Wendell’s Weekly Wins and Whiffs

🏆 This Week’s Win: Building the Team That Will Build the Vision

This week wasn’t defined by deal flow or closings. It was defined by intentional growth. I’ve been putting serious focus into building out the infrastructure behind the scenes, and this week marked a real turning point. Instead of just working in the business, I spent time working on the business, laying the foundation for the team that will carry our momentum into 2026.

I officially hired a social media manager to elevate my personal brand and support the content across all of my businesses. It’s surreal to think that the brand I’ve been building from Hammerhead Capital to Flip Fuel Lending to Tide and Timber Ventures now has someone dedicated to amplifying it. Someone who believes in the mission, sees the vision, and is excited to help tell the story.

On top of that, Tide and Timber Ventures took another major step forward by bringing on a transaction coordinator to tighten our operations and support our growing pipeline. And over at Flip Fuel Lending, I am onboarding a new loan officer to expand our capacity and help us serve more investors heading into the new year. We are still actively looking for additional loan officers as well, since that side of the business is picking up momentum. With these additions, I now have eight employees working across my companies, which is wild to think about. Not long ago, it was just me grinding through every task alone.

And we’re not slowing down. Next week, we begin the search for a deal analyst to join the Tide and Timber Ventures team. Adding this role will help us evaluate more opportunities, make sharper decisions, and move faster as we push toward our goal of scaling aggressively in 2026.

It’s exciting and honestly humbling to realize that the businesses I started from scratch are now creating real jobs for real people. That responsibility isn’t lost on me. But it’s also one of the most rewarding parts of entrepreneurship: building something bigger than yourself and bringing others along for the journey.

This week’s win feels powerful because it’s not just about adding team members. It’s about building systems, creating momentum, and setting up the foundation to capitalize on everything we’ve been working toward.

2026 is going to be a massive year, and this is just the beginning.

💨 This Week’s Whiff: Delays, Deadlines, and Owning the Hard Stuff

Real estate has a way of humbling you at the exact moment you think things are finally lining up. And just like last week, the same deal that was supposed to close is now getting pushed even further out. We thought we were finally at the finish line, but once again, the buyer’s lender is moving at a snail’s pace because of the government backed loan program they are using.

More reviews, more paperwork, more waiting. It is the exact kind of slowdown everyone dreads, and because it is a government loan, everything takes twice as long as it should. So instead of celebrating a clean exit, we are dealing with another delay on a deal we have been ready to close for weeks.

Meanwhile, the loan on our end comes due in two weeks. If this thing does not land soon, we are likely looking at an extension. Not the end of the world, but definitely an unnecessary hit all because someone else cannot move with urgency.

That alone would have made this week feel like a whiff. But then there was a different kind of delay, one that falls squarely on me.

With Thanksgiving, travel, and family time (happy late Thanksgiving by the way), I did not complete my GoBundance One Sheet. It is supposed to be a full snapshot of where I am across all areas of life and where I want to go next. It is important work, and I let it slide.

Some delays are out of your control, like a slow moving bank wrapped up in government guidelines. But some delays are on you. And those are the ones that force you to look in the mirror. Holiday or not, I need to carve out space for the priorities that matter, especially when they are tied to who I am becoming.

So the One Sheet is getting done this week. No more pushing and no more excuses. It is okay to slip sometimes, but if you want to live an exceptional life, you have to take exceptional actions consistently, especially when it is not easy or comfortable.

This week’s whiff was a mix of external setbacks and internal accountability. Not fun, not glamorous, but real. And honestly, weeks like this are where the most growth happens.

Next week, we tighten up and execute.

🔦 FROM THE FIELD: Gratitude, Good Food, and Grounding Yourself

This week’s lesson did not come from a walkthrough, a contractor call, or a deal update. It came from taking a real break and driving up to New England to spend the week in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island with my family for Thanksgiving.

Real estate moves fast, entrepreneurship moves faster, and it is easy to convince yourself that you will catch up with friends and family when things calm down. But they never really do. This trip was a reminder that you have to be intentional about carving out time for the people who matter.

At the same time, taking time off does not mean abandoning the important tasks you need to follow through on. The real skill is creating balance by using your time extremely effectively. Make space for the people you love, but also carve out the moments needed to keep your goals moving forward. Both matter.

Being with family, laughing, eating way too much, and stepping away from the daily grind is not wasted time. It is fuel. It resets your mind, fills your cup, and gives you the energy to get back to work with clarity and momentum.

And yes, sweet potato casserole is still the GOAT. Debate someone else.

The field lesson this week is simple:

Be intentional. Invest in your relationships and invest in your goals. Balance comes from prioritizing both with purpose, not sacrificing one for the other.

Thanks for reading,