Have you ever felt like you don’t quite fit in?
Everybody around you tries to tell you to do things a certain way. But your own mind tells you to go in the complete opposite direction.
How are you to achieve success when you feel like you’re getting pulled in a dozen different directions?
That’s the position that Jack found himself in before he came to I Love Real Estate (ILRE).
Jack never quite fit into any box that people tried to put him into.
As a kid, he had an entrepreneurial drive like few others. He used to catch and sell rabbits. Then he’d use the money he earned to buy and paint motorbikes, which he’d sell for more money.
He did pretty well for himself as a kid. But once he got to high school, his teachers kept trying to shove him into a box that he just didn’t fit in.
Filled with youthful frustration and rebellion, Jack turned to drinking and drugs at the tender age of 13.
Thus started a pattern of skipping school and dealing with expulsions. Jack even overdosed a couple of times during this period of his life. For all of his entrepreneurial talent, it seemed like he was on the fast track to nowhere.
And it was all because he didn’t fit into the box that society made for him.
The fateful day came thanks to Jack’s mother.
While reading the paper, she came across an ad for an I Love Real Estate seminar. Tossing the paper to Jack, she said: “Take a look at that. You might learn how to earn some money.”
Jack read the ad and signed up for the one-day seminar.
And it was during this event that he received the message that he’d always searched for:
“You can do whatever you want in life.”
That was the first time anybody ever told him that. In a flash of inspiration, Jack saw that he didn’t need to do the whole high school thing to be a success in life.
He just needed to follow his passion and work hard to make it a reality.
He went cold turkey that very day.
With the entrepreneurial spark back, Jack threw himself into learning about property development.
Jack’s first deal was for a property that cost him just over $69,000. He sold his motorbike to afford the deposit and immediately took on a tenant at $140 per week.
He dropped that to $110 per week when he took on a new tenant who put a lot of work into the property herself. But now, it’s generating a neutral cash flow and has gone up to $90,000 in value.
It’s an imperfect start. However, it showed Jack just how much potential property has.
Unfortunately, he started running into issues when he tried to move up a level. With little serviceability to speak of, Jack just couldn’t get a loan. He tried to explore some joint venture opportunities but he struggled to get them off the ground.
That’s when he relapsed. Jack started to drink and smoke weed again. Jack got into a cycle of fighting and dealing drugs that almost led to him losing everything.
He finally realised that he needed to escape the cycle he’d found himself in. So, he locked himself in his room for two months so he could go cold turkey for the second time.
That’s when he started studying the ILRE materials again.
In Jack’s case, a mindset change was the key to finding more success. He needed to escape his bad patterns and stop feeling jealous of other developers.
Jack focused on changing how he viewed the world and the investment game. And wouldn’t you just know it…the perfect deal came along soon after.
Working with a joint venture partner, Jack took control of a property for $750,000. He’s currently working on subdividing that property into a boarding house.
He estimates that the value will be $850,000 when he’s finished. And that’s not counting the $20,000 in rental income the property will generate per year.
It’s been a long road for Jack.
But today, he’s working as a property developer and has all of the knowledge that he needs to succeed. He has his first major deal set up and he’s currently exploring other opportunities.
Most importantly, he’s created a positive transformation in his life that will serve him well in the future.
These are the three lessons you can learn from this young man’s story.
Jack’s problems started because life tried to push him into a box that he didn’t fit into.
The simple fact is that every one of us has something different to offer to the world. In Jack’s case, he needed to escape the box to find out just how much potential he had.
The lesson here is that you should never allow someone to force you down a particular path in life.
Many of Jack’s old friends ended up in jail or passed away long before their time.
Jack could have been one of those tragedies if he’d stuck around.
The bad influences in your life will only drag you down with them. To succeed as an investor, you have to surround yourself with positive people who want to help.
After his early stumbles, Jack found himself blaming everybody but himself for not finding a deal. He even started to resent members of the ILRE community.
It was only after changing his mindset that he finally found his first major deal.
How you think affects what you do. Never forget that mindset is as important as financial clout, especially in the early days of your investing journey.
There are thousands of people out there who’ve experienced what Jack’s experienced and never made it.
He’s a truly special exception. And he’s living proof that with the right attitude, and plenty of help, you can overcome any situation.
No matter your circumstances, you can succeed as an investor. Follow Jack’s example and start to create the life you’ve always wanted to lead today.
