Today I want to talk about finding your tribe, and why that is so important. First of all, what exactly is your tribe? It’s a group of people or a community that has the same interests as you. The members of your tribe “get you”. They will cheer you on when you succeed, and they will be there when everything goes sideways. Here is one of the most important things of all; they will accept you for who you are.
You might have noticed that I’ve been “missing” for a bit. There is a reason for that. I hosted a 2-day live event here in my hometown on marketing and branding which was a whole lot of fun. Then, I spent 6 glorious days (8 if you count travel days) in Phoenix, Arizona at a conference with my tribe. I was there soaking up all the knowledge others had to share, and let me just say, there was a lot of it.
OK; full disclosure here. The last day was an extra day just for me.
You Always Need to Stay One More Day….
My intention was to have a little rest and relaxation on this final day while looking over all my notes from the conference. My intention was to come back with a solid plan for the next 12 months. You take in a whole lot of information when you spend 5 days with your butt super glued to a chair in a conference room with 1300 other people. It’s important to get that information into some form of an action plan. What I ended up doing on my last day was totally different, but oh so valuable.
I headed outside mid-morning to take in the beautiful weather and to find a little solitude. In a world where we are all so busy. Being able to have that experience was an amazing gift. A little bit later I met up with a friend who also attended the conference. We continued to sit outside all afternoon and did some masterminding. In addition to the real estate side of our businesses, we are both building an online business so we can serve and help more people in our niche. This person is definitely a huge part of my tribe.
Spending the whole day outside in nature is something I haven’t done in a very long time. Your mind expands in that setting and ideas flow freely.
Why I Needed to Spend Time With my Tribe (and Why You do that Too)
If you're an entrepreneur that has a small business, you probably feel isolated at times. Having a tribe that you can connect with makes everything easier.
Successful real estate investors spend a lot of time on marketing, talking to sellers, estimating repairs and looking at properties to have deals in their pipeline.
In addition to that, some of us also spend way too much time in front of a computer screen “creating”. Maybe that’s blog posts, podcasts, freebies for your target audience, or programs and courses. There is the planning and thinking time, and the doing time. The point is that this all takes a lot of time, and sometimes you just need a break.
Friends and Family…
They are another reason you need to get away and spend time with like-minded people or
“your tribe”.
When it comes to the subject of friends and family, we love them. However, most of them probably have no idea what you really do. I will take that thought one step further and say they also probably think you’re a little crazy. They are probably thinking, “Why do you work so hard? After all, you don’t have a JOB with a regular paycheck so what’s the point? And, what time to you actually get to clock out”?
This is exactly why we all need to get away. We need to spend some time with our tribe.
The people at the conference are my tribe. They understand what I do and why I do it, especially when it comes to this crazy thing called online business. Many people in my tribe have been where I am, some are where I want to be, and some feel lost on a regular basis. They’re still trying to figure it all out, and that’s OK.
When you find your tribe, they will be there to support you. They always have your back. So, let me ask you this; who is in your tribe? Do you regularly make time to network with and learn from other investors? I hope the answer is yes. That’s your tribe, and you need them to survive and to thrive in business.
As a creator, I am here to serve other people. In my case that is real estate investors. It’s you and people just like you. At the end of the day, my hope is that I can help you build your business faster in a way that’s easier.
Why You Need to Get Away and Attend Conferences
You need to get away because you will grow your business so much faster than if you try to go it alone. And … it will save your sanity! There really is no downside. I can promise you that.
Maybe this Sounds Like You…
You have an idea stuck in your head, but you have no clue how to put that idea into action.
How many people have ideas taking up space in our brain that if implemented would grow our businesses? What if you could get away for a few days, get clarity and focus on what your next steps need to be? I would call that a game changer.
Or, you’re burned out.
I can tell you from experience that getting away where you have an actual change of scenery has huge benefits. First, it will completely change your mindset. Some of that heaviness currently weighing you down will begin to slip away. You will notice that you start to look for solutions to your problems rather than focusing just on the problems. You’re able to accept new ideas and entertain new ways of doing things. It’s like someone has opened a locked door. That’s the first thing that changes.
Let’s face it; there’s no shortage of information or inspiration around us, but usually it’s the household chores or the soccer practice that we are focusing on. Getting away for even a short time will help you put your daily responsibilities to the side so you can get clarity on where you need to go, the changes you need to make, and the actions you need to take.
Falling Back into Your Old Habits
How do you keep from falling back into your old habits the minute you get home? You come back with a plan.
I took my notes on the plane with me so I could look through them right after the conference. I didn’t want to forget important things. Do I have a complete master plan? Not yet, but I will. I did take immediate action on a couple of things, and that’s the secret. Choose a few things and immediately implement them in your business.
The Compound Effect
If you haven’t read Darren Hardy’s book “The Compound Effect”, I highly recommend you get a copy today. It’s a quick read, and you will understand one concept that is guaranteed to change your life when it’s implemented. Here is a link to the blog post on this book. Just Click Here...
So, what is the compound effect? It’s taking small, consistent steps day after day. Those small steps create a compound effect that results in massing change in your business over time. Here’s an example.
Let's Talk Legos….
Think about building a tower with Legos. You start with a base, then you’re just adding a couple of Legos every day for the next 365 days. Can you see what you will have built in a year? I have no idea why my mind went to Legos since I have never played with those, but you get the point. Small changes implemented over time create massive growth in your real estate business. But it all starts with an idea, a plan and possibly some inspiration from your tribe.
Maybe you’re not getting great results from your marketing? Attend you next REIA meeting and talk to the people there. Do you need to get better at negotiating and getting signed contracts? Attend a next real estate conference. That’s where your tribe is.
What’s the takeaway? Get away and feed your brain even if it’s just for a couple of days. If you can’t get away due to kids or family obligations, arrange to swap kids one day a week with a friend so you can leave your house and go somewhere to work on your business. The library is free and it’s quiet. Here’s the thing to remember; you need a complete change of scenery.
Clockwork
I read another great book while I was traveling called Clockwork by Mike Michalowicz. He also wrote the books “The Pumpkin Plan” and “Profit First” which are all great books.
The tagline of Clockwork is, “Design your business to run itself”.
Imagine that!
To quote the author, “If you’re like most entrepreneurs, you started your business so you could be your own boss, make the money you deserve, and live life on your own terms”.
How may of us have really managed to do that? In reality, not many of us. We are slaves to our business. Clockwork offers a step-by-step path out of this place so many of us find ourselves in. This is another great book I recommend you read. I’ll probably do a summary of this book in the future.
Final Thoughts
If you’re tempted to say:
I don’t have time
I can’t afford to do that
I can’t be away from my business that long
I would challenge you to change your mindset around this belief. There is always a way if you want something bad enough.
Thanks for Listening!
I would really love to hear from you. Please leave a note in the comments section below. And, if you enjoyed this episode, please share it on social media using the social share buttons below.
You can listen and subscribe on Stitcher by clicking the link above.
Thanks again for joining me this week. I’ll see you next time!
If you want to schedule a 1 on 1 call with me to talk about specific strategies for building your brand and creating more effective marketing for your business, you can do that here by clicking this link.
If you're not already subscribed to the blog be sure to do that today so you don’t miss any of the business building tips I have coming your way. I want this year to be your best year ever! And if you enjoyed this article, please share it.
If you're an entrepreneur that has a small business, you probably feel isolated at times. Having a tribe that you can connect with makes everything easier.
