What's good, Hard Knocks Community?💰

We're back with another amazing edition of the School of Hard Knocks Newsletter. Today, the spotlight is on Grant Mitterlehner, the CEO of MittGroup, one of the fastest-growing companies in the solar industry. Grant’s company has done over $30 million in sales in just a few years and was recently recognized as one of Houston’s Most Admired CEOs!

Today’s Schedule

• Catching Lightning in a Bottle: How Grant Mitterlehner became a major player in the solar industry and achieved explosive growth.

• From the Hard Knocks Library: On the Edge: The Art of Risking Everything

• In Case You Missed It: We asked San Francisco millionaires how they got rich.

Let’s go!🔥

Catching Lightning in a Bottle

Born and raised in Houston, Texas, Grant Mitterlehner played high school football as a quarterback. 

He then played junior college football at Long Beach City College in California before transferring to ASA College in downtown Brooklyn to get a better scholarship offer. 

Although he received opportunities to play, they were small. Grant realized he wasn’t going to be the next Drew Brees and that he wanted to make money.

Grant then decided to head back to Texas and transferred to the University of Houston to get his business degree and start a business. However, although he was supposed to be a senior, U of H only accepted some of his credits, essentially making Grant a freshman again.

While his friends were all graduating and getting jobs and internships, Grant found himself starting completely over at 22. With the decision between starting over or going a different direction, Grant decided to take a sales job and started researching business ideas.

Grant spent some time in California and it inspired him to start a business within the solar industry. Solar exploded there between 2014 and 2017 and no one was doing it down in Texas. 

Grant started MittGroup and caught lightning in a bottle.

A low interest rate environment combined with his skillset as a salesperson wound up being the perfect storm for Grant's success. 

MittGroup has been ranked as one of Houston's Best Places to Work for three years in a row. The company has also been featured in INC Magazine and on Fox News. 

Today, MittGroup is one of the fastest growing companies in the country. 

With over 293% revenue growth over the past three-years, MittGroup is a leader in multiple industries, including renewable energy, battery storage, and crypto mining.

In our live call with Grant inside the School of Mentors community, he shared a ton of practical tips and advice for today's entrepreneurs. Let's dive into four key takeaways:

Getting Personal

When building a personal brand, Grant says it's all about authenticity and credibility. One of the biggest mistakes people and brands make when creating content is that they do what everyone else is doing. Today, people can see through BS quicker than ever. Grant said that his content improved dramatically when he stopped watching everyone else.

If you're struggling to get your content to go viral, make it your goal to be your most authentic self and add value to people's lives. Bring fresh, real perspectives, be transparent, and show others why you're unique.

If you're building a business, bring your audience along for the ride and show them the good, the bad, and maybe even the ugly. People will respect your realness and want to keep following your journey.

Small Shifts = Big Wins

Grant started his business right before COVID hit, which made growth challenging. In-person sales suffered as people worried about getting sick. Grant wanted to expand to new markets, but didn't have experienced managers in those locations.

Instead of hiring new people, Grant took a chance and had his top two to three reps buy leads in new markets and sell over the phone or Zoom. The strategy transformed Grant's entire business model. Revenue went from $5.6M to $12M in one year, without having to change much of anything.

As an entrepreneur, never underestimate the power of a small shift. Massive growth can happen without spending big dollars on new tech, equipment, or employees. Sometimes taking a chance on an idea that seems outside the box or against the norm winds up becoming a huge breakthrough. 

Your Higher Self

Whenever Grant's facing a problem, his first reaction is to ask "how did I get into this problem in the first place? What could I have done to prevent it?" The difference between being good and great is in being proactive versus reactive. 

Grant also leans on a regular meditation practice and affirmations to stay successful. Grant says his mindset habits and ability to stay in a higher frequency have helped him solve tough problems and get to the next level.

Because your subconscious mind doesn't know the difference between your visualizations and reality, you really can reprogram yourself for success.

Learning from past mistakes while focusing on becoming the best version of yourself will take you far. It's up to you to create that higher version of yourself.

The Vision Beyond the Vision

Grant's solar business has been wildly successful, but he's also setting his sights on his next big vision.

After learning more about finance, Grant is now looking to build something where his efforts are compounded. He's focusing on building out his media brand and breaking into new industries to massively scale and have a big exit.

When it comes to setting your own entrepreneurial visions, it's always important to ask yourself why you want something. We may think we want something because that's what we dreamed of as kids, but our adult reality is likely much different.

Before going all-in on a new idea, find your why and keep it front and center.

Connect with Grant here:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/grantmitt/?hl=en

Looking for direct access to top entrepreneurs like Grant?

As a School of Mentors Community member, you’ll get the chance to connect with millionaires and billionaires on weekly live calls and ask questions during a live Q&A! You’ll also get access to masterclasses, mentorship opportunities, and live workshops.

Want in on our next live call?

Sign up today! 👇

Words of Wisdom

From the Hard Knocks Library

In Case You Missed It

We went to San Francisco, California to interview some of the wealthiest entrepreneurs and business people in the country. We asked them about the most amount of money they have made in a year and asked for their best career and life advice. We interviewed people in a variety of industries such as finance, tech, venture capital, and commercial real estate. Check out the video here!

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!