Overview

On this episode of Build Your Network, Host Travis Chappell interviews Elena Cardone, Actress, speaker, and Businesswoman.

Topics Discussed:

• About Elena Cardone:
  • She moved to L.A. at 17, knowing no one but with hopes and dreams of becoming an actress.
  • Had ups and downs, success and nothing.
  • In 2003 met Grant Cardone, got married in 2004 and her life had a drastic change.
  • Forfeited acting to become an entrepreneur.
    • Pushed in all chips on Grant Cardone, it turned out to be a lucrative decision.
  • Was it difficult to give up acting for entrepreneurship?
    • It was a difficult decision because she had taken a big risk right after high school.
    • She always felt she had to have a cushion to protect herself until later in life.
    • When the 2008 collapse happened, she could see his vision of protecting their future.
    • The decision wasn’t hard when she decided she could trust him.
    • They had friends sue them for millions of dollars and that’s when she said “enough is enough.”
      • She wanted to create an empire that didn’t threaten destruction no matter what happens in the economy.
    • They’ve now had major wins, rewards, and achievements.
  • Story from her keynote:
    • She told Grant that he needed to go for a billion.
    • She said they’re friends with a few billionaires and she felt that Grant had more to offer than them.
    • She feels that he’s underutilizing his potential, but so is she.
    • She felt that he needed to be a billionaire because he’s exchanged that much in abundance with others.
    • Telling him to become a billionaire upset him on a number of levels because he’s doing so much work.
      • To hit a billion seemed overwhelming to him.
      • She let him know that he could achieve it.
    • The greatest love you can give to somebody is to help them achieve their goals.
    • When they hit their achievements, you forget about how hard it was to get there; it’s just all worth it.
    • A billion has been a great target for them because it’s expanded their capabilities and they’re on a completely different path.
  • You have to get rid of the mindset that money is bad; you need to get out of the greed mindset.
  • Why do you think that a lot of people won’t allow themselves to look at numbers like that?
    • She came from a background of scarcity, always worried about money.
    • People aren’t used to being able to have things.
    • The more money they’ve had, the less need she feels for things.
    • She doesn’t need things to make her who she is; she wants to help people.
    • Success facilitates your ability to help others.
  • Do you believe that what you know or who you know is more important and why?
    • It’s what you know, because if your mind is in the wrong place or you have the scarcity mindset, it doesn’t matter who you’re around because they won’t want to be around you and help you.
    • If you bring value, someone might help you.
    • Then, when you’re in front of the right people you’ve got to have something important to say
  • How did building relationships with other people help in the acting career?
    • She was always able to get the best modeling agencies.
    • As an actor, she was able to get the top agencies and managers.
    • Relationships are important because everyone talks and it’s a small world.
    • People want dependability, not drama or things that create problems.
    • If you’re not a superstar with mega talent, you weren’t getting an opportunity if ego was involved.
  • Tell us about a time when a connection you had led to a big moment of success.
    • She called a casting director after the audition, even though you’re not supposed to do that.
    • Got a role in the film which got her the Maxim magazine thing.
    • It helped her break into the movie aspect of things, just from the relationship with the casting director.
    • In life, if you’re her friend, she tries to help you.
  • How do you deal with people who have a hidden agenda?
    • She doesn’t mind them at all.
    • If someone comes to her to get to Grant, she thinks they’re a smart person.
      • Grant has a lot of gatekeepers, so that’s a smart move.
    • She doesn’t think wanting help from someone is a bad thing.
    • Sometimes the project’s not going to work out, so she has to say that.
    • If she met someone who could help her, she wouldn’t want to feel like she had to be friends talking about meaningless stuff.
    • Her friends in NOLA allow her to be herself before the success.
  • How does she recommend that someone approach her?
    • Something non-threatening. Showing up at house or condo is weird, she thinks in safety lines.
    • At a meet and greet, she’s ready and has her people. She’s ready to talk to you.
    • At a ball game or restaurant, she’s okay if you come up and talk to her.
  • Find her on Instagram

The Random Round:

• What profession other than your own do you think it would be fun to attempt?
  • Special forces in the military
• If you could sit on a park bench for any hour with anyone past or present, who would it be?
  • Ron Hubbard, founder of Scientology
• How do you like to learn best, books, blogs, podcasts or video?
  • Books
• What’s one of your favorite books?
  • The Millionaire Booklet
• Give us a glimpse of your morning routine:
  • Wake up around 6:00 a.m.
  • Get the kids ready and dressed and fed
  • Leave around 7:15 for school
  • On disciplined days, wake up at 5:00 a.m. put on a heavy workout vest and do 62-93 flights of stairs.
• What is your go-to pump up song:
  • Purple Lamborghini
• What are you not very good at?
  • Sales, she can’t go for the close
• Can find her on Instagram and Facebook @elenacardone

Tweetable Quotes:

• The greatest love you can give to somebody is to help them achieve their goals.
• Success facilitates your ability to help others.

Resources Mentioned:

Buildyournetwork.com – Podcast website

www.grantcardone.com – Elena’s husband’s website

The Millionaire Booklet – Elena’s favorite book