Why The Guru's Lie To You...

[Karl Krentzel]

Ugh...

Every day, it seems as though I am waking up to a new post on Facebook, or Instagram, or some other social media and seeing a person trying to discover the "Secret" behind some real estate investor's "success."

I have to admit. After 19 years, I am perhaps becoming a bit jaded to the real estate business. I've seen a lot of really talented people in my journey.. and a lot of really stupid ones as well.

It's always a sad thing. It's sad because most of the people who try to enter Real Estate Investing for the freedom that some guru promises them really are trying to better themselves. They want the money, the freedom, the ability to "call the shots."

They are sick of living in a cubicle existence. Tired of living in fear over the possibility of losing their jobs. Or, they are Realtors® who have survived the horror of the recent market. They themselves have seen the greed of the banks, the utter foolishness of a homeowner and the base indifference of the buyers in the marketplace.

As real estate entrepreneurs, they can clearly see that there is a path to freedom. If they could only put the pieces together. The biggest problem that I have seen for the Realtors® and Investors that I coach has been that they have the 30,000 foot view.. but lack the details of how.

Enter The Guru

The Crazier...The Better.

Typically, a "real estate guru" is someone who has either perfected a method of lead generation (i.e. "special" yellow postcards, with "special language").

"The Crazier The Better" seems to be the keyword of the day. Slap some wickedly odd sounding name on it.. and you got a winner. Kind of like a bad Justin Bieber song.

While mastery of a method of lead generation is a good thing.. it rarely is sufficient to be a sole source of business.

In most cases, the "guru" simply offers to teach others the techniques that they themselves learned... While this is generally acceptable; the challenge is obviously "recreating" the results.

It is difficult for some of the newer practitioners to appreciate, and understand the difficulty involved in the average real estate transaction. The intricacies of the modern day investment property transaction can be detailed, as well as difficult to navigate for the uninitiated.

For example... opening escrow, communicating with attorneys, or coordinating showings of property or other tasks can simply overwhelm the part time practitioner or quickly confuse those who are not comfortable with the demands of the real estate profession.

To put it simply... you can't teach personality.

Solutions for a Real World

My source of frustration fortunately, is also the wellspring of my greatest inspiration!

You see, the reality that you face as an Investing Realtor® or Investor in general is that you want to make money. A lot of it! Am I right?

The biggest obstacle standing between you and making all that damn money you want, is your lack of the "How To". Am I right again?

You see, you think that if you know the "how to" or the "what to" do, then you would be able to follow a "step by step formula to success!"

The harsh reality is... success doesn't happen like that.

The sad truth is that in order to be massively successful in real estate... you gotta put in your time! It doesn't come without struggle, and it doesn't come without pain.

What Success Is

To be successful in Real Estate, one must understand that it isn't the HOW, or the WHAT to do. It isn't the "special mail piece".. or "how aggressive do you price?" It's the ability to continually learn, to be humble, to constantly strive to be the best of the best.

Unfortunately, many try to shortcut this journey to success. Unwittingly, they shortcut the meaning of true success (happy, healthy, good family, good friends) with the hollow, empty promises of quick money.

Speaking as a person who has made money, lost much of it, rebuilt, and grown a bit wiser... I can assure you. Success isn't in the fancy Cayman Trips. It's not the cruises, or the cars or the houses.

We Get By Giving...

Those are all accoutrements of the trade. Sure... I love a Mercedes just as much as the next guy. However, the baubles of success often shroud our true calling.

Success to me, after 19 years in this business... seeing all the "hotshots" who claim to be "superstars" come and go like the endless tides... only to be replaced by the latest, fresh faced idiot with a "secret to replace everything you ever knew..." just like the last guy... is simply this.

Success is the Progressive Realization of a Worthy Goal or Objective.

You see, it's the struggle. The chaos, the difficulty that makes you better. I know that I am a far better Realtor®/Investor now than I have ever been simply because of the trials that I have had to overcome.

I am more empathetic, I am more thoughtful, and certainly more deliberate in my activities now; then I was when I was 30. After time, I've come to realize that the only thing that really matters is that one is as honest as you can be, to help people.

Beware Of The Charlatans

Unfortunately, there are tons of those in the marketplace today. Those who have tasted the firstfruits of success, only to get drunk off the wine. It's okay... we all do when we are new.

After you grow up in the business however, you realize that it is not about you, nor your ability to "just get the contract signed". You realize that your goal is to make customers for life... Not treat them like whores, where a "wham bam thank you ma'am" is their only experience.

Customers for life are created by careful, conscientious practitioners. I know that there are some of you out there... those who wish to make real estate investing a professional career choice for yourself. You choose to help people. Sure, you want money, of course you do.

However, the money isn't what primarily motivates you. As a professional investor, you recognize that your biggest opportunity for creating a long term business that will survive the test of time is to be "customer centric."

It sometimes takes a helping hand to see the truth.

I know it seems almost blasphemous to say "think of the customer" in a Real Estate Investing capacity... however, it is important to note... in every single industry...from banking, down to the local tire shop, they focus on the customer service.

Only in Real Estate Investing do we never find the topic of customer satisfaction, or service.

Have you ever wondered why that is? Countless classes on writing a yellow letter, or sending a postcard, or worse... how to "flip a house" from the comfort of your laptop without ever leaving your home!

HOW STUPID DO WE HAVE TO REALLY BE?

Finding Meaning Behind The Madness... aka How to Make Money and Not Piss People Off

You have to understand. This is a people business. People want to be treated with dignity and respect. This oftentimes is the worst time of their life... and to be manhandled mentally by a uncaring, unfeeling, investor hell bent on a signed contract is guaranteed to be a tough transaction.

If you really want to make money, do what I do, and so many countless other successful Investors do. Take the time. Ask questions about their situation. Instead of "steamrolling" the customer into a signed contract or spending $20,000 a month on massive mailings, or Google Adword campaigns that enable you to simply "throw spaghetti" against a metaphorical wall...

Why not take a minute and just ask them a few questions?

Is it really so hard for you to just take the time to be a professional and learn about your own market? Is it so taxing for you to learn anything about your profession that could give you the edge when the time comes? Is it just too difficult for you to memorize a few things to say to help ease your fears about talking to strangers?

What is it that makes it so hard for you to mentally accept that you are "in this" for the rest of your life so you might as well learn some skills?

The truth is, it oftentimes is our ego. Our own "need to be right" or the constant urge to "find an easier way."

Find A EASIER Way???

The reality is, you could simply go with the flow, and float down the Mississippi River, or constantly ignore the reality of it, and find another river. For hundreds of years, people have simply relied on the sales skills that others have used to bring them massive success.

What will you choose? Searching for endless "other ways" to achieve your goals and keep buying into the shiny object stories? The key to a "Shiny Object Story" (SOS) is that the SOS doesn't always tell you the ENTIRE story.

How much did it cost to acquire that lead? How long did it take you to mail to that list? Did it actually close? (This often is a overlooked point... just because you got something under contract does not guarantee a sale.)

All of these questions are important when evaluating the SOS (Shiny Object Story)

Have a Powerful Sales Day!

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