688: A Final Farewell

SHOW NOTES FOR EPISODE 688: A FINAL FAREWELL

In May of 2016, Bill Manassero launched the Old Dawg’s REI Network Podcast to help educate real estate investors over 50 years of age and to document his own goal to acquire 1,000 units in six years.  In this episode, Bill shares his own personal success story and closes out the podcast’s final show.

Introduction

Well, this is it guys!  This is going to be a difficult show for me.  I have truly grown to love the folks who listen to and communicate with me via this show.  I have met many of you, done business with some, and even had some of you on the show as guests.  It has been a great adventure these past six plus years, hosting the Old Dawg’s REI Network Podcast!  This show will remain one of the most amazing experiences of my life.

Just so you know, we will be keeping the Old Dawg website active so that you can reference the nearly 700 podcasts and 300 plus blog articles.  There’s a ton of great content for real estate investors from beginners through experts in the podcasts and blog.  So, please visit and searches our content on any real estate investing topics you desire.  And, who knows… we may even add a few new blog articles or forgotten shows every now and then.  So, stay on our mailing list!  Believe me, we won’t be mailing unless there is something new – we are totally anti-spam!

But, before I sign-off, I have a few things I would like to share…

First of all, I just want to thank all of you who have listened to this podcast, especially those who have been with us from the beginning.  Wow!  Without you there would be no show. You have all been awesome. And I can’t thank you enough

I also want to thank my friend and mentor Joe Fairless who urged me to do the show in the first place (over 6 years ago). Even though I was reluctant, I am so thankful I went through with it! This podcast was a true blessing!

And I want to thank someone for which there would truly be no show.  And that’s my producer Tim Edmondson!

An audio genius who has master engineered songs for some of the biggest music legends of all time – no lie! He also happens to be my dear brother-in-law, great friend, bff and former band mate in the world famous Mister Bill Band (and an extraordinary drummer) – and a former drummer for the 80s rock band Dramarama.  Tim made this show sound great!!!

He had the weekly challenge of cleaning up my technical disasters, making the episodes sound extremely professional, removing my endless, and-ahs, ya-knows, likes, ums, so forths, Darth Vadar breathing episodes, and bad jokes, just to name a few. Believe me, if you ever heard the raw version of each show you wouldn’t believe it compared to the final mastered version.  Tim is a true audio artist who painted the palete of this podcast since our very first show in May of 2016.  I can never thank you enough brother!

And finally, I don’t know if I mentioned it or not on the show but I was thinking of writing a book to share my story – from the streets of Port-au-Prince, Haiti to multifamily millionaire.  But, the more I thought about it, the more I saw it to be a very, very short book.  Because if I truly shared my “secret” to success — how I started with almost nothing to become financially set for life –a lot of people wouldn’t believe it!

It actually started in 1988 when I was an over ambitious entrepreneur.  I was devoted to becoming a millionaire before the age of 30.  All I cared about was making money and making myself happy.  Driving fast cars.  Living a fast lifestyle.  Dating beautiful women. Thinking I was invincible… but not realizing I was far from it!

I also took a lot of chances.  Did a lot of dumb things.  Was very greedy.  And, one day, everything caught up with me.  My house of cards came crashing down — almost overnight. I went from young business superstar to being subpoenaed by the SEC and two steps away from serving time in prison.

I was one of the worst times in my life.  I had got myself into a lot of trouble and it looked like I had no way out.  I was a mess. I was at my lowest point ever and didn’t want to ive.  But, thankfully, when you’re down far enough, sometimes, the only way to look was up.

And I did!  I prayed.  I was in my office at 3am in the morning (which was a common occurrence at that time) and I prayed to a God I didn’t really know and wasn’t even sure existed.  My prayer was simple, “Take my life anyway you want.  Car accident.  Getting robbed and shot!  Anything!  But hopefully something quick. And if you don’t take my life (if you even exist) , then I will.”

In the days that followed a series of supernatural events happened. I found myself at the Palos Verdes Country Club looking for my Chiropractor friend who invited me to a meeting of big wig Southern California businessmen, one of which was possibly interested in helping me.  He was a high tech, high ticket CEO coach who worked with software company CEOs and an new emerging group of start-up entrepreneurs who were creating these networked businesses with this thing called the Internet. Anyway, he invited me to breakfast where he very quickly pried out of this egotistical, too proud to admit I was a failure, how I managed to totally make a total disaster of my life.  And, believe or not, I walked away from the meeting with a glimmer of hope that I might not end up in jail.

