He cleaned septic tanks, sold his blood and built a US$2-billion fortune. Here’s what Canadians can learn

His journey from near-poverty to billionaire status is remarkable on its own. But it's the strategies he used to get there — and the mindset he developed along the way — that offer practical lessons for anyone trying to grow their wealth, regardless of where you're starting from.

Walentas' wealth-building tips

Walentas has spoken about his strategies over the years, and his advice keeps returning to a handful of clear, actionable ideas.

Learn from adversity and those around you

As Walentas shared with the Democrat & Chronicle in 2014, the hardship he faced growing up — supporting his family after his father suffered a stroke, by "milking cows and shoveling s--t" on local farms (2) — ultimately shaped the grit and self-reliance that carried him through decades of setbacks, and ultimately drove his success.

He also told NYT he believes deeply in the value of education, which he once called "the great equalizer," adding: "Most people don't really care where you come from… It's, 'What do you know?' and 'What can we do together?'" Many of the peers he met through school, he says, "changed my whole perspective of life" — including Jeff Byers, with whom he co-founded Two Trees Management.

Be willing to fight for your goals

In 2010, NYT asked Walentas why he had the phrase "No guts no glory" embroidered on the cuffs of his dress shirts. His answer was simple: "To succeed in life you have to take chances — no risk, no gain."

His vision for turning a run-down stretch of Brooklyn waterfront into a vibrant neighbourhood — with artists, cafés, tech firms and luxury condos — was a bet that took decades to pay off, from raising investment dollars to pushing through rezoning approvals. The payoff was enormous.

Be patient

As Walentas put it to the Democrat & Chronicle: "Success in life in anything is time and effort and staying with it."

Financial experts back this up. The Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC) — a federal agency that provides financial literacy resources to Canadians — strongly advocates for patience and perseverance, noting that long-term investing tends to carry less risk than short-term investments, which are far more vulnerable to market swings and high-risk trends (4). In other words, staying invested through the ups and downs is one of the most reliable paths to growing wealth over time.

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Always maintain control

Walentas says one of his most instructive lessons came when a broker mismanaged one of his properties: "The lesson was, if I couldn't manage it, I shouldn't own it."

Whether you're investing in real estate, stocks or a business, the principle holds: Understand what you own, and don't leave your financial future to someone else's judgment.

Further strategies for accumulating wealth

Beyond Walentas's personal experience, financial planning professionals point to several core habits that tend to show up in people who have been able to build lasting wealth. They include:

Eliminating high-interest debt first

The more interest that accumulates on credit cards and lines of credit means the less money you have available to grow through saving and investing. Most financial advisers recommend aggressively tackling high-interest consumer debt before redirecting funds toward long-term goals.

Automating your savings and using registered accounts

Set up automatic contributions to your savings and investment accounts. Even small contributions add up, as compound growth does the heavy lifting over time. For Canadians, this means taking full advantage of registered accounts. Contributing to a Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP) reduces your taxable income in the year you contribute, while your withdrawals are taxed in retirement — ideally at a lower rate. A Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA) offers complementary flexibility: Contributions are made with after-tax dollars, but all growth and withdrawals are tax-free.

For those whose employer offers a group RRSP with matching contributions, financial planners widely consider this one of the most effective wealth-building opportunities available — it's essentially free money that gets left behind if you don't take advantage of the perk.