Transcript

Asking Millionaires How They Got RICH! (Philadelphia)

From School of Hard Knocks · Episode page · Watch on YouTube

· 21 min · 5,592 words · 132 timestamped sections

This is the full, timestamped transcript of "Asking Millionaires How They Got RICH! (Philadelphia)", an episode of School of Hard Knocks published November 14, 2025 (21 min, about 5,592 words). It mentions 12 people, works and ideas, including David Adelman, Private Equity, Mentorship, Alan Dom, The Simple Path to Wealth.

What this episode is about

The content features an engaging street interview with a billionaire in Philadelphia, discussing his journey to wealth, including his involvement in private equity and ownership of the 76ers. Key topics include the amount of assets managed by his company, advice for younger generations, and a lighthearted exchange about his wealth and appearance.

Key takeaways

  • Philadelphia might not be Silicon Valley, but its billionaires are just as rich—just harder to interview.
  • In a city of old money, expect plenty of nos; perseverance is key to unlocking wealth wisdom.
  • A single 'yes' is worth a hundred 'no's'—especially when seeking secrets from the wealthy elite.
  • Ownership in business, like in life, is where the real money lies; not just working for someone else.
  • Rejection isn’t the end; it's a stepping stone. Every millionaire has faced it—embrace the journey!

Who speaks in this episode?

What is discussed, and when

  1. – 5:00: Private Equity, Alan Dom, Mark Cuban
  2. – 10:00: Private Equity, David Adelman, Mentorship, Artificial Intelligence
  3. – 15:00: Billionaire Day, The Simple Path to Wealth, John Morgan, Greg Pearlman
  4. – 20:00: Mentorship, Alan Dom, Mark Cuban

Notable quotes from "Asking Millionaires How They Got RICH! (Philadelphia)"

  • Let's just say that our company runs about $80 billion in private equity in assets.
    about Private Equity · at
  • Career? The best piece of advice I've ever received out in my career was from Clarence Avant and he's the Black Godfather. You should check him out on Netflix. He said to me…
    about Clarence Avant · at
  • These things. I think when you look about serviceoriented businesses, plumbing electrical construction AI is not going to fix somebody's toilet or wire their house. And so I'm…
    about Artificial Intelligence · at
  • Honestly, it goes back to one fundamental thing. Doesn't matter what business you're in, you get one reputation. Be honest and do the right thing. And that leads to success with lenders, partners, you name it.
    about David Adelman · at
  • But I want to make it very clear. There will be no recordings, no replays, so you must be there live on Billionaire Day. Now, I know by now you might be thinking, James, that's…
    about Billionaire Day · at
  • Take the money you earn from dentistry or from YouTube and you put it into Vanguard Index Funds and you do it for decades and then when you're old, we didn't get wealthy pulling teeth. No, it.
    about The Simple Path to Wealth · at
  • This year will do $6 million. And it's thanks to getting to a place like Austin where I found great mentors and understood the You're a YouTuber and you make six million a year.
    about Mentorship · at
  • Spend as much time as you can with your family.
    about Alan Dom · at

Who and what is mentioned in this episode?

People

  • David Adelman — Person · Primary featured interviewee (billionaire referenc · 1 mention · first at
    He explains private equity, entrepreneurship, real estate leverage, AI vs service businesses, and reputation as a success driver.
  • Alan Dom — Person · Interviewee (wealthy Philadelphia entrepreneur/rea · 2 mentions · first at
    He describes building wealth through conservative borrowing, paying banks back, and prioritizing family and faith.
  • Clarence Avant — Person · Referenced mentor / influencer · 1 mention · first at
    A filmmaker interviewee cites Clarence Avant’s advice ('keep a favor book') as the best career advice received.
  • John Morgan — Person · Referenced upcoming event mentor (promoted speaker · 1 mention · first at
    Named as one of three billionaires who will mentor attendees during the promoted 'Billionaire Day' Zoom calls.
    May be wondering, James, who are these billionaires that you're bringing onto the call? Well, how about John Morgan?
  • Jimmy John — Person · Referenced upcoming event mentor (promoted speaker · 1 mention · first at
    Presented as a billionaire founder who will mentor attendees on 'Billionaire Day.'
    Multi-billion dollar empire, making him the richest lawyer in America. He's going to be there mentoring you. Or how about Jimmy John? Yeah, Jimmy John Sandwiches, the guy that…
  • Greg Pearlman — Person · Referenced upcoming event mentor (promoted speaker · 1 mention · first at
    Named as a real estate billionaire who will mentor attendees during the promoted event.
    Sandwiches, the guy that started with nothing and built a multi-billion dollar sandwich company. And lastly, Greg Pearlman, a real estate billionaire that built wealth by…
  • Mark Cuban — Person · Referenced billionaire (credibility signal) · 2 mentions · first at
    Mentioned as a prior billionaire interview to establish the host’s credibility and access.
    I bral to 18 million followers. I've interviewed 31 billionaires in the last four years like Mark Cuban, Michael Rubin.

