The Confidence of a Predator, the Preparation of Prey
Published about 17 hours ago • 11 min read
August 2026 Newsletter
Hi Reader,
When hiking in Alaska this summer, I wore a bear bell and carried bear spray. After all, I am tromping through the bear’s living room and know exactly where that puts me on the predator-prey spectrum.
That got me thinking about the rooms we walk into every day. Sometimes we have the leverage, sometimes someone else does, and most of the time we sit somewhere in between. Wherever you land on that spectrum, know your position, pay attention when the landscape shifts, and prepare accordingly. Then walk into the room with the confidence of a predator and the preparation of prey. And remember to pack the bear spray.
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Thank you for reading and for being part of the Feroce community. I am so glad that you are here.
The Confidence of a Predator, the Preparation of Prey.
When I hike in Alaska, I wear a bear bell and carry bear spray.
I want to spend time exploring the outdoors, which means I am choosing to enter the bear’s habitat. A bear bell makes enough noise as I hike that I am less likely to surprise a bear on the trail. Bear spray is there in case all that advance notice does not work and I find myself in an encounter.
I prepare because I understand my position.
When a bear-human encounter on an Alaskan trail goes badly, there is little question where I sit on the predator-prey spectrum. I am the prey.
And let me be clear, I refuse to be prey.
Refusing to be prey does not mean pretending I am never in the position of prey. In this case, I know exactly where I sit in the food chain. I respect the environment, understand the risk, and prepare accordingly. That preparation gives me the confidence to lace up my hiking shoes and head out on the trail.
The same approach serves us well when we walk into a negotiation, investment committee meeting, client conversation, boardroom, or any other situation where the outcome matters.
Bring the confidence of a predator and the preparation of prey.
Know Your Position
Predator and prey can sound like two distinct categories. Most of our professional lives are not that simple. We operate somewhere along a spectrum, and our position can change depending on the situation, the issue, and even the moment within a single negotiation.
Sometimes we have significant leverage. Sometimes the other party does. Most of the time, both parties bring some form of leverage to the table.
A landlord negotiating with a tenant may control a highly desirable space while the tenant controls a significant stream of future NOI. A borrower may need an extension from its lender while the lender may prefer a negotiated solution to taking back the property. An investment professional may need approval from an investment committee while also bringing expertise and information that the committee needs to make its decision.
Understanding where you sit on that spectrum is not about deciding who is strong and who is weak. It is about accurately assessing the environment in which you are operating.
What do you control? What does the other party control? What does each party need? Where do your interests align? Where do they diverge? What happens if you cannot reach an agreement?
Confidence does not change the answers to those questions. Preparation does.
Take the Best of Predator and Prey
There are attributes of the predator that serve us well.
Predators are focused. They are patient. They assess their environment and pursue an objective. When the opportunity arrives, they act decisively.
Bring those attributes into the room. Know what you are trying to accomplish. Be confident in your ability to solve the problem. Do not surrender your objectives simply because someone else holds more leverage on a particular issue.
Prey bring a different set of strengths. They survive through situational awareness, preparation, adaptability, and respect for the risks around them. They pay attention to changes in the environment and respond quickly when conditions change.
Bring those attributes into the room, too.
The goal is not to decide whether you are a predator or prey and behave accordingly. The goal is to draw from both sets of attributes based on what the situation requires.
Confidence When You Do Not Have the Leverage
Confidence is easy when you hold all the cards.
Leadership becomes more interesting when you do not.
Imagine an underperforming property approaching a loan maturity. In most of these situations, the lender has significant leverage. You need something from them, whether that is an extension, modification, additional flexibility, or another path forward.
Walking into that conversation pretending otherwise is not confidence. It is a failure to accurately assess the situation.
At the same time, recognizing the lender’s leverage does not require approaching the conversation from a position of defeat. You can walk into the room confident that you will find a path forward.
Where does that confidence come from?
Preparation.
You understand the asset. You know the numbers. You have modeled the scenarios. You understand the lender’s likely objectives and constraints. You know what you can offer, what you need, where you have flexibility, and where you do not. You have considered alternatives if your preferred solution is unavailable.
You may not control the decision, but you can be exceptionally prepared to influence it.
That distinction matters. Confidence is not the belief that you will get everything you want. It is the belief that you are prepared to navigate whatever happens next.
Preparation does not diminish confidence. Preparation builds it.
Recognize the Changing Landscape
Knowing where you sit on the predator-prey spectrum requires paying attention to the environment around you. Your position is not static because the conditions that create leverage are constantly changing.
Market conditions shift. New information emerges. Capital becomes more or less available. Another bidder appears. A financing source disappears. A tenant changes its requirements. Each change can alter where you and the other parties sit on the spectrum.
This is where situational awareness matters. Pay attention to what is changing, consider how it affects your position, and adjust accordingly. Strong leaders do not cling to the posture that made sense when they entered the room after the conditions supporting it have changed.
