Have you ever met an idiot that is more successful than you are? (We all have…)

We all have, right?

Frequently, when I am coaching, a client will say something along the lines of “I’m just as smart as (blank “guru” or this student who is experiencing some initial huge success), so why am I working so much harder yet making so much less than them?

When they ask, I’m never quite sure… Do they really want the truth, or are they simply venting their frustrations? To play it safe, I usually say nothing and wait to hear what comes out next. After a silent pause, the client speaks…

The next few words out of their mouth tell me everything I need to know. If they are serious they’ll press me and ask again. If not they’ll simply move on to the next topic.

You see, I need to know if they are serious, because if they’re not – they aren’t ready to hear the cold, hard truth.

What about you? Do you want to know why people with half your smarts are making ten times more than you?

If so, keep reading…

Today, real estate investing provides an overwhelming amount of information. Never before have so many people been so well informed… And yet, so utterly confused, at the same time!

Lots of entrepreneurs go around thinking that “Access to information” is what separates the winners from the losers and, “The smartest person in the room should be the most successful”.

Not true!

If it were, then whoever bought the most products, or read the most books would be richest, and we both know how stupidly outrageous that is.

That’s not to say that getting the right information isn’t important, of course it is, but remember it’s only a tool.

When it comes to being successful in business, there are a few easily overlooked elements that are absolutely vital. They’re truly the deciding factors.

So, what are the crucial “winning” elements at the core of all successful entrepreneurs (even the “idiots”)?

1.) Action Orientation. Taking action is the real difference between the super-successful and the wannabes. Wannabes simply absorb information and at their very best, react to it. And with such an overwhelming supply of information, most of them are simply numbed by it.

Contrast that with the successful entrepreneurs out there. When they get good information… they act on it – as soon as they possibly can. The main reason why so many don’t take action is because they are paralyzed by the prospect of failure. Add to that, their mistaken belief that the next information nugget they come across will be the difference between success and failure, and it becomes obvious why their “waiting” has them stuck.

If they press on, they only become more confused by conflicting facts. All the while, becoming increasingly frustrated that they still haven’t found the magic they’ve been seeking.

If you’ve ever been there, here’s my advice - Stay focused!

Take a deep breath, and ask yourself, “What do I have to get done today?” Not tomorrow, or next week, or even next month. Today! And not what do I have to learn, but what do I have to DO to further my success?!?!

It’s so easy to lose your focus on today when you are thinking about tomorrow. And it’s just as tempting to believe that the next pearl of wisdom you come across is going to make all the difference. But it won’t. You’ll never reach the level of success you crave without taking specific DAILY steps that take you there.

It’s pretty straightforward. To build a successful business you have to train your brain to crystallize a future vision, break it into small details, and organize them into daily tasks. After that, all you need is the courage to commit to the completion of these daily tasks – despite all the obstacles that get in your way.

Sounds easy enough, right? So what will sabotage your success? Mainly fear! Fear is your enemy. The little voice whispering:

“What if it doesn’t work? What if I’m wrong?”

Look, some self-doubt is natural – but when it prevents you from achieving the success you deserve, then it’s a problem.

Which leads to our next point:

2.) Rise Above Your Fears & Doubts. You have to get far enough above your doubts to keep working, or you’re doomed. What works for me is to forget it all. And the easiest way to do that is to get lost in a project. It works for me and it’ll work for you. Just throw yourself so deep into your work that your fears stay far enough away until you’ve finished all that’s needed to be done. Every successful business owner learns how to do this, sooner or later. What makes it easier is knowing…

Remember this, one of my earliest mentors was Marshall Syler, he is the master of Kicking Fear’s Ass. I could write a whole white paper just on Self Mastery or The ability to look Fear in the eye and quickly moe through it. My readers know I love to study Ultra-Successful people and I can share with you that one of the biggest common traits of Ultra-Successful people is their ability to move through Fear.

Remember, everyone and I do mean everyone, gets scared or has fear, the one difference is the most successful people recognize it and walk through it, because on the other side of their fear…is everything we all want.

Experience will always be your best teacher

When it comes to business you are going to make mistakes. We all do. Even the Intels, Microsofts, and Googles of the world mis-step from time to time. Building a successful company is complex, and there are always factors that lie beyond your control.

