difficult investors. Oh my gosh,
there is nothing worse for a

syndicator, a fund manager, a
business that's raised capital

through syndication than a
difficult investor. dealing with

difficult investors is really
challenging. It's emotionally

challenging, and strategically
challenging, trying to figure

out the best mechanism in order
to do to deal with them. This

video is a blast in the past. So
about a few years ago, I had a

group of people that were top of
their game in the real estate

field, the best developers, the
best real estate professionals

that there were, they came to me
and wanted to get specific

training on how to make the
transition from being at that

high level of in real estate
over into being a real estate

syndicator. This is a video I
put together for them to help

them understand this difficult
topic of dealing with difficult

investors, I know you're gonna
find it.

And in this particular video,
we're talking about dealing with

difficult investors. So I hope
you find this video useful. When

we decided to add this video, it
really came out of a need to

make sure that we have a tool
and a mechanism. And to deal

with some types of investors who
are a little bit more

challenging than others. There's
always this balancing act that

we have the need in order to
fill up our investments, and the

need to work with people that we
just like a lot. So we need to

find that balance. And there are
going to be times that you have

investors that are a little bit
more difficult to work with than

others. I think it's important
to start off this discussion

with one basic tool, or one
basic thought. And that thought

is comes from Stephen Covey's
book Seven Habits of Highly

Effective People. And it's the
idea of seek first to understand

and then to be understood. So
when we come at things with that

point, with that idea, we're can
come to it from a point of being

able to really have an
empathetic kind of ear and

understand where our where the
investor is coming from, help

find that difficulty rather than
us just having trouble with them

and not having such a good
relationship. So a lot of this

material comes from a great book
by Brinkman and Kershner. It's

called dealing with people you
can't stand. And that is kind of

a, you know, we don't want to
admit that we can't stand a few

of our investors. The reality is
there are some investors you are

gonna have that are just that
way where people, what can we

do? So bring Ben and Kirschner
identified 10 different types of

people. And I present this to
you, because it gives you kind

of a framework of once you can
identify for yourself, what kind

of person this fits into, it
might give you a little bit

better tools for as you start
working with them to try and

understand where they're coming
from, and the best way to deal

with them. The first and
probably I think one of the most

frequent are called, I call
Bulldogs, they call them tanks.

I like to prefer Bulldogs
because they're loud. They bark

a lot. They're very aggressive.
Ultimately, they don't hurt you,

but they're very, very loud and
they they bark a lot. And

they're constantly charging,
charging, charging. The second

one and probably maybe one of
the most frustrating are who

they call snipers. These are the
types of people who are always

just giving you a sarcastic
remark or they're they're giving

you some sort of rude comment.
They just come in at that moment

and just give it give you some
nasty nastiness just to make

your day not as pleasant. Third,
in this industry it's pretty

common to meet the know at all.
And these can be people who

actually do know quite a bit and
know their stuff but they like

to show it around that they do
know it all. And you know this

is certainly very common amongst
your lawyers or your mountains

are or engineers. A lot of times
will have these traits. Now I'm

certainly not saying that
everybody who's a lawyer or an

accountant or an engineer is one
of these people, but a lot of

times they find themselves in
that kind of profession. The

fourth category are the
grenades. These are people who

many times the best Situ the
best resolution is to just sort

of nod your head say okay, and
no, it's not going anywhere. And

now it's not going anywhere. I
wouldn't just automatically know

that somebody is in a Grunt is a
grenade. But when you've seen it

over and over again, you
recognize that that's what they

are. Now grenades what they do
is they come into a situation

they go on a rant and then they
don't there's nothing meaningful

out of that rant. There's
nothing even about what you're

taught what they're talking
about as part of that RAM.

They're just upset then there
are the think they know it all.

Then there's the think they know
it all people. Now these are the

people who are overly cocky
think they know everything about

real estate, but really know
nothing at all. I've certainly

I've had my experiences with
these people as investors, and

we'll go to what ultimately I
fate vying to be the best

resolution for it in a little
bit. So another is the yes,

people. These people are
difficult in terms of they

making you a bad day. They're
the ones who always say yes to

you. But then, at the end of the
day, nothing really happens.