Know your position. Watch the landscape. Adjust your posture.
Pack the Bear Spray
The bear bell and bear spray play different roles when I hike.
The bear bell is about prevention. The goal is for the bear to hear me coming and move off so that we avoid a surprise encounter.
Bear spray is about contingency. If avoidance fails, I have a backup plan.
We can approach important business situations with both.
What is your bear bell?
What can you do before an important encounter to reduce the likelihood of an unnecessary conflict or surprise? It might be communicating early, understanding the motivations of the other party, gathering better information, building a relationship before you need something, or identifying potential disagreements before everyone walks into the room.
What is your bear spray?
What have you prepared if the situation does not unfold as expected? Your bear spray might be scenario analysis, market data, a clear walk-away position, another financing source, an alternative tenant, additional diligence, or an answer to the difficult question that needs to be addressed.
You do not prepare because you expect the worst outcome. You prepare because you understand that you cannot control every outcome.
Go for the Hike
I wear a bear bell and carry bear spray because every hike in Alaska can result in a bear encounter.
I prepare because I understand the environment I have chosen to enter, essentially tromping through the bear’s living room. I know the risks are real, I know where I sit in the food chain, and I know that preparation gives me options for when circumstances change.
With that preparation, I am ready to go for the hike.
The same posture applies when we walk into the rooms where important decisions are made. Know the environment. Understand where you sit on the predator-prey spectrum. Recognize where you have leverage and where you do not. Prepare for the outcomes you can anticipate and build the adaptability to respond to those you cannot.
Then walk into the room with the confidence of a predator and the preparation of prey.
How would you describe your firm's relationship with data?
☕ Ross and Rachel? On a break every few months.
☠️ Gomez and Morticia Addams? Completely committed, through thick and thin.
🪓 Henry VIII and Catherine Howard (wife number 5 and second to be beheaded)? Things are not looking great and everyone is a little nervous about what happens next.
Most organizations have a complicated relationship with data.
And the arrival of AI tools is exposing the underlying flaws in their relationship with data.
In order to access quality AI results, they recognize that they need to improve their data quality, reliability, and access.
They see that data is no longer just a reporting requirement.
It is a competitive advantage.
So, what hashtag would you use for your firm's relationship status with data:
#OnAgainOffAgain like Ross and Rachel or #OffWithHerHead like Henry VIII?
Reconnecting with friends at the Once a Girl Scout, Always a Girl Scout 💚 reunion.
Watching our Girl Scout Cadette proudly carry flags during the Opening Ceremony.
Hearing the joyful screams from the zipline at the Girl Scouts Nation's Capital's Girl Scout Festival in Franklin Park.
Seeing streams of Girl Scouts fill the streets of downtown Washington, DC, each one representing courage, character, and confidence.
Leadership is often associated with boardrooms, titles, and years of experience. This week was a reminder that it also begins with trying something new, serving others, speaking up, and believing you can make a difference.
Work travel can be exciting and it can be exhausting. Time away from home, disrupted routines, delayed flights, and long days all add up. Good leaders recognize that.
Early in my career, the owner of the firm where I worked said something that has stayed with me: Travel is a difficult part of the job, so the company will make it comfortable.
What that looked like for our team? We stayed in very nice hotels, including properties the firm owned and brands we partnered with, and first-class upgrades were available for junior team members (like me).
As I moved through my career, I discovered that not every organization approached business travel the same way.
Sometimes the written policy was unclear.
Sometimes expectations varied from one manager to another. Or one employee to another. Ugh. ☠️
That experience shaped how I lead.
If your team travels for work, do not leave them guessing. Set clear guidelines. Communicate expectations up front.
Explain the frequency of travel, expected trip length, reimbursement policies, and the flexibility people have to make reasonable decisions while they are on the road.
Clarity builds trust. Consistency builds confidence. A little humanity goes a long way.
What We Are Reading
✨ A Cold Day for Murder, Dana Stabenow – revisit the first Kate Shugak book in honor of visiting Copper Center, AK.
Feroce Real Estate Advisors works with forward-thinking real estate companies to leverage change and build value at the intersection of commercial real estate investment, sustainability, and technology. We guide clients through complex challenges, positioning their real estate and teams for success in our rapidly changing world.
Our work usually falls into one of these categories:
Fractional executive roles serving as head of asset management or portfolio management for growing real estate investment management companies.
Provide high value strategic advisory services with a focus on investment performance, organizational priorities, and technology deployments.
Advisory board roles with proptech organizations focused on high ROI solutions in operational improvement, decarbonization, and cleantech and renewables.
Our clients hire us when they are at an inflection point, faced with scaling up, repositioning portfolios, or maneuvering through complex decisions. We deliver clarity, structure, and momentum to take teams from reacting to proactively executing a plan that delivers measurable results. We bring the combination of institutional investment experience, real-world operating execution, and a future-oriented lens on technology and resilience.
Email us to share your strategy or execution need.
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