Wendell’s Weekly Wins and Whiffs

👋 Welcome to Wendell’s Weekly Wins & Whiffs — your front-row seat to the entrepreneurial and real estate rollercoaster, complete with high-fives, facepalms, and everything in between. Each week, I’ll peel back the curtain on life as an active investor and business builder: the triumphs that feel like victory laps, the flops that sting like a surprise plumbing leak, and the behind-the-scenes grind of running multiple companies. From flips that soar to admin headaches that test my patience, you’ll get the real, unfiltered scoop on both deals and business operations. Why? Because building wealth isn’t just about properties — it’s about building systems, partnerships, and businesses that can stand the test of time. My goal is to share the wins, the whiffs, and the lessons learned so you can sharpen your own edge in both investing and entrepreneurship.

Author

Wendell Butler
October 08, 2025

🏆 This Week’s Win – The Hive: CLT Entrepreneurial Network Keeps Growing

This week’s win is all about community and momentum. Our latest Hive: CLT Entrepreneurial Network meetup had a fantastic turnout, around 40 guests showed up to connect, collaborate, and grow together. Even with a last-minute venue change (my bad on that one 😅), the team jumped into action, ensuring clear communication went out so everyone knew where to go. The result? A smooth, high-energy event filled with great conversations and new connections.

Why This Win Stands Out
We’ve now had two back-to-back events with 40+ attendees and the best part is, we’re seeing new faces each time. That consistency and growth show that Charlotte’s entrepreneurial community is hungry for connection, and The Hive is quickly becoming the place to make it happen. It’s proof that with collaboration and clear communication, even last-minute hurdles can turn into team wins.

The Lesson
Community building isn’t about perfection, it’s about showing up, adapting, and keeping the energy alive. The Hive has already proven that it’s more than just an event; it’s a movement of driven entrepreneurs who are learning, sharing, and scaling together.

🚀 What’s Next
We’ve officially secured a permanent venue (no more last-minute venue mishaps 😂), and we’re ready to keep the momentum rolling. The next milestone? Growing The Hive to 100+ recurring members who are as passionate about collaboration as they are about entrepreneurship.

Get Involved
If you’re in the Charlotte area and want to be part of this growing community:

📅 Join our Meetup page to stay up to date on upcoming events: https://www.meetup.com/the-hive-clt-entrepreneurs-network/

💬 Join our Facebook group to connect with other members and stay in the loop: https://www.facebook.com/groups/thehivecltentrepreneursnetwork


💨 This Week’s Whiff — The Perfectionist Problem & The System Strain

This week wasn’t about deals or closings, it was about realizing something that’s been quietly holding me back: I need to keep building better systems and start letting go of more tasks. The truth is, as things grow, the same systems that once worked eventually start to break. And lately, I’ve been feeling that strain.

The Social Media Time Trap
Social media is a huge part of building brand awareness, but it’s also a massive time suck, especially for someone like me who’s a bit of a perfectionist. When I sit down to edit videos or write captions, I fall into a rabbit hole of tweaks, retakes, and overanalyzing. Hours go by before I realize how much time I’ve lost that could’ve been spent on strategy, deal flow, or leadership.

The Vlog Vision (and the Wake-Up Call)
I’ve also been planning to start a vlog to share more behind-the-scenes content, a mix of real estate, business, and personal growth. But let’s be real… if I don’t delegate video editing, posting, and content management, that project will never get off the ground. This was my wake-up call: I need to bring someone on board to own this entire side of the business. Someone who can edit, post, and manage it all, so I can focus on building, not babysitting pixels.

The Silver Lining
It’s all part of the growth process. You build systems, you break them, and then you rebuild stronger ones. That’s how you scale, by identifying friction points and finding the right people to take them over. It’s uncomfortable, but it’s also proof that things are moving in the right direction.

🧭 The Mindset
Every growing business hits this phase. You either cling to control and slow yourself down, or you learn to trust, delegate, and evolve. I’m choosing the latter, because freedom and scalability come from structure, not from doing it all yourself.

Here’s to hiring smarter, systemizing faster, and letting go of the tasks that don’t move the needle, even if it’s hard to hand them off.