Books & papers

  • The Simple Path to Wealth — Book · Recommended resource · 1 mention · first at
    A retired dentist recommends it as a practical guide to index-fund investing and long-term wealth building.

Concepts & topics

  • Private Equity — Concept · Core topic (wealth mechanism) · 4 mentions · first at
    David Adelman explains private equity in simple terms and ties it to buying/fixing businesses and providing capital and know-how.
  • Mentorship — Concept · Core topic · 2 mentions · first at
    Mentorship is presented as a key advantage of billionaires; David Adelman credits a mentor for teaching him real estate early.
  • Artificial Intelligence — Concept · Referenced trend (contrasted with services) · 1 mention · first at
    David Adelman argues that despite AI hype, service trades (plumbing/electrical) remain strong because AI can't do physical work.

Sponsors

  • Billionaire Day — Event · Promoted event / call-to-action · 2 mentions · first at
    The host promotes a free event (Nov 18) featuring live Zoom calls with three billionaires for direct Q&A and mentorship.

Full transcript with timestamps

Yeah, man. Guy in the bank. Ball guy, billionaire. Right in the city bank right here. Yep.

Excuse me, sir. Sir, how old were you when you became a millionaire? Who are you guys?

I bral to 18 million followers. I've interviewed 31 billionaires in the last four years like Mark Cuban, Michael Rubin.

I've seen you on Instagram. Yes, sir. How do you know I am? The cops over there, they they told me that you're a billionaire.

Did they tell you that? Yeah, they did. That's how you need to ask me questions.

Yeah. Yeah, that's how I do. By the way, how do you know I'm rich? Come on, man. You look like money, man.

I look like money. What kind of business were you in? Private equity and sports.

Sports. Yeah. But what do you do in sports? One of the owners of the 76ers. So you owned a basketball team. Yeah.

How long have you been to private equity? About 20 years. Over these 20 years. What was the most amount of money you made in a single year?

Let's just say that our company runs about $80 billion in private equity in assets.

80 billion with a B. With a B. So you're a billionaire according to some. Are you on the for

maybe? How did you become wealthy? You got that look, man. You got some more. Believe it or not, we're actually talking about how we became wealthy.

How do you know? Oh, no. Hablo English. How old are you? But you know, but you know that black don't crack, man.

53. I'm not telling you. Give me rage. Give me an idea. You can guess. 50. I'll take it.

Go take it. I have to go at it. All right. Speech. What's your name? Allan. Alan. Last name?

Donald. Alan. Dom. If me and you died tomorrow and you had one more message to leave with the younger generation, what would that be?

I hope you look it. You've heard of Silicon Valley billionaires. You've heard of New York billionaires, Dubai billionaires. But I guarantee you don't know anything about the Philadelphia billionaires. And let me tell you, this city right here is home to some of the richest people, some of the oldest money in the entire world. And I just did something absolutely insane to you guys. See, there's 18 billionaires that live here in this city of Philadelphia. I flew all the way out here to go walk up and find and interview the richest people that live in Philadelphia to figure out how they got so rich and how you watching can do exactly what they did to become wealthy and build generational wealth. So, this video, listen to me, is going to be absolutely insane. So, stay tuned from start to finish. With that being said, let's get this video on the way. Excuse

me, sir. Sir, I got a question for you real quick. Could we walk with you? How did you become wealthy? What line of business are you in?

I'm a lawyer. You're a lawyer? What type of lot do you practice? Sexual assault. I got I really I got to meet

I got you, man. Have a good one. Excuse me, sir. Question for you. I'm good. Excuse me, sir. Sir.

