The Power of Thinking Differently
Welcome back to this month's newsletter! I'm really excited for this one because we are going to be diving deep into your mindset and how the way you think, could be holding you back...
Upbringing
I wanted to think a little differently today. Dive into the way that you were taught to live life, the way you walk, talk, breathe, perceive conversations with people. What if there's a better way or just a different perspective on these things that we've never thought of before? Just like how we grow up with our parents telling us that we should always brush our teeth, clean our room, study, get a good job, and work up the corporate ladder.
That's just the way that either your parents or America has tried to teach you for your whole life, but as most of you know, there's a better way. That's why you're reading this newsletter right now. That's why you're investing in real estate. That's why you're broadening your horizons, expanding your reach, thinking bigger, thinking better for your family, for your life, for your future, for your future generations. So what's the true purpose behind "thinking differently?" What do I really mean when I say that?
Blackberry vs Apple
You already have a little bit of the mindset of thinking differently. You're not like most people. You're an investor, an entrepreneur. You're diving deep into the idea of either investing in real estate, or investing in a different asset class, or doubling your money, or making your money work for you, or truly having passive income or whatever it is. You're already thinking differently, and I'm just here to grow that seed of curiosity into something big.
Now, I don't know how many of you guys remember the Blackberry, but the Blackberry was around probably 10-15 years ago, and it was a massive company back then. They probably had over 40-50% of the market share in the phone industry. It is the one and only phone that I know of that's ever actually had a mini-keyboard on the outside of the phone.
It was almost like a mini tablet before tablets were really a thing, and they were doing phenomenal. They were a $70-$80 billion company, but the CEO never really wanted to expand. He didn't want to create a tablet or change the way his blackberry was designed, even though he knew that Apple was considering creating a phone that might have a touch screen open it. He didn't want to do that. He didn't want to make the Blackberry different. He didn't want to create a new phone around some similar idea of the Blackberry. He didn't want to make it better because he already thought that it was the best that it could be. And that, in and of itself, was his downfall. I mean, they went from having half the market share, $70-$80 billion to nothing. All the way down to absolutely nothing.
Meanwhile, Apple was continuing to think differently. Now, Steve Jobs was actually against the whole idea of creating a phone. He really wanted to stick with the computer side of things. He did not want to change the business, but it was the people that he surrounded himself with that actually encouraged him to do so.
They started researching and split testing different things, and basically figured out that there could possibly be a huge untapped potential in the market. A huge untapped market of consumers that were wanting a mini computer, in their hands, a phone that they can do emails and had a touch screen instead of having just the keyboard. Maybe it was going to look a little different or it was going to feel a little different, but it was going to be designed for the everyday user.
When they started thinking that, well, maybe folks want a smaller version of a computer. Maybe they want more access to things. Maybe they want it to be handheld. Maybe they want to be able to access it on the go. That's when he really started thinking differently and Apple is now the #1 electronic brand on the market. Now, phones have become much more than just phones. When was the last time you've used your phone to actually call someone rather than texting them or sending emails or going through social media or looking at YouTube videos or taking photos or taking videos or all the gazillions of different things you can do on your phone now? His new way of thinking has become reality... How powerful is that? So I want to encourage you today, that you can think differently too. Steve Jobs actually didn't want to think differently at first. He was fine with staying a computer company. But, it was the people he surrounded himself with that made all the difference.
How do I Start Thinking Differently?
Start thinking differently in your business. Maybe you're doing marketing one specific way right now, but maybe it's not really working. Maybe you're not seeing the level of success that you want. Maybe once you start thinking differently, you'll see some positive changes. Maybe you start doing more videos, less videos, more emails, less emails. Maybe you find a different list. Maybe you have a completely different way of approaching conversations with people, or approaching education, or posting on social media.
