KGCI: Real Estate on Air - Unlocking Success - The Power of Attracting Like Minded People, with Rick Dhillon

Episode Date: October 6, 2025

SummaryIn this episode, entrepreneur and investor Rick Dhillon shares his powerful philosophy on unlocking success by surrounding yourself with the right people. He argues that your personal and professional growth is directly tied to the energy and values of your network. The discussion provides a blueprint for intentionally attracting like-minded individuals, building strategic partnerships, and creating a supportive ecosystem that accelerates your journey toward achieving your goals.Key TakeawaysThe Law of Attraction in Business: Discover how your mindset, actions, and energy act as a magnet. Rick Dhillon explains his core belief that by embodying the values you seek in others, you will naturally attract collaborative, ambitious, and trustworthy individuals into your life and business.Curating Your Inner Circle: Learn why it's crucial to be intentional about who you let into your inner circle. The episode offers guidance on identifying and nurturing relationships with people who not only inspire you, but also challenge you to grow beyond your comfort zone.The Power of Strategic Partnerships: Understand the difference between transactional relationships and strategic partnerships. Rick provides insights into how to build mutually beneficial relationships that lead to new opportunities, shared resources, and collective success.Leading with Authenticity: Explore the importance of being true to yourself in all your interactions. The discussion highlights how transparency and integrity are the foundations of building genuine trust, which is the cornerstone for attracting a high-caliber network.Topics:Rick DhillonSuccess mindsetNetworking strategiesAttracting like-minded peopleStrategic partnershipsCall-to-ActionListen to the full episode on your favorite podcast platform and start building your network for success today!

So very, very casual conversation. I'm just going to go through a series of questions with you. Basically, what my podcast is is behind closed deals, which is, you know, we look at what social media projects about successful entrepreneurs and leaders no matter what industry they're in. And it gives us this image of luxury and prestige and, you know, happiness and work-life balance and travel and cars and clothes. No one knows the mountains that you've had to climb to get there. No one knows how much hard work and dedication. How much failure had to go in that? No one knows the hurdles that you had to go through.

How many times you said, I'm not doing this anymore. I just want to give up. So I like to take leaders back to, for those individuals that want and strive to be a leader, an entrepreneur in today's world, what is it that it take, what does it take? what does it take to get to where you are today? And I'm not saying we are the most successful or we are the top of the top, but what keeps us going every single day? What keeps Rick on that right path to continue leading the way he's leading

and continuously want to be that entrepreneur that, you know, it's not just enough. There's always another step that you need to take because you can impact more and more people as you go. Take me back what you did before real estate. So, whoa, that was an awesome intro. It's like, where do I go? I'm going on, guys.

Hold on. Can you go back and repeat that one? Yeah, yeah, yeah. That was awesome. I was like, whoa, okay. There was a lot. That's awesome. Thank you for having me here, first of all.

My pleasure. Before real estate, I'll fast forward. I wasn't the greatest student and I was a worse employee. I remember I got, I worked as an accountant. You were an accountant? Yeah. Whoa. I was a count.

I was a smart kid, but I just didn't like the corporate world. So I remember one hour lunches turned into two hour lunches, five, six days turned into ten sick days, right? It's like I was skipping school all over again, right? But I wasn't accounting, but then my real estate license changed my life. Who was it that got you into real estate? That is awesome. And the honest answer is there was friends that I grew up with, one in particular. that got his real estate license and he was doing well and I was like damn he's kicking ass if he

can do it I can do it so I'll give him all the credit and then I got my real estate license this is back in 2004 2005 and the first six months I didn't sell any houses I was going to quit but then I didn't and that's when I really started narrowing down or finding my niche My niche was for sale by owners. During the six months that you didn't sell anything, how did that pressure feel? Did you have a family then? No, I wasn't, uh, was I'm, no, I wasn't, I didn't have any kids. That's for sure.

So I had my own. I had a mortgage and everything. So it didn't feel the greatest because I had to pay the bills. Um, but I was young enough where I could take those risks. Yeah. But it felt like shit. Yeah. Yeah.