No, thank you. Wait, real quick, guys. So I we said no thank you buddy. Yeah. Real quick. So we grew a channel to 18 million followers.

Get the out of here. Excuse me, sir. Sir, how did you You guys been walking around all day with your camera.

I got a question for you, man. How did you get rich? I didn't. Yeah. What line of business were you in?

That's all right. So, I grew a channel to 18 million followers. I go all over the world asking people advice to younger generation.

All right, man. Have a good one, brother. Have a good one. All right, you guys. As you can see, like he said, I've seen you guys out here all day with the camera. Man, Philly is tough. We are not getting these people to stop. There's so much old money out here and they're not giving us the time a day. But guys, listen. The motto remains the same. It doesn't matter what city I'm in. Whether it's Dubai, Los Angeles, New York, Philadelphia. Look, every no is just one step closer to a yes. I'm not going to stop till I get some of these millionaires and billionaires to give us the secrets on what it takes to get rich in today's world. So, let's go see who we can find. Excuse me, sir. Sir, got a question for you.

Mount Gamber, though. Yeah. No, I'm good, though. Okay, real quick, homie. Yeah, no worries sir.

I love what yall doing, man. Have you seen the channel? What's the name of the channel?

The school of hard knocks. We grew it to 18 million followers. We've interviewed 31 billionaires in the last four years. We've interviewed Shaq, Tom Cruz, Tom Brady.

Can I give you some play? I just don't got no damn cut and I hate that I got you.

But I'm a filmmaker. Let's go. How long you been in the film business for? 25 years.

Did you start your own company? Yes. Yeah. And you can make a lot of money producing movies as well.

It's ownership. It's about ownership. What was the most amount of money that you made in a single year?

35 million. $35 billion in one year. So, what kind of got you into film making? What was the inspiration? It's a competitive business to be in.

I hope you're looking. I was rejected at audition and I was like, "Who's the fat dude with the, you know, with with the phone?" They're like, "That's the producer." I was like, "I'm gonna produce my own self."

Talk to that young person out there. They're facing a lot of rejection in their career, their business. They're worried about what other people think about them. What would your message be to them?

In the words of my grandmother, when you're born, you look like your parents, but when you die, you look like your decisions. Every decision that you make is a domino effect on your life. It's not what is in front of you. It's what is behind you. the things that you've already went through to get to where you're at. And normally when you're just about ready to blow, right? When you get is just about ready to succeed, it gets harder and harder. Success is like riding a bike. It's enthusiastic when you first start, and when you get up that hill, it gets a little harder. So, keep grinding.

That's why they always say that God gives his toughest battles to his strongest soldiers.

Absolutely. You can't give up because it's about the faith, right? And so when you understand that and you understand it for what it is, you know that if you keep pushing that you will get to it. But it's consistency and persistency.

And do you believe in God? Absolutely. So faith has helped you out a lot. Absolutely. Listen, without God, nothing is possible. I don't care what anyone tells you. Nothing is impossible. But see, here's what they don't tell us, right? If we are created in the image of God, do you know how powerful you are?

Extremely powerful. Okay? Because they teach us about up and down, but they don't teach us about our in and our out. You can yell right now and hear it without no vibration coming from your mouth. If I tell you to go back 2 years from now, you can actually go back in time and see it. These two eyes don't see the past. So these two eyes won't see the what? Future. That voice that can yell without making any vibration. It's not even here in this dimension. That's why if you believe in Christianity or whatever you Jesus said, do what you want with me. I'm not even here not of the flesh. So, you have to keep God first in all that you do. Faith is important. Don't ask for a a divine intervention. Intervene with divinity.

You know, they don't teach this in school right? Oh, no, no, absolutely not. If you want to hide something from anybody, put it in a book.

This is real old school wisdom, though. Absolutely. It's from my mother, from my father.

So, I'm going to challenge you right now. Take me back to the most life-changing conversation that you ever had. What is the best piece of advice you ever received throughout your career? The best piece of advice I've ever received out in my career was from Clarence Avant and he's the Black Godfather. You should check him out on Netflix. He said to me, "Keep a favor book." So, what's a favor book? He says, "Keep a favor book. There going to be people along the way that you owe favors that you just may forget because they just did it out of the kindness of their heart. And then there's going to be people that have never did you a favor.

