From Juilliard to a Successful Business Exit: The Discipline Behind It with Barak Dunayer
“I pick up a discipline of some sort and I stick with it, whatever it is.”
Filling the desks was supposed to be the hard part. Then Barak Dunayer’s best salesperson walked out.
That moment taught him something every founder eventually confronts: a business needs more than talented people. It needs a repeatable way to recruit, train, retain, and hold those people accountable.
In this episode of Built to Finish, Steven Pivnik sits down with Barak Dunayer, a Juilliard graduate, former professional trumpet player, real estate entrepreneur, investor, and endurance athlete. Barak shares how the discipline of practicing music for hours each day carried into building a boutique brokerage with two Manhattan offices and ultimately selling the business.
That commitment runs through the entire conversation, from building a company out of a 300-square-foot apartment to completing seven IRONMAN 70.3 races. Steven and Barak explore the systems that create business value, the financial restraint that gives founders more options, and what freedom looks like beyond constant availability.
Key Takeaways:
• How deliberate practice and honest self-assessment translate from music to business.
• Why recruiting cannot stop once every seat is filled.
• How training, retention, and accountability helped build an organization worth acquiring.
• Why a founder’s roles as top salesperson, manager, and owner can conflict.
• How resisting lifestyle inflation helped Barak fund his business and accumulate assets.
• Why protecting one day away from work became a meaningful measure of success.
• Barak’s five priorities for building something that lasts: vision, people, key relationships, cash, and continued learning.
Connect with Barak:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/barakdunayer
Douglas Elliman: https://www.elliman.com/team/teplitzky-dunayer-team/226102
Listen to the full conversation for a practical look at building the discipline, systems, and financial foundation to create more freedom.