Howdy, Hard Knocks community!💰 

We're wrapping up another great week with the latest edition of the School of Hard Knocks newsletter. This week, we're featuring JR Rivas, a self-made millionaire who scaled his Airbnb leverage business to over $100K per month in 2 months… without owning any properties! Now, JR's on track to hit $7M in revenue this year. Here, we're sharing his incredible story and his advice for today's entrepreneurs.

Today’s Schedule

• Proving The American Dream: How Self-made Millionaire JR Rivas Scaled His Airbnb Leverage Business to $7 Million a Year.

• From the Hard Knocks Library: Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action

• In Case You Missed It: We interviewed millionaire golfers at some of the wealthiest courses in Texas.

Let’s go!🔥

Proving The American Dream

JR Rivas is the Co-founder of BNB Leverage. Along with his partner Phillip Tran, JR works with investors to research, develop relationships, and acquire properties for short term rental arbitrage deals.

Although JR is wildly successful today, he started out with very little. As a child, JR's mom supported him on a $400 weekly salary from a waitressing job. Because money was tight, JR got motivated to start working at the age of 13. 

At 16, JR became obsessed with reading Forbes articles in his computer class. He was fascinated by the Candy Crush business model and eventually replicated what he learned. Fresh out of high school, JR took a job at a tax office, where he stayed for about a year.

Inspired to go out on his own, JR launched his own tax business using seller financing to buy out his boss. He went on to acquire three brick-and-mortar locations and sold them all by the time he was 22.

After the sale of his tax business, JR craved the freedom of a "laptop lifestyle" and started Googling "how to make money online." The rabbit hole led him down a path towards SEO, blogging, and affiliate marketing. 

Eventually, JR discovered Russell Brunson's book DotCom Secrets, which inspired him to start up his own digital marketing venture with a focus on ClickFunnels and Facebook ads. JR's first client was a chiropractor in North Carolina, paying $1,500 a month. 

His strategy? A free trial that generated 160 leads and brought in 20 new patients in the very first day. This success brought him two more clients from referrals, and soon he became a known figure in the ClickFunnels community.

JR started coaching people within the ClickFunnels group, organically growing his coaching business while still running his agency. He scaled into a program focused on finding VAs for marketing agency owners, helping them book more appointments.

Eventually, JR realized this wasn’t a long-term path and pivoted into something bigger—Airbnb.

While reviewing Airbnb market offers, JR noticed most were focused on coaching. He wanted to do something different. His idea? Help people not just learn about Airbnb but actually find the properties.

JR launched the idea with a simple Instagram post, and within one day, three people took him up on it. He quickly scaled this Airbnb model to over $100k/month within two months.

Two and a half years later, JR now operates in several states, has over 1,000 clients, and manages a team of 50. His business handles everything from property acquisition and design to financing and marketing.

JR’s inspiring story is full of wisdom for entrepreneurs at every stage. Here, we recap some of his best advice and lessons learned.

Feedback Finesse

JR is heavily influenced by Jeff Bezos, especially his approach to turning “illogical” ideas into a reality. Taking a page out of Bezos' book, JR likes to focus on creating an offer so strong that it’s hard for competitors to copy. He says that most new entrepreneurs when first starting out try to copy their competitors offers which leads them to compete on price instead of allowing themselves to be unique and solve gaps in the market.

Business owners often fail by focusing on marketing, but not creating a good product. JR points out that companies like ActiveCampaign and Hyros who pay close attention to their customers and their feedback have grown tremendously because they simply listen to their customers and make improvements.

Laser Focused

If you want to solve major business problems, JR stresses that hyperfocus is the key. The more you split your attention, the harder it becomes to make progress. He says that spending longer periods focusing on a problem (e.g., 10 hours in a row) leads to better results than working in small increments.

As entrepreneurs whenever we see a new model or way that people are making money we oftentimes get shiny object syndrome. The truth is, if you just follow the 10,000 hour rule, you will see growth and success, you just need to be committed.

Balancing Act

When it comes to his professional and personal life, JR is all about balance. He makes a lot of money but also focuses on staying interesting outside of work. He’s into tennis, playing guitar, using a racing simulator, and dining out once a week.

He also makes time for personal training four times a week, always on his calendar without exceptions. Today, he no longer works in his business but works on it, holding team meetings once a week, and concentrating on overall strategy. 

Looking Back, Going Forward

If JR could go back and give himself a piece of advice, he’d give himself an hour-long masterclass on picking the right business and structuring it for success. He’s learned that typically the most lucrative businesses are businesses that offers recurring revenue and high-ticket services.

Entrepreneurship is tough. JR compares it to playing a sport at a high level—you’re only going to grow and succeed if you fully commit. He advises keeping an eye on business models and learning from what venture capitalists are doing to stay ahead of the game.

Connect with JR here:

JR’s company: BNB Leverage

X: https://x.com/jrrivasofficial

Want the chance to connect with successful entrepreneurs like JR in a live Q&A session?

Members of the School of Mentors Community get access to live calls with some of today’s biggest names in business. Inside the community, you'll also get to connect with a ton of like-minded, driven entrepreneurs and learn valuable sales and marketing skills through exclusive masterclasses.

Get in on our next weekly call. Sign up today! 👇

Words of Wisdom

From the Hard Knocks Library

In Case You Missed It

It’s no secret that some of the biggest business deals in the world are closed on golf courses! A few months back, we hit up some of the wealthiest courses in Texas and interviewed millionaire golfers. These moguls shared everything from the most amount of money they have made in a year to what it takes to becoming financially free in 2024.

Let Us Hear From You

What were your thoughts on todays newsletter? Please reply back with your thoughts or things you would like us to include in future newsletters!