John C Maxwell has a celebrated track record as a NY Times Bestselling Author and his books are dense gold mines of self-improvement information.
The idea of maximizing my potential in multiple areas of life is what drew me to this book in the first place. Undeniably, it is an interesting concept.
What would it take to be the best version of myself?
More importantly, if I could do something like that how would it improve not just my business, but my entire life?
I share a central belief that this book also puts forward. If we want more out of life we must develop ourselves in order to attain it.
Like the concept of extreme ownership we have studied before on this site, the idea of self-development for success and being solely responsible for our lives is both liberating and hopeful.
That being said, another truth would have to be that the things that limit us in life are also largely self-imposed.
If we don’t think we are good enough, we aren’t. If we don’t think we can do better, we can’t.
Lesson 1: Become Aware and Take Action
Ok, so we’ve identified the need to stop a self-defeatist attitude and train our brain. How? The first thing that needs to happen is to be aware of the things that we think about and recognize our own self-talk.
Do not spend time doing any of the following:
- Wasting time on things that don’t progress our goals
- Wishing life was different
- Dwelling on the past
- Caring what others think
- Comparing yourself to others
From there we can change focus to what is controllable.
- Change how we phrase a situation to ourselves (self talk)
- Instead of, “(insert expletive) I suck at cold calls”, we can refocus and ask the question to “what can I do better next time?” This is brings awareness to our actions. Learning is more useful than reprimanding ourselves
- Change the environment we are in
- Negative group of friends that don’t understand what you are trying to accomplish? Limit the time spent with them. Spend more time with people who are where you want to be and you’ll be more likely to get there
- Change our attitude on how we interact with others
- We real estate investors spend a lot of time studying the market and learning the laws, policies, and intricacies of the business. Most people (especially sellers in bad situations) do not. We can forget that sometimes and be frustrated when they don’t understand how the process works. We can choose to be teachers, authorities, and resources to get them past their issues
We have to be more intentional with our time and efforts.
Most often in real estate that is time spent on finding deals or partnering. In doing so we must be able to take small uncertain steps, be willing to fail and learn, and spend time outside our comfort zone. None of it is easy, but all of it pushes us to our potential.
“Moving uphill requires intentionality, energy, determination, hard work, and consistency. It requires you to keep an eye on the big picture, be determined, demonstrate character and put in the time. The right thing to do and hard thing to do are usually the same thing.” John C. Maxwell
Lesson 2: Be Responsible
The lesson I took from the message of being responsible is to be someone who commits and follows through. To say you are committed is simple. To deliver on that commitment with consistency, enthusiasm, and professionalism is far more difficult.
I believe it is also very rare.
To be responsible is to focus on actions and problem-solving. That is our business when it comes to real estate. Numbers are the foundation but people are the levers that move us toward the deal.
Responsible people and good real estate investors have difficult conversations. They show resiliency by not being deterred.
“Would I be willing to sign my name to this?” – John C Maxwell
This question is explained as, are you willing to accept responsibility for everything, good or bad, that accompanied the choice to pursue the opportunity. Are you sure you want to move forward or should you move on to something else?
Responsible real estate investors are the true professionals.
Being a professional means doing the work, day in and day out, despite the conditions.
- True professionals are disciplined.
- They take action, seize opportunities, and make no excuses.
- They focus on the highest value task, are aggressive with timelines, and drive hard for results.
I sincerely believe that you can tell a professional apart from others based on the way they interact with others. Professionals communicate well, treat others with respect, mind their reputation, and set a higher standard for the others around them.
It is our responsibility to strive to this ideal and earn it daily. Our daily choices and actions directly grow or negatively our character.
Doing the right thing expands, builds, and demonstrates good character.
“Be more concerned with your character than your reputation, because your character is what you really are, while your reputation is merely what others think you are” John Wooden, UCLA basketball coach.
Lesson 3: Create and Maintain Real Relationships
This lesson is about giving to others and building win/win relationships.
Part of the reason that I write on this blog is to give away information and bring value to others.
The challenge the book presents is, are you being better to others than they are being to you? To bring value we must not only treat others with respect (that is the baseline for all human interaction), but ultimately take it a step further.
- Are we adding value by really listening? Go deep and try to pinpoint their real motivations
- Are we placing their agenda ahead of our own? If we help them reach their goals we can also reach ours
- Are we meeting their needs and exceeding their expectations? Yes, they need to sell the house, but why? What is that property stopping them from accomplishing?
As real estate investors, our business is helping people in their time of need by coming up with financial or creative solutions around the property.
In the market right now, there is no shortage of investor competition for properties. What I can offer and what the next investor calling and can over are pretty similar. The main differentiator comes down to human connections. We explored this in the Like Switch article and the theme has returned here in this book, clearly for a reason.
Connect with sellers by asking better questions.
Learn what the real problems are and work to solve more than just the surface-level issues. This essential skill is truly about bringing them value above and beyond the customer service others could also give.
Another excellent book. I actually found a copy of this book in an airport while traveling so I picked it up and read it almost immediately. It is short (less than 200 pages) and absolutely packed with gems.
I leave you with the final thought that our awareness of ourselves plus our ability to improve plus making the best possible choices everyday is what maximizes our potential.
I wish you luck and progress!
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