It was horrible. I felt like a failure. Did you not feel like I can't do this anymore? I got to jump to a different career. Yeah. What was that sticking point for you that no, no, I'm going to try again? Ultimately comes down to faith, but I'll tell you a story. I didn't sell anything for six months.

And then I sold like, I got four, maybe four deals done. Wow. Wow, my ass. Listen. I'm telling you, I cannot. make this up, I got four deals done. I got my very first early experience on what mutual releases are. Oh. Can you believe it? One got a mutual release. I was like, okay, that's fine. I got three more. Two, I got all four mutual release. Whoa. That's when I was going to quit.

That's the fee at its finest. Isn't that crazy? That's insane. Finally. Now it's like, okay, you give it to me and now you take it away. But here's the answer to the question. I looked at it different. I was like, I'm good at sales. I'm too good at sales. I'm like, I'm making people buy that don't want to buy. Because I knew real estate so well, and I knew it was good for people. So I would get people in that transaction after like, I don't want to do this.

So Nadia, I looked at it in the fact that, okay, let's just readjust. Let's find the people that do want to buy and let me educate them. So that was it. It could have been like, for a bit I was like, oh man, this sucks, how horrible is this? But I looked at it in the positive. I always had that ability to look in the positive. I learned that from my grandfather. Wow.

And it was like, okay, I must be doing something right. Right. That's amazing. So now you fast forward, become a successful real estate agent. You start building your team. You are at EXP Realty. And you're working hard. Why take on the responsibility?

of having a team? That is an awesome question. You might not get the answer you like here. And you're going to do this podcast with so many people. You're going to have so many opinions. For me, the team model wasn't great. Okay. So when I was at Royal O'LePage Remax, I started a team.

It was a top 1% or 2% team in the country all the time. I'll give a shout out to Craig Prox. and that coaching program that I learned a lot of how to build the team. I was in the titanium program. I learned really quickly through that program and all these amazing people I was with that at best you're at a 20% gross profit. So I'm going to lean into now the EXP team in a second. But prior to that, I was like, okay, so you're telling me if I make a million bucks,

I'm only keeping $200,000. That didn't sit right with me. And I wasn't good enough to go to $4 million and $5 million, like some of these awesome team leaders are. So if you're good enough and you're going to put in the blood, sweat, and tears, like some of the awesome teams in our organization, I'm jealous. Yeah. Right? I wasn't there. I wasn't going to $4 million GCI and keeping a million because that's a pretty good life.

Yeah. I was hitting a million, $1.2,000 and then keeping $2,000, $400,000 because my coaches were like, you've got to get out of the business if you're a team leader and just work on the business. Don't work in the business, work on the business. So I'm like, I have two choices. I could keep going that way. And in 2020, I met an awesome guy named Jay Kinder, right? I got on a Zoom with him. And it was done after that.

And it was done. Jay Kinder is the best. Jay Kinder is the best. And I'll tell you how that I went. It was really funny. He, you know, he gave me the pitch. And I was like, okay. Here's a worlds apart.

How did you meet? Through Andre. Oh, okay. Yeah. Andre is awesome, too. and then eventually Pierre. And that's one good lesson I learned from Jay on how to organize a team.

Yeah. Because even though Jay was my biggest influence, he partnered me with Pierre. But anyway, that's a different story. So he broke down RevShare to me. I'm like, Jay, no way, right? And he's like, yeah, this is what it is. I won't share numbers, but he's like, you know,

this is what you can do? I'm like, you did that? You're going to show me how to do that? He's like, yeah, I'm like, where do I sound? And then the third question I had was, is this sustainable? Because when I first looked at the XP, it's like the 16K

the 16K, but I really didn't understand that not, when you look at the FLQA unlocking, a lot of agents aren't unlocking. So, EXP is getting paid in a big way outside of the 16K. I'm like, wow, this is sustainable. I'm in.

And then, like, so you took this team that really was not profiting as much as you wanted it to for the amount of time that, you know, you're putting into it. You are at EXP with a much bigger organization, but then you were able to give that opportunity to every single member of your team. You nailed it.

