness to burnout and creating a ceiling on the business. Then, we walk through three exercises to help you reconnect with who you are beyond your titles, income, accomplishments, and family roles. You’ll learn how to identify the qualities that have always been part of you, imagine what would remain if the business disappeared, and use language that separates the role you serve from the person you are. Your business was never meant to carry the weight of proving your worth. When your identity is secure, you can lead, rest, experiment, and grow from wisdom instead of fear. Resources: Read Every Good Endeavor by Timothy Keller Check out Her Best Life: www.herbestlife.com Learn more about Empire Circle Connect on Instagram: Seychelle Van Poole: @seychellevp Sarah Reynolds: @sarahreynoldsoji Wendy Papasan: @wendypapasan Kymber Lovett-Menkiti: @kymbermenkiti Tiffany Fykes: @tiffanyfykes Produced by NOVA This podcast is for general informational purposes only. The views, thoughts, and opinions of the guest represent those of the guest and not Keller Williams Realty, LLC and its affiliates, and should not be construed as financial, economic, legal, tax, or other advice. This podcast is provided without any warranty, or guarantee of its accuracy, completeness, timeliness, or results from using the information.

35 min

335. Scaling Through Seasons: Protecting What Matters While Growing Fast

What season are you in, and does the way you're running your business actually honor it? In the final episode of our scaling series, we're talking about how to grow without dropping the glass balls in your life. Work is often a rubber ball: a lost client, delayed project, or missed opportunity can bounce back. Our health, family, friendships, faith, and mental well-being may not recover as easily when they're repeatedly neglected. We share a simple framework for planning around the seasons ahead instead of waiting until life forces us to react. We walk through how to identify the season your family, business, and health are entering, choose what cannot be neglected, and build the right support before a crisis arrives. We also discuss communicating temporary sacrifices to your family, creating margin, protecting recovery time, asking for help, and letting go of the pressure to keep every part of life perfectly balanced. Your calendar tells the truth about what you're prioritizing. Our goal is to help you build a business that can grow through new babies, aging parents, health challenges, transitions, launches, and every season in between, while still supporting the bigger life you set out to create. Resources: Read The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel van der Kolk Check out Her Best Life: www.herbestlife.com Learn more about Empire Circle Connect on Instagram: Seychelle Van Poole: @seychellevp Sarah Reynolds: @sarahreynoldsoji Wendy Papasan: @wendypapasan Kymber Lovett-Menkiti: @kymbermenkiti Tiffany Fykes: @tiffanyfykes Produced by NOVA This podcast is for general informational purposes only. The views, thoughts, and opinions of the guest represent those of the guest and not Keller Williams Realty, LLC and its affiliates, and should not be construed as financial, economic, legal, tax, or other advice. This podcast is provided without any warranty, or guarantee of its accuracy, completeness, timeliness, or results from using the information.

49 min

334. Gary Keller Interviews Sarah Reynolds: The Leadership Playbook Behind a Billion-Dollar Team

What does it really take to build a billion-dollar sales organization and still have a big life? In this special episode of Empire Building , Gary Keller steps in as host to interview one of the show’s own hosts, Sarah Reynolds. Together, they look back at Sarah’s journey from joining her mom in real estate at 21 to helping build EmpowerHome into an organization that has produced more than $1 billion in annual sales volume in each of the past three years. Sarah gets very practical about what made that growth possible. She talks about learning how to get buyers and sellers to raise their hands, building strong lead generation and inside sales systems, following up for the long haul, and tracking the numbers closely enough to make the business predictable. She also breaks down the five pillars of trust and explains why agents have to know how to convert people who do not already know, like, and trust them. But this conversation is about more than business growth. Sarah opens up about the years when everything felt like it depended on her, what changed when she stopped trying to carry every problem herself, and how protecting her health and family actually helped her people grow. You will hear a lot of honest lessons about leadership, delegation, focus, and why building a big business should never require giving up the life you are building it for. Resources: Read The Millionaire Real Estate Agent by Gary Keller, Dave Jenks, and Jay Papasan Learn more about EmpowerHome Check out Her Best Life: www.herbestlife.com Learn more about Empire Circle Connect on Instagram: Seychelle Van Poole: @seychellevp Sarah Reynolds: @sarahreynoldsoji Wendy Papasan: @wendypapasan Kymber Lovett-Menkiti: @kymbermenkiti Tiffany Fykes: @tiffanyfykes Produced by NOVA This podcast is for general informational purposes only. The views, thoughts, and opinions of the guest represent those of the guest and not Keller Williams Realty, LLC and its affiliates, and should not be construed as financial, economic, legal, tax, or other advice. This podcast is provided without any warranty, or guarantee of its accuracy, completeness, timeliness, or results from using the information.

