Achieving Beyond the Believable

There are many things in life that determine what we achieve, There are the resources we were born with...ex. wealth, good education, high intelligence etc.  But, we don't all have those things. Then there is the way we are raised...to be kind, to be cautious, to think freely, to dream. And we definitely don't all have an upbringing that buck the social norm to just go out, get a job, and be a good employee. But, the last is the MOST important concept in determining why or how or why we aren't high achievers and become settlers.  Cheerleaders.

Yup, those bouncy, happy supporters of positivity in our lives...or in ourselves. It is of course much easier to be surrounded by a group of friends, family, and mentors to get to moving towards success as you define it. But, people who don't develop the inner belief that they can do, they can dream, they can overcome, and they live in a world of have rather than have-not...can lose everything IF you don't develop this part of yourself. The world could disappear around you and you need to be able to have a sustainable support system INTERNALLY.

So, what do we each need to do to inspire those inner cheerleaders to grow from inside us? A plan.

WHAT? A plan? *I can hear you groan as you read this* Yes, a plan. Ok, lets start with a vision. You already have one, did you know that already? If you didn't you wouldn't be reading this. You didn't one day wake up and say, "Hey, this real estate investing thing, besides being exhausting, complicated, ever changing, and possibly life shattering sounds like my kind of gig. I'll just fall into it naturally and take the path of least resistance." HA! We aren't lazy river floating people with a case of beer on a floatie waiting to see which way the universe will take us. WE ARE MOUNTAIN CLIMBERS...or builders of mountains. 

We take action, we fight to survive, we compete amongst the most competitive people for the highest prized objects on the planet. Good deals. No...GREAT DEALS. For some of us it comes easy. We are scrappers. If you have ever taken the DISC personality profile test you would be a D/C. But, how do we who aren't born to hustle, dream, push, and take failure as a learning tool move forward with the same tenacity???

Here are my suggestions:

1) Find a mentor/coach - Yeah, you've heard this one before haven't you. Here's the catch. Most movers and shakers REALLY want to help you...but their time is their greatest asset. So, you have to either pay them a fee for coaching (best investment ever...talk about a safety net) this also says you are serious about you wanting to take action. PEOPLE WHO TAKE ACTION HATE TIRE KICKERS. Or, you can present an ad value opportunity. Personally, I LOVE teaching others, but I only want to work w people who are ready to apply what I teach them. We are developing training weekends for tire kickers so they can add value (manual labor on one of our many projects while learning a skill ex. tiling, painting, demo) then we have lunch on me and I plan an hour of education on the non hands on aspect of investing. Most investors where I am (or the ones I work with most) are new or part time. I am also willing to partner w my students to get their feet wet and help provide them with a track record. WIN WIN

2) Determine what you do best and apply it to your real estate investing strategy. THIS IS YOUR COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE. Please please please realize that what will be most successful for you is what you are most naturally good at. Don't buy into other people's success. Learn from others and develop your own strategy.

3) Educate yourself...to a point. Read two books per topic ex. How to get started in Real Estate etc...you will begin to see there will be some very common themes they both share. These basic principles are what EVERYONE needs to know...especially the language.

4) PARTNER Here is my favorite way to combine the pervious three suggestions. Put your money where your mouth is and jump IN. Don't wait to buy real estate, buy real estate and wait. Now, that doesn't mean find the first person who will take your cash. Look to your local area and find out whomever seems to be successful and is who you aren't. Would that person make you as a team stronger than just you as an individual? Try and choose the "top dog" in your area. A little flattery gets you a long way...so does your money. My best tip is, a compliment to what someone is most proud of, sprinkled with humility and a dash of excitement about talking with them...will get you into a conversation normally. Then lead with a question that will likely get them excited to answer. Last, ask if they were looking for an investor to partner with in exchange for being able to shadow them throughout the process. TA DA! You will often get a yes, OR it at least has brought you to a new level of a relationship. They likely will take your call or respond to your email in the future and just keep gently working that relationship. Persistence in this field I have found, melts a lot of hearts.

4) NEVER ASK "IF" YOU CAN DO SOMETHING- ask how you can accomplish it. Most people's go to answer is "no" for everything because if you don't ask them to think harder than they have to...they won't again...showing you that a persistent mind beats one that accepts binary answers.

5) Be interesting, even if you think you are not. There is something about you that someone else will be intrigued by. Know what makes you different. I'm not saying when you first meet someone tell them about all the time when you played D&D as a kid or how you can stick your whole hand in your mouth. But, be ready to add value to non real estate conversation that people may be having. For example, I LOVE engineers. I just love how their minds work differently than mine. When I hear someone say they are an engineer I start to ask genuine questions about their jobs, why they chose that type of job, I ask if they love it or tolerate it. I have found a very high rate of passion for their jobs because the naturally work in a field they are good at and hence they love it. I may or may not develop crushes on their passion for their work. But, thats something about we that helps me connect to others. Which leads us to number 6.

6) NETWORK NETWORK NETWORK seriously. Meet people. BP allows even the most introverted people to reach out and connect.

7) Do something everyday outside your comfort zone. Skip down the street for a block after work. Hi five a stranger and give them a genuine compliment. Go through the drive through and pay for the person behind you. Wear socks that don't match one day just to be silly. Make everyday more memorable in this way and you will retain so much more of your memories. How does this help you achieve beyond the believable? Do you see yourself doing any of those simple things I have mentioned? EXACTLY. Start with small unbelievable things that make other people happy or that are unpredictable. If you walk past a park...slide down the slide. Just BEGIN by doing simple things you don't and most people wouldn't expect you to do....it becomes a habit. You intrinsically change.

So, if you made it this far though my ramblings congrats, you are still alive. Go do something unpredictable and make it kind. Please leave a comment if you follow through with any small act that's unbelievable that you did. YOUR ACTIONS INSPIRE OTHERS!!!! Please, inspire me! Go achieve beyond the believable.

My greatest limitation was that I couldn't see that I'm bigger than myself. Go see that you are your greatest limiting factor in life.