Wendell’s Weekly Wins and Whiffs

👋 Welcome to Wendell’s Weekly Wins & Whiffs! The real, unvarnished breakdown of what it takes to build companies, scale a real estate portfolio, and lead with discipline. ⚒️📈 Each week, I share the operational wins that move the mission forward, the whiffs that force recalibration, and the strategic lessons earned in the trenches. No hype. No fluff. Just execution, feedback loops, and continuous improvement. 🔁If you're committed to building durable wealth through systems, partnerships, and relentless consistency, you’re in the right place. Let’s get better — week after week. 💥

Author

Wendell Butler
January 08, 2026

🏆 Win of the Week: Planning With Intention

This week reinforced an important truth: meaningful progress happens when you slow down long enough to be deliberate about where you are going.

During the holidays, I intentionally stepped away from the constant pull of work to be fully present with family. That separation created the space to think clearly and do the foundational work that often gets deprioritized in the middle of execution. I used that time to set my 2026 annual goals and complete detailed quarterly planning, making sure each objective ties directly back to my broader purpose and long-term vision.

Without clearly defined goals, values, and direction, it is easy to drift. The day-to-day demands of running a business can quietly pull you off course until you look up and realize the destination has changed. Your vision and purpose should serve as the compass for every major decision on how you operate, who you hire, and how you scale. Revisit them often, protect them, and do not allow short-term distractions to override the path required to achieve what you set out to build.

From an execution standpoint, Flip Fuel Lending closed another loan this week, continuing to confirm the strength of our underwriting and process. Just as importantly, we now have three active loan officers operating within the platform. That transition from a solo effort to a team with real capacity signals a meaningful shift in where the business is headed as we move into 2026.

Ongoing conversations with loan officers also clarified the next logical step in strengthening the operation: bringing on a dedicated loan processor. This role would eliminate bottlenecks, allow originators to stay focused on relationships and deal flow, and improve consistency and turnaround times across the pipeline benefiting borrowers, the team, and the business.

The real win this week was alignment. Growth paired with structure. Strategy paired with execution. This is the kind of progress that compounds over time.

💨 Whiff of the Week: Expense Drift

This week highlighted an area that is easy to overlook when things are moving quickly. Spending discipline.

As I reviewed budgets, cash flow, and overall spending across both my personal life and the businesses, a few patterns became hard to ignore. There are clear areas where expenses have crept up without a proportional return. None of them are catastrophic on their own, but together they represent unnecessary drag on progress.

This is exactly how overspending tends to happen. Not through one bad decision, but through a series of small, seemingly justified expenses that never get revisited. When you are focused on growth, revenue, and execution, it is easy to let this slide. Over time, that quiet drift can erode margins and limit flexibility.

The reminder here is simple but important. Increasing profit does not always require doing more. Often the fastest and most controllable lever is internal. Tightening operations, eliminating waste, and being honest about what is actually driving value. The same principle applies personally. Clarity around spending reduces pressure and improves decision making.

The miss this week was allowing expense creep to go unchecked for too long. The fix is already underway. Reassess, cut what is not essential, and reallocate resources with the same intentionality used for growth.

🎯Tactical Tip of the Week: Use a One Sheet to Create Direction

Growth without direction is just motion. One of the simplest and most effective tools to prevent that is the One Sheet framework popularized within GoBundance.

At its core, the One Sheet forces clarity. It brings your long term vision, annual goals, quarterly priorities, and personal standards onto a single page. When everything lives in one place, it becomes much harder to ignore and much easier to execute against.

Too often, goals live in your head or across scattered notes. The problem is not lack of ambition, it is lack of structure. Writing goals down turns abstract ideas into concrete commitments. It creates a reference point you can return to when decisions get noisy or distractions start pulling you off course.

Here is how to use the One Sheet effectively:

• Define your long term vision first. This should reflect where you want to be in five to ten years across business, personal, health, and relationships.
• Set annual goals that clearly move you closer to that vision. Fewer is better. Focus on what actually matters.
• Break those into quarterly priorities that are specific and executable. These become your operating targets.
• Revisit the One Sheet weekly. Use it as a filter for decisions, time allocation, and tradeoffs.

Why this matters:

• Written goals increase follow through and accountability
• A single page creates focus instead of overwhelm
• Planning forces tradeoffs before the pressure hits
• Alignment between vision and execution compounds over time
• Clarity reduces wasted effort and unnecessary stress

👉 Action Step
Create your own One Sheet this week. Keep it to one page. Print it or keep it somewhere visible. Review it weekly and adjust quarterly. If a task, opportunity, or commitment does not support what is on that page, think carefully before saying yes.

Intentional planning is not restrictive. It is freeing. When your direction is clear, growth becomes far more predictable and sustainable.

 🔦 FROM THE FIELD: Permits Move at the Speed of Persistence

Permitting is one of the least efficient and most frustrating parts of real estate development. It is slow, process heavy, and often the biggest source of timeline risk on a project.

In many cases, delays are not caused by missing information, but by overloaded departments and lack of urgency. Emails and voicemails can sit unanswered for weeks. When that happens, showing up in person becomes the fastest path forward. Standing at the counter, asking clear questions, and not leaving without next steps is often what breaks the logjam.

We currently have a permit holding up one of our deals. Instead of waiting and hoping it clears, next week either my partner or I will be in the city office until we get clarity and movement. Not aggressive. Just visible, respectful, and persistent.

A few practical tips:
• Know your file number and documents before you walk in
• Ask what specifically is needed to move it forward, not just when it will be done
• Get a name and direct contact for follow up
• Document everything while you are there

Permits rarely move themselves. Sometimes progress means leaving the job site and going straight to the source.

🎤 FINAL WORD

This week was about alignment and discipline. Stepping away to reset, writing down clear goals, and planning with intention set the foundation for where 2026 is headed. At the same time, reviewing spending exposed areas that need tightening, reinforcing that growth is not just about making more, but managing better.

Execution continues to matter. Deals move forward, teams grow, and sometimes progress requires showing up in person and pushing through friction, especially when bureaucracy slows things down. None of this is flashy, but all of it is necessary.

Clarity creates focus. Discipline protects momentum. Consistent action moves everything forward.

Keep building,