Go All In!

Becoming successful in today’s marketplace is no easy path. With all the distractions we are now faced with, it can be one of the most difficult processes to go through. Many are fearful of putting everything on the line because if they are unsuccessful then they can potentially lose everything. The phrase “go all in” is used quite commonly in the entrepreneurial space due to having everything on the line, with your back against the wall with no other option but to succeed. It doesn’t always have to be like this as you can make sure you know as much as you can before committing your whole life to one career or business idea. The key here, is to execute as many things as possible to see what works for you. It is good to get this stage of your career or business ventures out of the way early so you can figure out what works for you.

The more experience I got out of working in different industries, the more I felt comfortable about moving forward in my chosen field. I’ve had and still have business interests in many various industries as I wanted to try and diversify my experience to see what worked for me. From a nightclub to a medical clinic, to retail stores to property, I wanted to try them all to see which one was going to be the right fit for me. Eventually property was my calling, however I still own other businesses with a full time team behind them all. Investing in businesses early taught me to test the waters and not only see which one would perform the best, but also make me realise which one I enjoyed the most. There were so many ups and downs with many of my ventures but it all contributed to my decision to go all in with property. While the other business performed well, I found my true passion in pursuing property full-time and could see myself helping others on the same journey as me. Because I can see myself doing this long-term, I have now committed myself 100% to this area of expertise.

Too many people jump from one thing to another chasing money or not giving the one idea enough time to grow and perform. I have a business that I have held for over four years and have never taken a dollar return on, as I can see the bigger picture of how it will return in the future. Sometimes you know in your gut if an idea is going to eventuate to nothing or is going to blow up and provide you with a healthy return. Things that can give you a negative gut feeling of progressing could be due to a bad business partnership, poorly executed product or service or trends coming and going out of fashion. There are many factors that will be out of your control that can affect your decision to stay on course or not, however one thing you must always keep in mind is all good things take time, and the more you push hard at something, the better you will become. There is no such thing as an overnight success.

Another common mistake some people will make is that they will diversify so much, and they spread themselves so thin that they don’t become an expert at anything. These types of people take on too much and eventually become average at what they are doing. I used to be guilty of this, where I would take on too many different things and it gradually stunted my progress in business. My business advisors told me at one stage to simplify my portfolio as much as possible and to concentrate on my strengths. I compare this to training in the gym. Let’s say you want to build core strength through the bottom half of your body. For me, barbell squats with heavy weight performed correctly is hands down one of the best exercises that I can do. But what many people do, is train only a few sets of light squats with poor form, then go over to the leg press, then go to lunges, then to leg extensions and so on. What happens is that they never become good at the one exercise. What I do when training legs is that I spend my whole workout at the squat rack. I will work on my technique, spend time performing perfect repetitions and document my progress. Eventually I became an expert at the exercise and interestingly enough, it has had a very positive impact on my core strength and physique. This analogy is so closely aligned to the world of business. Find out what is the most effective and impactful method for you is, stick to it and become a master at it.

Things aren’t always going to be so clear for you to know what your calling is. Going all in too early can potentially have the reverse effect on you which may lead to regret. The key is, is to keep trying new things until you find that true purpose you have been searching for. The worst thing you can do is to do nothing at all. If you keep executing, then you are gaining more experience and more doors will start opening for you. When the right door opens, then you will just know, and when you know, GO ALL IN!