Finding Your “Why”
I spent the weekend out on a beautiful 25’ sailboat with my wife and a few of our very best friends. We had a blast sailing around the lake, swimming, listening to great music and enjoying great food and conversations. I was exactly where I wanted to be. To me, doing these things is what makes all the hard work, early mornings, meetings, and time spent dealing with tenants worth it. Being able to have the freedom to spend time with those I love and have amazing experiences is my “why”. It’s my reason for putting in the hard work and doing what I do.
Don’t get me wrong, I have a passion for real estate and I like investing, but I don’t do it because I love dealing with leases, replacing roofs and ACs when it’s 110 degrees outside. It’s not for the pretty pictures I have on my office walls and it’s not even for the money (although it really helps). It’s not why I put in all the long hours, the stress, and the sweat. Apartment complexes are just a means to an end. What I really desire is what investing in multifamily properties provides me and my family…. Time and Freedom. By putting in the time and building my multifamily business, I’m building a future for my wife and our family. One in which, we’ll be able to spend a lot of time together doing the things we enjoy to do and having amazing experiences together.
So, why am I telling you this? It’s not because I think I’ve made it and have everything figure out. I’m a work in progress. It’s because a wise man once gave me some great advice that really has helped me along my journey and I think it might help you as well. He told me; “Spencer, it’s more important to know why you are doing something than to know the details of how you’re going to get there”.
I didn’t quite understand him at the time. I was one of those that thought I had to know everything about a subject before jumping in. It literally paralyzed me from moving forward. This thought process slowed down my journey to freedom by several years. What he knew that I didn’t at the time, was that if I didn’t have a strong enough “why” I’d never make it. I knew the path would be hard. Something worth doing is rarely easy. There would be challenges that no amount of studying would prepare me for. I would make mistakes and get knocked down many times along the way. But, he knew that if I had a strong enough “why”, I’d keep getting back up until I made it.
You see, you can learn the steps to doing anything if you study hard enough and are persistent. You can get a Harvard education for free in a library and learn almost anything over the internet. I can teach you how to invest in properties that bring you tons of cash flow, but knowledge alone won’t cut it. Knowledge can’t teach you desire and drive. It can’t tell you why you’re willing to do what most others aren’t. It can’t tell you why you make that extra call each day when others have already headed home or why you look at one last property, even though your last deal fell through.
The reason most people never make it, is because they quit their journey before they’ve reached the finish line. Now I’m not saying you have to own a thousand apartment units to be successful, only you can decide what success means to you. What I can tell you is that you won’t get there unless you keep trying. Along your journey there will be times when the path seems to be ten miles up hill and in those times it is your “why” that will keep you going that one more step. You only have to get up one more time than you get knocked down. I know you can do it. If you have a big enough “why” you’ll be amazed at what you can accomplish.
The journey is worth it.