Stuff Happens!

Have you ever had so much stuff happening in your life that you get overwhelmed? Have you thought things were going along smoothly and come to realize that things fall apart at the last minute? You know that I don’t agree with whining. That is why I believe in being a winner not a whiner.

It is easy to be a winner when everything goes well for you. When the stars are aligned and everything is right with the world it is easy not to whine. I was sent an email from someone who said something similar to me. He told me that it was easy for me to be a winner when everything is so perfect in my life.

If he only knew! Stuff happens to us all the time. Banks don’t return calls. Sellers back out. I make mistakes. Evelyn and I sometimes don’t see eye to eye and it makes for some tense times around the house and office. I get lazy and let things slip through the cracks. There are other things happen that are outside of your control. You name it. It happens.

The way you look at it that counts. It is all in your approach. Heck, my first instinct is to run for the hills. Get out of the line of fire. The problem is you can’t run away. That is the whiner’s way out.

How do I approach things to right the ship? I take a step back and breathe. Sometimes it takes a minute; sometimes it takes a day or more, never too long though. I then look at the big picture. How did I get where I am? What obstacles were there? What choices I made to scale those obstacles? What mistakes were made?

This can be scary stuff. Real stomach turning, acid producing examinations. I then look for the best way out of the circumstances. This can be costly sometimes, emotionally or financially. Either way it can hurt. This is where you determine if you are a whiner or a winner. The choices you make here is the key. I pray. He helps. Sometimes it isn’t easy nor what I am asking for. But in the long run He is right.

Stuff never happens one at a time. They usually come in twos or threes. You need to prioritize and attack them one at a time. Work as far as you can before going to the next issue. Sometimes they need to be done simultaneous rather than sequentially. Do whatever it takes to get through it. Just remember, there are always good times and bad. How you approach the bad times determines whether you are a Winner or a Whiner.

When The Going Gets Tough, The Whiners Take Off?

As you know I am an avid reader. Usually 3 to 5 business books and at least 1 non-fiction book per month. I spend a lot of time catching up on the latest periodicals as well. So this morning I am up early and re-reading Gene Simons’ Book “Sex Money Kiss.” The man is a machine. A die hard worker and entrepreneur like you would not believe.

Reading his book, I was surprised he revealed all the things that didn’t go as planned. He used the word failed, but I don’t think so. He espouses what I call my “Triple F” strategy for success. Fail Forward Faster. Do something. Do it quick. Do it big. As the Nike slogan says – Just Do It! He tried so many things some worked, some didn’t; it is no wonder that he is so successful.

That is one of the things I like about so many people I meet. They are doers. They take action. They implement. Some have achieved their goals others have not done so yet. So what? They are going forward fast. That is the point. I don’t like Whiners. They spend their lives complaining. I like winners. They just go forward. Never looking backwards.

Jon Bon Jovi was interviewed on 60 minutes last Sunday. Jon and Gene have a ton in common. They are both business men first and rockers second. Anyway, the point is, while others in the industry have been worried about the trappings, these two guys have been busy making money. Compare and contrast that with most of their peers. Where are they now? What have they experienced in their lives? Fleeting Fame and Fortune.

I use these examples to illustrate what you can do as a real estate investor. Times, they are a changing. Laws are changing. Mortgage requirements are changing. Prices are changing. Days on market are changing. Buyers are not buying. But, hey you need to adapt to make money.

What have you done in the last 30 days to adapt? How have you made money doing the business of real estate investing? Did you notice how I worded that last sentence? Re-read it. I asked how you made money “Doing the Business” of real estate investing. That is the point. Doing the business of… “insert your business here!”

Last week I told you that I am in the process of making changes to my business. Consulting with multiple lawyers to adjust my business contracts and to help clarify what I can say to sellers and still be in compliance with the law. I am raising capital so that I can buy the houses at an agreeable price, for cash. I am changing my marketing so I do not get into trouble. Even rewriting scripts. Mainly adapting my business.

Most of the investors I spoke with are all freaking out. They are being Chicken Little. Pessimistic. I listened to one guy, who has never done a deal, telling two brand new investors that the real estate investing business is dead.

What service did this person do for these two novices? If I asked this guy he would say an unequivocal yes he helped them not make the mistake he made. He saved these people from loosing money on training and never doing anything.

After all, hadn’t he spent $1,900 to go to a bootcamp that didn’t help him make a million dollars in the next 90 days? After all, hadn’t he devoted two whole weekends in driving around looking for vacant houses and he couldn’t find even one. After all hadn’t he mailed out 500 postcards to pre-foreclosure properties and had talked to 4 sellers that wanted to stay in their house. He really worked this business. Ahh Bull S#!7

This guy was a waste of a chair. He attended meeting after meeting and didn’t do anything. If I had my choice I would have excommunicated him. You know like they used to do in the old west. Put a 2x4 across his back and tie his hands to it and make him walk into the dessert never to be heard from again. What he did was suck the ambition out of these two. I could see it in their eyes. They needed the spark rekindled. They needed to know they could do it.

I am not saying that this business is easy or cheap. (Notice the “B” word again.) You need to work hard and work smart to succeed. Anyone with the drive can do it. They don’t need loads of talent or charm, just persistence.

As mentioned last week I am holding a bootcamp on June 20-22nd on how to adapt your business to the new legal environment. It will not be cheap but it will be valuable. The most valuable training you could possibly attend this year. It is important that you reserve the time and the money to attend. If you are in Washington State it just may very well save your business. I will be sending out an announcement on Friday Morning. Keep a look out for it.

Are the State Legislatures and Congress putting us out of Business?

There have been several laws passed with the hope of protecting consumers. Many of these laws have made doing real estate investing as a business more difficult. Here, in the State of Washington, there have been two laws passed in the last 10 months that have made it darn near impossible to buy properties from motivated sellers and then rehab them for sale.

