I am always open to new ideas and willing to have a go.
As the founder and CEO of Ironfish, Joseph Chou has assisted clients throughout Australia and China build a property investment portfolio capable of yielding a return that ensures the client’s long-term financial security. Mr. Chou’s company is able to achieve this through the Portfolio Approach, a system he created that helps Ironfish clients become educated and empowered regarding highly effective real estate investment strategies. Ironfish also provides clients access to turnkey properties, all of which are approved pre-public or VIP properties that have been thoroughly researched and pre-negotiated for the benefit of the client.
Before founding Ironfish and overseeing an expansion that has seen eight offices open throughout Australia and China, Mr. Chou served as a diplomat in China. A graduate of Peking University, Mr. Chou eventually left his position as a diplomat to migrate to Australia, where he initially worked as an interpreter and translator of Mandarin for a number of clients, including the Australian China Business Council, BHP, Boral, Qantas, and Telstra.
After enjoying immediate success in creating wealth through property investment, Mr. Chou served as the general manager of a property group that achieved a property sales turnover of $1.5 billion over just four years. Following the success of this experience, Mr. Chou was motivated to create Ironfish, which he founded in 2006 and has since served as its CEO.
Where did the idea for Ironfish come from?
In 2006, the Sydney property market was in the downturn. Many investors got hurt and stopped believing in the property. I wanted to build a property service company to help people continue to grow or protect their portfolio.
What does your typical day look like and how do you make it productive?
My daily work is to map out the company’s future, making sure we are on track and to motivate our leaders. I make a to-do list and make sure all the “must do” things get done.
How do you bring ideas to life?
I engage the right people and am willing to try.
What’s one trend that really excites you?
What mobile internet technology will do to disrupt the property industry.
What is one habit of yours that makes you more productive as an entrepreneur?
I am always open to new ideas and willing to have a go. I always grow both personally and businesswise.
What is the worst job you ever had and what did you learn from it?
I’ve never had a “worst job” because I learn and grow at every job I have done.
If you were to start again, what would you do differently?
I would have been even more focused on growth and emphasized more on setting up training systems.
As an entrepreneur, what is the one thing you do over and over and recommend everyone else do?
Reading and maintaining a solution-seeking attitude at all times.
What is one strategy that has helped you grow your business? Please explain how.
Giving capable people an opportunity to start their own business on the Ironfish platform.
What is one failure you had as an entrepreneur, and how did you overcome it?
I had hired an overqualified and wrong executive early on. I sacked him three months later at a big cost.
What is one business idea that you’re willing to give away to our readers?
Set up a sales training program to train real estate and mortgage sales people.
What is the best $100 you recently spent? What and why?
To buy lunch for a cent millionaire.
What software and web services do you use? What do you love about them?
Not sure.
What is the one book that you recommend our community should read and why?
How to Win Friends and Influence People to by Dale Carnegie. If everybody reads it and uses the principles, the world would be a better place.
What people have influenced your thinking and might be of interest to others?
Bill Gates
Warren Buffet
Ted Waitt
Robert Schuller
Paul Getty
Tim Forrester
William O’dwyer
Michael Yu
Jack Ma