People ask me all the time: "How do you build a business that runs on its own?"
That's a big question and it requires a BIG answer... and I'll spend a lot of time on this blog telling you parts of the answer.
But in today's blog post, I want to talk about a fundamental concept that I think will "click" as soon as you read it.
It's a mindset that completely changed how I invest in real estate and it allowed me to become a virtual real estate investor and travel the world. (By the way, here's a beach in Maui where I've spent a lot of time relaxing).
Before I reveal the mindset to you, I'd like you to answer this question for yourself: Since you only have a limited amount of time in any given day to do real estate investing, how do you spend your time?
Some people will read over contracts.
Some people will agonize over the perfect lettering on a bandit sign.
Some people will write a blog post.
Some people will look at their financials to make sure the numbers are balancing.
Some will talk to tire kickers ("Tire kickers" are people who talk and research and think… but never actually act. You will meet a lot of tire kickers on your journey to the top).
My advice is...
Change your mindset, change your results...
The secret to transforming your business is to work on your business instead of in your business.
Get it? Re read that sentence above. You should always work on making your business so it runs without you instead of working on the little bits and pieces in your business that constantly require your attention. (Yes, from time to time some detailed thing will come up that will require your attention but if you focus on working on your business instead of in it, you'll create a business that can run itself.)
By focusing on your business instead of in your business, a few interesting things will happen:
- You'll feel like you're losing control at first (but in reality, you're only giving up control of the less important stuff and you're gaining control of the bigger picture)
- You'll find that you have way more time to do the things that matter in your business
- You can use that extra time to do things that you like (such as traveling the world)
If this sounds good to you, believe me, it IS good. It's the only way an "explosively successful" business should be run. I say "explosively successful" because you'll have lots of extra time to build your business even bigger. (More on that in a moment).
The burning question: Hey DM, How do I make my business run without me?
In a previous blog post I promised to tell you what systems to set up to help you run your business. Here's what I do:
- I use a variety of methods to capture people's attention and invite them to join one of my lists (sellers, rent-to-own buyers, or investors). These methods might include things like signs or websites or advertisements. A lot of this stuff I develop once (with the help of a freelancer who specializes in that particular area) and then I get my assistant to implement it. So there was a little bit of work the first time to put it altogether and afterwards, it's just a matter of emailing it to my assistant. If you want to find an assistant, check out Guru.com – it's a site where you can post projects and people submit competitive bids to work with you. (By the way, I'm writing a blog post on how to hire the perfect assistant. It's coming soon).
- Once I've attracted the attention of people, I invite them to act, usually by joining an email list via a website (something called a "squeeze page", which I'll tell you more about in a future blog post). This is easy to set up once with the help of a freelancer and it can be used over and over in many different situations if I ever need to "repurpose" it. You don’t even have to hire a freelancer if you don't want to. Go check out www.virtualrealestatewebsites.com, which has everything set up for you already!
- After they have joined my list, I use email autoresponders (pre-written, pre-scheduled emails) to maintain the relationship with them. Again, this is easy to set up once using an email service. From then on, it runs itself. For great autoresponders, I like to use this email/autoresponder service.
- I've also put together a team of people who take care of some of the day-to-day details of my business. For example, I have a web guy who keeps things running and clickable. I have people who watch for deals and work with sellers (better known as bird dogs). To help keep these people working without my constant attention, they have a clear description of what they need to do and, when appropriate, they have scripts and checklists to help them know exactly what to do and when to do it. In an upcoming blog post, I'll reveal where I find my team members and how to become a great "boss" without spending all of your time watching over their shoulders, I hate... hate, HATE micromanaging! I want to share the idea and I want to have a smarter team around me to implement (I learned a long time ago that you don't have to control everything to be successful... stay tuned on a blog post about micromanaging, control, and expectations).
There are more advanced systems, too…
I've listed the main systems I use in my business to help me become a virtual real estate investor. But these aren't the only systems you'll use. In future blog posts, I'll reveal more time-saving tools and systems to help you succeed.
But the first thing you should do is set up the four systems I've just described above.
- Capture people's attention with bandit signs and ads
- Send them to a squeeze page
- Use autoresponders to build relationships with your list
- Work with a team who can take care of the details for you
Setting up just a few systems and automating as much as possible so you don't have to dot every "i" or cross every "t" yourself will give you a HUGE advantage. The advantage is, it will give you time to grow your business even more and then it will give you time to become a virtual real estate investors like The DM.
The biggest thing I learned growing my business this way was to let small problems happen and to accept that "good enough is good enough". (More on this in a future blog post!)
Your Virtual Friend and Mentor,
Mark Evans DM,DN