And those people who have never did you a favor will be first in line to get one."

How do you know? Oh, no. Hablo English. How do you know? But you know, but you know that black don't crack, man. So I am 49 right now. You look amazing. 49 50. You know, let me ask you this. If me and you died tomorrow and you had one more guiding principle to leave with the younger generation, what would that be?

Go for it. Don't overthink it. Go for it. Do not overthink it. And I will also say never mistake attendance for alliance. Everybody that's with you is not for you. Eagles don't fly with pigeons. You never seen an eagle fly with pigeons. So if you don't have anyone that is rooting for you, if you don't have anyone that is on your team that you know that, hey, I'm running the ball. Sometimes I might have to pass it to get into the end zone. If we're talking, you know, football, right? If you can't go in the huddle and argue and come back out and want to win, those are the people that are around around you.

Can I tell you something? I've interviewed over a thousand millionaires and over 30 billionaires. That was one of the best interviews I've ever done in my entire life. All my life.

That was incredible, bro. Hey, can I get your contact? Yeah. Yeah. Guys, that has to be one of the greatest interviews that I've ever done on this channel. That guy just gave more old school wisdom right there than I think just about any interview that I've ever done. And you can't forget about the beginning, man. He did not want anything to do with that interview, but I established credibility. Remember, credibility kills all bad attitudes. There's so many takeaways and nuggets from that interview, but me and you guys are going to have to go back and rewatch that one ourselves. With that being said, let's get this next interview.

Excuse me, sir. Sir. Sir, how old were you when you became a millionaire? What's your name?

I'm James. I go all over the world interviewing the richest people to help the younger generation.

How do you know I'm rich? Come on, man. You look like money, man. I look like money.

What lot of business were you in? Private equity and sports. Sports. But what are you doing in sports?

One of the owners of the 76ers and New Jersey Devils. So you own a basketball team. Yeah.

How long have you been a private equity? About 20 years. Over these 20 years, what was the most amount of money you made in a single year?

Let's just say that our company runs about $80 billion in private equity in assets.

80 billion with a B. With a B. So So you're a billionaire according to some. Are you on the Forbes list?

And maybe. What's your Dave? David Adelman. Can I interview you for one minute real quick?

You got great balls. Let's do it. You think everybody's built for entrepreneurship?

No. Here's what I believe. I think entrepreneurs like to live in the chaos and some people like to live in kind of structured environments and that's okay. I also tell everyone not everyone needs to be a founder. Sometimes you can be an entrepreneur in somebody else's business too. Just you work for someone, do a great job, show what you how valuable you are, and then you know, you've created your own way. Not everyone is built to take the risk.

What got you into business? I was fortunate. Everyone needs a mentor. So, I had a great mentor when I was a kid who was in the real estate business and literally taught me the business when I was a kid and I gave him $2,000 that I had from my bar mitzvah to invest in real estate.

Talk to me about private equity. You're in the money business. Break that down to somebody in third grade right now that doesn't understand how private equity makes their money.

Simple. Two ways. buy a business that's broken and fix it, create more value, you could sell it, or take a business that's on the upswing, but it needs capital, but also needs knowhow. And so, that's kind of where we play. We'll put capital in, but we're also going to bring experience to the table and help them kind of achieve their goals.

Going into 2026, what's the best industry people should be looking to get into right now?

Honestly, people think I'm nuts. I think everyone's talking about AI and all these things. I think when you look about serviceoriented businesses, plumbing electrical construction AI is not going to fix somebody's toilet or wire their house. And so I'm thinking about these old line businesses that were probably run by pencil and paper by some guy managing two trucks and a bunch of guys. And can you modernize something like that?

So even though you own a sports team which is a sexy business, you like the boring unsexy businesses.

I do. I do. Real estate's a boring business. Private, you know, private equity and most of the time we're buying boring businesses, right? But they're making them better.

What did you learn about creating wealth in real estate? It takes time. Real estate is a great long-term business. Your customers are paying down your mortgage goes up in value. You know, it's just a great hard asset business. How important is leverage in real estate?

Leverage is everything. Too much leverage is not a good thing. But it's again, it's the only business that you can be in where your customers are paying down your debt. Your tenants, right? Pay rent. And what does that do? It reduces your debt service.

