Alex Charfen didn't just wake up one day and decide to sell consulting packages because it seemed like a lucrative niche. Honestly, if you look at his history, the reason why did alex charfen start his company—and specifically the Charfen brand—is rooted in a mix of massive financial trauma and a desperate need to find out why some people just can’t seem to function in a "normal" office job.
He’s a guy who went from being a multi-millionaire in the Florida real estate game to losing basically everything in the 2008 crash. We aren’t talking about a small dip in his bank account. We're talking about the kind of collapse where you’re staring at a massive mountain of debt and wondering if your entire identity was a fluke.
He didn't start his current movement because he found a "gap in the market." He started it because he was trying to save himself.
The 2008 Collapse and the CDPE Pivot
Before the "Entrepreneurial Personality Type" (EPT) became his calling card, Alex and his wife Cadey were running a different ship. When the housing bubble burst, they were right in the splash zone. Most people in real estate just quit or went bankrupt and stayed there. Charfen did something different. He realized that millions of homeowners were underwater and that real estate agents had absolutely no idea how to handle short sales.
This is where the Distressed Property Institute came from.
He launched the Certified Distressed Property Expert (CDPE) designation. It was a massive success. But if you ask him now, that company wasn't the "end game." It was a solution to a crisis. It was a bridge. He helped thousands of agents navigate a dying market, but as the economy started to heal, Alex began to notice something about the people he was training. They were all a little bit "broken" in the same way he was. They were restless. They were sensitive to their environments. They were constantly seeking momentum.
That realization—that a specific type of person exists who only feels alive when they are moving forward—is the core reason why did alex charfen start his company in its current iteration. He realized he wasn't just a real estate guy. He was an advocate for a specific type of human being.
The Entrepreneurial Personality Type (EPT) Explained
Have you ever felt like you're vibrating at a different frequency than everyone else? Like, you're in a meeting and everyone is talking about "processes" and "safety," and you just want to scream because the lack of progress feels like physical pain?
Charfen calls this the Entrepreneurial Personality Type.
He argues that entrepreneurs are actually a distinct physiological subgroup of humanity. He often points out that throughout history, these were the hunters, the explorers, and the ones who moved the tribe forward. In a modern context, however, these people are often labeled with ADHD, anxiety, or "behavioral issues."
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Why the labels are wrong (mostly)
Alex started his coaching and training company because he wanted to reframe how entrepreneurs see themselves. He’s very vocal about the fact that "disorder" is often just a lack of "momentum." If an EPT isn't moving forward, they start to self-destruct. They get "pressure and noise" in their heads.
He didn't want to just teach people how to run a Facebook ad. You can find that anywhere. He wanted to teach people how to manage the "pressure and noise" so they could actually lead the companies they were building.
The Transition from Real Estate to Empowerment
It’s easy to look at a successful entrepreneur and think it was all a straight line. It wasn't. The shift from the CDPE days to the Charfen brand was a risky move. He was leaving a proven, highly profitable niche to talk about... feelings? To talk about physiological needs and morning routines?
People thought he was losing it.
But the motivation was simple: he saw too many founders who were "successful" on paper but absolutely miserable in reality. They were "bottlenecks" in their own businesses. They were hiring people and then accidentally sabotaging them because they didn't know how to communicate.
He saw himself in them.
The company grew out of his "Billionaire Code" framework. This isn't some "get rich quick" scheme. It’s a map of the stages of business growth. He realized that a founder at the "Seeker" stage has totally different needs than someone at the "Investor" stage. By codifying this, he gave entrepreneurs a way to stop feeling like they were failing just because they were experiencing the natural growing pains of a specific level.
How He Actually Built the Current Model
Charfen’s current company focuses heavily on Simple Operations.
If you look at his content, he’s obsessed with three things:
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- Lowering pressure and noise.
- Increasing momentum.
- Building a team that actually works.
