Episode Details

Meet William Stern — a founder who sold a townhome at 22, took the proceeds, and built Cardiff into America's largest privately held small business lender — co-owned and operated by four childhood friends for 22 years. Cardiff has deployed over $12 billion in capital to Main Street businesses across the country, was voted America's favorite small business lender two years in a row, and is now using AI to give any small business owner instant access to funding that banks have always denied them.

Four childhood friends. 22 years. $12 billion deployed. And they're just getting started.

He breaks down:

1. Why four co-founders with egos can actually work — if you get this one thing right

2. Why he would never take money or advice from someone he wouldn't put on his board

3. How Cardiff is using AI to democratize small business lending before banks even wake up

4. Why time is the only currency that matters — and how success finally taught him that

5.The real reason most businesses rot from the inside — and the book that changed everything

Follow Will:

🌐 cardiff.co

🌐 williamstern.me

🔗 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/williamstern

Timecodes:

00:00 Intro

01:00 Cardiff — America's Favorite Small Business Lender

02:45 Four Childhood Friends, One Company, 22 Years

05:00 The Entourage Model of Business

07:00 How to Eliminate Ego in a Partnership

10:00 Why Cardiff Hired a Business Coach — and What Changed

14:00 The Trillion Dollar Coach Story — Apple vs Google

18:00 Cardiff's Mission — Democratizing Capital for Main Street

21:00 Why Will Never Takes Money From People He Wouldn't Put on His Board

24:00 $2.5 Billion Last Year — Where Cardiff Is Headed

26:00 Why AI Is Changing Business Lending Before Banks React

29:00 The Don Quixote Lesson Every Entrepreneur Needs to Hear

32:00 Leadership & Self-Deception — The Book That Changed His Business

36:00 From Chasing Materialism to Buying Back Time

40:00 Why Time Is the Most Valuable Currency You Have

44:00 The Stakeholder Philosophy That Powers Cardiff

48:00 What Being 1% Means to Will

52:00 How to Get Funded Through Cardiff

01:04:00 How to Connect With Will

STAY CONNECTED:

https://www.instagram.com/the1percent_podcast/

https://www.facebook.com/the1percentpodcast/

http://tiktok.com/@the1percent_podcastPodcast

WANT TO CONNECT TO OUR HOST?

Vin:

Email: Vincentinfante.life

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vin.infante/

Shane:

Email: Shane@thevagroup.com

LISTEN ON OTHER SITES

Spotify: https://bit.ly/3HtT10C

Apple Podcast: https://bit.ly/3HtT10C