So, you became a multi-billionaire, but you're still building companies. You're still building businesses. What keeps you motivated?

I love the action. And and for me, I think what you'll find with people who've achieved some level of success is it's not about money. It's about building businesses. It might be about the employees they have and taking care of them and their families. And it might be about solving complex issues. So for me, I love the challenge of can we fix this business or can we start something that you know somebody had a great idea and we're going to back them because they you know it's an awesome idea. Do

you have a networking tip for people that really helped you out of it? Go to the office, get back to work.

Why? This work from home is So you can't become a millionaire working from home.

Definitely not. How old do you know? 53. David, if if me and you died tomorrow and you had one more message to leave with the younger generation, what would that be?

Honestly, it goes back to one fundamental thing. Doesn't matter what business you're in, you get one reputation. Be honest and do the right thing. And that leads to success with lenders, partners, you name it.

So it's true when people say that it takes 20 years to build a good reputation and only 5 minutes to kill it.

That is so true. Too many people cross the line. And for me, I tell everyone just do the right thing. Sometimes things are not going to work out. Deliver bad news quickly. Just be honest.

Thank you so much for your time. I appreciate you, man. I have to ask you, I connect with all the billionaires I interview. Can I get your contact?

For sure. Guys, we just interviewed another billionaire on this channel and that's officially the 31st billionaire that I've ever interviewed. But let me tell you something even crazier. You guys, you may not even know this. Billionaires made me a millionaire at just 23 years old. And I'm not kidding. I built a multi-million dollar business from interviewing billionaires. But how is that possible? Let me explain. Look, if there's one thing that I've learned from interviewing billionaires and the world's most successful people, it's that access changes everything. All these billionaires that I'm interviewing, they all have incredible mentors, people that they're able to learn from. But most people don't have that. 99% of people, you watching this right now, will never meet a billionaire. But that's why next week on November 18th, on Tuesday, I'm doing something insane for you. I'm hosting an

event where I'm going to host three live Zoom calls with three different billionaires where you're not just going to join the calls and watch them speak. You're going to actually ask your questions directly to them and you're going to get mentored by them. Now, you may be wondering, James, who are these billionaires that you're bringing onto the call? Well, how about John Morgan? The guy that turned his law firm into a multi-billion dollar empire, making him the richest lawyer in America. He's going to be there mentoring you. Or how about Jimmy John? Yeah, Jimmy John Sandwiches, the guy that started with nothing and built a multi-billion dollar sandwich company. And lastly, Greg Pearlman, a real estate billionaire that built wealth by buying property, buying real estate. You guys, guys, this is your once-in-a-lifetime chance to learn how billionaires think, invest, and build wealth. Yes, you're going to be

getting mentored by three billionaires. But I want to make it very clear. There will be no recordings, no replays, so you must be there live on Billionaire Day. Now, I know by now you might be thinking, James, that's cool and all. We get to learn from three billionaires. We get to ask them questions, but how much does this cost? Is it $10,000? Is it $1,000? No. It is free to attend and get access to the minds of three billionaires and ask them your questions. Billionaires changed my life, you guys. Like I said, they made me a millionaire and I want to give you guys that same access in return. So, all you have to do to join billionaire day is go down to the link in the description to grab your spot and join the number one entrepreneur community and network in the entire world. So, I can't wait to see you there next week on November 18th. With that being said, let's go get our next interview.

Excuse me, sir. Sir, how did you become wealthy? How did I become How did you become wealthy?

How do you know I'm wealthy? You got that look, man. You got some more, man. Believe it or not, we're actually talking about how we became wealthy,

weren't we? Just What What line of business are you in? Both dentist. We both We were classmates 40ome years ago and uh now we're retired and enjoying.

Were you guys partners together or No, just in crime. Just in crime. I love that. So, how did you kind of build your your practice? Right. If you can give me a piece of advice on maybe do you have different locations or did you did you have different offices or

read the book The Simple Path to Wealth. Take the money you earn from dentistry or from YouTube and you uh put it into Vanguard Index Funds and you do it for decades and then when you're old,

we didn't get wealthy pulling teeth. No, it we invested the money. It's not how much you earn, it's how much you save and invest.

But it's safe to say you can't save your way to wealth. You have to invest that money.

Absolutely. Absolutely. Yes. What was the most amount of money you guys made in a single year?