The trick is to learn from your mistakes. Just do your best to limit your risk, focus every day, keep doing, learn what works, and don’t torture yourself when you take a wrong turn. Just notice it, learn from it, and change your approach (also have fun at your own expense, and laugh at yourself; it’s a lot easier than you think, and diffuses your fear) .

And since we are talking about mistakes… Do you know what’s at the root of most mistakes that you’ll make? I see it over and over again, playing out in so many real estate investing businesses. Yet, most people would never guess what it is, in a million years. Even though, practically everyone who struggles in business is guilty of it.

For some strange reason, everyone wants to make things more complicated than they need to be. It’s as if everyone is fascinated by the overly complex. Instead of keeping things simple, they burden themselves with too much to do and too little time to do any of it right. This leads to the next crucial element…

3.) Keep Things As Simple As You Can To Avoid The “Stupidity Tax”. This is a big one. It’s so easily avoidable but for some reason it’s one almost everyone seems to walk right into.

Here’s an example how this flawed approach plays out…

Instead of picking one way to get deals or motivated sellers, mastering it, and then moving on – most people do the opposite. They want to learn about foreclosures, forbearances, short-sales, lease options, sub-prime mortgages, vacant properties and every other method under the sun, all at the same time without developing any level of mastery in any of the tactics whatsoever.

Yet, the most successful real estate businesses I know do the opposite. My good friend Bill Leon, President of Broward REIA, and one of the sharpest and most successful Investors I know, specializes in wholesaling properties, he doesn’t do anything else but wholesale.

Before I sold my Multi-Million dollar company to a group of investors, we only focused on having a well-tuned wholesaling machine (meaning we acquired 2 to 4 contracts on properties a month and then very quickly wholesaled them to our buyers list).

When you pursue multiple directions in your business all at the same time you end up making very little progress. And it doesn’t matter if you are smarter and working harder than other successful people because you are spread way too thin.

In real estate, making this mistake can really kill your business, here’s why: In the real estate investing marketing world your results are directly related to how your skills stack up against your competitors. In foreclosures, if your competition is better they’ll pay less for deals and close more foreclosure opportunities than you will. In building their buyer list, they’ll locate more buyers and then make money quicker than you, because they’ll have an ocean of buyers, begging them for their deals.

It doesn’t work this way for all businesses. You don’t pay more if your ad or commercial sucks. You might not get the number of responses but you’re not locked out, and you’re not forced into an inferior position, saddled with paying the “stupidity tax.”

The Solution -> Isolate the fewest activities you can be successful with. Then knock them off one at a time. Don’t make the mistake of trying to do too much and marginalizing your results.

Remember: Confucius said “Man who chases two rabbits catches neither”

If you follow my advice you’ll get to take back quite a bit of time you’re currently wasting. You’ll be free from wasting time trying to learn too much about too many tactics at once. Plus you’ll get back the time you’re wasting trying to execute with a superficial level of knowledge. What you do with your newfound free time leads us to our fourth and final success-component, which is…

4.) Know Where The Money Is. It takes time to know your market, but it’s time you must invest if you’re serious about your business’s success.

The first step is quite simply to open your eyes and look at what’s going on around you. You need to keep your finger on the pulse of your market to know what’s “hot” in it. But that’s only ½ the equation. The second step is to do your best to understand WHY it’s hot. Until you understand your market on a deeper level you’ll keep scratching your head wondering why you are making less than your “dumb” counterparts.

The good news is that once you get it – When you really understand the psychology of your market; your results will improve immediately in all the marketing you do. From your letters to your postcards to your bandit signs your results will multiply because you’ll know your prospects better than any of your competitors.

So there you have it. If you’ve ever wondered why you make less than others even if you are smarter than they are, now you know. And it’s up to you! Are you going to make up your mind to keep plodding along somewhat frustrated with your progress or are you going to embrace the 4 points I shared with you here and decide once and for all that you are going to do what it takes to be successful?

Just remember…

1.Focus
2.Take Massive Action
3.Move Past your Fear
4.Make Some Mistakes
5.Have a laugh at yourself (Trust me, I’m laughing at you)
6.Close some deals
7.Make some money
8.Send me a testimonial, telling me How Great I am, and How you aspire to one day be like me, your Idol Mike Perl.
9.Kick Ass and Take Names
10. REPEAT

Your Master,

Mike Perl