On the path to financial freedom, you may find yourself asking the question, did I leave my 9-5 job only to tie myself up in another job that’s taking up even MORE of my time? This is the reality of a lot of entrepreneurs who enter into real estate investing thinking they will be able to quit their jobs, and gain time and wealth, only to bump up against a few obstacles along the way.
Disclaimer: I’m not here as an expert by any means. I’m on the same journey as you. My main goal is really just to share some of my takeaways from over the past few years, and to answer the question: what are the common stumbling points for new entrepreneurs? And then to shed some light on how to avoid them. Let’s dive in.
The Downside
It’s not all taking cheques to the bank and delegating tasks. Before you get to private jet status, you may have to grind it out for a bit on your own! Here are some of the downsides to building your very own business:
The Buck Stops With You: You are the Captain of your own ship! This may sound like a good thing (and for the most part it is!), but you are the only person holding you accountable. If you are good at internal motivation and accountability, then this might not be a problem, but if you require external pressure (ahem, those of us who finished our assignments last minute) then this can become a stumbling block for many of us. I will admit this is one of my number one issues. But, like we always say, a problem is just a step before the solution.
- So, if you’re not great at being accountable to yourself, grab an accountability partner! Just last weekend we had a laundry list of things to get done so that we could move forward in our business and feel a little bit less stressed out. So we reached out to another real estate investor who understands the importance of accountability, and they kept tabs on us and our progress. It’s incredible how doing something for someone else will motivate you to get the job done. I highly recommend becoming part of a community of people who understand your business and the pressures you face as a business-owner.
You End Up Doing….EVERYTHING: At the beginning you don’t have the money to hire a bunch of people to do the boring stuff or the stuff you don’t like. This is the part of the journey called, the grind, and it’s just how it sounds. It’s not fun, but it is necessary. People often ask us, how do you do it? How do you juggle kids, work, investing, personal growth, having a life…? And the truth is it’s hard! We stay up late, don’t watch Netflix, and don’t always get it right. But we’ve got our eye on the prize because we know it won’t always be like this.
- While there is no clear solution – the reality is you do it all for a while – there are ways to bring people into your business that could make sense financially, even when you think you can’t afford them. This includes looking for ways to offload some of the specialized work that maybe you don’t do well, that someone else would LOVE to do. What does this look like in the real world? For time consuming but creative tasks, like creating videos for social media or investor packages, you could ask students from a local college to assist who may be interested in honing their craft for a minimal fee or even free. Do you have a nephew with a new drone? Ask them to do some cool videos of your latest acquisition. Students are also a great solution for doing interior design in the form of an internship. Here’s another creative way to tap into your already existing network. Do you have a real estate investor friend who is also a bookkeeper or administrative assistant? Perhaps they could do what they do in their day job for you in return for an equity split.
You Inevitably Experience Some Level of Instability: Again, you typically don’t start out with enough consistent cash flow to feel like you’re on solid ground. There may be times when you have a few large influxes of cash, but in certain times you could go through months without steady, consistent cash flow. It can be very unpredictable.
- The best way to mitigate this risk is to ensure another source of steady income. Something predictable – like that dreaded 9-5 job. For most of us real estate investors, the dream IS to quit the traditional job, but the reality is that we often need to hold on to the old job for longer than we’d like. But if you’ve taken the plunge, you’re likely going to stack your income streams. There are many who say you should ideally have 7 streams of income to make it work. Here are some ideas for income streams in the real estate world: cash flow, private lending, property management, asset management, mentorship/coaching, digital courses, affiliate links, fee-based services, etc.
Here are some tips to help you through the hard parts of Entrepreneurship:
- Build a System. This is honestly an ongoing process and can be different things at different times in your journey. It can be as simple as creating checklists for processes or repeated actions, or as complex as a lead generation workflow for converting leads into investors. But one thing we’ve heard along the way: a person can manage a company or a SYSTEM can manage a company. It doesn’t matter if you have one property, ten properties or zero properties – the best time to start creating systems is NOW.
- Think Big Picture. This may not be at the fore front of your mind when you’re drowning in the mundane tasks of being a business owner, but you HAVE to allow yourself to have a big, audacious goal. Many of the most successful entrepreneurs will tell you the same. Have a vision and state it over and over. Make it visible to you in your everyday life so put it on your wall or your phone. Repeat it to yourself daily.
- Stay Future Focused. This is similar to having a big picture, but this speaks to making decisions NOW that will benefit the future you. Ask yourself, will the future you be proud of your decisions or not? Will your future self thank you for your striving and efforts or not? This can be a powerful motivator when you’re trying to get through the grind of being an early entrepreneur.
- Be Authentic – Even if it’s Uncomfortable. At some point in your entrepreneurial journey, you may have to dig deep, really deep, in order to accomplish that big, audacious goal, or to get through the hardest, loneliest parts of working for yourself. And that can be uncomfortable! But my advice is to push through the discomfort, because what comes out on the other side is powerful and often important for the entrepreneur to grow. Things like the ability to make deep connections, or relate to your audience, and even creative problem solving, all come from being brave.
- Cultivate an Entrepreneur’s Mindset. Similar to uncovering your authentic self, as an entrepreneur you must make the choice to be uncommon: become uncommonly disciplined, hold uncommon beliefs, and seek uncommon solutions. Becoming an entrepreneur is a little bit like forging your own path in a forest. You have to make a choice to do things differently.
Final Thoughts – The Upside
There are so many great, amazing and wonderful parts about becoming an entrepreneur in the world of real estate investing. Here’s what motivates me:
- We’re building something that is 100% ours. The hard parts that we go through (the grind, the hustle, the late nights and missed occasions) don’t just end with a pizza party from the boss thanking you for all the late nights finishing a project. Instead, I know they actually contribute to OUR FUTURE in a tangible way. When you have this realization, it creates a positive feedback loop: the more you see it, the more it drives you.
- You know those things that you love? Maybe it’s the creative side, maybe it’s talking to new people or perfecting systems. Whatever it is, YOU get to do them how YOU want to do them! It’s amazing how motivating it can be when we can allow ourselves to do the things we love!
- We’re part of a Community. While there are lonely parts to becoming an entrepreneur, when you find your tribe, it allows you to truly expand, explore and accomplish SO MUCH MORE. These people become so much more than friends – they truly become family.
Wherever you are on this journey, remember to enjoy the ride!
