A lot of us struggled at school. We’re not what they call “book smart”. We might find it difficult to focus, fall behind in class or fail exams. You can slog your way through 13 years of schooling and come out the other end feeling like a bit of a loser.
Many of us who don’t shine in the academic side of school underestimate our ability to succeed in life. This is especially true in property development, where practical skills often outweigh academic performance.
What a lot of people don’t know is that I’m partially dyslexic. Every report card always said “Rob has so much potential but…he won’t concentrate, he doesn’t pay attention, he’s always a distraction in class.” This was the constant feedback all the way through school. I did make it all the way through, but I failed Year 12 English.
If I had to read a textbook to pass a subject, that didn’t work for me. I would be the class disruptor, asking all the stupid questions. I think I’ve got a brain the size of a planet, but I still don’t read.
All of my education comes from experience, from getting in and doing it.
Ask around and I’ll bet you can find plenty of Property Developers who underperformed at school but are flying high now.
Can you be a Developer if you struggled at school?
Yes you can!
For me, once I understand fundamentals and can grasp key concepts, I can really understand how something works. I was good at sciences, or anything that had a black and white answer. If I can understand the logic I can work it out from there.
Asking questions is important. Is there a question that’s too dumb? NO! In fact, asking questions is one of the fastest ways to accelerate your property development learning curve.
My view is you do whatever it takes for you to understand the process.
As I started to move into adulthood I learnt that making my own mistakes wasn’t the most efficient way of doing things. That’s when I looked for Mentors or Coaches who could help me leverage other people’s mistakes.
And that’s how I’ve been able to become a successful Developer, by partnering with the right people. That’s what our Property Developer Network community is all about, sharing the lessons we’ve learnt for the benefit of the whole community. We have Masterminds at every Meetup, so you can go in with your problem and everyone is on hand to offer ideas on how to fix it. You’ll learn about other people’s problems and their answers, giving you a better chance of avoiding those problems in your own projects.
Because so many of our students are actively running deals, you’ll be able to follow their progress by turning up at meetings, asking questions and finding out if that great idea or clever fix they had actually worked.
By learning from the experience of others, what you end up with is growth that is six times faster than if you did it on your own.
Proximity is power. Surround yourself with people that are already doing what you want to do. Whether it’s peer groups, Mentors or Coaches, you want to be close to the people who are either doing or have already done exactly what it is you’re trying to achieve.
The ideal outcome is to get a Mentor who can help you to a particular level, then go get a new Mentor and lift to the next level so you’re constantly growing. After 34 years I still learn every day, it’s a never-ending journey. I call it CANI – Consistent and Never-ending Improvement. Continuous improvement is a key driver of long-term success in property development.
You want progress over perfection. A lot of people think they need to know everything before they start, the reality is you just need to solve the problem that’s right in front of you.
The number one problem is typically figuring out what strategy and it cascades from there.
People say, I don’t know what Development Strategy to pursue, I don’t know where this Strategy works, I don’t know how to become an Area Expert, I don’t know how to fill out my feasibility spreadsheet, I don’t know how to fund the deal, I don’t know how to run it, I don’t know how to spend the cash I make at the end (okay, maybe nobody asks that last question!).
What you need to do is just keep kicking the can down the road. Breaking down complex property development processes into manageable steps is critical for beginners.
Problems are part of the development process. It’s rarely a straight line from a to b. If you confine your worrying to the problem in front of you right now and expose yourself to people who have had that same problem you’ll solve a lot of issues.
Don’t look too far ahead, concentrate on solving the problem right in front of you and see how all that noise disappears. That’s the concept I want everyone to grasp.
You don’t have to know it all. You have to understand the big picture but you only have to worry about the problem that’s in front of you right now.
The people who succeed are the ones who aren’t overwhelmed by the end to end process. They understand the big picture and they just concentrate with tunnel vision on the problem that’s right in front of them.
It’s the same way you approach the problem of how to eat an elephant: one bite at a time.
So ask yourself what’s the one bite I can deal with now, dumb it down to this one problem today. So long as you know where you’re going you can deviate a little off the path and still come back. A GPS works by knowing where you are and knowing exactly where you’re going. You don’t choose a whole suburb, you choose the exact address. You’ve mapped out your five year plan. Then when you’re actually going to execute it, you can measure if you’re going off track, and you can bring yourself back on track easily, the same as a GPS will reroute when you take a wrong turn.
