If you’re here, you’re not looking for hype, shortcuts, or another course to sit half‑finished on your hard drive. You’re here because you want to operate at a higher level in private lending. The Circle is a private network for serious operators—brokers, dealmakers, and capital partners—who want to think like lenders, structure deals correctly, and build real momentum in their business. This is not a classroom. This is not a content dump. And it’s definitely not a “guru community.” This is a working room. Inside The Circle, we focus on: - How lenders actually underwrite deals - How capital really flows—and where it gets stuck - How to structure files that move fast instead of dying on someone’s desk - How to build repeatable deal flow and long-term credibility - How to stop guessing and start operating with discipline You’ll see real conversations, real deals, real numbers, and real expectations. What I expect from you Show up. Ask smart questions. Contribute when you can. Operate with integrity. This community works because the bar is high—and we keep it that way. What you can expect from us Clarity. Access. Straight talk. A lender’s lens on every decision that matters. Over time, The Circle is designed to become something bigger than education. It’s a network, a credential, and a pathway—for those who are ready to do the work. For now, introduce yourself: - Who you are - What part of the business you’re in - What you’re here to build - Welcome to The Circle. Let’s get to work. Tim

Tomorrow — Tuesday, 12pm CT — I'm going live for LEAD Live. Thirty minutes on execution, accountability, and the work that actually moves the needle. Here's what I want to talk through: most operators don't have a time problem. They have an allocation problem. The important work fits inside a focused week. The rest is noise — busywork that feels like progress and adds up to nothing. I'm the proof of the point on this one. I'm joining this call live from the Amalfi coast. Not because I stopped working — because I built the work to run without me sitting on top of it every hour. That's the whole game. Do the things that compound first. Let the rest wait. We'll get into what that looks like in practice: what to do first every week, what to hand off, and how to tell the difference between motion and progress. Show up live if you can. Bring a real question — I'd rather work through your actual situation than talk theory. 12pm CT, inside The Circle. See you there. Remember, the business is the vehicle, not the dream.

HELP stands for: Hold accountable, Encourage, Lift up, Practice patience. That's exactly what this call is. Bring a real problem — a deal you're stuck on, a decision you're wrestling with, something you can't figure out alone. We'll work through it together. No slides. No agenda. Just show up and let's get you unstuck. 👉 https://www.skool.com/live/ZHgtrptWypF See you at noon.

Yesterday's LEAD Live. Zero attendees. I'd rather tell you straight than fake a recap of an empty room. Real talk. The episode wasn't a lecture. It was meant to be a live exercise — a four-step filter you run on your own week to find the ONE move that actually moves your private lending business. A recording of me reading a deck to nobody wouldn't have helped you do that anyway. So I'm dropping the deck here instead. Same exercise, no Zoom required. No grade. Your own accountability. Try this before the end of the week: 1. Read the deck. 10 slides. About 10 minutes. 2. Block 30 minutes on your calendar and actually run the filter on slides 5–8. Dump → Score → Pick → Write. 3. Post your ONE THING in this thread — the single highest-leverage move you'll make this week to move the needle on your goals. It does not have to be huge. Examples of what counts: - File the LLC you've been putting off for three months. - Make an offer on the flip you've been underwriting. - Reach out to someone active in an asset class you want to learn — DSCR rentals, ground-up, mid-term — and ask one honest question. - Send a stuck scenario to Ternus and get a second set of eyes on it. - Book three broker discovery calls. What it should look like: a verb, a number, and a date. If you can't tell on Friday whether it's done or not, rewrite it. Think about where in your week you can engage with Ternus and ask for advice or help. The team will engage. Accountability: share your ONE THING and tell us if Ternus can help you get there. Deadline: Friday, 12:00 PM Central. The Ternus team will check the thread Friday afternoon to respond, react, and jump in where it's useful for collaboration. Your week is decided by one proactive move, not ten reactive ones. Pick yours. Post it. Own It! — Cole

Deal Desk 01 is in the books. You missed it. That's on you. No recording. Deal Desk doesn't get replayed — what gets said in the room stays in the room. That's how we keep operators honest and the conversation real. What did happen: real deals on the floor, real numbers, real pushback. Basis, ARV, exit, guarantor — and questions when the math didn't add up. Ideas got sharpened. A few operators walked out with a clearer picture of what a clean submission actually looks like. A few learned which questions they need to be ready for before they bring a deal to this room. I dropped the slides below. They cover the house rules, what to bring, the questions you'll be asked on the spot, and how the Member ladder works. Read them before next time. Deal Desk 02 — June 9 - Noon Central Put it on your calendar now. Then decide which one you'd rather be next session: the one watching, or the one with a deal on the floor. Submission rules for next time: address, basis, ARV, structure, capital ask, exit. Bring fluff, you don't get the floor. Bring something real, you do. See you in the room. — Tim