Last weekend I attended the Best Ever Conference, hosted by Joe Fairless, here in Denver and it was an incredibly empowering and educational event. I learned and spent time with some of today’s most successful real estate investors (Brandon Turner, Joe Fairless, Trevor McGregor, Kathy & Rich Fettke, and so many more). I intend on writing about many of the lessons learned over the two-day conference and I wanted to start with the presentation that was given by Brandon Turner, host of the Bigger Pockets Podcast, because creating good habits are the backbone of your success.
Brandon has interviewed hundreds of real estate investors and he has found some common themes. Most successful investors have daily habits that help them focus on being a better investor and a better person. Here is what he found:
Say “NO” So You Can Say “YES”
Think of every task that is asked of you as stealing time away from something else you would rather do. Whether it is time spent with your family, or time analyzing deals, or time writing a blog, or time connecting with potential business clients, your time is precious and you must learn how to say “NO” to tasks so you can say “YES” to those that are most important. Here’s how:
Ask yourself if you would do this same task tomorrow. If not, say NO.
Ask to think about it before committing.
Schedule time for yourself to work on your process. Block it out on a calendar (yes, actually schedule “me time” on a calendar).
Define your Wildly Important Goal (WIG): “I want to go from [X] to [Y] by [when]”. Write it down and review it daily to stimulate your RAS (reticular activating system).
Work on Lead Measures
Most people focus on Leg Measures (the results).
Example: “I want to lose 10 lbs by June”.
Instead, you should focus on Lead Measures (how to get the results).
Example: “I will go to the gym 5 days a week for a minimum of 1 hour of exercise (3 days of cardio, 2 days of weight lifting)”.
Once your measures are defined – track them continuously. Again, this stimulates your RAS and helps push yourself to accomplish your Lead Measures.
Accountability
Written action commitments (again, stimulating your RAS), plus weekly accountability with accountability partners are the best way to reach your goals. Studies show that you are much more likely to accomplish a goal when you have someone to report to on the progress of said goal – introducing the Mastermind Group. One common theme for successful entrepreneurs is they start or join a Mastermind Group.
Almost all successful investors include a weekly Mastermind Group into their weekly routine. There is a set agenda, a set timeline, and each member holds the others accountable for what they say they are going to do. They review last week’s commitments, offer/receive advice from group members, and define next week’s weekly commitments. It is incredibly influential and boosts growth like no other.
We will be starting our own Military Investor Network Mastermind Group soon, so if you are interested please let me know. More to follow on this opportunity…
Extreme Gratitude
Successful investors set time to FEEL grateful. The more grateful you are, the more successful you are. This isn’t some hocus pocus gibberish; successful people actually keep a gratitude journal and take the time to be thankful for what they have. They turn negative experiences into positive experiences. They tell people they are grateful for them on a regular basis. Try it – send someone a text message right now and tell them that you are grateful for them (for whatever reason). That felt pretty good, right? I bet you received a good response too. It’s quite powerful!
Successful people give generously. They give to charity, they give their time, they add value to people’s lives. There is proof that you will get back more than you receive. Actually, its biblical. Check out Malachi 3:10 (oh, by the way this is where our turnkey real estate business name came from – Storehouse 3:10 Ventures). Another good one is Proverbs 11:24-25.
That’s it! Add these habits to your life and I promise you will see results. Brandon Turner swears by them, and so do so many other successful entrepreneurs.
“We are what we repeatedly do. Success is not an action, but a HABIT”. -Aristotle
Written by Stuart Grazier.