{"id":176016,"date":"2024-08-05T09:33:17","date_gmt":"2024-08-05T15:33:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/?p=176016"},"modified":"2024-08-05T09:33:19","modified_gmt":"2024-08-05T15:33:19","slug":"transforming-setbacks-into-success","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/transforming-setbacks-into-success","title":{"rendered":"Transforming Setbacks Into Success: 3 Personal Growth Lessons from My Real Estate Journey"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Setbacks are an inevitable part of every person\u2019s real estate investing journey. The worst part is that these setbacks usually gut-punch you when you least expect it.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For example, I found out my ex-husband was having an affair while I was eight months pregnant with my third child and running the day-to-day operations of my first RV park.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">My life instantly flipped upside down. I was forced to question everything\u2014I even thought about selling my business, packing up my kids, and moving back in with my parents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In the moment, it can feel nearly impossible to recover from a setback like this. However, I was able to learn three priceless lessons that helped me turn that tragedy into over $30 million in real estate assets and make me a better woman for my family.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">1. You\u2019re Not Failing; You\u2019re Just Giving Up Too Soon<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It\u2019s easy for anybody to assume that wildly successful investors with large social media platforms are more than human. Maybe they were born with talent. Maybe they got lucky. Or maybe they started with a trust fund.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But something happens when you meet those \u201clarger-than-life\u201d investors. You admire them from a distance, eventually shake their hand, and enjoy your conversation with them. Later, however, you see them clumsily spill a whole glass of water on themselves and realize they\u2019re just normal people\u2014the only difference is that they worked super hard and never gave up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When you meet more people who\u2019ve overcome setbacks, kept pushing, and succeeded anyway, you gather proof that you could overcome your setback and eventually be better because of it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To practice this, attend your local real estate investing meetups, conferences, or retreats. Talk to as many people as you can, and don\u2019t shy away from politely asking them about the obstacles they\u2019re most proud of overcoming.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">2. Try Something Else<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sometimes, refusing to quit isn\u2019t enough. After using every tool you have, you still might not be able to overcome the problem at hand. This happened to me while going through the divorce.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I was faced with the decision to either sell the RV park I owned at the time or buy my ex-husband out, and I had no idea what to do. So I called my lender, told him about the situation, and he said, \u201cWhy don\u2019t you <a href=\"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/guides\/how-to-refinance-your-mortgage\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">refinance<\/a> the property and pull some equity out? You can pay your ex-husband his percentage and use the rest to buy some more properties.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Back then, I had no idea you could force appreciation, refinance to pull out your equity, and use that cash to scale. Now, this is more commonly known as the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/guides\/brrrr-method\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">BRRRR<\/a> method. That one conversation gave me the creative strategy I used to scale to over $30 million in real estate assets\u2014all because I had to figure out a way to pay off my ex-husband in a divorce.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When none of your current tools work for the job, it\u2019s time to get creative. Luckily, real estate investing has creative solutions to any problem. Even better, somebody has probably had that same issue and solved it before.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So instead of reinventing the wheel by yourself, talk to other people. A problem that might seem unsolvable to you might be a no-brainer to someone else.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">3. What Do You Have To Lose?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I was already going through a devastating divorce, eight months pregnant, and considering selling my business. What more could go wrong?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I figured out that the worst thing that could happen was selling everything and moving into my parents\u2019 basement with my kids. This encouraged me to take action because, while I love my parents, I did not want to move back in with them. It also helped my mindset because it lowered the stakes. Instead of \u201crisking it all,\u201d I knew I was just risking the freedom of living without parental supervision in my early 30s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">From that point, the only direction I could go was onwards and upwards. So I doubled down on my RV park and started adding extra revenue streams like pizza kitchens, golf cart rentals, glamping tents, and more. That mindset was the key I needed to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/real-estate-988\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">build an RV park that\u2019s made me over $10,000,000.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I understand that not everybody can move back in with their parents. However, it can still be powerful to realistically ask yourself, \u201cWhat\u2019s the worst that could happen?\u201d This is part of a mindset exercise called <a href=\"https:\/\/tim.blog\/2017\/05\/15\/fear-setting\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Fear Setting<\/a>, and it\u2019s especially useful in the midst of a setback.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Final Thoughts<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Usually, a problem doesn\u2019t become a setback until you\u2019ve overcome it, and the best way to transform a problem into a setback is to implement these three lessons into your life. However, if you\u2019re going through a problem right now and you can find the strength to say, \u201cIt\u2019ll be all right\u2014it\u2019s just a setback,\u201d that tells me you\u2019ve already overcome that obstacle in your mind, and you have what it takes to transform any setback into a life full of success.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div id=\"hero-block_e726f845c564bdbb014b302a0a46cc5a\" class=\"first:mt-0 hero-block py-4    has-background has-theme-biege-background-color has-text-color has-white-color\">\n    <div\n        class=\"gap-10 lg:gap-20 flex flex-wrap lg:flex-nowrap max-w-screen-xl mx-auto px-4 relative lg:items-center \">\n\n        <div class=\"relative z-30 lg:w-2\/3 \">\n            <main class=\"py-4\">\n                \n\n<p class=\"has-theme-slate-color has-text-color has-large-font-size wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Claim your own piece of a $30B industry.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"my-3 md:my-5 lg:my-8 has-theme-slate-color has-text-color wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"font-size:16px\">Tired of chasing crowded mainstream investments? Deliver outsized cash flow and asset appreciation with RV parks, campgrounds, and glamping sites (aka &#8220;outdoor hospitality&#8221;)\u2014the business niche you\u2019ve been looking for.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div id=button-custom-event-block_08b35bb994e611dad6e7d3ef6a97cb2e class='button-custom-event'>\n      <a href=\"https:\/\/store.biggerpockets.com\/products\/real-estate-campgrounds\" x-on:click=\"window.analytics.track(&#039;Blog Block | Publishing: Real Estate Campgrounds&#039;, {\n      referrer: &#039;https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/transforming-setbacks-into-success&#039;,\n    });\" class=\" btn-shape inline-block no-underline has-background has-slate-900-background-color has-text-color has-white-color\" target=\"_blank\">Get Your Copy<\/a>\n  <\/div>\n\n            <\/main>\n        <\/div>\n\n                <div class=\"lg:w-1\/3 first:mt-0 relative h-full lg:flex lg:items-center\">\n            <img decoding=\"async\" class=\"object-cover w-full relative z-20 my-0  rounded-md hidden lg:block\" src=\"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/RE-Campgrounds_Full-Cover-4.jpg\" alt=\"real estate campgrounds book cover\" title=\"\">\n        <\/div>\n            <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Discover how setbacks in real estate can lead to success.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":613751,"featured_media":176022,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-176016","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-personal-development"],"acf":[],"comment_count":0,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/176016","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/613751"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=176016"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/176016\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/176022"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=176016"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=176016"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=176016"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}