This article was originally posted on AndyShaw.com, and refers to his book, Money for Nothing and Your Property for Free:
3 Mind Mistakes Would-Be Property Investors Make and How to Avoid Them
If you’ve read Andy’s book cover to cover, made your notes, and then read it again and STILL haven’t acted, then you’re probably making one of the three biggest “mind mistakes” you can make.
But there’s hope! Your mind mistakes can become your mind magic, by following the principles outlined below.
Mind Mistake No 1: Believing Market “Experts”
Everybody out there (apart from Andy) seems to be saying it’s a bad time to buy property. You’ve probably heard or read all these:
“The world financial market is going to crash completely.”
“Keep your assets liquid.”
“I told you so. I’ve predicted this crash for years.”
“I’m sorry for you, you bought property and now its going down in value.”
“You’ll be in negative equity before the year’s out.”
“You’ll never get a mortgage.”
“You’ll lose your money.”
And so on.
Maybe you’ve even said one of them yourself! That’s when it becomes a problem. When you start believing these so-called experts. It’s hard withstanding all this onslaught from others and particularly when it is from your own mind.
But first the facts: what these “experts” say is IRRELEVANT to whether you buy or not. What is relevant is your knowledge and research. As Andy makes clear, in a downturn, it’s not a good time to buy – it’s a GREAT time to buy! There’s likely to be more opportunities, more people selling because they’re afraid, more leeway for doing deals.
You buying houses should not be determined by these “experts”. So forget them, apply Andy’s principles and specific actions, and buy when the numbers add up.
But what if you’re not doing that? What if you’re still having thoughts like the ones above? If you want to break free of them and take action at this time of amazing opportunity, then you need to replace these thoughts with others such as:
“I know what I’m doing and where I’m going.”
“I’m in this for the long term and that’s fine by me.”
“I can act on my own well-researched advice; I don’t need to listen to others.”
“I’m willing to take a well-informed risk.”
“I can find a mortgage deal that works for me if I really want to.”
Every time you notice you’re saying or thinking something that goes against what you really want to do, then replace it with a sentence that counteracts the negativity, and keep your mind focused on these positive statements, what I call Rich Thoughts. This is how the mind mistakes become mind magic. You use the actual negative thoughts that you notice by consciously turning them around. Make your plans, do your research, and take action, both outwardly in the world and inwardly in your mind. Replace the negative thoughts with your own positive ones. Don’t wait for someone else’s thoughts to make it possible for you. You, and only you, can do this. So start now and keep doing it. Be persistent. This may sound too simple, “too good to be true!” but have you tried it? Positive thinking is widely misunderstood. When you persistently use it in this way, as a counterbalance to your negative thoughts, it is immensely effective.
Mind Mistake No 2: Thinking ‘I can’t ……………………..’
Buy a house
Find a mortgage
Find a BMV
Get the money together
You fill in the dots.
Who said you can’t? And why do you let it affect you anyway?
I’ll tell you, you were probably told from the very beginning of your childhood things like, “You can’t do that; it’s not OK; don’t do that; you’re not allowed; you’re not to; you just can’t!”
That’s how everyone learns that “they can’t”. Then, because you’ve grown up hearing this from the authority figures in your life, you believe it and act as if it’s true. Why do you think only a few percent of people are successful? Because all the others have not only believed they can’t, but have acted on that belief.
Guess what? It’s not true! It really is not true that you can’t. But, reading this, if you really think that you have particular circumstances that dictate that you can’t, then you’ll find reasons to justify your non-action all the time. Note how you respond to the following:
I can find a BMV house
I can find a BMV house in my area
I can easily find a BMV house in my area!
I can get a mortgage on it that works for me
I can get the money together
I can buy a BMV in my area, with the right mortgage, easily let it, and make money!
If you have any answer to these statements other than “yes I can’, then you’re simply buying in to what you’ve been told from years ago.
But you have a choice now. YOU CAN CHOOSE to carry on believing these thoughts from the past, or you can choose to think new and different ones that will support you in taking new and different actions and therefore getting new and different results. Take the Rich Thoughts above and then use the following like a mantra, repeating it over and over:
I can …
I will…
I do….
I am…
I can buy a BMV house in my area
I will buy a BMV house in my area
I do buy a BMV house in my area
I am buying a BMV house in my area
These statements repeated often will put your mind into the state it needs to be in to suddenly start noticing the BMV opportunities right under your nose. And you will be amazed at what you can see now that was there all the time, except that your mistaken mind had hidden it from you.