They just seem to want to please
you, like you have the law on

the you have them on the phone,
and you're explaining the

investment. And they say, Yeah,
that's great. I can't wait to

sign up, and then you can never
get them to sign up. It's not

that these people are trying to
lie to you. It's that they're

Yes, people, they're trying to
please you they don't like the

conflict and they're running
away from it. Then there are the

maybe people I'm sure we've all
had our fair share of these

people. And this isn't even that
they necessarily say maybe, but

it's the people who
procrastinate, who always put

that making that decision off
time and time again, until you

know, maybe it will resolve
itself is sort of what they're

thinking. And ultimately, it
waits until it gets festered

into a bad situation, before you
can get these people to act. The

eighth category or the blank
wall? I have no idea how to deal

with these people. I mean, if
they want to engage in a

conversation, I have no idea. So
they're the people you're

talking to and they just kind of
blankly stare at you. And I

don't know what to say what
those people. So if you have any

ideas, please let me know. Nine
is the art no people these are

your doom and gloom. The world
is coming to an end people. And

then 10 Are your whiners. These
people just want to complain.

Now we give you these categories
of people out of out of their

book, mostly as a framework so
that you can see whether there's

these kinds of people because I
help I think it helps to

categorize people and kind of
understand where they're coming

from before. Before you kind of
try and solve the problem.

Again, Covey's words seek first
to understand and then to be

understood, if you can
understand that where they're

coming from and how that emotion
is coming at you. It's better

it's easier to get to the
rationality of what's actually

taking place. So what are the
tools to actually do that? Well,

there's really nine steps to
dealing with. With this. With

with the difficult investors.
First, it's listen and ask

yourself

Are they more concerned about
Fact or a person type problem.

What I mean by this is a lot of
times people will feel like

they've been slighted and become
more emotional because they

haven't been included, for
example, that happens

frequently. So if you've got a
situation where you need to make

a decision for your investment
in for your investors, and your

investors don't feel included in
that, even if you've got the

voting rights, where you don't,
that's not an issue. Your

investors still want to feel
like they're included sometimes.

And so ask yourself, Is this
because of some personality

thing? Where I have the ability
to make a decision, I made a

decision, it was a reasonable
decision? Or is it that they

feel like feel have a problem on
some more emotional or personal

level? Then respond back and
validate their concerns? I mean,

you can certainly say, Well, if
I, you know, I could certainly

see why you would feel that way.
And, you know, if I were in your

position, I'd feel that way,
too. I mean, that's a pretty

safe statement. There, people
tend to be fairly, you know, not

completely irrational. And so
you should be able to reiterate

that back and validate that
concern, at least let them feel

like they're validated, don't
lie to them. But let them feel

like, you know, you really do
understand, listen, and then

validate, and then probe for
reasons why they feel that way.

So again, if this was the issue
of not having their voice heard

in a situation where you had to
make a decision, you know, I

would probe for reasons say,
Well, you understand that under

this under the operating
agreement, that normally this is

a decision that the asset
manager gets to make. And that's

why we made that, does that make
sense? So why? So under in this

particular circumstance, you
know, why is this especially

important that you that you had
that? Did you just want an

opportunity to be heard on it?
Okay, and you know, and so that

way, you're engaging in a real
conversation. For summarize it

back to them. And I think it's
been somewhat underlying what

I've been saying is, assume the
positive I believe, to my bone

that nearly everybody is a good
person, that 99.99999% of people

are good people. And people want
to do the right thing. And I

also believe that 100% of people
believe that they're doing a

good thing. Now, there are true,
you're truly evil people out

there, but I think the evil
people out there are people who

just believe that they're doing
a good thing, and for some

messed up reason. So go into
that and assume the positive.

Assume that what they're saying
is for the benefit of everybody.

So the next step is stay calm.
So these are intake portion, and

here's your resolution port.