Maybe you're marketing direct to sellers and you're really not doing very well right now. You're not getting a lot of deals, or you are getting deals, but it's not the level of deals that you've always wanted to get. Maybe you need to start thinking differently. Maybe you need to start going to those direct sellers in a little different way. Or forget the direct to sellers entirely and start going to brokers. Start having them bring you deals and have them do all the work of creating the relationships and bringing you these amazing deals while you spend your time doing something else.
Or maybe you're even doing great! Maybe you're doing absolutely phenomenal at one thing, like Blackberry was where they had $80 billion of the market share on this one particular phone, and you're thinking, why would I change anything? This is going great for me and it's working. But things are always changing. Maybe you need to incorporate new technology. Maybe you need to get rid of the technology that you have. Maybe you are using old tech that's just not working for you. Maybe you're not doing your email campaigns like you need to, or you're doing too many email campaigns. Maybe you need to take that back.
There's so many different ways of thinking and doing out there, and all you have to do is think about what that looks like for you in your life.
Now, I'm not telling you that you need to reinvent the wheel. Most everything in real estate has already been done before, so don't need to do anything ridiculously crazy, but it's entirely up to you.
Maybe you'll be the next Steve Jobs and you'll create this amazing technology or amazing whatever, that people can use inside of real estate investing.
It's also ver important to start thinking differently in your personal life, with your spouse, with your kids. Instead of always having some kind of preconceived notion about a conversation or an argument you're having with someone, where you've already decided that you are right and this other person is wrong, maybe you should start approaching the conversation from more of a scientific based approach where instead of already having an answer before doing any research, you are letting the research guide your answer.
Just approach it from a completely open perspective of what is this person saying? What did really happen in this particular scenario? Why are we really arguing right now? What is the true purpose behind this? And maybe what they're actually saying is not even what you heard or how you're interpreting it, maybe the interpretations are off.
Summary
I want to really encourage you guys this week, and for the rest of your lives, to be trying to think a little bit differently in your life. See how much that'll really change, not only your perspective, your business, and your personal life, but everything else in-between!
It could potentially be the difference between tremendous success or catastrophic failure... I hope I've encouraged you today and I can't wait to see what you guys come up with, with your new way of thinking!
Mobile, AL New Market Data
Business: 1. Southeast Beach Express, a scheduled air service connecting Baldwin County with Atlanta, Nashville and Baton Rouge, La., will begin flights on June 3. Flights will operate Thursday through Sunday on 30-seat executive jets. According to a press release, Southeast Beach Express features all the amenities of private air, including executive terminal departures and arrivals, hassle-free security screenings, 15-minute pre-boarding showtimes and no-cost luggage. Flights to Atlanta, Nashville, and Baton Rouge will depart from Gulf Air Center at Jack Edwards National Airport in Gulf Shores, with competitive, round-trip fares inclusive of all taxes and fees. Flight time to each destination is around one hour. Southeast Beach Express is operated by Ultimate Jetcharters, an industry-ranked, FAA-approved public charter operator that has been operating its own direct, scheduled routes for over a decade. 2. P.S. Taco Co. is opening a new location at Rangeline Crossing, a new retail strip center development coming to Mobile. The popular Mobile-founded taco company is leasing 1,800 square feet of restaurant space located at 5000 Rangeline Crossing Drive and is expected to open in the fall of this year. This marks its fourth Alabama location, with restaurants currently operating in Foley and Saraland and another opening soon on Cottage Hill Road in Mobile. 3. Mobile’s first flying lunch is one step closer to reality after Deuce Drone received Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) approval to begin drone delivery from Legacy Village to BB&T Financial Center near the Interstate 65 service road. Deuce Drones plans to use the deliveries from Legacy Village restaurants to customers at BB&T to begin working out the process of drone delivery. The FAA recently granted Deuce Drone approval to conduct Operations Over People in compliance with the administration’s recent Part 107 rule enhancements. The new regulations eliminate the need for a waiver to operate over people. This will enable the company to rapidly expand same-day drone delivery.
