Today’s REI Classroom Lesson
Greg Reid emphasizes the importance of not giving up and persevering through tough times within real estate investing.
REI Classroom Summary
Going the extra mile and pushing through is what makes us successful. Set a higher standard for yourself and when you run into problems while investing, try coming at it in a different direction until you get the results you desire.
Listen to this REI Classroom Lesson
Real Estate Investing Classroom Show Transcripts:
Mike: Welcome back to the FlipNerd.com REI Classroom where experts from across the real estate investing industry teach you quick lessons to take your business to the next level.
And now, let’s meet today’s expert host.
Greg: Hey, everybody. This is Greg S. Reid right here in San Diego, California. You know, it’s been said that we are a reflection of the people we hang around the most and our income, attitude and lifestyle is the average of the group. In other words, if you hang around winners you become one, too. And that’s why I’m right here with FlipNerd. First topic of the day, Three Feet From Gold.
Mike: This REI Classroom real estate lesson is sponsored by VirtualStaffNow.com.
Greg: Now, I’ve been published in about 56 books, 20 bestsellers, 40 different countries around the world, and one thing keeps coming back down to this topic, Three Feet From Gold. It’s about a gold miner named R.U. Darby who gets gold fever. He goes out west and starts digging and discovers a couple of nuggets. He gets excited and he buries it and goes home to tell his family and friends. They chip in money to buy equipment to pull it out by the truckload and the first ore cart comes out, woohoo. It’s filled with gold. He’s rich. But then the gold ran out.
He kept digging but there was no more gold. Defeated, he walks out of the mine and says, “I quit. I’m done.” He sees a junk man walking by. He says, “Hey, buddy, give me $200 bucks. I’ll sell you this mine and all the equipment. I’m going back home to Maryland.” The junk man, realizing the equipment was worth thousands because the family chipped in, said, “Of course. You’ve got a deal.”
Darby goes home defeated but the junk man goes to an engineer and says, “What happened? This guy hit gold and ran out.” The engineer starts laughing. He goes, “That’s mining 101. Everyone knows that gold runs in a straight line. It’s called the gold vein.” What Darby did is he came in one side and hit the gold and popped back into the dirt. He goes, “Go back to where they discovered treasure, go three feet the opposite direction and you’ll tap back into the vein.
Not only did he pull millions upon millions of dollars out, but that’s what fills Fort Knox today. And the moral is how many times have we or someone we know quit one class short from a degree, or sales or marketing? It seems like the people that persevere and keep going are the ones that we tell the great success stories down the line.
Now, out of all the different interviews I did along this journey through the Napoleon Hill Foundation and the Think and Grow Rich Series, one of them stands true. His name was Evander Holyfield. I asked him, I says, “Evander, what makes you so special? I mean, how did you not quit?” And he looked at me and said, “I have a higher standard.” I go, “What do you mean?” He says, “Well, in sports I showed up early, I left late. I invented exercises. I had a higher standard and I won more championships than anyone else ever will.” And I said, “But didn’t it hurt being in a fight?” He says, “Yeah, it hurts,” he goes, “But when you’re in a fight you don’t focus on the pain. You don’t focus on the blows. As soon as you do you end up on your back knocked out.”
But that’s what people do outside the ring. They focus on gas prices and interest rates and economy and they wonder why they never become a champion. He pulled me in tight as an Adonis of a man missing half an ear bitten off by Mike Tyson, right? I asked him, I says, “What’s it like?” And he says, “You know what the funny thing is? When you’re doing the championship,” he says, “Everyone comes to their feet and they chant your name. They raise your hand in victory and the guy puts a big shining belt around your waist. At that moment and at that second you don’t feel even one of the punches you took along the journey. But the guy in the losing locker room, he’s going to feel every bruise for the rest of their life wishing they had a higher standard.”
The moral is how many times have we quit because fatigue makes cowards of us all? It’s the people that raise their standards, that go that extra mile that truly come out on top. And when you want to say die and throw in the towel, that’s when you kick it in the most. You never know if you could literally be three feet from gold.
Mike: VirtualStaffNow.com is the leading virtual system provider for real estate investors. As busy real estate investors there’s nothing more valuable than our time, and VirtualStaffNow.com not only helps you find the right real estate virtual assistant for your business, they train them on an ongoing basis, manage them daily to make sure they’re staying productive and effective, and in the event they’re not the right fit or need to be replaced, they handle that for you, too. Whether you need one or one hundred virtual assistants for your team, start the process right now at VirtualStaffNow.com.
Please note the views and opinions expressed by the individuals in this program do not necessarily reflect those of FlipNerd.com or any of its partners, advertisers or affiliates. Please consult professionals before making any investment or tax decisions, as real estate investing can be risky.
Are you a member yet of FlipNerd.com, the hottest real estate investing social community online? If not, you can join for free in less than 30 seconds and get access to hundreds of off- market deals, vendors in your market to help you in your business, and you can start networking with thousands of other investors just like you. Get your free account now at FlipNerd.com.