You want to tell them and I'll go across the street then we'll trade places out loud.

Give me a range. Give me a range. How much? It was a substantial amount of money. Here's what I would say to a young person who's trying to become financially independent by their 50s. You have to remember money doesn't grow when you invest. It doesn't grow linearly. It grows geometrically. It does nothing for a long time and then it explodes upwards. You want to get that flat part out when you're as young as possible.

When I look around at young people today, I think the biggest issue is they spend too much. They have instant gratification.

Bingo. They spend more than they have and they all seem to be doing very well and living. But that's not just this generation. And I have friends from my generation who probably earned considerably more than I did. Yet, they're still going to work every day because they spent. I I lived relatively conservative considering how much I earned. And I think that made it easier for me to stop working at a young age and live. I mean, I'm living a dream, baby. You know, my life is a is a joke.

How old are you now? Now I am uh 65. 65. Yes. What do you What do you mean by your life is a joke? You're living the dream.

I don't have to work. What are you doing today? I'm I'm working. There you go. Wouldn't you like to get up and do whatever you want to do today?

I can do that though. I can't do that. You can? I can. Yeah. How did that happen?

Well, I mean, our business last month didn't Oh, great. Terrific. Terrific. Well, let me ask you this. How old are you?

23. Wow. Okay. So, most of your contemporaries that you go out drinking with on weekends, I'm guessing that most of them are not in a similar situation as you.

Absolutely not. So, what would you tell them? You're asking, what would you tell them?

You know what I would say? That's more important. Their generation, our generation's done.

You got to sacrifice and get the out of your hometown if you're not in a place where people are like-minded and are wanting to grow. I mean, my business this year will do $6 million. And it's thanks to getting to a place like Austin where I found great mentors and understood the

You're a YouTuber and you make six million a year. I do. Yeah. We made 700,000 last month.

Oh yes sir. Did you go to college? I went to the University of Texas. I graduated.

I didn't learn anything in school. Thank you. I got three daughters. Learned nothing in college.

So you and you're probably wondering what the hell am I doing? I grew this channel to 18 million followers. I've interviewed 31 billionaires in the last 4 years and I go all over the world interviewing successful people to help the younger generation just like you guys are helping me out right now.

We're not billionaires. It doesn't matter. You guys, your guys advice is so rich and I think so many people are going to benefit from this. You're 65 now. If me and you died tomorrow and you had one more message to leave with the younger generation, what would that be?

Life is not fair. There's no rules. There's no right, there's no wrong. You just have to do your best. Look out for yourself, your family, and your friends.

And the other thing, and we talked about this over lunch today, is life is not a straight line. You have your ups, your downs. You want to move up, but it's not going to be straight. You're going to have your losses. You had mentioned mentors. I had lots of people give up. My parents always gave me advice. I never listened. But as I grew and learned, then I realized what they were talking about, but it was always after the fact. I mean, young people typically don't want to hear somebody tell them what to do. But my things my parents always told me that I said, "Ah, what?"

They were right. But sadly, I didn't realize it until I started living through the same things that they lived through. So, as far as mentors, I don't know how important a mentor is. I mean, you really have to you have to experience it for yourself to appreciate what other people may have told you. And you always seem to figure it out after the fact. Oh my god, they were right. Everything what we're telling you now, you know, someday you're going to realize we were right. Go back to that interview 10 years ago. Those guys were geniuses.

Absolutely. I know. I'm kind of like depressed that I might see this on YouTube and I I feel like you're dressed well. We look good.

Hey, hey, you guys got amazing advice. Hey, it was a pleasure. Thank you so much for your time. So, I cold approached those two gentlemans right there and they became multi-millionaires. Like I said, they were talking about how to become wealthy. And you know, I had to throw a back on him because he wasn't sure that I had the freedom like those guys do. Well, it turns out I do because you can't sleep on this younger generation because we got rich off content. But we got to keep this one rolling and go get this next interview. You guys, come on.

Yo, man. Guy in the bank, ball guy, billionaire. Randy TD Bank right here. Yep.

Excuse me, sir. Sir, how old were you when you became a millionaire? Who are you guys? That's virtual to 18 million followers. I've interviewed 31 billionaires in the last four years like Mark Cuban, Michael Rubin.