He’s a big believer that most entrepreneurs are actually terrible at managing people. Not because they are bad people, but because they are "visionaries" who hate being pinned down to a schedule. His company teaches a system called the "Cadence of Communication."
Basically, it's a way for a "crazy" entrepreneur to give their team enough structure to succeed without feeling like they are trapped in a cage. This wasn't some academic theory he read in a textbook at an Ivy League school. It was forged in the fire of running a 50+ person company during a global financial meltdown.
He started the company to provide the "operator's manual" for the human beings who weren't born with one.
The Controversy of the EPT Theory
It's worth noting that not everyone buys into the EPT narrative. Some psychologists might argue that labeling "entrepreneurship" as a physiological trait is a bit of a stretch. They might say it’s just a set of personality traits like high openness and low agreeableness.
But for the people who follow Alex, the "why" doesn't matter as much as the "does it work?"
His followers aren't looking for a peer-reviewed study. They are looking for permission to be themselves. They want to know why they can’t sit still in a cubicle. When Alex tells them, "You’re not broken, you’re an evolutionary hunter," it resonates on a level that a standard business coach just can't touch.
That resonance is the engine behind his brand.
Why This Matters for You Right Now
If you're asking why did alex charfen start his company, you're probably feeling some of that "pressure and noise" yourself. You're likely trying to scale something and realizing that the very traits that helped you start the business—your intensity, your drive, your constant dissatisfaction with the status quo—are now the things holding you back.
Alex started his company to prove that you don't have to "fix" your personality to be a successful CEO. You just have to build a system that supports your specific type of "crazy."
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He focuses on things like:
- Hydration: (Seriously, he’s obsessed with drinking water. He views it as a physiological requirement for clear thinking.)
- Morning Routines: Not the "ice bath and 4 hours of meditation" kind, but a routine that creates "predictability."
- Daily Huddles: Short, punchy meetings that keep the team aligned so the founder doesn't have to micromanage.
Actionable Steps to Apply the Charfen Philosophy
You don't need to join a high-level mastermind to start using these insights. If you feel like your business is a chaotic mess and you're the one making it that way, start with these shifts.
Analyze your "Pressure and Noise" Take a piece of paper. Draw a line down the middle. On one side, write down everything that is giving you "momentum" (sales, great team members, clear goals). On the other side, write down the "noise" (messy inbox, unclear roles, physical clutter, poor sleep). Your job isn't to work harder; it's to systematically delete the items on the "noise" side.
Implement a "Cadence of Communication" If your team only hears from you when you're stressed or when you have a "new big idea," they are living in fear. Set a 10-minute daily huddle. Same time, every day. It creates a "pulse" for the company that allows you to step back without things falling apart.
Stop trying to be a "Manager" If you’re an EPT, you’re likely a terrible manager. That’s okay. Own it. Find an "Operator"—someone who loves the details and the spreadsheets—and let them manage the people while you focus on the vision and the "movement."
Track your physiology Charfen’s biggest "secret" is that your brain won't work if your body is in "survival mode." If you’re dehydrated, sleep-deprived, and eating junk, your "entrepreneurial brain" will interpret that as a threat. You’ll get anxious, you’ll make bad decisions, and you’ll snap at your team. Fix the body to fix the business.
Alex Charfen’s journey from real estate mogul to bankruptcy to becoming the "philosopher of the EPT" is a template for anyone who feels like they don't fit the corporate mold. He started his company because he realized that the world’s most powerful "change agents" were being medicated and dismissed instead of being given the tools to lead.
The goal wasn't just to build a company; it was to build a world where entrepreneurs finally feel at home in their own skin.
Next Steps for Your Momentum
- Audit your physical environment: Identify three things in your workspace that create "noise" and remove them today.
- Drink 16oz of water immediately: Before your next meeting, hydrate to lower your physiological stress response.
- Define your current stage: Look up the "Billionaire Code" and identify if you are a "Seeker," "Builder," or "Operator" to understand your current primary bottleneck.