Journey to 1000 Doors: The Backstory and the Mission

Most people never reach their full potential in life because they feel like they don’t have the money to do it.

Season 1 Episode 1 of Journey to 1000 Doors

Journey to 1000 Doors

I’m Ryan Enk, I live in Southern Louisiana with my wife and 5 boys on the river. I went from nothing but over draft fees in my bank account and working a corporate job that I hated to using real estate as a way to break free and design the life I wanted for my family.

But now, I want to show people that they don’t have to be limited by money if they have a vision and they’re resourceful.

SO I’m taking on a new challenge. I’m going to try to buy 1000 apartments in 1 year. And there’s no way I can do that all with my own time and money, so I’m going to need investors and partners, take bigger risks for bigger rewards, and be both aggressive AND smart about choosing apartments to buy.

AND I only have one year to do it. I don’t know how this will end: if I’ll succeed or faill. But either way, it will be an adventure.

When I first got married, and my wife was pregnant for our first child, I felt like a colossal failure. I was living in New Orleans at the time, and when Hurricane Katrina hit, my wife was 8 months pregnant for our first child. We now have 5 boys.

The hurricane left me scrambling for a job and a place to live and feeling like a failure as a soon to be dad. If there was something that I was really good at, it was getting told “no” for jobs that I interviewed for…maybe it was my face…I don’t really know, but nobody would hire me.

So after a long stretch of unemployment and failed job interviews, I finally landed a corporate job selling copiers. Have you ever seen the movie “Office Space” where they take the copier out back and beat it with a bat?…Imagine all the anger of a frustrated office staff channeled towards the person who walks through the front door unsolicited to try to sell another one…I was THAT guy. I frickin hated it.

I was barely paying the bills, and had mostly over draft fees in my bank account. I wasn’t present and giving my wife and kids the time and attention they deserved because I was always anxious, worried, and distracted about work.

The rubber hit the road one day when I was driving across the causeway of New Orleans, one of the longest bridges in the world. I had just gotten chewed out by a Catholic monk because the copier I had sold them wasn’t working. Like most corporate jobs, even when it’s not your FAULT…it’s still YOUR PROBLEM.

So I thought to myself, “So this is what has come of my life: anxiety, depression, distraction, living hand to mouth, no time for family, being hated by customers….oh yeah…getting chewed out by a monk. It doesn’t get much worse.”

In desperation I said a prayer asking God to give me some direction. A question popped into my head that would change my life: “What would you do if money didn’t matter”? Well, if money didn’t matter I’d live on the river and spend time with my wife hanging out drinking wine on the dock, taking my boys tubing, and teaching them how to fish.

I’d open up an indoor sports arena where people could play soccer, football, celebrate their birthdays, and train for the next level. And I’d spend my time playing more music, teaching others, all things that bring me and others more joy.

So I called my wife, and told her my problems and asked her that same question: “What could you see me doing if money didn’t matter”. We had never talked about any of this before, but her answer was EXACTLY the same as mine, including the indoor sports arena.

It was right then and there that I made a decision to do whatever it took to make that vision a reality. So with nothing in my account but overdraft fees, and limited time and experience, I used real estate as my vehicle of choice to get me out of my current situation.

I was able to break free from my corporate job with passive income generated through real estate investing. 3 years later, I opened up a multi-million dollar indoor sports arena in New Orleans, where people were happy to see me when I walk in the door. I got to hang out or do business with people like Woody Harrelson, and Drew Brees. AND I live on the river, where I get to spend carefree timelessness with my family every day.

I tell you my story, not to brag, but to show you what is possible with YOUR STORY when you make a decision to design your best life no matter what amount of money is in your bank account. Was it easy? No. Was it worth the effort? Absolutely.

You see, as Tony Robbins said, “The problem is never a lack of resources. It’s a lack of resourcefulness.” Whatever you don’t have, someone else does. You just have to find it, and it’s got to work for everyone.

So now, to try to prove what is possible, I am going to take on a challenge that I once thought was impossible:

I am going to try to buy 1000 apartments in one year.  And there is no way I would be able to do this with my own money, so I will need to get investor and bank money. 

To be completely upfront, I do have experience and years of education to do this. But I have never done it this aggressively and never with this large of a goal.

I have NO IDEA if I will be able to accomplish this goal. It’s not going to be easy by any means. It’s gonna require some serious creative thinking, massive action, and using all the resources in my network. I have to be both aggressive AND smart if I’m going to succeed with this.

I invite you to follow me on this journey and make it your own as well.