Stay calm. I really like what
William Irizarry says and

getting past No, this idea of
going to the balcony. There are

some times when you're having a
conversation with a difficult

investor, where you kind of need
to have a little break. And so

the idea there is sometime take
a real step back, take a break,

everybody separates for a little
while. And one way to do this in

these typically this comes up
and phone calls, is to say you

know if brought up some really
interesting things here. Let me

do some research on a couple of
issues that I have. And then can

I call you back in an hour. That
way you now get to go to the

balcony you get to take a break
and you can really evaluate and

level your emotions as well.
Number seven, now state your

positive intent you are try
thing to do the best thing

possible for your investors. If
you're in this program and

you're watching this video,
you've already committed that

you are a morally good person.
And that you are the kind of

person that wants to make your
investors money. And you know

that the more money you make
your investors, ultimately, the

much, much more money you're
gonna make yourself. So make it

clear that you have that
positive intention. This is an

investor, this is somebody who
trusted you with their money,

and somebody who you want to
make money for. Right? That's

why you're here. That's why you
are syndicator. So state that

intention so that they
understand that you want the

very, very best for them and all
the other investors

number eight, Use I statements.

This is a two parter. So we do I
statements, because it's less

attacking than a you statement
because you was kind of

accusatory I statements as I
feel I, I know, I think those

things like that they give a
barrier and a buffer in order to

not feel accusatory. And if you
can make a decision and give

your basis. And if necessary, in
steps number nine repeat steps

one to five. And you may need to
come back to two, six through

nine again, but most of the
time, it should be able to be

resolved by them. Now I alluded
to these people who are the

think they know it alls. And
what the sometimes the best

solution is and know that this
is in your back pocket. And it

may not be always in your back
pocket, but it's always an

option, you just may have to
figure out how you could make it

happen. And they obviously would
have to agree sometimes, but

I'll write it down because it's
important

the best solution

is to buy them out, you may have
to make a decision that it would

be much easier, your life would
be much easier, the investment

would run smoother, your
business would run smoother, if

you could just buy them out. If
you're at if you're telling them

yourself that I wish this person
would just go away forever, and

I'd never hear from them again,
the solution may be trying to

see if you could find a way to
resolve this with them. To buy

them out. My wish for you is to
never have to deal with a

difficult investor for you to
have hundreds and hundreds and

hundreds of very happy
investors, and all of them easy.

Unfortunately, that's probably
not going to happen. The more

investors you have, the more
likely it is you're going to end

up with a difficult one or two.
And it's just inevitable. It's

gonna happen as you keep going
down this game. Now, does that

mean we freak out and don't do
it? Absolutely not. Because it's

still worth it at the end of the
day, we just need to make sure

that we maintain control to keep
and difficult investors a from

becoming difficult, and then be
if they do become difficult ways

to manage that difficulty that
we're having with them.

Investors at the end of the day
are entitled to get what you

told them you were going to give
them. So they're entitled to

your very best work. And so they
should definitely get that

they're entitled to
communication and you should be

giving that to them as well.
They need to know what's going

on. When I'm talking about
difficult investors. I'm not

talking about people who have
just getting what they're

entitled to properly. They're
the people who take it to the

next step who are people who are
just over asking over annoying

criticizing things like that,
you will end up with one

unfortunately, it is a fact of
life. But hopefully this video

will help give you some guidance
in order to make it a little

less painful. Now my name is
Tilden Moschetti. I am a

syndication attorney with the
Moschetti syndication Law Group.

How do I know so much about
difficult investors because I've

had a few. I do a lot of deals
for myself in addition to

helping my clients put together
their own deals syndications

funds raise capital for their
businesses. Sometimes it happens

when they have a difficult
investor and I counsel them on

the best ways forward with that
too. Now if I can help you put

your syndication together your
fund together, raise money for

your business, under Regulation
D rule 506 B, or rule 506 C,

please give us a call. I'd be
happy to talk with you and

hopefully help keep you away
from having to deal with

difficult investors yourself.