Please check out the Flip Nerd family of real estate investing shows where we host four great ongoing shows at FlipNerd.com/shows or simply search for Flip Nerd in the iTunes Store.
And now, let’s meet today’s expert host.
Greg: Hey, everybody. This is Greg S. Reid right here in San Diego, California. You know, it’s been said that we are a reflection of the people we hang around the most and our income, attitude and lifestyle is the average of the group. In other words, if you hang around winners you become one, too. And that’s why I’m right here with FlipNerd. First topic of the day, Three Feet From Gold.
Mike: This REI Classroom real estate lesson is sponsored by VirtualStaffNow.com.
Greg: Now, I’ve been published in about 56 books, 20 bestsellers, 40 different countries around the world, and one thing keeps coming back down to this topic, Three Feet From Gold. It’s about a gold miner named R.U. Darby who gets gold fever. He goes out west and starts digging and discovers a couple of nuggets. He gets excited and he buries it and goes home to tell his family and friends. They chip in money to buy equipment to pull it out by the truckload and the first ore cart comes out, woohoo. It’s filled with gold. He’s rich. But then the gold ran out.
He kept digging but there was no more gold. Defeated, he walks out of the mine and says, “I quit. I’m done.” He sees a junk man walking by. He says, “Hey, buddy, give me $200 bucks. I’ll sell you this mine and all the equipment. I’m going back home to Maryland.” The junk man, realizing the equipment was worth thousands because the family chipped in, said, “Of course. You’ve got a deal.”
Darby goes home defeated but the junk man goes to an engineer and says, “What happened? This guy hit gold and ran out.” The engineer starts laughing. He goes, “That’s mining 101. Everyone knows that gold runs in a straight line. It’s called the gold vein.” What Darby did is he came in one side and hit the gold and popped back into the dirt. He goes, “Go back to where they discovered treasure, go three feet the opposite direction and you’ll tap back into the vein.
Not only did he pull millions upon millions of dollars out, but that’s what fills Fort Knox today. And the moral is how many times have we or someone we know quit one class short from a degree, or sales or marketing? It seems like the people that persevere and keep going are the ones that we tell the great success stories down the line.
Now, out of all the different interviews I did along this journey through the Napoleon Hill Foundation and the Think and Grow Rich Series, one of them stands true. His name was Evander Holyfield. I asked him, I says, “Evander, what makes you so special? I mean, how did you not quit?” And he looked at me and said, “I have a higher standard.” I go, “What do you mean?” He says, “Well, in sports I showed up early, I left late. I invented exercises. I had a higher standard and I won more championships than anyone else ever will.” And I said, “But didn’t it hurt being in a fight?” He says, “Yeah, it hurts,” he goes, “But when you’re in a fight you don’t focus on the pain. You don’t focus on the blows. As soon as you do you end up on your back knocked out.”
But that’s what people do outside the ring. They focus on gas prices and interest rates and economy and they wonder why they never become a champion. He pulled me in tight as an Adonis of a man missing half an ear bitten off by Mike Tyson, right? I asked him, I says, “What’s it like?” And he says, “You know what the funny thing is? When you’re doing the championship,” he says, “Everyone comes to their feet and they chant your name. They raise your hand in victory and the guy puts a big shining belt around your waist. At that moment and at that second you don’t feel even one of the punches you took along the journey. But the guy in the losing locker room, he’s going to feel every bruise for the rest of their life wishing they had a higher standard.”
The moral is how many times have we quit because fatigue makes cowards of us all? It’s the people that raise their standards, that go that extra mile that truly come out on top. And when you want to say die and throw in the towel, that’s when you kick it in the most. You never know if you could literally be three feet from gold.
Mike: VirtualStaffNow.com is the leading virtual system provider for real estate investors. As busy real estate investors there’s nothing more valuable than our time, and VirtualStaffNow.com not only helps you find the right real estate virtual assistant for your business, they train them on an ongoing basis, manage them daily to make sure they’re staying productive and effective, and in the event they’re not the right fit or need to be replaced, they handle that for you, too. Whether you need one or one hundred virtual assistants for your team, start the process right now at VirtualStaffNow.com.
Please note the views and opinions expressed by the individuals in this program do not necessarily reflect those of FlipNerd.com or any of its partners, advertisers or affiliates. Please consult professionals before making any investment or tax decisions, as real estate investing can be risky.
Are you a member yet of FlipNerd.com, the hottest real estate investing social community online? If not, you can join for free in less than 30 seconds and get access to hundreds of off- market deals, vendors in your market to help you in your business, and you can start networking with thousands of other investors just like you. Get your free account now at FlipNerd.com.
Please check out the Flip Nerd family of real estate investing shows where we host four great ongoing shows at FlipNerd.com/shows or simply search for Flip Nerd in the iTunes Store.
