Mike

What Are You Made Of?  How One Entrepreneur Achieved Success

No one finds success in life without overcoming obstacles. For Mike “C-Roc” Ciorrocco,building a successful mortgage and consulting business wasn’t something that was handed to him. Like manyother successful entrepreneurs, C-Roc started from zero.What took him from nothing to monthly loan transactions exceeding $32 million USD was consistently, repeatedly asking himself a simple question: What are you made of?From a young age, C-Roc was forced to ask himself that question. At 11 years old, his father threw $100 dollars in his face and told him “you’ll need this when you’re out on the streets”. Navigating life into adulthood after being given up on by his hero was no easy task.

That experience taught him how important it is to have role models. “Without strong role models who stood up to the plate for me and took on mentoring me, I wouldn’t be where I am today.” he says. C Roc related that experience to his ethos on leadership. “I know what it’s like to be without a leader, both on a business level but also just on a human level. It’s why I’ve prioritized building people’s leadership skills on my team and in my coaching. People and organizations will never reach their full potential without capable
leadership.”

In the beginning of his career, C-Roc spent a lot of time moving from one job to another and attending online discussions, seminars and capacity-building sessions to improve his skill set. For him, it boiled down to that fundamental question that he wanted to
answer for himself: what are you made of? During the early years of C-Roc’s career, he learned the importance of what he calls the “sponge mentality”. “Good learners are like sponges” he says. “They soak up all of the knowledge they can. Not everything you take in will always be useful, but if you are resistant to information, or think you already know it all, there is a cap on your potential. Humility and a willingness to learn is a prerequisite to growth.”

He credits that willingness to learn with the success of his mortgage team. “We wouldn’t have reached the success we did without taking the time to improve our skills. But knowledge itself isn’t enough. If you don’t apply what you’ve learned, that knowledge is wasted.”

Applying that knowledge led C-Roc’s team to closing over $32 million in mortgages in a single month. That month turned into a year of record growth – an 800% percent increase year over year. That led to C-Roc being named a Top Business Leader To Follow In 2020 by Yahoo Finance. He’s now teamed up with Grant Cardone, founder of Cardone Enterprises and world-renowned sales coach. While earning accolades and praise was rewarding, C-Roc doesn’t forget his roots.

“We’re in business to win, there’s no doubt about it. But you’ll never win if you aren’t invested in your people.” he says. For C-Roc, the purpose of life isn’t about how much money you can make, but how many people you can help.

“That’s why we started the What Are You Made Of? podcast. I want to take the things that led us to success and help others apply them to their own business and lives. Mortgage is the vehicle we used to achieve success and help others. Maybe your vehicle to success is different. But the rules of the road are the same for everyone.” The What Are You Made Of? podcast has been a hit. Since launching in late November of last year, it’s been ranked a Top 100 podcast by Apple Podcasts and received recognition from Yahoo Finance.

“I want people to ask themselves the same question I ask myself – what are you made
of? All of us have setbacks, difficulty, struggle. Those things are rocket fuel. We can take the hardships in life and harness them for our growth. I want to give practical insights into how to take the hard times and leverage them for greater capacity to achieve your vision of greatness.”

As part of the What Are You Made Of? movement, C-Roc believes that business leaders can reach their business’ highest potential by helping them first focus on themselves. He shared a few tips for business leaders to remember as they manage their teams

● Decisiveness. Decision-making may be the toughest part of leadership. You are accountable for essential choices that affect the livelihood of the business and your employees. Oftentimes, decisions are packed with conflicting information and subjective ideas. Effectively weighing choices requires you to eliminate distractions and bad habits. Find ways to get more out of your time and keep your mind engaged. Diet, exercise, and continued learning is essential

● Openness. Think about the times you failed to welcome new ideas. What was the outcome? Embracing others’ ideas not only helps you avoid blindspots in your thinking, but builds a collaborative environment that will excite your team Seek a mentor – one that challenges you, motivates you, and empowers you to compete with yourself and bring out that best version of who you want to be. There has to be a balance in this mentorship. Mentors shouldn’t create you in their own image. You need to create yourself.

● Consistency. Steve Jobs, Oprah Winfrey, Walt Disney, all universally respected for their business success – and all incredibly consistent. All the successful people around the world have always been consistent. It wasn’t what they did once in a while, but what they did repeatedly, over and over again. At the peak of their success, they still were consistent on the fundamentals. They never stopped to just rest on their laurels. Success doesn’t quit

Starting from nothing and building success isn’t easy – just ask C-Roc. But despite his own individual challenges and hurdles, he wouldn’t change a thing. Those challenges served as rocket fuel that taught him decisiveness, openness, and consistency. “It’s all about people.” C-Roc says. “Don’t lose sight of that. Invest in yourself, invest in your team, and be unrelenting in your commitment to greatness. What are you made of? Have you tapped into your full potential? Ask yourself those questions and don’t be afraid to think big. Your answers might surprise yourself.”