🎯 Tactical Tip of the Week: Build (and Protect) Your Personal Brand

If you’re in real estate or any entrepreneurial space, your personal brand is the foundation of everything you do. Deals, partnerships, and opportunities often come down to who you are more than what you offer. Your brand is your reputation in motion, how people describe you when you’re not in the room.

Here’s why building a strong personal brand isn’t optional, it’s a growth multiplier:

Trust Converts Faster Than Marketing Ever Will
People don’t do business with logos, they do business with people they trust. A consistent, authentic personal brand builds that trust long before a deal or a call even happens. When someone finds you online, your content should instantly answer: “Can I trust this person to deliver?”

Attention Is Currency
You can have the best deals, rates, or systems in the world, but if no one knows who you are, it doesn’t matter. A strong brand creates visibility, and visibility creates leverage. Whether it’s social media, speaking events, or networking, your brand makes you top of mind when opportunity knocks.

Your Brand Works While You Sleep
The content you post, the way you communicate, the consistency of your message, all of it compounds. Done right, your personal brand becomes a magnet that attracts deals, investors, and partners without you constantly chasing them. It’s your digital storefront, running 24/7.

✨ The Takeaway
Building a personal brand isn’t about vanity, it’s about velocity. It helps you move faster, close smoother, and attract the right people to your orbit. Be intentional with what you share, consistent with your message, and authentic in your delivery. The more you invest in your brand, the more your brand starts to invest back in you.

Action Step:
Pick one platform (LinkedIn, Instagram, or YouTube) and commit to posting twice a week for the next 30 days. Share insights, lessons, or behind-the-scenes stories. You’ll be amazed at how fast your credibility and your opportunities start to grow.

🔦 FROM THE FIELD: The Truth About Social Media

If there’s one thing I’ve learned lately, it’s this: social media can either be a cancer or a catalyst, depending entirely on how you view and use it. It can motivate you or manipulate you, build your business or break your mindset. The difference comes down to intention and perspective.

Here’s the Reality
Most people only post the highlight reel, the dream vacations, the luxury cars, the “10X wins,” and the perfectly curated version of success. What you don’t see are the long nights, the losses, the self-doubt, and the grind behind the scenes. Honestly, a lot of people exaggerate or flat-out fabricate their stories online. That’s why you have to take everything you see with a grain of salt and never compare your real life to someone else’s filtered version of it.

Focus on You
The best use of social media is to document your growth, not to chase likes or validation. The only person you should be competing with is the old you. Post with honesty. Share your journey, not just the shiny parts. Be proud of your wins, but also open about your losses and lessons. Vulnerability doesn’t make you weak, it builds trust.

Why I’m Shifting My Approach
To be honest, I’m tired of the “gurus” who promise overnight success and show nothing but fluff. That’s why I’ve been considering starting a vlog to share the real side of entrepreneurship, the wins, the losses, the chaos, the growth. Because truth always wins. And right now, the world doesn’t need more fake motivation, it needs more authenticity.

✨ Closer Thought
Social media isn’t the enemy. It’s a mirror, it reflects whatever you decide to put into it. Use it to tell the truth, inspire others, and hold yourself accountable. In a world full of filters, authenticity is your greatest competitive edge.

🎤 FINAL WORD

This week was a snapshot of what building really looks like: community momentum, honest self-audits, and disciplined brand building. The Hive: CLT Entrepreneurial Network pulled ~40 guests again (two events back-to-back with 40+ and new faces), and we’ve now locked in a permanent venue, no more last-minute scrambles. That’s growth you can feel.

On the personal front, I’m owning a hard truth: systems break as you scale, and mine are telling me it’s time to delegate more, especially social media. I’m a perfectionist; editing drags me into the weeds. With a vlog on deck, it’s clear I need pros handling editing, posting, and management so I can focus on building the business, not babysitting pixels.

Strategically, the personal brand isn’t vanity, it’s velocity. But I’m also done with the highlight-reel culture. Social media can be cancer or a catalyst; it depends how you use it. I’m choosing radical honesty: wins, losses, lessons, growth. In a world full of filters, truth is the advantage.

Send-off: Keep building, keep breaking, keep rebuilding. Delegate the distractions, double down on authenticity, and beat the old you, every single day.

Keep building, keep learning and keep it real,