There have been several in the last few years that have done the same thing. Texas changed their laws regarding Lease Options; South Carolina, Virginia and others made changes as well. Many other states are following suit. Most of them have been affected, if not yet, they will be soon.

What does it mean? What do we do? As a board member of the local non-profit REIA Group, we have been holding informational meetings as to how it will affect our businesses. We have had panel discussions with lawyers and great debate on the message boards. There have been a few lively whining sessions to say the least. People complaining that my business is dead now, they hit my pocket book. Now I will never _______! (Fill in the blank.) Wham, Bam, Thank you very much.
Whiners complain. Winners adapt!

How do I look at this? Well, last Saturday I hosted a mastermind session with part of my mentoring group. We read the law and determined what we could not do. We then determined what we must do. Next, we developed a strategy on how to proceed from here. Everyone in that room will be okay. We will be going forward positively. We will be able to stand out from the crowd because there are going to be so many people running away from investing; screaming that real estate investing will not work in Washington State anymore.

Bull Pucky! Take this Adversity and make it an Advantage.

What am I doing about it? I have an appointment with not one but with two different attorneys. I am changing my contracts, advertising and direct mail pieces. I am changing my scripts, website and voice mail. We have ordered new signs. I am changing my systems to adapt better to what we need to do to comply.

I am also creating a small bootcamp to train my mentees and a few select others in Washington to make this a positive thing. The law takes effect on June 12th. The bootcamp is June 20-22nd. My mentees and these few select real estate entrepreneurs will be ready to go with all the new contracts and marketing that complies with the law quicker than everyone else can.

It won’t be free but it will be worth many times the cost. There will be less than 50 people in the room so if you want to save your business quickly rather than flounder around for the summer, you will need to be there. Remember this is mainly for my mentoring students so more than half of the spaces are already reserved. Reply to this email if you want more information.
They will be ready. But will you?

In that light, I sent an email to you yesterday inviting you to a webinar on short sales with one of the best experts on the subject. (On a side note, I actually received an email from someone asking how I can host a webinar on short sales when the law in Washington actually outlaws it. First, I immediately took this whiner off of my list for stupidity. Second, short sales are not illegal. They are a tried and true tactic that is an essential part of our business. So don’t read anything into the law that isn’t there.)

Anyway, Lee Honish, who has been in loss mitigation and asset management for a top 10 bank for 21 years, will be talking about short sales that no one else follows. He will show you ways to get the bank to respond better than you can imagine. When Evelyn applied his tactics she received responses from previously indifferent or hostile loss mitigators that were unimaginable. It really opened up her eyes and changed everything for the better.

We will be chatting about short sales and Lee will show us the secret world of loss mitigators and why them asking for a big short sale package is just their way of pushing you around. Lee will reveal the 4 figures they are looking for and how, with just those four sets of numbers, you can get an approval from most lenders. I will also get him to show you the software he uses so you can see behind the curtain of the banks. Reserve your space for the webinar by visiting this reservation page.

Don’t be discouraged. There are many ways to accelerate your business. It only depends on your outlook. Take Action Now to change your results.

Is Obama a Shoe In For The next President?

I typically don’t comment on politics, especially democratic presidential politics. But I was browsing the internet this morning for news and two things glaringly jumped out at me. The first headline I read was about the democratic presidential primary elections that were held yesterday in North Carolina and Indiana. And then there was the headline surrounding Fannie Mae having quarterly losses of more than $2 Billion with a “B” so far this year.

If you were to read the newspaper every day you would feel like you need to duck and cover because everything is going to hell in a hand basket. The economy is doomed and the gas prices are staggering. The grocery store is killing the American family by taking an entire paycheck to fill up a single bag. Life is tough and we should be prepared for things to get worse.

Where is my survival bunker? Boy, am I glad I still have 6 months of provisions put away from the Y2K scare. I will be okay. I just have to wait things out!

Is this reality for you? How about most of the people you know?

It sure isn’t for me. Sure I pull up to the pump in my Dodge Ram Pickup and it now costs $70 to fill up rather than the $55 it used to cost. I go to the grocery store and buy the same stuff I always have. It is right there on the shelf where it always was. Sure it costs a little more but it is still there. It is not being rationed.

Life in America is pretty darn good. We have to adapt to things tightening up and costing more. But when in life have we not had to adjust? I got out of bed this morning and had hot running water. I opened the refrigerator to cold milk and started the car without worrying about a bomb going off or getting shot at. Life is great!

I talked to one of my friends last week, actually an email. He is in Iraq flying Blackhawks. He is living in the life of a soldier. He is not complaining nearly as much as these privileged few who live here in the US of A. He was relating stories of the Iraqi people. How they are changing and adapting. Life is slowly getting better for them and they are working to make it so. Hell, our guys are working to make it so. We, here in the US, have it made. I have lived in or visited many countries around the world. Trust me, we have it made. I haven’t had to duck from sniper fire for a long, long time. Have you?

My advice to you is to stop whining about the economy. Stop listening to the news and the politicians who are stirring up problems to fit their agenda. The economy is going sour compared to where it was just a few short years ago. So What?

You choose how to live your life. Go out and make more money to cover the difference. If you think that you can’t then you haven’t been paying attention. We determine what we make and how we make it. Real Estate investing is just one tool to do so. There are many different ways for you to make money.

Frankly, it is all in your attitude as to whether you make the life you want and dream of. Like my mother use to tell me when I was a kid; “Paul, you are the sole determining factor of your success. If you want more, go and earn it. Get off the dime and do it for yourself. No one is going to give you what you want.”

So Get Off the Dime and Make It Happen!