Undercover Billionaire, My Take on the Fake...

[C.Hamp]

I read MJ's take on this show and was nodding my head in agreement the whole time. Never heard of the show but the idea of "Documentary Effect" was patently obvious, as it is with all reality TV.
Then I googled the show and realized MJ was completely wrong.
Turns out that, according to the experts, Glen's ease of success is actually due to something far more simple (and sinister). He's only able to do these things because of white privaledge, dontchaknow. ugh.

 

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[Vigilante]

At the forum, we have a range of levels of engagement in entrepreneurism. Those range from :

• kids doing unmentionable things in their mothers basement after first discovering the dark web
• people who print up business cards and think they're in "business" (action fakers)
• people who think they are stuck in the 9-5 looking for a way to break out
• people working side hustles while they work out what it takes to really start a business
• people in the throws of startups
• people in the desert of desertion (c)MJ DeMarco 2010
  View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KJyUydc1NtA
• people in the grind of their own path
• people cresting towards success
• people crashing and burning in failed business attempts
• people in the throws of entrepreneurial win
• people that have made it and cashed out
• people starting again

I am hard pressed to see people at any of those stages that wouldn't be benefitted by watching a positive and uplifting show like The Undercover Billionaire. Nobody can work 24-7. In a society immersed in Honey Boo-Bo's latest donut run, or thinking they can steal their riches from the latest rap song... a positive and motivating alternative program is maybe something that should be lauded vs. knit picked.

Do ya'all think Shark Tank is not theatrical? You know they take hours worth of footage and add the dramatic effects while leaving the boring shit on the cutting room floor, right? Yet there's no thread here dissecting the make-up that Mark Cuban has applied before they film the show. Hell, most of the "fake" deals on that show never even consummate. I'm a huge Shark Tank fan, because I believe it fans into flames the desires of the average gerbil caught in the wheel to aspire to take charge of their own destiny.

Storage Wars? Please. Fake. But that's OK. I'd literally rather have people engaging in a discussion about business strategy and value recovery than watching the World Wrestling Federation. It's OK to allow yourself to be entertained as a mental diversion from the sweat of your day.

I like the show. I like the message. I like the guy. I like the production. And I like the value lessons.

For everything positive in the world, I can either choose to point out the flaws, or enjoy the ride. I've enjoyed watching this show with my youngest daughter while she takes a break from the Nintendo, finds an oasis from the neighborhood kids, and stretches her mind from the impossible towards what is possible. If that is the experience and discussion that is happening all across mainstream America, you're not going to see me line up against positivity in media. Hollywood will give you what you want. Turn this off if you want, and let the ratings be dominated by the 99% of stupid shit programming that slowlaners traditionally consume.

 

[ChrisV]

Do ya'all think Shark Tank is not theatrical? You know they take hours worth of footage and add the dramatic effects while leaving the boring shit on the cutting room floor, right? Yet there's no thread here dissecting the make-up that Mark Cuban has applied before they film the show. Hell, most of the "fake" deals on that show never even consummate. I'm a huge Shark Tank fan, because I believe it fans into flames the desires of the average gerbil caught in the wheel to aspire to take charge of their own destiny.

Bingo. They have to sprinkle on some entertainment value to make things more interesting. Keep in mind, Discovery Channel is a business too. We're one subset of the show's audience, and the majority of viewers are probably just there for entertainment. We just see it as an opportunity to learn. But Discovery wants to appeal to a broader audience than just 20-30+ (or whatever) entrepreneurship nerds that are watching from here.

Usually what happens with these shows is that they really do the experiment, but the producer is constantly giving direction on what would make it entertaining.

Someone else noted "well if they wanted it to be real, why not just give him a button-cam." Why? Because this is a high production-value television show. No-one wants to watch shakey, shitty spy-cam footage.

Keep in mind the camera crew can also be a disadvantage. In this day and age with the 'gotcha' culture, a lot of people don't want to be on film. So for every door the film crew opened, there were probably two more who said "no, we don't want to be on camera," resulting in a missed opportunity.

I mean... at the end of the day it's a TV show. I think it's more realistic than 90% of the reality TV out there.

 

[JAJT]

So I finally got a chance to skim through the episodes (rather quickly, I admit) and yeah, it's pretty standard "reality show 101" stuff here. Lots happening on-screen, probably a ton more going on off-screen. It's a reality show. That's how they are.

Great learning moments all over the place though, which is great. If I watched reality shows, this is certainly the kind of show that I'd be interested in.

The willingness of business owners willing to share their secrets with a potential competitor.

Funny enough - I will actually argue that when it comes to brewers, I 100% totally believe it was as easy (or easier) than the show made it seem to get a meeting and get them to talk about their "secrets".