If you don’t know where you’re going, it’s much harder.
With every decision you’re making, ask yourself “Is this taking me towards or away from my goal?” This simple decision-making framework is powerful for property development strategy execution.
For the people who achieve, intelligence has nothing to do with it.
Those who achieve are those who are absolutely determined to make it happen. That generally comes from your why – why are you pursuing development in the first place.
The people who don’t succeed are the people who are already comfortable. The thing that stops a great life is a good life because your comfort level means you’re not willing to put the effort in to move forward.
On the flipside, the people who have no choice, who are out of money, who can’t put food on the table, they’ve got no choice but to succeed. They’re determined and persistent and if you say this is the path to reach your goals, they will follow the path. That’s way more important than intelligence.
You want to be asking yourself not what’s in it for you, but what’s in it for others.
Everyone thinks Property Developers are evil, but in reality we’re the makers of community. It’s our job to understand people’s needs, the dynamics of market forces, the keys to successful communities. It’s our job to put a product out there that people need and want.
If we start to think less about making money and more about meeting a need, that will drive our success as a Developer. Successful property developers focus on solving housing demand and delivering the right product to the market.
Two hundred and twenty years ago we were a one-lot land subdivision and every school, every road, every house that’s been built has been built by a Property Developer who understands the needs of a community and has put a solution in place. Australia is what it is today because of Property Developers. So ask yourself what do people need in your area right now. The true demand in your area will dictate what you will develop and density is not always the answer.
I’m not book smart, I’m street smart.
And I think being able to apply knowledge is way more important than having the knowledge. Knowledge by itself is pointless, knowledge with application starts to give you lessons learnt, and that then becomes wisdom.
Becoming book smart doesn’t get you very far. People who collect courses thinking knowledge is the answer. It’s not, the answer is in the application.
It’s only when you start implementing what you’ve learnt that you understand and truly learn. As you progress, you’ll take more experience into the process and you’ll start to work more efficiently and more cost-effectively.
Theoretical knowledge and real life implementation are light years apart.
So don’t worry if you flunked out of school. You can still be a Property Developer, and a truly successful one at that. If you want to fast-track your learning with real-world application, join our Property Development Formula course.
Many of us who don’t shine in the academic side of school underestimate our ability to succeed in life. This is especially true in property development, where practical skills often outweigh academic performance.
What a lot of people don’t know is that I’m partially dyslexic. Every report card always said “Rob has so much potential but…he won’t concentrate, he doesn’t pay attention, he’s always a distraction in class.” This was the constant feedback all the way through school. I did make it all the way through, but I failed Year 12 English.
If I had to read a textbook to pass a subject, that didn’t work for me. I would be the class disruptor, asking all the stupid questions. I think I’ve got a brain the size of a planet, but I still don’t read.
All of my education comes from experience, from getting in and doing it.
Ask around and I’ll bet you can find plenty of Property Developers who underperformed at school but are flying high now.
Can you be a Developer if you struggled at school?
Yes you can!
For me, once I understand fundamentals and can grasp key concepts, I can really understand how something works. I was good at sciences, or anything that had a black and white answer. If I can understand the logic I can work it out from there.
Asking questions is important. Is there a question that’s too dumb? NO! In fact, asking questions is one of the fastest ways to accelerate your property development learning curve.
My view is you do whatever it takes for you to understand the process.
As I started to move into adulthood I learnt that making my own mistakes wasn’t the most efficient way of doing things. That’s when I looked for Mentors or Coaches who could help me leverage other people’s mistakes.
And that’s how I’ve been able to become a successful Developer, by partnering with the right people. That’s what our Property Developer Network community is all about, sharing the lessons we’ve learnt for the benefit of the whole community. We have Masterminds at every Meetup, so you can go in with your problem and everyone is on hand to offer ideas on how to fix it. You’ll learn about other people’s problems and their answers, giving you a better chance of avoiding those problems in your own projects.
Because so many of our students are actively running deals, you’ll be able to follow their progress by turning up at meetings, asking questions and finding out if that great idea or clever fix they had actually worked.By learning from the experience of others, what you end up with is growth that is six times faster than if you did it on your own.
