Earlier this month, I attended a three-day business planning seminar in Austin. And what a treat it was! I was there with 45 of the top real estate minds in the country. The seminar was taught by Alex Charfen who grew his own company from 0 to a $10 Million company in just four years.
The ideas and challenges we were confronted with were very exciting and will help us break through a lot of barriers to reach unbelievable goals.
Breaking Through Self-Defeating Barriers
One of the first exercises we did to break through self-defeating barriers was a board breaking exercise. We were to think of a goal that we have always wanted to achieve but have been afraid to try or have not been ab
le to accomplish.
We wrote that goal on one side of a board and on the other side we wrote what was holding us back or what we feared in taking on that challenge. Well, I strutted up in line ready for my turn. I felt pretty sure it was a piece of cake as I watched all those ahead of me break their boards with little effort.
As I got closer to the front of the line, we witnessed the first casualty. After a few more tries and some psychological counseling, she still couldn’t do it. Alex let her break it with her foot rather than her hand. Although a bit rattled by that display, I was sure I wouldn’t have to go there.
So, I swaggered up to bat and placed my board on the cinder blocks. Phwack!!
Not As Easy As It Seems
Ouch! The board was still intact! You should have seen the look on my face. I felt like the whole world stopped as my dream came tumbling down. With a bit of coaching and everyone cheering me on, I gave it another try. Once again, nothing!
I was totally stunned at this point. I was devastated but, oh-so-determined. There was no way I was going to break that board with my foot. That was for sissies.
Alex was really fired up and he asked me if he could read my goal to the group. I mumbled that this is a ten year old goal. That’s when the heavy-duty coaching and counseling kicked in. After a few minutes of being grilled on why this was so important to me, I was overcome by sheer determination and busted through the board with little effort. The crowd was roaring! I received endless hugs and the high-fives were flying everywhere!
My Goal
To allow Lee and Noel to focus on their philanthropic work by having a fine-tuned, self-sufficient real estate team where all systems are in place and things are running really smoothly by the next conference: December 1, 2012.
My Fear
What held me back was my fear of letting go and surrendering my trust to my team more.
I now recognize that I have unbelievably talented team members who can handle it all and can take me to my goal and beyond. We are going to move mountains in 2012 and we are already on our way!
Lesson Learned
Don’t dwell on what went wrong. Instead, focus on what to do next. Spend your energies on moving forward toward finding the answer. -Dennis Waitley