Aug 21, 2020
From day one, I had always been after freedom and flexibility. There is no greater appeal than time and financial freedom. But when I first got into real estate, it was difficult to identify the best path to success. After some time in the business, I realized the ultimate path to freedom was to become a real estate entrepreneur. First, I had to build my tribe, develop a strategy that played to my strengths, and create a foolproof plan for time and energy management that would take me to the top! This is the business where you can do what you want, when you want, without sacrificing your business or your home life! It is all about building a life you don’t need a vacation from, and it takes a lot of trial and error to get there.
I started with office duties but desperately wanted to bridge into the sales side so I could develop all the necessary skills to become a real estate entrepreneur! But that is not an easy leap to make. Going from a cushy salary to straight commission is mortifying for most people. Even when you are good at sales, there is an unbelievably steep learning curve. Whatever your motivations may be, get after it because nothing could possibly be worse than having never taken your shot at financial freedom at all.
Just to be clear, this isn’t a blind leap of faith. To make a fruitful leap as a real estate entrepreneur, you have to develop a deep understanding of your relationship with money first. We tend to riff our goals off the top of our heads based on what we’ve done before. But your fundamental goals need to come from a realistic understanding of money combined with what’s really in our hearts. When we go to write our goals for the next year, being conscious of our relationship with money will make them inevitable instead of improbable—that is the core place we need to start.
In 2007, Erin Bradley became self-employed in pursuit of “freedom and flexibility.” Unfortunately, she did so with no game plan and no safety net to speak of. By 2008, she was so broke, she had to ride her bicycle to meet a new client as she didn’t have money for gas. When Erin’s card was declined for a small coffee as the client walked through the door, she realized something had to give…
Erin spent the next 3 years studying the habits of highly successful entrepreneurs, and ultimately developed a strategy to promote her value in a way that felt authentic, easy, and FUN! She also started investing in real estate, which now affords her the opportunity to live her dream life, in her dream home. (It’s easier than you might think!)
By 2012, she had gone from broke to 6 figures…and she promptly burned out. Erin had no systems in place to manage the growth and found herself trading her time for money. Pregnant with their second child, she was drowning in life and in business. She tried convincing herself to be “grateful” because they finally had money to pay the bills, but she was ready to throw in the towel altogether.
Luckily, Erin didn’t quit! She sought help, built systems, and started hiring. By 2015, the business had doubled again. Today, their business continues to grow and Erin does much less in order to do much more. She focuses on the essentials and shows others how to do the same!