Grant Cardone

Cardone was born on March 21, 1958, in Lake Charles, Louisiana, and grew up in a family with five children.⁠[2]

In a London Real interview, Cardone recalled losing his father at age 10, after which his mother sold their home. He said the change in the family’s finances sharpened his concern about income and financial security. He also recalled his brother’s death when he was 20.⁠[3]

Cardone attended LaGrange High School in his hometown, graduating in 1976 before continuing to university.⁠[2]

After high school, Cardone attended McNeese State University in Lake Charles. In a 2017 article, he confirmed that he earned an accounting degree and reflected on his college education and debt after graduation. His academic training was in accounting, rather than the sales training that later defined his career.⁠[4]

Cardone has publicly discussed substance abuse in his youth and receiving rehabilitation treatment. In interviews, he has described returning to work and learning sales after treatment as a turning point.⁠[3]

In a 2016 article, Cardone recalled disliking sales calls and prospecting at age 25. He later borrowed $3,000 from his mother to buy training, rose early to watch lessons and repeatedly listened to training during his commute. He attributed his improvement to sustained practice rather than innate speaking ability.⁠[5]

Cardone married actor and author Elena Lyons in 2004. She also conducts business and public activities as Elena Cardone. They have two daughters.⁠[2]

Reflecting on the 2008 financial crisis, Cardone said it hurt his business and made him recognize the importance of becoming better known. He began studying social media more actively and linked his later book The 10X Rule to his thinking about business growth during this period.⁠[3]

In June 2010, Wiley published If You’re Not First, You’re Last: Sales Strategies to Dominate Your Market and Beat Your Competition. The book discusses maintaining customer relationships, finding opportunities and organizing sales during an economic contraction. Its contemporary author biography listed Cardone Training Technologies, an online sales-training website and The Cardone Group, reflecting his move from personal sales experience into corporate training.⁠[6]

In April 2011, Wiley published The 10X Rule: The Only Difference Between Success and Failure. Cardone advocated setting higher targets and increasing the intensity of action. “10X” subsequently became a recurring name across his training, conferences and other brands.⁠[7]

Cardone Capital, founded by Cardone, primarily pools investor money to invest in multifamily residential real estate. A 2024 company announcement used 2016 as the starting point for its fundraising totals.⁠[8]

Portfolio published Cardone’s 240-page book Be Obsessed or Be Average. It draws on his experiences to discuss goals, commitment and sustained action, continuing his writing on sales and business motivation.⁠[9]

Cardone began holding the 10X Growth Conference in 2017, turning the themes of his books and training into in-person events for entrepreneurs and business owners. Its official description lists sales, marketing, business development and personal growth among its subjects.⁠[10]

On May 20, 2019, Cardone Ventures announced its formation as a business-growth venture involving Cardone and Brandon Dawson. It described three approaches: paid courses offered in stages, direct work with businesses and their teams, and investments in companies with participation in their expansion. This extended Cardone’s activities into operational advice and equity investment.⁠[11]

In September 2020, investor Luis Pino filed a civil securities lawsuit against Cardone, Cardone Capital and related funds over return projections, distributions and debt-responsibility information in investment promotions. After Luis died, his daughter Christine Pino succeeded him in the litigation.⁠[12]

Cardone appeared in the second season of Discovery’s reality series Undercover Billionaire, expanding his public exposure beyond business training. The show challenges participants to build a business with limited starting funds, time and access to their existing identities and resources.⁠[13]

School of Hard KnocksSchool of Hard KnocksSchool of Hard Knocks is a business-interview media brand founded in 2021 by James Dumoulin, Jack Dumoulin and Joshua Smith, based in Austin, Texas. Its street interviews, long-form videos and podcast explore guests’ careers and business experiences. It also operates content services and the School of Mentors community.Open the full entry published an extended interview with Cardone about his early real-estate deals, sales training, brand building and choice of business partners. Original video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yOSsd1Tpno4 (opens in a new window).⁠[14]

According to its 2023 annual report, the Grant Cardone Foundation expanded to 74 partner organizations and held three 10X Kids Pitch Off competitions, awarding $63,000 in seed funding to 10 young entrepreneurs. The report also recorded 22 mentorship events and the distribution of 4,000 children’s books through its South African 10X Hub. These figures are the foundation’s own activity reports.⁠[15]