Mind Mistake No 3: Believing successful people are better than you are
This is probably the one mind mistake that affects most people. You can spot it if you catch yourself thinking things like:
‘I can’t do what they’ve done because they…’
‘They’ve just been lucky’
‘Well they started off with some money, so I won’t be able to do it’
‘It’s not a level playing field because they had an advantage to start with’
‘I’m not clever enough/good enough/wise enough to do this’
or even
‘Well, Andy had a good business to start with, so he’d already proved he could be successful. It’s not the same for me, I’ve never even been self-employed let alone run a business; AND he had money to start with. So I won’t be able to do what he’s done…’ Blah blah blah.
Nobody is ‘better’ than you are; of course you’re not any ‘less’ than anyone else is. But other people’s behaviour is sometimes more effective, more efficient, more informed than yours. So what can you do?
Learn from those who are being successful!
That’s why it’s so important to look at what successful people do and be willing to adapt your methods of working to ones that have been proven to work.
But being willing to adapt is absolutely crucial. And if you have ideas such as ‘I’m not good enough’ (which is what the above ideas all translate into) then you’ll have to be willing to let them go in order to be able to change your behaviour from ineffective to effective and successful.
The old ideas of not being good enough are just that, old ideas. Most of us have been fed them. Think back to your school days. There was only one person first in the class and the chances are 30 to 1 that it wasn’t you! So the other 29 were fed the idea that they were not as good as the top dog! What rubbish! In that system maybe we didn’t add up as quick, or spell as well, or run as fast, or whatever …… you get the picture. The message was that we are less than, and most of us end up believing this. But it simply isn’t true, it’s just the product of a poor system that let you down. You don’t have to carry this on forever through your life (and maybe hand it on to your kids!). You can start changing your ideas about it right now.
Begin by going to a mirror and saying ‘I am successful’ to yourself a few times. Then make a list of all the ways in which you are successful in your life. They will be there if you look for them! It may be that you’ve managed to keep a bank account open and in the black for 20 years; or that you’ve brought up some wonderful children; or that you fundraised a lot of money for your favourite charity. Just list your successes.
Then choose to see that you are good enough to do what you want to do, and that to get there you’re willing to listen, learn and apply from those who have taken the route to success before you.
Click on this link RichThinkersProperty to sign up for my free 25 page report on 7 Steps to Thinking Rich, which will introduce you to the mindset you need for buying property. Or call/email me about personalized coaching by phone, either one to one, or in a coaching circle, where I can guide you step by step through the mental game of house buying!
I have used the principles I write about here in RichThinkers to bring about all kinds of things in my life, including running a successful counselling practice and health clinic business. Coming from a place of inspiration has enabled me to bring meaning and magic into all that I do, and my background in psychotherapy and counselling, combined with practical business skills, means I am uniquely positioned to help you in both the inner and the outer levels of success. (more…)
3 Mind Mistakes Would-Be Property Investors Make and How to Avoid Them
This article was originally posted on AndyShaw.com, and refers to his book, Money for Nothing and Your Property for Free:
3 Mind Mistakes Would-Be Property Investors Make and How to Avoid Them
If you’ve read Andy’s book cover to cover, made your notes, and then read it again and STILL haven’t acted, then you’re probably making one of the three biggest “mind mistakes” you can make.
But there’s hope! Your mind mistakes can become your mind magic, by following the principles outlined below.
Mind Mistake No 1: Believing Market “Experts”
Everybody out there (apart from Andy) seems to be saying it’s a bad time to buy property. You’ve probably heard or read all these:
“The world financial market is going to crash completely.”
“Keep your assets liquid.”
“I told you so. I’ve predicted this crash for years.”
“I’m sorry for you, you bought property and now its going down in value.”
“You’ll be in negative equity before the year’s out.”
“You’ll never get a mortgage.”
“You’ll lose your money.”
And so on.
Maybe you’ve even said one of them yourself! That’s when it becomes a problem. When you start believing these so-called experts. It’s hard withstanding all this onslaught from others and particularly when it is from your own mind.
But first the facts: what these “experts” say is IRRELEVANT to whether you buy or not. What is relevant is your knowledge and research. As Andy makes clear, in a downturn, it’s not a good time to buy – it’s a GREAT time to buy! There’s likely to be more opportunities, more people selling because they’re afraid, more leeway for doing deals.
You buying houses should not be determined by these “experts”. So forget them, apply Andy’s principles and specific actions, and buy when the numbers add up.
But what if you’re not doing that? What if you’re still having thoughts like the ones above? If you want to break free of them and take action at this time of amazing opportunity, then you need to replace these thoughts with others such as:
“I know what I’m doing and where I’m going.”
“I’m in this for the long term and that’s fine by me.”
“I can act on my own well-researched advice; I don’t need to listen to others.”
“I’m willing to take a well-informed risk.”
“I can find a mortgage deal that works for me if I really want to.”
