What if the most profitable move in your business isn't going after your most obvious customer — but finding the overlooked pocket just slightly off to the side?

That's the strategy Paul Poteet has built his entire business on. As founder of Surge Investment Group, Paul has developed over 400 multifamily units by ignoring the crowded, competitive markets everyone else chases and going where there's real demand, less competition, and room to win. His industry is real estate. But his thinking is pure entrepreneurship.

In this conversation, Paul and Lindsay unpack the "ancillary market" strategy — and why it works whether you're building a property portfolio, a service business, or an online brand. Instead of fighting for the most obvious customers, what happens when you come at the problem from a slightly different angle? You stop selling — and start attracting.

Paul also gets honest about what entrepreneurship actually feels like from the inside: the seasons where you question everything, the seasons where you know it's your calling, and why the people who make it aren't the ones with the best ideas — they're the ones who keep going.

Plus, Lindsay and Paul dig into one of the most underrated assets any entrepreneur can have: a mentor. Not a coach. A mentor. Paul shares how he found his through ambition, curiosity, and a willingness to show up before he had anything figured out — and what that relationship actually looked like.

What you'll take away from this episode:

— The ancillary market strategy and how to apply it to your business

— Why coming at your customer from a slight angle beats going direct

— How to attract a mentor (and why searching for one usually backfires)

— What "hard earned luck" actually means — and how to create more of it

— The mindset that separates entrepreneurs who endure from ones who quit

Connect with Paul:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ppoteet/

Website: surgeig.com

Have a burning question? Leave a message for Lindsay and she will turn it into an episode with an answer. Use the link below to record.

https://www.speakpipe.com/FreedomEntrepreneur

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