Brewers are a funny bunch. They love talking beer, talking industry, having pints and shooting the shit. My city has a huge craft beer online community (The Members of Barleyment, aptly named for Ottawa), and I can tell you that MOST of the craft brewery owners in this city contribute here regularly, do meetups with other brewers, talk about industry trials and tribulations, help others etc...

One of our local brewery owners even revealed the secret sauce (to the entire city-wide brewing community) how he did the impossible of opening up a garage brewery. This was largely considered highly illegal and impossible but he was more than eager to say "stop buy, buy a pint, and I'll walk you through it".

I was a home brewer myself for a good stint so I know a lot of the guys who own these breweries around town and I know for a fact that almost every single one of them would do everything short of opening up their books for you if you asked (and if you knew them, they'd probably even open their books if you get a few pints into them).

Camera crew or not - getting a brewery owner to talk is about the easiest thing in the world. The real trick is getting them to shut up!

 

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[Dan_Cardone]

So I finally got a chance to skim through the episodes (rather quickly, I admit) and yeah, it's pretty standard "reality show 101" stuff here. Lots happening on-screen, probably a ton more going on off-screen. It's a reality show. That's how they are.

Great learning moments all over the place though, which is great. If I watched reality shows, this is certainly the kind of show that I'd be interested in.



Funny enough - I will actually argue that when it comes to brewers, I 100% totally believe it was as easy (or easier) than the show made it seem to get a meeting and get them to talk about their "secrets".

Brewers are a funny bunch. They love talking beer, talking industry, having pints and shooting the shit. My city has a huge craft beer online community (The Members of Barleyment, aptly named for Ottawa), and I can tell you that MOST of the craft brewery owners in this city contribute here regularly, do meetups with other brewers, talk about industry trials and tribulations, help others etc...

One of our local brewery owners even revealed the secret sauce (to the entire city-wide brewing community) how he did the impossible of opening up a garage brewery. This was largely considered highly illegal and impossible but he was more than eager to say "stop buy, buy a pint, and I'll walk you through it".

I was a home brewer myself for a good stint so I know a lot of the guys who own these breweries around town and I know for a fact that almost every single one of them would do everything short of opening up their books for you if you asked (and if you knew them, they'd probably even open their books if you get a few pints into them).

Camera crew or not - getting a brewery owner to talk is about the easiest thing in the world. The real trick is getting them to shut up!

My close friend brews beer. You are correct, he never shuts up about it. Lol

 

[GPM]

Here is what I have noticed (having not watched the show yet, but plan on watching it with my wife).

There are 2 groups of people that come out of this.

Group 1: Those that cry about it being fake, and use "but but but but" every chance they get. That has to be one of the greatest words in the English language...

Group 2: Sees massive potential and are lifted up by it. They think outside the box and don't necessarily just see this as straight forward entertainment. We all know it is fake, we are not duped by it. At the same time Glenn has a net worth approaching the 10 figures (it might be elevated for dramatic effect), but he was able to convince Discovery to give him a show. Any guess on where his net worth is going to be heading in the future?

We all have different ways to look at the same situation. I would be interested in seeing the net worth change between these two groups of people, in say 10 years...

I am NOT saying that liking a show is going to make you successful, but I absolutely think that the number of times we say "but" in our lives will dramatically stunt your growth.

 

[Rawseed]

I've watched every episode of Shark Tank and every episode of The Profit. They are the only shows I watch regularly. And I enjoy them both.

Undercover Billionaire is faker than Shark Tank. But, it has no where near as much melodrama as The Profit.

However, I have learned a lot from Marcus Lemonis despite his bear-poking antics.

All three shows are great for entrepreneurs.

 

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[Real Deal Denver]

I've watched every episode of Shark Tank and every episode of The Profit. They are the only shows I watch regularly. And I enjoy them both.

Undercover Billionaire is faker than Shark Tank. But, it has no where near as much melodrama as The Profit.

However, I have learned a lot from Marcus Lemonis despite his bear-poking antics.

All three shows are great for entrepreneurs.

You're right. I love shark tank because it gives a big snapshot of a business. It truly opens your mind to think about and understand how powerful scale really is. It's the way to play the game and win.

The Profit digs into the details of actually managing and running a business. I have to say that I've learned at least ten times more than I knew about business just from this show alone - and I knew a fair amount to start with. Marcus is a true professional manager in turning around and fine-tuning a business.

Haven't seen the billionaire show, as I don't like a "series" format that never ends. Tell me the story in one segment and move on. But I'm glad it is being reviewed here. I can get the gist of what I need from the posts here.

Marcus has also fortified my confidence level by tenfold. I pity the competition that goes up against him. I'd like an entire NETWORK based on these types of shows. I don't have time to watch the drivel that is served up to the masses - talk about being "in" the matrix...

