Crushing It: Winning With a Bad Hand
Post 2 will be about how your experiences have influenced your professional life and what your book would be about. I can share my book would be about the professional lessons below, and how they guide /guided me through great (and not so great) careers and business decisions.
- In late 1987/early1988 at 19 years of age I started what would become Nelson Entertainment, Mobile & Night Club DJ Entertainment and lasted 30 years!
- In April 1989 both my hands 80% amputated at 20 yrs. Physical recovery would take 3 years and the PTSD is still with me to this day.
- In late 1989, bought my first house through both rent-to own and seller financing methods. This taught me a lot about real estate ownership and investing and set my RE investing in motion that continues to this day, I just bought another investment property in July 2021.
- In 1995 I read Michael E, Gerber’s E-Myth Revisited and it changed my life as an entrepreneur and as a man, it set me on a journey of self-improvement and coaching.
- In 1998 I started working part-time with my mom in real estate.
- In 1999 at age 31, I became a licensed REALTOR*
- In 2003 at 35 yrs. (a promise kept) Moved to San Diego, CA.
- 2004 completely started my real estate business over in San Diego and expanded Nelson Entertainment to SD, keeping my Bay Area business running with the help of my business partner.
- 2007 – 2011 THE CRASH taught me what I was made of as a man, a husband & father and a business owner. I DJ’d more than I sold real estate but managed to sell about a hundred short sales in that Great Recession.
- 2017 I retired Nelson Entertainment after 30 years of performing and was honored to do my last gig for two close friends that were marrying each other on July 4th weekend that year out at Tower 23 in PB – SD, CA. I’m a full time REALTOR* and property manager now…no safety net of two careers. But I was confident in my real estate skills and ability to earn, adapt and overcome.
- The pandemic of 2020-2022 colliding with all my Buffini & Company training and systems in place caused my business launch like a rocket to a new level, jumping from $8MM-$12MM/year in sales to $20 million/year!
My journey; I wouldn’t re-do differently, it’s led me here and I’m quite happy; it’s a good life, not always great, because people die, lie and cry, but always a good life because it’s filled with gifts amongst the challenges.
This is the Cincinnati Hydraulic Brake Press that tried to take my hands; it only got 80%, I recovered 80% use.
My accident with my hands taught me the most in life up until marriage and fatherhood, but I value the lessons that were born of this tragedy. Professionally (and personally) these lessons have served me well. After being told I couldn't keep my left hand and I'd never use my right hand again, I learned the value of "stay the course" and keep the faith". I also learned the value of being relentlessly persistent and ferociously tenacious in achieving goals.
Ailina used to assist me (DJ) at weddings and wedding fairs. 1987-2017 (photo 2007)
Professionally what my total experiences have taught me are quite simple in principle and yet were so complicated to learn, because they almost ended me on at least four occasions-I had to really, really want it and to believe in some cases "getting through this hell", was the only way to find heaven. I have learned that common sense is uncommon in in life, but that and my gut feeling has served me well – trust yourself, trust your gut. Make decisions, don’t seek the council of naysayers and fools and learn from (and own) your mistakes.
One of my first short sales (buyer) during the crash 2008 One of my very first San Diego sales 2006 (buyers).
But I can share that if you put your clients needs ahead of your own and you value your relationships more than the paychecks with them, you will build a career built on advocacy, founded in trust, competence and character that rewards you financially, emotionally and whole-heartedly.
(Part of) Team Nelson featuring Jason E. Gordon My oldest clients: 21 years, 6 closed escrows in BOTH - The Bay Area and in San Diego - we've lived in both together!!!
Zig Ziglar truly summed it up with “Help enough people get what they want in life, and you can get anything you want in life.” CAUTION: I’ve seen a a work-friend lose his marriage, real estate career and go broke giving away his money and time to charities, causes and non-profits, thinking it would come back 10-fold. The adage is “Give it out in SLICES and it comes back in loaves”. My friend went overboard. Be generous, but “charity begins at home”. It does you no good to be a “hero” in public if you’re MIA at home. Get your house in order.
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