If you had the chance to meet Barbara Corcoran from the hit ABC show, Shark Tank, would you? In this episode of Brainerd Redefined, I’m going to bring you along as I attend a conference in New York with some of the top names in real estate. We’ll hear from some of Barbara’s colleagues—like Blake Sloane, Matt Wagner, and Jonathan Lahey—as we shoot a commercial with the legend herself.
Meeting Barbara In New York City
My first stop is the Minneapolis International Airport. Here, I’ll board a flight to New York City where I’ll spend the day with some of the top real estate teams in the entire country. After that, I’ll get to rub elbows with the one and only Barbara Corcoran from ABC’s Shark Tank.
After I landed in New York, I took a taxi to the hotel—and that’s where the fun began. After meeting with some of the country’s top agents, our group woke up bright and early to prepare for our Barbara Corcoran shoots. About 10 of us from all over the country got to spend a little time with her and do some new television commercial shoots.
Our exciting day included time in hair and makeup (just enough to hide the bags under our eyes). Being part of the production process was also exciting, as we got to get a behind-the-scenes look at the commercial. While we all eagerly anticipate seeing the finished product, I got a chance to meet and chat with some of Barbara’s colleagues.
Blake Sloan And Jonathan Lahey
This is not Blake Sloan’s first rodeo with Barbara Corcoran; this legendary real estate professional from Myrtle Beach has done commercials with Barbara four times. She’s helped inspire him in a big way, especially when it comes to culture. Pushing hard and having intense standards has helped his business excel.
From a marketing perspective, Barbara has helped Blake’s understanding of branding. He now knows how to run his team like a true leader, thanks to her influence over the years. Today, Blake’s team is rated #1 in South Carolina.
I next got to chat with Jonathan Lahey from Washington, DC in Maryland. Jonathan has been working with Barbara for about two and a half years, and she’s been very instrumental in his business and growth. Not only is she an amazing coach, the relationship the pair share has been amazing.
Matt Wagner
Another one of Barbara’s colleagues I met was Radio & Television Experts founder and CEO Matt Wagner. Matt has been working with Barbara Corcoran for eight years, and he’s got to know her on a personal level as well. His biggest takeaway from her as a person and a business leader has to do when she’s gotten mad.
As Matt told me, you can learn a lot when someone’s mad. There’s been only one time he’s ever seen Barbara get mad in eight years doing about 17 or 18 filming sessions. On one day of filming, they had about 45 people instead of the usual 20 to 30. Barbara was supposed to leave by 3:30—but the shoot when two hours over.
The reason she was mad about this, however, was interesting. It was because she wanted to be able to give time to each person. She knew those people had flown in from all over the country to be there. It wasn’t about her; it was about other people. That taught Matt a lot. His producers work with plenty of demanding divas for even one shoot, yet Barbara shoots with 30 to 40 different agents and still cares about the people. That says a lot about her as a person, including the fact that she’s flexible to film with many different people so often.
As an entrepreneur and businesswoman, Barbara strives to be authentic. When filming on the phone and through Zoom during the height of COVID, Matt says this was especially evident. Being conscious of making a video authentic and realistic is key.
An Amazing Experience
It was a fabulous day filming with Barbara Corcoran and getting to connect with so many great people. She provided plenty of business and shared her stories of being on Shark Tank. She’s the busiest person I know and a fabulous human being that’s a ton of fun.
After filming, I had a chance to hang out with friends in the business and enjoy a delicious dinner. I want to give a special shout-out to Rob Caskey for opening up his office. It was great to meet his team and some of his agents. Rob is going to sell 2,000 homes this year and closing in close to $1 billion in sales in New Jersey. He is the New Jersey realtor to go to, and his billboards are all over.
We also got to go downtown to Sparks Steak House, which serves up a fabulous steak. It also has an interesting history: this area was a big mob hangout. In 1985, Paul Castellano was gunned down by John Gotti. If you’re in the area, you definitely should visit this famous eatery!
This event gave me some great ideas and inspiration to take home to my own business. I hope you enjoy joining me on this trip, and feel free to reach out to me if you have any questions about the experience. Don’t forget to subscribe to my channel so you never miss an episode of Brainerd Redefined. Stay tuned to see what I feature next!