He wanted to meet again, next week for breakfast.  I was nervous, however, because I knew that this guy was not cheap and his hourly rate was more than I had left in my checking account!  However, he agreed to meet with me – not just once, but every week, at the same place, for breakfast.  He was going to help me with my business problem – and was going to do it for FREE!.  Oh, but I had to agree to do one thing!  In addition to the help he would give me for my business, I also had to agree to do a Bible study with him at the same time.  Oh no!  What was I getting myself into?  I wasn’t real thrilled about the Bible study but I was just desperate enough to agree to anything.

So, we started meeting and three quarters of out time was spent talking business and actually resolving some of my major business problems and a quarter of our time was on the Bible study.  However, as much as I tried to cheat and skip through the Bible study, I couldn’t avoid the “homework” park of my assignment – I had to actually read the Bible and answer some of the very tough questions.

I had never really read the Bible before and, surprisingly, I became caught up in it.  I was learning a lot interesting things that were also giving me hope.

And as continued meeting with him, a shift was occurring, and I ended up wanting to spend more time talking about the Bible and less about my business problems. I learned about a God who loved me so much that he sent his only son to die for my sins.  I remembered seeing these signs at sports event “John 3:16” and now I actually understood what it meant and not just for everyone but specifically for me and my dilemma!

And, one night, I was again in my office.  It’s 3am and, again, I began to pray.  But this time, my prayer was different.  I prayed, “Dear God. When I prayed to you last time God, I asked you to take my life – kill me – any way you wanted to.  But I never dreamed turn my request to take my life like this.  I’m asking you now to take my life, but not to kill me but to give me a new life – a life I want to give to YOU!  I don’t even care anymore if I end up in jail.  I just want to live my life for you.  And no matter what the situation or where I am – including jail – I will serve you joyfully no matter what!”

And that’s what happened more than 30 years ago.

And, over the years, I saw miracle after miracle:

• Delivered me from addictions and all of my business problems
• Meeting my wife
• Having 7 beautiful children
• I continued in business for a number of years but my heart was drawn more and more to full-time ministry.
• First, with a children’s music ministry where we released 3 albums and traveled the world for concerts and church events
• And then, later on, to serving, full-time, the street children of Haiti as missionaies.
• In Haiti, the miracles continued
  • I saw kids lives transformed, saved from trafficking
  • Families transformed
  • People delivered from all kids of things
  • There during the earthquake, where our orphanage was transformed into a triage unit
    • Even non-religious reporters reporting on what was happening were dumbfounded of how our little triage unit served over 500 people who went through there (because all the hospitals were down) and how not a single person died under our care
    • How doctors and medical supplies kept showing up miraculously
    • Some of the reporters just quit asking how these things were happening and would say, “I know. Don’t tell me.  It was God!” And it was.  And it is .
    • One of those reporters, a woman named Soledad O’ Brien, with CNN, ended up doing a one-hour documentary on the experience called “Rescued” and writing about the experience in a book years later as well.
    • Oprah Winfrey even came to interview and feature our family on her show – but, it was never about us – it was always about Him!
    • God is real and he’s still working miracles every day!

After 12 amazing years in Haiti, getting older and realizing it was time to retire, even though we had no money, having lived on faith for all those years. That same God that saved me 30 years ago and showed us miracle after miracle in our lives, led me to this crazy Real Estate Investing thing where be continued to bless and provide not only what we need now but enough for the rest of our lives.

That’s why I didn’t end up writing that book.  I don’t want to share what I did… because it wasn’t me.  And that’s not false modesty – that’s reality! We serve a God who is faithful and real. He is the reason we succeeded.  He directed our path every inch of the way and blessed us in more ways than I can ever express in the short time of this podcast.

Now, I know there are many listening to this from all different backgrounds and beliefs, and I really want to thank you for listening to this full podcast.

But would be remiss if, in my final podcast, I didn’t share the real story of my success and my journey.

Thank you very much for being part of our family here at the Old Dawg’s REI Network.  I appreciate you all so very much and am sincerely going to miss you.

Well, that’s it for now!

For the final time… keep moving forward and may God bless!