I've seen you on Instagram. Yes, sir. How do they know I am? The cops over there, they they told me that you're a billionaire.

Did they tell you that? Yeah, they did. That's how you need to ask questions. Yeah. Yeah, that's how I

By the way, thank God for the Philadelphia Police Department. They do a phenomenal job. I love our police department.

What line of business are you in? Uh, I'm an entrepreneur, but if you turn around, I own from this corner to the next corner.

So, you own all these buildings over here. How in the world do you get money to be able to buy buildings like that?

Friendly banks. So you got along well with the banks and I you know what and I also paid back the banks and I was conservative and I tried to pay back more principal per year than I was due. So they saw me as a good client and a good customer.

So how much equity would you put in to these properties? Like would it be like a 3070 sort of split between you and the bank or

typically it was 30% down or 70% or a lot of times I had to leverage my other real estate and sign off to get the equity.

Did you ever think growing up that this was going to be possible that you were going to own the entire block here in downtown Philadelphia? My real goal is to build a tremendous community here in Philadelphia. My only reason for wanting to buy these properties was to put in great tenants that people would love to go to because I think at the end of the day, as my father taught me, he said, "We grow old too soon and wise too late." And what I wanted to do is create an environment that was a lot of fun.

Now, have you ever beened over in business? I mean, I'm sure I have, but I learned a long time ago, the key to success is everyone has failures. I have them every day. I have them every hour. And if you dwell in failure, you'll never be successful. So when I'm in a failure, I think about the success I had and I quickly don't dwell in the failure anymore.

How old are you now? I'm not telling you. Give me age. Give me an idea. You can guess.

15. I'll take it. Take it. I have to go out and give a speech. What's your name?

Alan. Alan. Last name? Dom. Alan. Dom. If me and you died tomorrow and you had one more message to leave with the younger generation. What would that be?

Spend as much time as you can with your family. Do you have any regrets? No regrets. But when I was 40, my brother was 44 and he passed away. So I miss him.

Thank you so much for your time, sir. I appreciate you, man. Do you believe in God? Yeah.

Has faith helped you out? Yes. What got you through that? You're a good interviewer.

Did you enjoy it? Yeah. Yeah. He's very good. Yeah. What got you through that? Talk to somebody out there. They're at rock bottom right now.

I think whatever religion you are praying to God, but also taking care of family.

I love that. Could I get your contact? Yeah. Cool. Guys, that is a wrap on today's video. Philly just went crazy. We even got some billionaires in the mix today. Do me a huge favor right now. Stop what you're doing. Like and subscribe for amazing content I've got coming every week to this channel. But let's go a step further, right? I want to give you direct access to the multi-millionaires and the billionaires that I interview here on the school of hard knocks. And I literally do that every week. I give you direct access to the eight figureure, nine figure, and billionaire entrepreneurs that I interview on this channel on live calls that I host inside of my private entrepreneur community, the school of mentors, which is the number one most powerful entrepreneur community and network in the entire world. All you have to do to join is go down, click the link in the description of this video,

and I'll see you on the inside. With that being said, I'll see you in the next

Questions about this episode

Who speaks in "Asking Millionaires How They Got RICH! (Philadelphia)"?

James (Guest), David Adelman (Guest), Alan Dom (Guest), Unnamed Dentists (Guest).

What is "Asking Millionaires How They Got RICH! (Philadelphia)" about?

The content features an engaging street interview with a billionaire in Philadelphia, discussing his journey to wealth, including his involvement in private equity and ownership of the 76ers. Key topics include the amount of assets managed by his company, advice for younger generations, and a lighthearted exchange about his wealth and appearance.

What is mentioned in this School of Hard Knocks episode?

12 people, works and ideas are mentioned, including David Adelman, Private Equity, Mentorship, Alan Dom, The Simple Path to Wealth, Clarence Avant. Each one on this page links to its own page with every episode that mentions it.

How long is "Asking Millionaires How They Got RICH! (Philadelphia)"?

The episode runs 21 min; the transcript is about 5,592 words in 132 timestamped sections.

More from School of Hard Knocks

About this transcript: the episode's spoken words as captioned on YouTube, split into timestamped sections. Reclip.Me locates every person, work and idea in the text, keeps the time it is first named, and quotes the words around it verbatim. Last updated January 24, 2026.