I have huge respect for, and affinity with, those who are committed to using property investing to create more of the life they want. We are kindred spirits. This is the journey I’ve been on since 2007 – it’s what I strive for and what I find great joy in helping others with too.
Every month I am fortunate enough to be in the position to mentor people on their property journeys, by facilitating powerful mastermind groups. I absolutely love holding mastermind days, the magic that comes from tapping into the group intelligence to help overcome obstacles or add fuel to the fire of opportunities….there’s nothing like it. This week I worked with two such groups and there was a very clear and obvious theme underlying both days that needed to be addressed. It was one of uncertainty – uncertainty about which property strategy to focus on, about where to start, about how to start…and a range of other secondary questions that flowed down from these.
This is where knowing about and implementing a simple but powerful change of perspective can melt away that uncertainty. I wanted to share with you a snapshot into what we were talking about because I’m confident that either you’ll learn something new, or you’ll be reminded of what you already know that you can now go out and use.
THE CRUCIAL INGREDIENT
To help explain this I’m going to quote from MJ Demarco’s Millionaire Fastlane – “The winning premise of business is simple yet often forgotten by most business owners: Businesses that solve needs win. Businesses that solve problems win profits. Selfish, narcissistic motives do not make good long term business models.”
The most important message in the Fastlane book is this – “Stop chasing money and start chasing needs”.
Those seven words you just read really can change everything, especially when applied to property. [I know this from personal experience because it was the key change that allowed us to pivot out of a failing SA business and start a new profitable version of SA.]
So how does this all relate to property and the mentoring conversations I was having this week?
Well let’s put into context the quandary many find themselves in at the beginning of their property journeys – ‘How do I make money from property when I don’t have any to invest?’ Or ‘How do I know where to start?’
This is where the perspective change outlined above comes into play – to answer questions like these we have to switch the focus away from chasing money and instead focus on chasing needs.
This powerful pivot in focus led us into productive conversations during the mastermind session that shone light on the path to making that first bit of income through property deals – for example we discussed:
- Finding niche audiences that require short stay accommodation, matching them up with existing serviced accommodation operators and charging a fee.
- Finding time poor investors in your area and offering your time to source, analyse and deliver shortlisted property opportunities for a contingent fee if they invest.
- When it came to questions about finding and working with JV investors we discussed how the same principle still applies ie by asking questions to figure what needs/problems the investor has in relation to their cash in the bank that you could help solve with certain property deals.
In my own property endeavours I’ve also been practising what I preach this week. A conversation 10 days ago with someone I know, unexpectedly led to them expressing interest in the rent-to-buy concept that I was explaining to them. Fast forward to now, having had a couple of well structured conversations, I am now in a position with a very clear search brief and a committed tenant buyer who has paid an amount in advance to engage us to find their future home. Any uncertainty about where to buy, what to buy and for who has now completely melted away! Chris and I can shortlist, view and make offers with confidence and clarity.
I hope this subtle yet powerful distinction can serve those reading this as it has for me – this change in approach really is like moving out of the dark where you were trying to make decisions with no information and feeling fearful; and into a well lit path with the information you need to make optimal decisions and feel confident.
What I am touching on here is the core philosophy that guides everything we do in our property businesses. It guides how I mentor others and its what I wrote about in my book Predictable Property Profits. If you’re interested in reading further into this you can win a copy of my book, and 6 others I highly recommend, in the book giveaway competition I have running until Thursday 16th July.
Enter here to win 7 must read books for property entrepreneurs
In closing, ask yourself, how can you ensure this crucial ingredient of serving a real NEED is present in your property deals?