On December 26, 2024, Cardone Capital announced the $87.5 million 10X Space Coast Bitcoin Fund. It planned to combine a 300-unit multifamily property in Melbourne, Florida, with a Bitcoin allocation, using monthly property cash flow to buy more Bitcoin. The announcement also described proposed property closing and subsequent refinancing arrangements.⁠[8]

On June 10, 2025, the Ninth Circuit reversed the district court’s dismissal of the Pino case. It found the allegations about return projections, material omissions and debt information sufficient at the pleading stage. The ruling concerned the adequacy of the complaint, not a final finding that Cardone violated securities law.⁠[12]

In case 26-2252, the Ninth Circuit denied Cardone, Cardone Capital and the two funds permission to appeal under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(f). This was a procedural decision concerning the class action, not a final determination of securities-law liability.⁠[16]

On June 26, 2026, Cardone reiterated on X his strategy of combining physical real estate with Bitcoin and continuing to buy Bitcoin during market volatility by improving property cash flow. CoinDeskCoinDeskCoinDesk is a cryptocurrency media, events, index, and data company founded in 2013 and headquartered in New York. Its businesses include the CoinDesk news website, the annual crypto industry conference Consensus, and the CoinDesk Indices index business. In November 2023, the digital asset exchange Bullish acquired CoinDesk from Digital Currency Group, and CoinDesk has since operated as an independent subsidiary of Bullish.Open the full entry reported his comments the same day.⁠[17]

On August 27, 2026, reports said Cardone had announced that Cardone Capital was increasing the Bitcoin allocation for its Fort Lauderdale property project from 350 to 900 coins.⁠[18]

As of September 8, 2026, the official notice website said investors in the relevant funds had received class-action notices and that trial was scheduled for March 9, 2027. It also stated that defendants denied the allegations and that the court had not decided which side was right. The schedule remained subject to change.⁠[19]

The court-authorized notice describes allegations about return projections, distributions and debt responsibility. Defendants deny misleading investors, argue that risks were adequately disclosed and maintain that the funds performed as expected while investors continued receiving distributions. The notice says the court has not decided the merits. As of October 10, 2026, the official website still listed a trial scheduled for March 9, 2027.⁠[20][19]

Cardone’s sales-training business includes online courses, live workshops and individual coaching. His official materials also describe 10X Studios, which produces video and podcasts, and the Grant Cardone Foundation, which provides financial-literacy and entrepreneurship education for underserved young people. Its intended beneficiaries relate to his public accounts of losing his father in childhood.⁠[1]

McNeese State University: His accounting university. Official link: https://www.mcneese.edu/ (opens in a new window)⁠[4]

Cardone Capital: Founder and CEO. Official link: https://cardonecapital.com/ (opens in a new window)⁠[8]

Cardone Training Technologies: Founder and CEO. Official link: https://www.cardonetraining.com/ (opens in a new window)⁠[1]

Cardone Ventures: Co-founder. Official link: https://www.cardoneventures.com/ (opens in a new window)⁠[11]

10X Growth Conference: Business conference he founded. Official link: https://10xgrowthcon.com/ (opens in a new window)⁠[10]

10X Studios: Media production business he founded. Official link: https://www.10xstudios.com/ (opens in a new window)⁠[1]

Grant Cardone Foundation: Nonprofit he founded. Official link: https://grantcardonefoundation.com/ (opens in a new window)⁠[1]

Personal website: Biography, articles and business links. Official link: https://grantcardone.com/ (opens in a new window)⁠[10]

X: @GrantCardone. Official link: https://x.com/GrantCardone (opens in a new window)⁠[21]

Cardone’s personal X account is @GrantCardone: https://x.com/GrantCardone (opens in a new window). His YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is Google’s video-sharing and creator platform, founded in 2005 by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim and acquired by Google in 2006. Built around video uploading, viewing, and creator earnings, the platform has developed Shorts, YouTube Music, Premium, YouTube TV, and products for children, and is headquartered in San Bruno, California, United States.Open the full entry channel uses the same handle: https://www.youtube.com/@GrantCardone (opens in a new window). His official website links to both accounts, and the YouTube channel links back to his website.⁠[22][21][23]