“We’re thrilled about the FAA’s changes to rule 107 and receiving our compliance license,” Deuce Drones CEO Rhett Ross said. “Being able to conduct FAA-compliant operations over people affords a number of promising business opportunities and provides a path to monetizing metropolitan delivery services. This marks a truly significant milestone in Deuce Drone’s growth trajectory.”
Deuce Drone is developing technology and services to provide last-mile delivery for brick-and-mortar retailers by enabling drone shipment from existing stores. This will allow the use of drones to transform retail stores into “customer fulfillment centers,” which will allow them to compete with e-commerce companies.
4. Mobile’s homegrown chain Shoe Station announced it is hiring as many as 150 employees in the five Southeastern states where it has locations due to increased sales in stores and online. Shoe Station has 21 stores in Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Mississippi and Louisiana and hiring is underway for full- and part-time employees.
“Business has picked up in the past few months, and we are hiring in anticipation of a busy summer season,” Shoe Station President Brent Barkin said. “Our buyers purchased tens of thousands of pairs of the latest styles of sandals, shoes and accessories for women, men and children, and now the cartons are arriving. It’s an exciting time to explore different opportunities at a growing company that often promotes from within.”
Factors driving business include pent-up demand from COVID, changing fashions and government stimulus checks. 5. Midtown will have new options for getting in shape and getting caffeinated as Pure Barre and Nova Market are taking up residence in the Shoppes at Midtown. Lewis H. Golden of Hamilton & Company recently represented the property owner in the leasing of 1,600 feet of space to Pure Barre, which will be relocating to the newly constructed development from their current space in Spring Hill. Nova Market also plans to open a coffee and one-stop-shop market in the development. “I am incredibly grateful and excited to bring the proven results of the Pure Barre technique to Midtown,” owner Laura Hails Taliancich said. “Our team is ready to provide top-notch classes as we continue to cultivate an empowering and supportive environment for our clients. We look forward to plugging into Midtown and serving the community.” The Shoppes at Midtown is located on Old Shell Road next to the Dew Drop Inn and features 24 Class A lofts and 8,250 square feet of ground-floor restaurant and retail space. It was developed by Crescent Construction & Development Inc. in partnership with DBS Corp. and Hamilton & Co.
6. C Spire Fiber is constructing ultra-fast, fiber-based gigabit internet access and related services in the unincorporated area of Mobile County, which is the latest of the firm’s expansion into Alabama.
Mississippi-based C Spire started construction on the next-generation technology last month in 22 “fiberhoods” with plans to provide access to thousands of homes in the unincorporated area of the county over the next several months. Service should be available by summer, according to the company.
Mobile County will join areas like Jasper, Trussville and Helena, which already have been outfitted with high-speed broadband. Others in line for the upgrade are Northport, Pelham and Tuscaloosa. Mobile’s unincorporated areas contain a population of nearly 179,000 people.
These expansions are part of C Spire’s announcement at the beginning of the year to invest $1 billion deploying fiber broadband and network enhancements to develop higher internet speeds for customers. Of that, about $500 million will be spent in Alabama over the next five years, according to the company.
“High-speed, all-fiber broadband internet service can be a game-changer for Mobile County and other Alabama communities,” said Ashley Phillips, general manager of C Spire Home. “Our ability to provide symmetric speeds immediately solves real-world challenges associated with interactive learning, remote work and telehealth applications. That’s good news as our FiberFast initiative continues.”
C Spire is also actively gauging interest from other Alabama communities and towns seeking more reliable and faster broadband internet. Currently, Alabama ranks 38th nationally in broadband access, and state leaders have made improving that a priority through state funding and the creation of the Alabama Rural Broadband Coalition. The coalition is a group of community, business and government leaders dedicated to job creation, economic development and business growth.
Summary That's all I've got for you guys today! Don't forget to check out our most recent deal & start thinking differently! Godbless!