And that is what a true entrepreneur leader does, is that I don't grow just for myself. I grow to be able to contribute to my organization's lives as well. So how has that changed when it comes to culture and loyalty with your organization? Yeah, that's a good question. So I think at the end of it, it's all about contribution. I remember when I was younger and I wanted to get rich and I used to listen to all the self-development books and all the self-development people will say, it's all about giving back,

it's all about contribution. I'm like, is that the trick on how to get rich? But then after you make a little bit of money, it is all about contribution. And the beautiful thing about EXP, and it's just sincerely the truth, I'm not saying that because I'm in it, you make money while you're changing lives. Yes. And the loyalty comes from when you're changing lives. Like I can show you text messages that I got this morning of people saying how their month looked like and saying, Rick, thank you. And every time I get on stage and on this podcast, you'll hear me saying, Jay, thank you.

Pierre, thank you. And every event we go to, we notice people are thanking each other. Yeah. You notice that? Yeah. It's because I actually mean it. I've never been in an organization where people are grabbing the founder and crying on his shoulder at events.

We all love Glenn Sanford. Yeah, yeah. My past brokerages, I didn't really care for the founder. Yeah. It's because he created something where everybody wins. Yeah. And when you create something that everybody wins and then entrepreneurs like me find it and we aren't just entrepreneur, we end up winning. And the people that believe in us end up winning.

Absolutely. The people, the organization that you've created and the opportunities that you've given everybody else. And think, you know, because we're all business owners or owners of the company, it is in our best interest to all help each other out. You know, I've been with other company for about 17 years, the amount of collaboration that has. happens at EXP is second to none. I've never seen anything like it, you know, where you can pick up the phone, call someone that could be all the way across the world, you know, and they'll pick up the phone, they'll answer your questions, they'll help you, they'll listen to you.

This, I find leadership is lonely. You know, when you're leading, it's lonely. But when you can depend on other leaders in the industry as well to have your back, it really helps you because there's a lot of times that you just want to throw in the towel and say, this isn't working out for me, just not going to do it. But what keeps you driven to continuously want to impact other people's lives that you haven't touched yet? Two things. One is, well, the most important one.

In 2011, my older brother passed away with brain cancer. And I would be lying if I, you know, after I went through my sadness, like I was holding his hand like this when we had to pull the plug. And I was like, after I went through the shit that I went through, I was like, who, my hero is gone. And life is short. One thing that I learned from Nadia is like, I don't know, because in his internal compass, his soul probably knew he had a really short time here. So he had kids early, he had that. He had family early. He bought his house early.

but one thing I learned from that guy, God bless him, is he always helped. Yeah. Man, I was that kid in the mall. If I seen someone that I knew, I would just put my head down and I didn't want to make conversation. Yeah. I'm like, don't bother me, right? Yeah. I don't know if it was insecurity or whatever.

What? Not him. Yo, if you guys were both in grade 11 or grade 12 or even now and he saw you in the mall, he'd be like, Nadia! yell across the mall, give you a hug, and just help. He just had that kind, beautiful soul. Beautiful soul. So now, after that, I think while I was holding his hand, he gave that to me.

I really feel that he gave that to me. So now when people say that about me, like people in the office will all say, Rick, you did this, you changed that. I started feeling like in alignment. Yeah. Right? And then I started feeling that, okay, if I'm helping them and they're feeling like this, I want to do it more.

But if I'm also incentivized financially to do it too, it's like putting your mask on first. Now it's like, holy, I can do it more. Because if I wasn't getting paid, then I couldn't. Because I would have to go get a job. So you need to provide for yours to be able to provide for others. Yeah. Yeah.

So one thing is I think it's my sole purpose to help, I think, that I got from him. Thanks, bro. and could have been selfish and done a lot of cool things driving the world by my Ferrari we are so thankful you gave him that gift yeah yeah and then second I would say it's the the Kobe Bryant in me who was also that I just love

just leaving it on the floor like I don't want to I don't want to have regrets on my death bed I'm like yo like you we talk all the time Yeah. Me and you're connected.

Very. We're the same. Yeah. I don't want to be laying there and regretting that I could have helped someone. And I didn't. And that's why along the way I do my best to try to lift people up and help them, especially, you know, remember my kids, you know, with, I mean, you see pictures of my kids. They look like my friends.