 

[Roli]

In four years of being on TMFF I've never read a thread that said I turned $100 into $1,000,000 in 90 days.

Not believing in this show has less to do with poverty mindset and more to do with having a reality mindset.

Remember TV's job is to make the unrealistic look credible and real, "reality" shows are no different.

Just what I was trying to say above on the original thread, but apparently I'm negative and have a poverty mindset...

Now who's going to accuse MJ of having the poverty mindset for seeing through TV's bullshit?

#attributionbias

LOL.

 

[ProcessPro]

Thanks for your 2 cents MJ. A lot I didn't think of!

 

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[Bigguns50]

Excellent write up @MJ DeMarco . I'm not interested in watching the show but I love all your points. Of course....1st thing I thought was "I need a fake camera crew !". Really BAD idea. However, it reminds me of @Kak wearing his suit. It opens doors. Sometimes, you don't even have to flash your Costco card.

I think taking some of this billionaire's ideas and Legally implementing maybe not the exact ideas, but the thought processes would be beneficial.

 

[MJ DeMarco]

Now who's going to accuse MJ of having the poverty mindset for seeing through TV's bullshit?

As many have mentioned here, these shows do have their merit for learning, especially when you go into it knowing that it's all fake. When you can separate fact, from fiction, to dramatization, you can cherry-pick information or concepts that are helpful to our entrepreneurial journey.

For example...

Bar Rescue is 99% fake. But know what isn't fake? Jon Taffer's bar rebrands. This is the valuable information and it is a fact. If I ever get stuck in an episode, I FORWARD to the end of the show -- I'm not interested in the scripted DRAMA, I'm interested in seeing a dump redesigned into a brand.

 

[LittleWolfie]

@MJ DeMarco

What do you think of this video on a similar (albeit smaller scale) approach by a UK millionaire?

THE DOCUMENTARY FACTOR.

When people watch reality TV, they seem to forget that there are 2 cameramen (2 large cameras), and a boom mic operator -- the person being followed literally has an entourage the feigns as fame, notoriety, and/or credibility. All of these help Glenn, every step of the way.

To give you an example…

Using @biophase and @AllenCrawley as an example, if a 55 year old guy (who looked somewhat desolate and desperate) walked into their warehouse (Allen and Kenric work together) and this older guy had this “great idea!” to start a restaurant or a brewery, they’d smile and talk to him for 5 minutes and then send him on his way.

However, if Allen and Kenric got an email 30 days earlier from the Discovery Channel saying “We’d like to include you (and in some respects, your business) in a Discovery Documentary where we are following the trials and tribulations of an older American who is trying to start over in his life as an entrepreneur after 40 years in corporate America, would you like to participate???”

They probably would, and minimally, pay serious attention.

Mostly EVERYONE WANTS TO BE FAMOUS, or at least, get the benefits of fame.

1. Glenn’s visit to the Hospital ER — it only cost him a $250 co-pay.
   In other words, he has health insurance and not only that, CADILLAC insurance. Since Obamacare has become law, deductibles are extremely high, $3K, $6K, and $9k. As an entrepreneur, health insurance is one of my biggest expenses, and on top of that, it is shitty insurance.
   
   Every visit to the ER for myself since costs minimally $1,500 or more, depending on tests and treatment.
   
   Glenn, compliments of his Cadillac Health Insurance plan (which is not disclosed in his cost structure) gets out of it with a mere $250 … again, where do I sign up for that?

As an entrepreneur who started off in similar straits just as the fake Glenn on this show, it just isn't realistic. And it's probably going to give a lot of false hope and false expectations to those folks who are still in the "try" mentality of entrepreneurship.

Yes, you can flip cars, sell scrap, work odds jobs, and hustle hard to set yourself off on the right foot and build from there... however I'm not buying any of the "TEAM" aspects of this show. None of it. Period. It merely exists due to the presence and pretense of the documentary ... fame, notoriety, free business PR, whatever... and when the "unpaid, risk taking" team angle falls apart, everything else after does as well. The most realistic aspect here is the hustle/arbitraging.

I'll leave with this quote from @JAJT in the original thread...


Moral of the story - don't come for the "reality" part of reality shows. They are entertainment first and occasionally you might learn a thing or two along the way.

I believe this to be the case with Undercover Billionaire -- tune in for the advice, the splendor of the drapes, ignore the theater.

I have found that it is really common for these "zero to nothing" promoter types to leave out key parts like how mum & dad paid rent/college tuition or gave them a large investment.

So what you're saying is, start a business and hire 3 college kids to follow you around with cameras and a boom mic and doors will open..?

Kidding aside.. this probably would work for someone with the guts to try it..

I was thinking the same thing ... now, how to get that Discovery Channel letterhead without getting into trouble...

