Roger Federer, arguably the best tennis player in the history of the sport, visited the Google campus in Mountain View a few weeks back along with his coach Stefan Edberg (one of the game’s greats in his own right). During that visit, they put on Google Glass and shot a fascinating video that showed a tennis match from the perspective of these two great players. Take a look:
As I was watching that video, an interesting thought crossed my mind. As good as Edberg was in his day, he never reached Roger Federer’s level in terms of skills, trophies won and excellence in general. And yet, Edberg coaches Federer. This isn’t a phenomenon that happens in tennis alone. Every top performer, no matter the field, uses a coach to elevate their “game”. In fact, one could argue that top performers would not reach the same heights without their coaches’ help.
This sounds almost paradoxical. Why is it that a supremely talented and skilled performer needs the mentoring of someone that often does not possess the same capabilities?
The reason is that skills and talents only go so far in the road toward success and excellence. How many times have we seen history repeat itself with naturally gifted athletes that never reach their full potential? Often, talents and gifts are prerequisites for but not guarantees of success. For example, if you are to be the best player in the NBA you must be of a certain size and build. But if you possess that size and build, you’re not necessarily going to be the best player in the NBA.
So what are the missing pieces?
Vision, mental fortitude and the ability to practice simple disciplines.
That’s why Stefan Edberg coaches Roger despite the fact that he may have never been at Roger’s level skill-wise. His vast experience can provide invaluable vision and mental strength in clutch moments. His coach has “seen the movie before” and knows what’s coming up ahead. So he can supply his protege with those simple disciplines that sharpen the top performer and allow him to excel. Furthermore, when the game comes so easy due to natural gifts, it’s easy to take the foot off the gas and coast. A coach can help keep the focus and the intensity on at all times to defeat the mortal enemy of “great”, known as “good enough”.
Real Estate Investing Lesson
Real estate investing is no different.
Look, I’ll be the first to tell you that it takes a talented person to work hard, climb the ladder, lead a fiscally disciplined lifestyle and as a result save the capital to invest for the future. That’s not easy to accomplish so never take it for granted.
But now that you’ve accomplished it, you face some critical choices. Namely, how are you going to employ that hard earned capital to achieve financial freedom and live the life you want to live (not the one you have to live)? Certainly, your talents play a part and demonstrate financial acumen. But like the example above, natural talent is a prerequisite of success but never a guarantee. In real estate investing, success is determined by a few simple (but not easy) factors:
- Do you have a roadmap that shows an overview where you are, where you want to be and the path to get there?
- Do you have the experience to know what makes a good investment you should pursue or a bad one you should avoid?
- Do you have a plan that shows you the exact steps you must execute to reach your goals?
- Do you have the mental strength and disciplines to stick to your plan and avoid jumping from bandwagon to bandwagon?
I don’t know what your answers are to those questions – That’s for you to take an honest assessment, ponder and decide. But I can tell you that in my experience, most long term real estate investors, as talented as they usually are, need help with at least half of those factors. They might have the mental strength and disciplines but not the experience. Or they might have a good grip on their current situation and goals but don’t know how to create a plan that will bridge the gap between where they are and where they want to be. And the main problem is that most of us can’t afford to get this wrong as we aren’t usually given many chances to get it right.
So today, I want to leave you with a quote from one of my favorite authors and speakers that has had a profound effect on my life, Jim Rohn: We could all use a little coaching. When you are playing the game, it’s hard to think of everything.
—
If you would like to know more about how our Blueprint can help you maximize the potential of your talents by providing a clear roadmap to reach your financial goals, contact me or if you are reading this in your email, just hit reply.
Leave a Reply