
Show Notes
Real estate rock star Aaron Kirman has sold just north of $24 billion over his career, including The One in Bel Air. With a $295 million price tag, it is America's largest and most extravagant mega-mansion. Host Dan Bova sits down with the Founder and CEO of Christie's International Real Estate Southern California for a wildly candid conversation about building an empire in the world's most cutthroat luxury market. Aaron opens up about starting in the business at 17 with no Rolodex and no money, the "chronic unhappiness" that keeps driving him, and the deeply personal insecurities — learning disabilities, a speech impediment, hiding who he was — he had to shed before real success ever arrived. He also gets refreshingly blunt about firing high-maintenance clients, mentoring the next generation of agents, and exactly how much "reality" is really in those real estate reality shows. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
More from How Success Happens
Our Dan Bova spent last summer at Mattel’s design lab, and all he got was a gorgeous art book he wrote: Hot Wheels: The Creative Drive. (And maybe a few cars in his pockets.) Ted Wu, Mattel’s vehicles boss, joins Dan to explain why Hot Wheels all face right, which toy is worth a million bucks, and how he got his own Porsche made into a Hot Wheels. Buy Dan’s book. Buy two, actually. Ted’s orders
Tom Hardin didn’t wake up planning to commit a crime. In this story, the ex–insider trader and future FBI informant walks through the day he was handed insider information, expected to make money fast, and trapped inside what investigators call the ‘fraud triangle.’ He reveals how pressure, opportunity, and rationalization all collided—and why it felt normal in the moment. This is the part of white-collar crime most people never see. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Bruce Campbell’s advice for aspiring indie filmmakers is refreshingly simple. Writing is the cheap part, so quit complaining and get to it. Tired of watching the same five guys land the roles he wanted, the Evil Dead legend wrote one for himself. The result is Ernie & Emma, a sweet, funny film with zero chainsaws that might just make you cry five times.
How did Lucy Guo become the world's youngest self-made female billionaire? The tech founder breaks down her 5:45 AM routine, double Barry's workouts, and the investor pitch strategy that raised a massive Series A. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Max Amini is a very funny guy. He's sold out Madison Square Garden and is one of the most-viewed comedians on social media. But when he started out in stand-up, no agent or manager wanted to sign him, so he built his own touring machine from scratch. In this episode, he tells Dan how he thinks about comedy, and how he built the team that takes him around the world and sells out theaters.