Proximity is power. Surround yourself with people that are already doing what you want to do. Whether it’s peer groups, Mentors or Coaches, you want to be close to the people who are either doing or have already done exactly what it is you’re trying to achieve.
The ideal outcome is to get a Mentor who can help you to a particular level, then go get a new Mentor and lift to the next level so you’re constantly growing. After 34 years I still learn every day, it’s a never-ending journey. I call it CANI – Consistent and Never-ending Improvement. Continuous improvement is a key driver of long-term success in property development.
You want progress over perfection. A lot of people think they need to know everything before they start, the reality is you just need to solve the problem that’s right in front of you.
The number one problem is typically figuring out what strategy and it cascades from there.
People say, I don’t know what Development Strategy to pursue, I don’t know where this Strategy works, I don’t know how to become an Area Expert, I don’t know how to fill out my feasibility spreadsheet, I don’t know how to fund the deal, I don’t know how to run it, I don’t know how to spend the cash I make at the end (okay, maybe nobody asks that last question!).
What you need to do is just keep kicking the can down the road. Breaking down complex property development processes into manageable steps is critical for beginners.
Problems are part of the development process. It’s rarely a straight line from a to b. If you confine your worrying to the problem in front of you right now and expose yourself to people who have had that same problem you’ll solve a lot of issues.
Don’t look too far ahead, concentrate on solving the problem right in front of you and see how all that noise disappears. That’s the concept I want everyone to grasp.
You don’t have to know it all. You have to understand the big picture but you only have to worry about the problem that’s in front of you right now.
The people who succeed are the ones who aren’t overwhelmed by the end to end process. They understand the big picture and they just concentrate with tunnel vision on the problem that’s right in front of them.
It’s the same way you approach the problem of how to eat an elephant: one bite at a time.
So ask yourself what’s the one bite I can deal with now, dumb it down to this one problem today. So long as you know where you’re going you can deviate a little off the path and still come back. A GPS works by knowing where you are and knowing exactly where you’re going. You don’t choose a whole suburb, you choose the exact address. You’ve mapped out your five year plan. Then when you’re actually going to execute it, you can measure if you’re going off track, and you can bring yourself back on track easily, the same as a GPS will reroute when you take a wrong turn.
If you don’t know where you’re going, it’s much harder.
With every decision you’re making, ask yourself “Is this taking me towards or away from my goal?” This simple decision-making framework is powerful for property development strategy execution.
For the people who achieve, intelligence has nothing to do with it.
Those who achieve are those who are absolutely determined to make it happen. That generally comes from your why – why are you pursuing development in the first place.
The people who don’t succeed are the people who are already comfortable. The thing that stops a great life is a good life because your comfort level means you’re not willing to put the effort in to move forward.On the flipside, the people who have no choice, who are out of money, who can’t put food on the table, they’ve got no choice but to succeed. They’re determined and persistent and if you say this is the path to reach your goals, they will follow the path. That’s way more important than intelligence.
You want to be asking yourself not what’s in it for you, but what’s in it for others.
Everyone thinks Property Developers are evil, but in reality we’re the makers of community. It’s our job to understand people’s needs, the dynamics of market forces, the keys to successful communities. It’s our job to put a product out there that people need and want.
If we start to think less about making money and more about meeting a need, that will drive our success as a Developer. Successful property developers focus on solving housing demand and delivering the right product to the market.
Two hundred and twenty years ago we were a one-lot land subdivision and every school, every road, every house that’s been built has been built by a Property Developer who understands the needs of a community and has put a solution in place. Australia is what it is today because of Property Developers. So ask yourself what do people need in your area right now. The true demand in your area will dictate what you will develop and density is not always the answer.
I’m not book smart, I’m street smart.
And I think being able to apply knowledge is way more important than having the knowledge. Knowledge by itself is pointless, knowledge with application starts to give you lessons learnt, and that then becomes wisdom.
Becoming book smart doesn’t get you very far. People who collect courses thinking knowledge is the answer. It’s not, the answer is in the application.
It’s only when you start implementing what you’ve learnt that you understand and truly learn. As you progress, you’ll take more experience into the process and you’ll start to work more efficiently and more cost-effectively.
Theoretical knowledge and real life implementation are light years apart.
So don’t worry if you flunked out of school. You can still be a Property Developer, and a truly successful one at that. If you want to fast-track your learning with real-world application, join our Property Development Formula course.