Maybe I'll just take a documentary crew around with me now. Seems like the best route to wealth
[/QUOTE

Mad me think of this instructable on fake boom mics

Just need the fake cameras now

You're a couple of years late...

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XYU1a0lTTTw

It is amazing, how much social perception can be changed by how other people are reacting to someone and how people are dressed. Just like we take suits to be a signal of success/professionalism or rank.

Just like how you can get in places for free, by wearing a black t-shirt that says STAFF or the reactions you can get with a high-vis on.

 

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[Vigilante]

I’m sure that the workers in the restaurant in Pennsylvania would be intrigued to learn that the business they work for is fake. Same with the customers.

 

[ChrisV]

I’m sure that the workers in the restaurant in Pennsylvania would be intrigued to learn that the business they work for is fake. Same with the customers.

We're gonna get to dinner at the restaurant, go to knock on the door and the cardboard cutout is gonna fall over.

 

[MJ DeMarco]

I’m sure that the workers in the restaurant in Pennsylvania would be intrigued to learn that the business they work for is fake. Same with the customers.

The event of this exercise is immaterial. The ends is justified by the means, just not the means we see.

Sure the event is real-- the restaurant, the employees, the outcomes-- the process unto which it's packaged, not so much.

It's kinda like showing a man lose 250 lbs while being told that he accomplished such a feat (the process) because you were selectively shown him eating a series of healthy meals. One reasons, wow, it's the good diet that delivered the results! Meanwhile, behind the scenes you didn't see the man get liposuction and a gastric bypass surgery. The event -- he lost 250 lbs is not important. We want truth -- the process. Was it surgery? Or a good diet? Or a combination of other hidden factors we aren't being told?

Isn't this supposed to be a show about the process? How a homeless man with no connections and no money starts a business? Someone like I was 25 years ago? Someone like many folks on this forum arrive, with no money and with no connections?

Sorry but I don't see a homeless man with zero resources starting a business.

I see a billionaire entrepreneur with a film crew, a Discovery Channel logo, and team of lawyers and assistants who pre-canvassed a downtrodden (and perhaps desperate) town of willing participants.

The fact is, without the documentary behind him (and the easily co-opted "team" willing to work for free with no pay, no contracts, all while sidelining their own business) there would be no business and no employees ... at least NOT YET.

I have full confidence that Glenn can accomplish the task (because I TOO believe the American Dream is alive and a million dollar business can be started with $100) just not within the 90 day time frame and without the aid of the "reality TV" BS that plagues this type of shit; the fake deadlines, the fake real world processes...

For example...

Unless you're dealing with CASH buyers, the typical time frame just to BUY a house.... 30 days.
Typical time from just to SELL a house, 30 days.

Right there -- not withstanding any delays, time on the market waiting for a buyer, or renovation time, you're at 60 days - a full two-thirds of Glenn's allotted time, just for the house flip portion!

But in this fantasy world, houses are bought and sold without escrow, without title searches, without loans, without credit checks.... kinda like how the cars are bought and sold, without title exchanges, without notaries, etc....

Sure the event is real - the restaurant, the employees, the great food ... the process and how it's being demonstrated (the process, remember that? How REAL results actually happen?) is not.

It's actually quite unnerving that so many folks (even here) are willing to suspend truth to buy into narrative, unless people here really do believe you can buy a house with a fake name, no cash, no credit, no SSN -- and do so in just mere days? THESE ARE THE CHALLENGES PEOPLE FACE WITH NO MONEY, NO CONNECTIONS, AND NO CREDIT. These are the types of challenges I would have hoped this show addressed. But they didn't. The left out the most important stuff to further the BS deadline narrative crap.

The only way this challenge, as designed, would have me believing is if it was all done purely by hidden camera without anyone's foreknowledge of a potential documentary. And it would have to reflect real world challenges, like the escrow process described above.

When Glenn approaches ANYONE in this show, it will be the first time the see him, hear of him, and know anything of him ... so when he truly approaches someone with a pitch, it will be him, and him alone. No film crew. No pre-canvassed calls by the network.

Under those REAL circumstances, he wouldn't have a house to flip, and he certainly wouldn't have persuaded a sweat-equity team so easily.

That said, this is why I don't watch reality TV because speaking truth to narrative is no different than speaking truth to religion or politics. People only want to believe the select information they are selected to view.

That said, I'm done and ya'll can carry on in the main thread.

I've spoke my peace on this show since it was such a big topic here and I was encouraged to watch.

I guess I'm just too process oriented to overlook the BS while stilling feeling good about it.

At the end of the day, I won't see a great restaurant created by a homeless man with one-hundred bucks...

I see a great restaurant created by a seasoned entrepreneur who had a major network documentary done about him.

 

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