Strengths & Weakness: Take The Good With...

overcoming Sometimes, when we see a super-successful person, we tend to imagine that he or she has it all together, makes no mistakes and enjoys a relatively worry-free life.

Because I have built a successful business for myself, there are times when people think the same way about me. They visualize me as this stunning, Brad Pitt-like guy who never worries about money, gets treated like a rockstar and has no problems in the world.

Let me tell you... it’s NOT true. Well, except for the stunning Brad Pitt-resemblance, of course. ;)

What’s up, Moguls, Cody Sperber here with a reality check. The truth of this matter is – even the most successful of us have our struggles. Even the smartest of us still make mistakes. Even the most financially savvy of us make stupid business decisions.

We’re human. We’re not perfect.

But, as a real estate investor, there will be times when you need to take on responsibilities that you might not be good at (or maybe you have zero interest in doing). Or, you need to find a skilled and trustworthy person to do them for you. Either way, you need to be equipped to do what’s best for your business, even if you are struggling to do so.

Considering Capabilities

One of the most proactive strategies you can use, as a real estate investor, is to give some serious thought to the things you’re good at and the things you’re not-so-good at. There are 2 reasons why this is a smart tactic:

1. The Good
By focusing on what you’re good at, you can zero in on the strategies that will make you the most money. Are you super creative? Direct mail marketing might be your forte. Are you awesomely outgoing? Networking may be a better area of focus for you.

2. The Bad
When you know which of your skills are somewhat *ahem* lacking, you can develop strategies for addressing those weaknesses... before they become major problems.

My weakness has always been organization. You should have seen my desk at the beginning of my REI career. I mean, it looked like a tornado had whipped through a paper factory. Not pretty.

Establishing Systems

So what can you do to address your weaknesses?

My recommendation is to intentionally create systems that will allow you to either automate or outsource the tasks that you can’t complete in a satisfactory way (on your own).

For instance, I knew that I needed to address my organization problem head-on. So I committed to 30 days (the average length of time it takes to develop a habit) of cleaning and organizing my desk daily. It might sound like a super easy task... but for me, it was HARD.

yoga But I stuck to my guns, kept my desk organized and did a much better job of paying bills on time. Eventually, I had a daily routine that allowed me to stay organized.

Then, I made a step-by-step task list that included details on my daily organization routine and taught my assistant how to take over that work for me.

Note: It’s important to master a system yourself, before outsourcing the work to someone else. It’s still your REI business, and you need to have a strong grasp on your processes before you trust someone else to complete them.

Always Look on the Bright Side

If you feel discouraged about your areas of improvement, don’t let it get you down. Remember – nobody is perfect! Everyone is bad at something. Even those who seem outrageously successful have their bad sides.

Instead of viewing your weaknesses as – well – weaknesses, think of them as opportunities for growth. I know I sound like your 5^th grade teacher here, but hear me out. By adopting a positive attitude, you can think of your less-preferred tasks as challenges to overcome.

And, when all else fails, you can develop a foolproof system of outsourcing or automating those tasks – while still feeling good about your ability to master them.