30 min

333. How to Keep Your Team's Energy High When Deals Are Down

A slower market can feel heavy, especially when your team is tired, transactions are down, and every deal takes more skill, patience, and emotional energy than it used to. In this episode, we’re talking about how to lead through a weird real estate market without losing your people, your energy, or your mission. We share what we’re seeing in Austin and Dallas-Fort Worth, why shifting inventory and affordability are changing the way agents have to lead, and how to spot the signs that your team’s energy may be eroding. We talk about the difference between pushing activity and reconnecting people to meaning, why one-on-one conversations matter more in a hard market, and how personal finances, retention conversations, role play, and small wins can help your people stay in the game. This is a conversation for every leader who feels like they’re carrying a lot right now. Your skills are needed more in a hard market, and when you lead with clarity, care, and consistency, you can help your team build confidence again. Resources: Read SHIFT by Gary Keller Check out Her Best Life: www.herbestlife.com Learn more about Empire Circle Connect on Instagram: Seychelle Van Poole: @seychellevp Sarah Reynolds: @sarahreynoldsoji Wendy Papasan: @wendypapasan Kymber Lovett-Menkiti: @kymbermenkiti Tiffany Fykes: @tiffanyfykes Produced by NOVA This podcast is for general informational purposes only. The views, thoughts, and opinions of the guest represent those of the guest and not Keller Williams Realty, LLC and its affiliates, and should not be construed as financial, economic, legal, tax, or other advice. This podcast is provided without any warranty, or guarantee of its accuracy, completeness, timeliness, or results from using the information.

26 min

332. Where Should You Be With Money? 5 Questions to Find Out

Are you building wealth in a way that actually fits the season of life you’re in? In this episode, we’re talking about money, risk, cash flow, and the questions that help us decide whether we’re still on the right path or ready for a new one. Wendy and Seychelle share the lessons they’ve learned from starting with very little, investing in real estate, taking risks that worked, and taking a few that absolutely did not. We talk about the difference between building equity and building cash flow, how to know your unfair advantage, why every investment comes with a hidden time tax, and why “enough” may look different in each chapter of life. Whether you’re just beginning your wealth-building journey or reevaluating the strategy you already have, these five questions will help you get more intentional with your money, your time, and your next move. Build the wealth, protect what matters, and keep moving toward a bigger life. Resources: Check out Her Best Life: www.herbestlife.com Learn more about Empire Circle Connect on Instagram: Seychelle Van Poole: @seychellevp Sarah Reynolds: @sarahreynoldsoji Wendy Papasan: @wendypapasan Kymber Lovett-Menkiti: @kymbermenkiti Tiffany Fykes: @tiffanyfykes Produced by NOVA This podcast is for general informational purposes only. The views, thoughts, and opinions of the guest represent those of the guest and not Keller Williams Realty, LLC and its affiliates, and should not be construed as financial, economic, legal, tax, or other advice. This podcast is provided without any warranty, or guarantee of its accuracy, completeness, timeliness, or results from using the information.

44 min

331. Scaling Leadership: From Being the Leader to Building Leaders

Have you ever realized your business is growing, but your leadership structure is not? In this episode, we’re continuing our scaling series with Sarah Reynolds and Kymber Lovett-Menkiti to talk about one of the hardest shifts in business: moving from being the leader everyone depends on to building leaders who can carry the mission forward. We get honest about the moments when we became the bottleneck, the pain of leading too many people directly, and the mistakes that come from promoting great performers before they are ready to lead. We talk about why every leader has a capacity limit, how your job changes as the company grows, and why leadership has to be taught intentionally instead of assumed. We also dig into culture, hiring for heart, letting go of the need to be the hero, and what it really means to lead through multiplication instead of addition. If you’re trying to scale a business without burning out, this conversation will help you build the leaders who help you build the future. Resources: Read Dare to Lead by Brené Brown Read Multipliers by Liz Wiseman Check out Her Best Life: www.herbestlife.com Learn more about Empire Circle Connect on Instagram: Seychelle Van Poole: @seychellevp Sarah Reynolds: @sarahreynoldsoji Wendy Papasan: @wendypapasan Kymber Lovett-Menkiti: @kymbermenkiti Tiffany Fykes: @tiffanyfykes Produced by NOVA This podcast is for general informational purposes only. The views, thoughts, and opinions of the guest represent those of the guest and not Keller Williams Realty, LLC and its affiliates, and should not be construed as financial, economic, legal, tax, or other advice. This podcast is provided without any warranty, or guarantee of its accuracy, completeness, timeliness, or results from using the information.

