The Wolf of Wall Street Jordan Belfort's upcoming AREC 2014 attendance "a huge backward step"
Jordan Belfort, whose memoir The Wolf of Wall Street was turned into a film by Martin Scorsese, is turning up to AREC 2014, the conference billed as allowing Australian estate agents to "meet the best real estate and business minds on the planet".
"20 world class agents and presenters who will change your life," it's suggested.
But Belfort - who this week advised he expects to earn more this year than he made at his peak as a stockbroker, allowing him to finally repay the victims of his fraud - is triggering an estate agent boycott of the 1 June conference.
"Usually this conference is a fantastic (although expensive) conference to attend," the Ray White Cheltenham, Melbourne agent Peter Konidaris blogged. "A great investment for a real estate agent (new or experienced) looking for additional inspiration from inspirational speakers and leaders in our industry. But upon realising Jordan Belfort was the 'headline act', in my strong opinion, AREC has taken a huge backward step."
"I’m disappointed with this year’s AREC conference, having a convicted con man as one of their 'motivational speakers'."
He suggested other speakers have integrity, especially Aron Ralston (the mountain climber who lost his arm, depicted in the film 127 Hours) along with a bunch of other successful Aussie business people and real estate agents.
"I don’t want our industry to be set back by this bloke teaching some gullible attendees his sleazy scripts, dialogues, persuasive techniques and tricks," Peter Konidaris urged.
He is not alone with a number of agents having significant concerns with him, especially after his walk-out interview with 60 Minutes interview Liz Hayes and his subsequent personal attack on Kyle Sandilands and Jacki O's radio program against the respected Australian correspondent.
Industry veteran, from Harcourts Frankston director Brent Pullar said the conference was brazenly promoting a fraudster whose actions had devastated many lives.
“For AREC to market a convicted con artist’s sales techniques and powers of persuasion is not something I want for the industry,” he told News Ltd papers.
Belfort, who earns up to $30,000 an hour to explain his selling strategies, claims he will make more this year than he ever made in his best year as a broker.
Belfort told a conference in Dubai that his goal was to make US$100 million plus from a 45-city speaking tour in the US.
The Securities and Exchange Commission shut down his firm in 1998, and in 2003 Belfort was convicted and sentenced to four years in jail.
He is scheduled to speak for an hour each day at the June 1/2Gold Coast AREC conference, with his speeches titled, The Art of Prospecting and From Prison to Hollywood.
Photo courtesy of Facebook.