Uncommon Wealth Podcast

This episode features Cyrus Jaffrey, an entrepreneur who turned adversity into opportunity and built a fast-growing business from the ground up. From escaping war as a refugee to scaling a company and navigating a major exit, Cyrus shares the real story behind growth, pressure, and high-stakes decisions. You will hear how success brings new challenges, especially around taxes, capital gains, and f...

This podcast is built for business owners, operators, and builders who want real insight, not theory. Each episode breaks down how high performers actually grow companies, manage risk, and build long term wealth. You will hear real stories from entrepreneurs who started at the bottom and worked their way up. From scaling a steel company to launching multiple brands, this show focuses on execution,...

In this episode of the Uncommon Wealth Podcast, John McDonough sits down with entrepreneur and former pro athlete Bob Lachance to break down what it really takes to build—and more importantly, protect—wealth as a business owner. Bob shares his journey from professional hockey to real estate investing and eventually building multiple businesses, including a virtual assistant company serving the rea...

If you are a business owner, founder, or part of a high net worth family, you have probably heard that a life insurance strategy is best in class. This episode challenges that claim with one simple question. Best based on what assumptions? John McDonough, J-Mac, sits down with Seth Wasserman and Eric Schultz of Three Points Insurance Design, a carrier agnostic case design firm that does not sell i...

Oleg Bortmann, CEO & co-founder of The Brokery—a premier boutique brokerage redefining luxury real estate in Phoenix and Scottsdale. Oleg shares his immigrant-to-entrepreneur story, the pivot from pharma to property during the Great Recession, and the systems behind scaling to five offices and 100+ agents while keeping a white-glove, concierge experience. We dive into:Working on the business v...

Mark Peebles, founder of People’s Group and Navex Realty, to explore his incredible journey through real estate, entrepreneurship, and leadership. From losing everything in the 2008 crash to building one of the fastest-growing brokerages in the Midwest, Mark shares how faith, resilience, and generosity shaped his approach to business and wealth. You’ll discover:• How Mark rebuilt his career and fo...

On this episode of Uncommonwealth, John sits down with Dr. Manoah McClendon—Army veteran, entrepreneur, and founder/CEO of Trade Secrets Academy. Dr. McClendon’s story spans Atlanta housing projects, military service, real estate riches, a 2008 wipeout, living in his car, and rebuilding through trading, education, and faith. He shares how he scaled an academy to tens of thousands of students globa...

In this episode of Uncommon Wealth, host John McDonough sits down with Ruslan Desyatnikov, Founder & CEO of QA Mentor, a global software testing company with 11 international centers spanning Ukraine, India, Nigeria, the Philippines, and beyond. From launching a one-man consultancy to surviving COVID, navigating the war in Ukraine, and scaling during economic downturns — Ruslan’s journey is a...

Matt Burke, founder of Verivest and veteran operator across private credit and real estate funds. Matt cut his teeth in hard-money lending, scaled pooled 506(c)/(b) vehicles, and eventually built Verivest to close the trust gap between sponsors and investors through fund advisory, administration, and disciplined reporting. What you'll learn:✅ Moving from one-off deals to pooled funds (and the...

We sit down with Kevin Sarbora, founder of Designed Realty, recognized as one of the Top 100 brokers in Washington State (RealTrends) and ranked in the Top 2% nationwide for client satisfaction. Kevin shares how he went from working in restaurants to becoming a nationally recognized real estate leader. He explains why he treats brokers as true licensed professional service providers, and how docum...

Turning Setbacks into Six Figures: Jeff Biebuyck on Teams, Culture & Wealth. In this episode, Jeff Biebuyck, co-founder of Frontgate Real Estate at Compass, unpacks how a rock-band past, an engineering mindset, and film/music creativity converged into one of SoCal’s most elite luxury teams. With partner Dana Olms, Jeff has grown a high-touch “boutique at scale” model serving executives, celebr...

From Oak Cliff (Dallas, TX) to IPOs. Backed by the Gates Foundation — R.A. Session II shares how to build wealth with purpose. On this episode, biotech CEO R.A. Session II (Signify Bio; ex-Taysha Gene Therapies) breaks down the journey from pro soccer hopeful to taking a company public IPO in months, why money ≠ happiness, and the exact frameworks he uses to preserve wealth, protect family, and pu...

From Failure to Flywheel: Dan Natkovsky, is the Ukraine-born co-founder & CEO of Joam—an AI-powered proptech platform helping buyers find, compare, and purchase new construction homes. A Forbes 30 Under 30 honoree now based in Austin, Dan turned a four-hour landing-page experiment and $9.45 leads into a multi-million-dollar, VC-funded company operating in 17+ local markets (with additional dig...

Expert Entrepreneur Reveals Lessons from Multiple Strategic Exits: From Beauty to Beverages. In this episode, John sits down with Darryl Cohen, a serial entrepreneur who has scaled and sold companies across industries—from beauty to beverages to snacks. Today, he leads Victory Food & Beverage, home to creative private-label beverage projects and the fast-growing Berserky Jerky brand on Amazon....

In this episode of Uncommon Wealth, host John McDonough sits down with Matt, a former college history teacher and coach who transformed the “mom-and-pop” house flipping model into a scalable real estate franchise business. Matt reveals how he built a process-driven operation rooted in systems, people, and discipline — proving that flipping houses can evolve into a business that builds wealth, free...

What does it take to build a business worth millions, successfully navigate an 8-figure exit, and still create a legacy beyond money? In this episode we sit down with Tim Hebert, Managing Partner of Sage Benefit Advisors (now part of the Alera Group), who shares his 20+ year journey in guiding businesses, protecting wealth, and building a lasting impact. Tim’s story takes us from an early start in...

In this powerful episode of Uncommon Wealth, host John McDonough sits down with Trish Dork, the trailblazing founder of Elite Realty and the Stars Realtor Training Academy. From a trailer park to a half-billion-dollar real estate empire, Trish Dork shares her story of building Elite Realty. She reveals how she created a revolutionary training system to fix a broken industry, proving that with the...

How to Build Wealth, Protect Your Legacy & Reclaim Your Time | Uncommon Wealth Podcast with Andrew HathawayIn this episode of Uncommon Wealth, host John McDonough sits down with entrepreneur Andrew Hathaway  @BigHath.33  founder of Virtual Assist and Freedom AI, to uncover strategies for scaling your business, protecting your wealth, and creating a legacy that lasts for generations. Andrew sha...

In this inspiring episode of Uncommon Wealth, Letting Go to Scale: Lessons from 25+ Years in Business, host John McDonough sits down with Bret Kinghorn, co-founder of DPW Benefits, a veteran-led benefits consulting firm dedicated to helping mid-market employers unlock tax efficiency, fund executive retention, and protect what matters most. Bret shares how he went from turning down his father’s off...

In this powerful episode of Uncommon Wealth, host John McDonough sits down with Oliver Graf , co-founder and president of Big Block Realty, to discuss The Systems That Built a $100M+ Brokerage with Zero Ads. Oliver breaks down how he went from selling phones at a mall kiosk to building a real estate empire with over 1,200 agents. He shares what it truly means to shift from operator to owner, the u...