So growing up, our house was always open to everybody. All their friends had our garage code. They would come in any time that they want. As they got older, I realized that, you know, when their friends had problems, they would come to me. Yeah. And I loved it. I absolutely loved that they felt like this is a safe zone, safe home for them until now. Like a lot of them when I see them, it's you're like my second mom.

I absolutely love it because you made an impact on someone's life. It could be even a sandwich that I made. It could be a hug that I gave. life is so beautiful that, you know, to hold grudges or to be upset every single day is only going to get in the way of you, you know, climbing that mountain to reach the level that you want to reach. And, you know, people say, I don't know how you feel about this statement is, does it ever get easier? And my response is, no, you just get stronger and you get more resilient to it. So it becomes easier that way. Yeah, yeah, it doesn't get easier.

year. Actually, it's harder because you end up taking on more. It does. But then you become so strong that you're able to take it. You're like. Yeah. It's like it's experience. Yeah. And just to add to that, I think it's also when you become someone or something, you magnetize

other people, places and things like that. Yes. The whole manifestation attraction thing. I'm attracting people like you in my life, not just because we work in the same thing, but as a friend, I'm attracting people into my life. that are like all of a sudden, which never used to happen before, is like propelling me even to higher degrees, right? And it's because you really attract who you become, right? So now when you become that person that can do these things, it becomes easier because of the experience,

like you were saying, but you also build a bigger foundation and network of like-minded people. You're in totally different rooms. Absolutely. Yeah. Like when I'm in the room with you and other people that are like-minded, I feel like she gets a safe. She's actually doing the same thing. She's feeling the same way. Whereas I'm in the other room where it's full of like, I don't know, lazy people that don't want to do things. Not that there's any, hey, you do that.

But I feel awkward in that room. Well, I mean, there are rooms where people are going to look up to you. So you have to be that strength of the room. Then there are rooms where you're looking up to people. So there are your strength that you can. can show a little bit of weakness, but there are rooms that you cannot let your guard down because so many people depend on you in that room. I love that, yeah.

And it kind of like, I'm smiling because it reminds me of one thing that I'd like to share with people. People always look at the mentor or the coach, right? But one thing that I want, anybody that's watching this or anybody that encounters me to really understand, the best mentors and coaches are always without question the best students. they will always want to be the least in that room. They want to be surrounded with better people. They're the ones that are always listening to the books.

They're the ones that are always paying for coaching. Yes. Because they are the best students. They want more. They want more. But they understand that success is in learning, not teaching. And when you learn enough, other people want to come to them and teach. So, like, this whole thing of me becoming a coach mentor in this organization and beyond

was a new thing to me. I was like, wow, really? You know, listen to me. And I think, you know, you're doing it at a very different way that, you know, the industry needed. You're not, you're not, you know, follow this system. It's, you kind of read the room and every person, you train and you coach them differently because they all understand differently. And everyone has their own superpower. Yes.

Yeah. Yeah. Everyone has their own super. Everyone shines in a different, you know, in a different way. Talking about your family real quick. You guys are a good-looking family, man. What that act is? I don't know what.

I'm like... They are gorgeous. You look like their sister. I love other sisters. So tomorrow night, I have the pleasure of having dinner with them. Speaking at an event tomorrow for one of our agents and then having dinner with them, I have to say, I don't know where I would be without my kids. You're such a good mom.

In general. Thank you. They have been my driving force. And, you know, I say this all the time. I've wanted a family since I was 14 years old. I was never. blessed with a good family growing up. So I've always wanted a family of my own. And I've never ever felt what true love is until my first child was born. And I've never felt loved in my life.

When he was born, I'm like, wow, this is what it feels like to care, to protect, to love, and to feel love. And forever, I am grateful for my kids, all three of them. They all add value. I'm very blessed that they're smart kids. Aside from being smart, they're good human beings. They are the people that if they see you at the mall, they'd be like, hey, what are? My kids too. I met your kid. Yeah.

Oh, your son is so handsome and tall and very outgoing. Yeah, I know both of them. They're like straight A's. They're doing really good. And I think like for both of us, for all parents, that's your biggest. It really is. That's your biggest thing. Right? So it's like you want to, you nailed it. All that aside, good looking smart, all that stuff. You want good humans. You really do.

