We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Derek McMonagle a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Derek, appreciate you joining us today. Almost all entrepreneurs have had to decide whether to start now or later? There are always pros and cons for waiting and so we’d love to hear what you think about your decision in retrospect. If you could go back in time, would you have started your business sooner, later or at the exact time you started?
This is a very interesting question, and I definitely have two takes. First off, I would say yes. I wish I could go back in time and start my business sooner. On the other hand, I fully trust in God’s timing and plan for both of my businesses so I can’t complain about how I got here.
I started two businesses during the peak of the pandemic, so I’ll break down where I was at life-wise/career-wise and what I had going on at the time.
So, it’s July 2020, and at this point I have been unemployed for about 6 months. I was working with an Airbnb property management company called Makomi, and they, unfortunately, shut down in March of 2020 at the start of the pandemic. I was really lost, didn’t have much direction, and I turned to a career coach. One of the best decisions I ever made. After this session, I had clarity, and purpose, or atleast I thought I did.
I had always had a passion for becoming a sports agent since I was 16 years old, and after diving deeper into that with the career coach, I decided to start The McMonagle Sports Management Group LLC. Next step, Derek McMonagle, NBA Agent. I ended up initially applying to become a FIBA agent and was going to represent players overseas, but again, we were at the height of the pandemic, and after submitting my application, I had never heard back from FIBA…
So, my dream of becoming a sports agent was on hold, but to be completely honest, I believe God knew something I didn’t when I was trying to become an agent. Becoming an agent was my plan, and not His, and that is why He took me down this next path.
After many prayers and a lot of deep diving into my passion and purpose, I knew I had to help others. I knew I had to motivate and inspire everyone around me. So, without a business plan in place, and with about 3 months of saving left, I started The DMac Method: Elite Discipline Coaching LLC in August of 2020 and began coaching entrepreneurs and business professionals on self-discipline and holding them accountable to their goals.
It would have been almost impossible for me to start this business earlier because I had to go through corporate America first to learn that I had a hidden potential for motivating and inspiring others, so Christ definitely put the timeline in place that I needed.
For my property management business, it was a little bit of a different journey. So, I am now 5 months into building my coaching company and have replaced my full-time income, but I had a crazy itch to get back into property management. As mentioned earlier, I worked with a company called Makomi, and helped them from a sales/onboarding aspect, and knew that I could sell at a high level, and I could take all the things we failed at, and refine my own process even more.
After more prayers and more deep diving into my Why and Purpose, The STR Manager, LLC was born and I dived back into Airbnb property management. The timing of starting this business was crucial to my success as well because I was already running a successful business, and then I got punched in the mouth. I didn’t bring in $1 dollar in my first 7 months of business with The STR Manager. Not 1 client. Not a single penny earned. I was building relationships and making cold calls each and every day, but nothing was coming. I almost got to the point of quitting, until September of 2021. My business literally took off. I went from zero to hero overnight. Every relationship I was working on transformed into a client and I had another successful business upon my hands.
God’s plan was always better than any business plan I could have written. He knew what He needed from me when it came to the gifts and abilities He blessed me with, so all in all, I started my businesses right when I needed to and I don’t regret a single thing.
Derek, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
Absolutely! So, I am a 25 year old serial entrepreneur and philanthropist. I love to serve. I love to give back and I love to use my God-given talents and abilities to help others. Was born and raised in Pittsburgh, PA and moved out to Phoenix, AZ back in May of 2018 where I started in sales with the Phoenix Suns.
After working with the Suns for a year, I decided to move back to Pittsburgh, PA and started as an Account Executive with Plus Consulting. 6 months later, life events took me back to Phoenix, AZ and I started in Airbnb Property Management, and once that company shut down, I got back into entrepreneurship.
With The DMac Method: Elite Discipline Coaching, we help business professionals and entrepreneurs build discipline in their businesses and their personal development. From holding them accountable to daily activities such as cold calling, time management/productivity, fitness and nutrition, and overall personal development. We have a very tough love approach to coaching and have a unique 90 day philosophy that helps set us apart from our competition.
With The STR Manager, we are a local full-service Airbnb property management company where honesty, integrity, transparency, and faith are at the forefront of our business. We pride ourselves on being hands on and providing a Disney-world experience for all of our clients and our guests.
Lastly, if there was one thing I wanted readers to know, it would be this. We lead with faith first. Not just in my personal life, but in our businesses as well. I was born and raised a Cradle Catholic and Christian and my faith in Christ is what allows me to excel in all these other areas. I realized that God blessed me with such unique gifts and abilities to motivate, inspire, serve, and impact others in a positive way and that is my WHY. That is why I wake up each and every day and do what I do. All Glory to God!
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
Absolutely. I’ll speak specifically about my Airbnb property management company here. So, when I started this company, I didn’t really have a business plan. I just went for it. For the first 9 months as I built this business, I was making hundreds of cold calls, sending hundreds of emails, and text messages, and focused on building relationships. That was all great, but I still didn’t even have my first client.
I started this business in December of 2020, and I didn’t make my first $1 until August of 2021. Literally 9 months with NOTHING to show for what I was working on. I can really point back to two times during this journey where I questioned if this is where God wanted me to be. I wasn’t sure if I was being tested or if this was a sign that I wasn’t supposed to be in this business.
After a lot of prayers and discerning what God wanted from me through this business, I realized he wasn’t done with The STR Manager. He wanted me to be persistent. He wanted me to be resilient. He wanted me to fully hand over my business and my goals to Him. So, that’s exactly what I did.
In September of 2021, I dived deep into prayer, handed over my business to Christ, and since then, we went from 1 property to 5 properties, and then from 5 properties to 20 properties, and now operating in two states, Arizona, and Texas. Our goal is now 80 properties by the end of 2022!
If it wasn’t for the resilience Christ blessed me with, I wouldn’t be here sharing this story!
What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?
My approach to customer service. Most large enterprises will onboard a client, and then disappear. Once I started to hear horror stories from clients about how they were previously treated in their former property management relationship, it shocked me, and I knew that’s where I was able to make a change and build my reputation in the market.
It costs absolutely zero to be a good human being and for me, that was the sacrifice I was always willing to make for my clients. Put them first.
I wish I had a cushy, funny story to tell, but that’s it. Just CARE and put others first.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.thedmacmethod.com | www.thestrmanager.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dmac412_/ & https://www.instagram.com/thedmacmethod/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DBM199/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/derekbmcmonagle/
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/the-str-manager-phoenix
Image Credits
Dominique Murray Photography