Every time you notice you’re saying or thinking something that goes against what you really want to do, then replace it with a sentence that counteracts the negativity, and keep your mind focused on these positive statements, what I call Rich Thoughts. This is how the mind mistakes become mind magic. You use the actual negative thoughts that you notice by consciously turning them around. Make your plans, do your research, and take action, both outwardly in the world and inwardly in your mind. Replace the negative thoughts with your own positive ones. Don’t wait for someone else’s thoughts to make it possible for you. You, and only you, can do this. So start now and keep doing it. Be persistent. This may sound too simple, “too good to be true!” but have you tried it? Positive thinking is widely misunderstood. When you persistently use it in this way, as a counterbalance to your negative thoughts, it is immensely effective.
Mind Mistake No 2: Thinking ‘I can’t ……………………..’
Buy a house
Find a mortgage
Find a BMV
Get the money together
You fill in the dots.
Who said you can’t? And why do you let it affect you anyway?
I’ll tell you, you were probably told from the very beginning of your childhood things like, “You can’t do that; it’s not OK; don’t do that; you’re not allowed; you’re not to; you just can’t!”
That’s how everyone learns that “they can’t”. Then, because you’ve grown up hearing this from the authority figures in your life, you believe it and act as if it’s true. Why do you think only a few percent of people are successful? Because all the others have not only believed they can’t, but have acted on that belief.
Guess what? It’s not true! It really is not true that you can’t. But, reading this, if you really think that you have particular circumstances that dictate that you can’t, then you’ll find reasons to justify your non-action all the time. Note how you respond to the following:
I can find a BMV house
I can find a BMV house in my area
I can easily find a BMV house in my area!
I can get a mortgage on it that works for me
I can get the money together
I can buy a BMV in my area, with the right mortgage, easily let it, and make money!
If you have any answer to these statements other than “yes I can’, then you’re simply buying in to what you’ve been told from years ago.
But you have a choice now. YOU CAN CHOOSE to carry on believing these thoughts from the past, or you can choose to think new and different ones that will support you in taking new and different actions and therefore getting new and different results. Take the Rich Thoughts above and then use the following like a mantra, repeating it over and over:
I can …
I will…
I do….
I am…
I can buy a BMV house in my area
I will buy a BMV house in my area
I do buy a BMV house in my area
I am buying a BMV house in my area
These statements repeated often will put your mind into the state it needs to be in to suddenly start noticing the BMV opportunities right under your nose. And you will be amazed at what you can see now that was there all the time, except that your mistaken mind had hidden it from you.
Mind Mistake No 3: Believing successful people are better than you are
This is probably the one mind mistake that affects most people. You can spot it if you catch yourself thinking things like:
‘I can’t do what they’ve done because they…’
‘They’ve just been lucky’
‘Well they started off with some money, so I won’t be able to do it’
‘It’s not a level playing field because they had an advantage to start with’
‘I’m not clever enough/good enough/wise enough to do this’
or even
‘Well, Andy had a good business to start with, so he’d already proved he could be successful. It’s not the same for me, I’ve never even been self-employed let alone run a business; AND he had money to start with. So I won’t be able to do what he’s done…’ Blah blah blah.
Nobody is ‘better’ than you are; of course you’re not any ‘less’ than anyone else is. But other people’s behaviour is sometimes more effective, more efficient, more informed than yours. So what can you do?
Learn from those who are being successful!
That’s why it’s so important to look at what successful people do and be willing to adapt your methods of working to ones that have been proven to work.
But being willing to adapt is absolutely crucial. And if you have ideas such as ‘I’m not good enough’ (which is what the above ideas all translate into) then you’ll have to be willing to let them go in order to be able to change your behaviour from ineffective to effective and successful.
The old ideas of not being good enough are just that, old ideas. Most of us have been fed them. Think back to your school days. There was only one person first in the class and the chances are 30 to 1 that it wasn’t you! So the other 29 were fed the idea that they were not as good as the top dog! What rubbish! In that system maybe we didn’t add up as quick, or spell as well, or run as fast, or whatever …… you get the picture. The message was that we are less than, and most of us end up believing this. But it simply isn’t true, it’s just the product of a poor system that let you down. You don’t have to carry this on forever through your life (and maybe hand it on to your kids!). You can start changing your ideas about it right now.
Begin by going to a mirror and saying ‘I am successful’ to yourself a few times. Then make a list of all the ways in which you are successful in your life. They will be there if you look for them! It may be that you’ve managed to keep a bank account open and in the black for 20 years; or that you’ve brought up some wonderful children; or that you fundraised a lot of money for your favourite charity. Just list your successes.
Then choose to see that you are good enough to do what you want to do, and that to get there you’re willing to listen, learn and apply from those who have taken the route to success before you.
Click on this link RichThinkersProperty to sign up for my free 25 page report on 7 Steps to Thinking Rich, which will introduce you to the mindset you need for buying property. Or call/email me about personalized coaching by phone, either one to one, or in a coaching circle, where I can guide you step by step through the mental game of house buying!