No one knew what was going to happen in 2020 and for many of you it took away your attention and intention.
Now is the time to start being intentional – living your life by design and not by default. For those of you still on the sidelines, it’s time to get in the game and maximize 2021 investing in commercial real estate.
When you live an intentional life, people, opportunity, and resources start coming towards you. How does that work? Well, what you move towards starts moving towards you. Here is a perfect example of this. Many years ago, I was an engineer and I had to leave my job. I needed to create passive income of $4,200 a month to pay my expenses and support my son. So, I went onto LoopNet and started making offers on properties day and night.
I was on LoopNet so much that the marketing department at LoopNet contacted me to find out why. I told them my story and that I was using LoopNet to find deals. Back in the early 2000s, LoopNet used to list properties across the nation alphabetically by city. My goal was to go through and evaluate every single property on LoopNet from A to Z. I know, I was crazy, but that’s how intentional I was.
I started at the A’s and when I was three quarters through the C’s, I met a power broker and we became friends. He changed my life with the deals that he gave me, and I was able to create the $4,200 a month in passive income I needed. So, I lived my life at that time by design and not by default. When you’re intentional and you take the action like I did, people, opportunity, and resources start coming towards you.
4 Things to do Intentionally
Intentional means something done on purpose. Here are the 4 things I did intentionally that led me to people and opportunities.
- I made three offers a week, across the country, but mainly where I lived.
- Visited properties and built relationships. Every Saturday, my son and I visited properties and I focused on creating relationships all over the country.
- I closed deals and got good at managing the property. I was set on reaching my goal of $4,200 a month in cashflow and I never let this goal out of my sight.
- Quality time with my son. As a single parent I was able to spend time with my son Junior, making sure he did his homework, participated in his sports etc. Also, part of his chores was to collect rents.
4 Things I Intentionally Avoided
Maybe even more important than what I did was what I intentionally didn’t do. There were some things I had to avoid at all costs to reach my goal of $4,200 a month in passive income. The same thing applies to you if you’re going to live intentionally and do things on purpose.
Say no to dating. Sounds crazy but it could wait. And I’m glad I waited because now I have a beautiful wife.
No big purchases. I needed to stay focused on my financials.Avoid the stock market. I never made money on it and avoided like the plague.
No new job. Resist the temptation to look for a new job.
Living my life by design and not by default required action, leading to people, opportunities, and resources coming my way. I also had to avoid certain things for a time to reach my goal.
How to Be Intentional and Maximize 2021
For those of you still on the sidelines, I don’t blame you for not jumping in last year, but this year is your year! Here’s how to be intentional as a beginner commercial investor:
- Make sure that your life issues are not greater than your intentions.
- Learn the business and get help: Enroll in our free course, or you can fast-track yourself by calling us. Become an intentional learner by design, not by default. Engross yourself in this business so that you can make sound business decisions.
- Learn how to find and evaluate deals and make offers: This is what we teach at our company and this is where most people stop because they get analysis paralysis, or their life issues become greater than their intention of creating passive income or getting their first deal done. You must be incredibly focused on the goal. F-O-C-U-S: Follow One Course Until Successful.
- Hire Good Property Management: This is where the money is made. You have to hire a good property manager first and then close the deal. Use a property manager to help you with your due diligence and help you plan for the future.
- Take Care of Yourself: This is something rarely talked about in the real estate world but is so important. You can’t live an intentional life if you’re not taking care of yourself. So, get more sleep, eat better, exercise, and you need to have prayer or meditation. When you are taking care of your health, the rest comes together.
Avoid Distractions
You need to keep focused on commercial real estate and be intentional by design. Saying no to certain things will help you remain focused. You know what those distractions are for you, but I made up a short list of things that came to my mind which may benefit you.
Say no to:
- Mutual funds
- Cryptocurrency
- Learning the guitar
- People who are takers (all they do is call you and dump on you, they’re takers not givers)
By Peter Harris