He Manages over $1B in Wealth - Here's 10 Insights for Business & Life

Many entrepreneurs with at least $10 million come to Chad Willardson for help investing.

His wealth management firm Pacific Capital manages over $1 billion for entrepreneurs and high-net-worth families.

We recently interviewed Chad (VIDEO here) at the Business Acquisition Virtual Summit, and what struck us wasn't the size of the deals he's involved in - it was that his lessons are applicable to anyone building wealth & freedom through business.

Here are the 10 insights that stood out:

1. You're Either a Learn-It-All or a Know-It-All

Chad's observation about successful wealthy people surprised me: they're typically humble with a growth mindset. The most financially successful people he works with are learners and givers, not know-it-alls hoarding knowledge.

Your mindset determines your ceiling far more than your current knowledge does.

2. Abundance Isn't Zero-Sum

Just because someone else succeeds doesn't mean you can't.

Chad frames this perfectly: abundant people are givers because they understand there's enough to go around. 

Scarcity thinking - holding everything back out of fear - can stick with you for decades, unless you consciously change it (which you absolutely can).

3. Your Childhood Money Stories Still Run the Show

We pick up ideas about money as children by observing our parents. If you grew up hearing "we can't afford that" or "what do you think money grows on trees," you likely developed a scarcity mindset by age five that's been running your financial decisions ever since.

Recognition is the first step to change.

4. Health and Wealth Require the Same Discipline

You don't see results from one day at the gym or one healthy meal, just like you don't see investment returns overnight. Both of these require consistency, patience, and discipline - qualities you can't fake or buy.

Someone extremely fit or wealthy in their 50s didn't get there by accident. They made conscious decisions to do the right things without seeing immediate results.

We live in a “microwave” culture, but wealth building operates on a “slow-cooker” timeline.

5. Goal-Focused Beats Market-Focused Every Time

Chad's investment philosophy centers on client goals first - not chasing returns.

Successful investing is goal-focused and planning-driven. Failed investing is reactionary - reacting to news, trying to predict markets, chasing what's up and dumping what's down.

When someone walks in saying "just make me as much money as you can," that's a red flag. Without understanding what the money is actually for, there's no real strategy.

6. Purpose Accelerates Achievement

Financial goals without purpose have weak motivation. Chad shared a powerful example:

Someone wanted to build a real estate portfolio generating $10,000 monthly...

The real reason? They had a special needs daughter who would never generate income. That portfolio would ensure her care for life after they're gone.

That's a goal that gets you out of bed on cold mornings.

7. Retire TO Something, Not Just FROM Something

People who retire from a job without anything to retire to see their health decline rapidly. Their identity was built around work, and without it, their mind and body deteriorate. You need something - charity work, mentorship, consulting, a new business venture.

This applies whether you're 25 or 65: always be building toward something, not just running away from something else.

8. People Are Everything - Ideas Are Just Ideas

Chad invested in the first-ever digital magazine company with incredible growth potential. Apple offered $40-45 million. But the founder's flawed leadership drove it into bankruptcy instead. Great ideas are wonderful, but without the right people executing them, they're useless.

When evaluating any opportunity, assess the people first. If they're not right, nothing else matters.

9. Financial Discipline Reveals Character

When a founder uses their business like a piggy bank with no clear separation between personal and business finances, that's not just poor bookkeeping, it's a actually character tell. Professional organization around money shows respect for the business and indicates how seriously they take things.

At this point in his career, Chad just walks away from opportunities like that. There are too many good opportunities to waste time trying to fix foundational problems.

10. Fire Faster Than You Think You Should

Chad held onto an intelligent but toxic employee too long. The moment he finally let them go, the energy shifted dramatically. The business grew 84% the next year compared to their usual 19-20% growth rate.

Sometimes the person isn't visibly destroying things - they're just preventing the rocket ship from launching.

You'll know when it's time, and waiting won't make it easier.

The Thread That Connects Them All

What ties all these insights together? Mindset shapes outcomes more than tactics.

Whether you're building a billion-dollar portfolio or acquiring your first business, the principles are the same: abundance thinking, clear purpose, discipline, surrounding yourself with the right people, and patience to let compounding work its magic.

The numbers might be different, but the game is identical at every level.

Thanks for reading Acquiring & Exiting.

Acquiring & Exiting is brought to you by the same team behind the Business Acquisition Summit.