You want good humans. Yeah. You know, a lot of people measure their successes by money, house, cars, clothes, travel. I don't care where I am with that. My success, and I'm sure you feel the same way, is because we have children, we measure our success with our kids. No matter how much money you have, if they don't have good health, you've got nothing. health if they are not you know if they are not on the right path in life if they are not following their dreams and ambitions and being good people you haven't done our job they're learning from you they're watching you right they're always a good example i see a lot of parents uh they'll tell their kids one thing but they're not doing the same actions and that doesn't work it really doesn't like kids are kids are sponges they absorb everything And, you know, for a second to think that kids don't actually understand their surroundings.

I remember when I was three years old just before my parents got divorced. My grandfather was a living with us at the time. And I don't remember my mom leaving when they got divorced, but I remember my grandfather laying in bed. He had cancer and he died living with us. And I remember that at three years old. Wow. So as much as, you know, and that takes me back to my passing. psychology and being a school teacher of how much kids absorb information and all this information

comes out when they're when they're older so they need you know they're and we could do a whole podcast on us by the time learning a lot about you yeah I let out little pieces every once in a while but we were actually we lived in Lebanon during the war in the 80s and I still remember the war I remember the sounds I remember my grandpa moving in passing away I remember funeral. And again, like, I don't remember my parents getting divorced, but I remember waking up and my mom wasn't there. So, yeah, like, and it's amazing how much children absorb that information, and it's always there. It's just what you do with it. You can either... Did she come back? Like, were you... No, no. She actually left the country with my younger brother.

My older brother and I stayed with my dad, and we lived there until about 86, and then we moved back to Canada and then I didn't get to be with my or see my mom again until I had my first son. Wow. Yeah. So, you know, for me, it's, I look at it and I know people face a lot of struggles in life. And, you know, you have a lot of resentments and stuff? Um, I wouldn't say resentment. I would say I'm thankful.

Wow. What a way to look at it. Yeah. I'm so thankful for the childhood. parents gave me because you know some people look at it and paved their path according to the childhood that they had I paved my path because of my childhood to be a better person than they both were to be a better mother than they both were and to be a better parent than they both were and so for me I I I was

never the person that sat down and cried I was never the person I just I knew that I needed to work on myself and I knew I wanted to be that female leader that my kids admired. That you are? Thank you. And it's just, that's what kept me, you know, going is having them. So I'm very thankful. I unveiled something in this.

I got an answer for people and I wanted to say, hey, what makes people successful or one of the answer? And I learned it today from both of our answers. No matter what the situation or the circumstance, if you can put a positive, have spin to it, you're golden. You have to. Nothing is going to change the past. Nothing is going to go back to your child. Is that a learned behavior or is that a learned behavior?

And it really helped me, you know, taking psychology in university because it allows you to build, like it allows you to understand. It allows you to, you know, I mean, you're taking it, you understand the human behavior, you understand. I can't control what my parents did. I cannot control why they were not better parents. I can't control what they put me through. It's in the past.

So I just have to recognize it and say, what am I doing with it? You know, am I going to be a better person or am I going to wallow in my sorrow for the rest of my life? Can't do that. I've got to three babies that depend on me. I've got to put it behind me and become stronger. Or else it's going to eat me alive. Wow. So you just, you learn to move on.

You learn to become a better person because of that. Talk about a why. Talk about why. And that's why I always, I always use them as the why. But Rick, I can't, dear friend of mine, I can't thank you enough for taking the time to be on the podcast today. And I've learned a lot about you. You've learned a lot about me. And, you know, we're so grateful to have gotten to known each other.

I mean, EXP was a driving forth for us to get to meet and get to know each other and support each other and everything that we do. And this is what EXP is about, you know, is bringing good people together and just, enhancing people's futures and giving them the opportunity. It's a movement. I learned that from Brent. It's a movement and I didn't understand what people meant, but you got to, there's some things about this company that you just have to feel and you can't explain. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Thanks everyone for watching. Rick Dillon, dear brother of mine.

Thanks guys.