42 min

330. 6 Years of Empire Building: The Many Ways You Can Lead

After six years, more than 300 episodes, and over 1.1 million downloads, we are taking a moment to celebrate the journey and reflect on the leadership lessons we have learned from each other along the way. In this episode, we talk about what makes each of us different as leaders, and why that difference matters. From Tiffany’s brave commitment to family-first leadership, to Kymber’s quiet strength and ability to build powerful rooms, to Sarah’s visionary belief and commitment, to Seychelle’s empathy and relentless problem-solving, to Wendy’s collaborative, selfless way of bringing people together, this conversation is a reminder that leadership does not have to look one way. We also share why authenticity and vulnerability have been non-negotiables for this podcast from the very beginning, how leadership grows when you lead more, and why the world needs more good leaders in families, teams, communities, businesses, and beyond. If you have ever wondered whether your leadership style is “right,” this episode is your permission to get curious, own your strengths, and keep growing. Resources: Check out Her Best Life: www.herbestlife.com Learn more about Empire Circle Connect on Instagram: Seychelle Van Poole: @seychellevp Sarah Reynolds: @sarahreynoldsoji Wendy Papasan: @wendypapasan Kymber Lovett-Menkiti: @kymbermenkiti Tiffany Fykes: @tiffanyfykes Produced by NOVA This podcast is for general informational purposes only. The views, thoughts, and opinions of the guest represent those of the guest and not Keller Williams Realty, LLC and its affiliates, and should not be construed as financial, economic, legal, tax, or other advice. This podcast is provided without any warranty, or guarantee of its accuracy, completeness, timeliness, or results from using the information.

34 min

329. Stop Waiting for the Tap on the Shoulder with Heather Hope

What if your business could grow without taking over every part of your life? In this episode, we’re joined by Heather Hope, founder of the Heather Hope Realty Group, business coach, real estate educator, wife, mom, investor, and former middle school teacher. Heather shares how she moved from teaching to real estate, learned to build predictable business through numbers, and found her way into coaching, training, and leading a team. We talk about the emotional weight of client service, why boundaries matter when you’re an empath in business, and how delegation can help you protect the parts of life that bring you the most joy. We also get into building multiple streams of income, bringing family into the business, teaching as lead generation, and giving yourself permission to get in the room before you feel fully “ready.” If you’ve ever wondered how to grow without losing your family time, your purpose, or your sense of fun, Heather’s story will give you both strategy and encouragement. Resources: Learn more about Heather Hope Realty Group Follow Heather Hope on Instagram: @heatherhoperealty Check out Her Best Life: www.herbestlife.com Learn more about Empire Circle Connect on Instagram: Seychelle Van Poole: @seychellevp Sarah Reynolds: @sarahreynoldsoji Wendy Papasan: @wendypapasan Kymber Lovett-Menkiti: @kymbermenkiti Tiffany Fykes: @tiffanyfykes Produced by NOVA This podcast is for general informational purposes only. The views, thoughts, and opinions of the guest represent those of the guest and not Keller Williams Realty, LLC and its affiliates, and should not be construed as financial, economic, legal, tax, or other advice. This podcast is provided without any warranty, or guarantee of its accuracy, completeness, timeliness, or results from using the information.

33 min

328. Thrive Even When You’re Surrounded by Difficult People

Difficult people are part of leadership, business, parenting, marriage, and life. And as much as we may want to avoid them, the truth is that building a big business and an even bigger life requires us to learn how to handle hard conversations without losing our peace. In this episode, we’re talking about how to deal with difficult people with more clarity, curiosity, and emotional control. We share why avoidance rarely makes things better, how to examine your own DNA in the situation first, and why the “difficult person” may actually be a difficult situation. We also talk about the power of asking for perspective, choosing the right person to process with, and having private conversations that focus on solving the problem instead of winning the argument. We walk through practical tools like using “I” statements, restating what you heard, looking for the hidden need, moving to the same side of the table, and attempting to reach a real agreement. And when the conversation is over, we talk about how to discharge your own stress so you don’t carry it into the next room. If you’re leading people, raising kids, serving clients, or navigating hard relationships, this conversation will help you stay grounded while doing the brave work of communication. Resources: Read Fierce Conversations by Susan Scott Check out Her Best Life: www.herbestlife.com Learn more about Empire Circle Connect on Instagram: Seychelle Van Poole: @seychellevp Sarah Reynolds: @sarahreynoldsoji Wendy Papasan: @wendypapasan Kymber Lovett-Menkiti: @kymbermenkiti Tiffany Fykes: @tiffanyfykes Produced by NOVA This podcast is for general informational purposes only. The views, thoughts, and opinions of the guest represent those of the guest and not Keller Williams Realty, LLC and its affiliates, and should not be construed as financial, economic, legal, tax, or other advice. This podcast is provided without any warranty, or guarantee of its accuracy, completeness, timeliness, or results from using the information.