Last Updated on April 7, 2017

Because I am one out of a million people who had an opportunity to work and learn directly from 2 of the smartest, most successful businessmen on the planet. Like the TV show “The Apprentice,” at the tender age of 27, I was selected to work with “Donald Trump-quality” businesspeople as my mentors. But instead of being just an “apprentice” for 6 months or a year…I spent 5 years learning and growing with them while I built one of their companies. The ‘secrets’ these folks taught me have been largely responsible for the success I’ve been able to achieve in my life and career – not just material success, but emotional as well. And I am eternally grateful to them for the experience. That’s good news for you. Because today I want to share with you one of the most important lessons I ever learned about ‘success’ from my mentors, and that is…

DISCRIMINATION Is the Secret to Your Success!

No…I’m not talking about age or racial or sexual discrimination. I’m talking about something completely different. Let me explain… If ever a kid could have a dream job, I had it. At the tender age of 27…barely out of graduate business school…I got to work directly with 2 of the most interesting and successful people in the world. I won’t mention names…but we owned a major NBA sports team, theme parks, huge residential developments, high-rise buildings, TV stations, custom subdivisions…just to name a few. My initial project was to run one of their companies…a high-profile community icon with 235 employees, 8 departments, millions in revenue and…

Losing Money Hand Over Fist!

I’m proud to say we quickly got things turned-around and created the greatest revenue and profit growth in the history of the company (a story for another time). But the process was tough…and enlightening. I remember one day driving in a car with one of our principals (my boss). I don’t know if he realized the importance of what he said…or whether he knew it would become a mantra for my success…but it was life-changing to me – and still is. He said…

“The Difference Between People Who Succeed and People Who Fail is that People Who Succeed Learn How to DISCRIMINATE Between the Important and the UN-Important as it Relates to Their Goals”

When you’re trying to get everything you can out of all you’ve got, you can’t afford the luxury of ineffectiveness. So you need to DISCRIMINATE: Identify and prioritize the most effective ways…and only the most effective ways…to accomplish your goals. This is the only way to maximize your earnings for every hour you work. Think about the shortest, most direct way you can succeed in real estate. You can advertise. You can network. You can farm. You can cold prospect. But the question you need to constantly ask yourself every minute of every day is…

What Are the FEW Activities I Do In my Business That Produce The Greatest RESULTS For Me?

Discriminate and handle what you do best and what brings the most value to your business. Then find either SYSTEMS or PEOPLE to handle the other things in your business…things they do best. In economics it’s called “The Law of Comparative Advantage.” What’s your highest Comparative Advantage in your business? What are the one or two things that you do so well, it brings the most value to your business? What is your job? If you’re like most agents, your focus should be on working with clients and closing deals – creating throughput in your business. If you want to work your highest Comparative Advantage, then you need to find SYSTEMS or PEOPLE to handle the other things: prospecting, lead qualifying, listing management, escrow coordinating, busy-work, etc. And the ONE system you must have nailed-down up front is prospecting. Because if you don’t have a system – you ARE the system. And that’s not working your highest Comparative Advantage. Does this make sense? You can be busy as a one-armed wallpaper hanger, but not make any money. That’s because you’re busy…

Doing All The Wrong Things!

It’s the difference between being efficient…and being effective: Efficiency is doing things right. Effectiveness is doing the right things. So how do you start becoming more effective in your business? By creating a HABIT of recognizing and understanding the most effective activities in your business – then putting everything of a lower priority aside for either systems or other people to handle. I once read that creating a good habit takes regular reinforcement for 60 days. Today I want you to start cultivating a new habit. At least 6 times a day (starting when you wake in the morning), I want you to ask yourself…

“What are the FEW activities I do that produce the GREATEST RESULT for every hour and dollar invested into my business?”

Then focus your time and energy only on those items (and start looking for systems and people to handle the other less valuable tasks). Do this for the next 60 days, and the “habit” of working effectively will be ingrained into your mind and psyche. It’s not going to be easy to break your old habit patterns at first. You’ll regularly find yourself regressing back into old habits. But don’t quit… I’m certain…master this habit and you’ll quickly increase your profits in real estate…and slash your stress and work effort by multiples! Just try it and see.