with A.Z. Araujo - Episode 66:

Momentum Develops New Perspective

with A.Z. Araujo - Episode 66:

Momentum Develops New Perspective

CUSTOM JAVASCRIPT / HTML
I have been feeling the aches and pains of my 100-mile journey. My thought process has gone from anticipation to wondering what I got myself into. A fresh perspective shifted my momentum and now nothing can stop me. I will beat the beast at it's own game. What is your Goliath? How will you knock the monster down to push through to your next threshold? How will you push past the pain points to obtain your prize?
The Aches and Pains of Growth
  • ​This conversation today will remind you of many things that are going on in your life, relationships, business, and health. I have been on this road to 100, trying to run 100 miles in eight weeks. We have 24 miles left. We will run another 12 miles this week, and then the same next week. Some have come and gone from our group, and the invite is still open to you all. 
  • ​As I started to see the remaining miles begin to change, it seemed overwhelming. It felt like I was going up against Goliath, a monster, and the beast was what was left on the table. It can be discouraging, as in this business, when we look at what is required to get one deal. All of the marketing and months of work, preparing to get that one deal. Or, you have been producing at a high level to no end. 
  • ​It can seem like a fruitless task to consistently get up and go through the motions. Will it ever get better? Will I ever push through the next threshold? When the momentum begins to shift, it makes me feel as if I am in control. I was no longer thinking about what I had left. I am on the opposite side of that with only 24 miles remaining; I am going to beat the beast of 100 miles.
  • ​The first few times, I was excited, and I felt thrilled about the challenge. You begin to go through a period of monotony where things get increasingly difficult. I didn't feel as graceful or as energetic as I did when I first started. I would feel defeated after the runs and have to ice my legs and take Tylenol. I was feeling the aches and pains of growth. My numbers began to dwindle, and I was regressing from what I set as my standard.
  • ​The first few times, I was mentally there. When you are growing your business, and you are mentally there, things run in your favor. The moment you begin to feel the slightest bit of regression or defeat, it feels as if you are stuck and wallowing in deep mud, not being able to move fast enough. I was experiencing this; my legs were heavier and achy; maybe it's my age, why did I even do this? You come up with these thoughts while you are in the midst of pain, not realizing the things in the background that things are working in your favor. 
  • ​The momentum is working in your favor, but to get there, you have to feel the pain points, the shin splints, and the pain of losing deals. The pain points of not having anyone respond to your marketing and your video is getting limited views. These are the pain points, also known as the breaking points. It is a threshold that we are building.
Handle the Pain Points
  • There were many breaking points while I was running. I envisioned myself getting hurt on purpose to avoid the pain. This is the thought process in your head when you are in that pain point. You want to quit; you look for a reason to quit. I didn't want to call it quits; I wanted a circumstance to force me to stop. 
  • ​Many agents in our industry right now have been wanting to quit for years, and now they have an excuse for their results. The economy has been shut down; we have been mandated to stay home. That is something that they have been looking for; they can't handle the pain point. They now interpret it as their breaking point.
  • ​Whatever level you are at, there will be many times you feel like breaking. Even though you have those thoughts, you still say you will continue to push a little more. With growth, consistency will build new thresholds for you. Consistency builds capacity, which develops new perspectives. That new perspective creates growth. 
  • ​I asked myself while I was out there, what would happen if I kept going? This pain wasn't as bad as I thought it was maybe if I focused on my stride count, instead of focusing on how this sucks. If we focus on communicating and posting with our clients as opposed to the results we don't have yet. That is a hard process to own. How can we focus on something positive, on new perspectives if the pain is too much?
  • ​During this time, I didn't realize that through all of the pain, my body was doing a magnificent thing. It was regenerating new cells, repairing itself, making me stronger. My mind was going through the same process. It was developing new thresholds to handle pain, and control my breathing. It was adapting, and that is the beautiful thing about our brain and our bodies; they adapt once we stop focusing on the negativity and start seeing what is coming out of this. 
  • ​This past Sunday, I ran my fastest four miles to date; mile number 76. I did it in under 28 minutes. I accomplished that by:
  • ​1. I didn't think because I slowed down in the middle of the challenge that I was regressing and getting worse. I had to understand that I was going to get better, but it would take time until I was running full force again. Then I began to see new perspectives by asking Jesse to help me get under 29 minutes. Jesse is like a gazelle frolicking through the forest. I am not making fun of him; he appears to elevate off the ground when he runs. I caught myself trying to copy his style, trying to get loose and take steps as he does. In this pain point, I had to realize that someone elses game isn't necessarily my game. Everyone has different styles in this business, but if they stick to what makes them unique, they will grow exponentially. I stopped myself from progressing because I was caught up in how I thought I should be running. I couldn't be there; it wasn't me, and not the way I was created. 
  • ​2. I began to embrace my stride. It may not be graceful; it is precisely who I am. As opposed to letting my hands go loose, I noticed that I run better with my fists clenched. I began to take longer strides and let the momentum go. I stopped thinking about how my running pattern should be, or my posture; I merely let it be. Overthinking our strategy is what can hold us back many times. The way one Top Producer creates his business is nothing like the next person. When we get caught up in that game of how we think we should change our structure and what works, to match someone else, is when we start feeling like we are regressing. 
Misinterpreting the Breaking Points
  • I know now that if I can handle the pain, and continue to push myself, what is the next best time that I can get on my four-mile run. I am going to continue to push myself. That is what creates momentum in general, is a new perspective. What else can I do? What else can I create? If I can do this, what else can I do? 
  • ​I saw perspectives change this weekend as I was talking to new agents. Speaking with one of our agents, Ruben is a very matter of fact. He knows the quickest way from point A to point B is a straight line; no bullshit and no excuses. He was having a conversation with another agent, Rio, and says he should be a 100 deal closer a year. That shatters perspectives; it shifted them for Rio, I could see it in his face. He is now considering what it would take to be a 100 deal a year producer. 
  • ​I will tell you what it takes. It takes what he has been doing this entire time. But, instead of focusing on hoping to sustain what he has created, he is focusing on what it will take to get to the next point. There will be pain points, breaking points, but with a new perspective comes new possibilities. It's no longer about reproducing what we created last year, but seeing how far we can take this. A new perspective gets us up and going. 
  • ​If you are feeling sluggish, having low energy, and not thrilled about the business, maybe you have forgotten what you wanted. It isn't laziness, you have forgotten to push yourself. We allowed it to become an option. Once you get momentum, and it is hard to get it, but it is easy to burn down. That is the tough part and the significant difference between Top Producers and average Producers. Average Producers, at any time, can produce what a Top Producer does, the problem is they can't repeat the cycle, because they can't get past their thought process. 
  • ​They have demonstrated the skill set, and once you have done it, you can repeat it over and over again, if you commit to being consistent. That is all it takes. You can be consistent for a short time, but can you sustain that for years? That is the challenge. 
  • ​The 100 miles is a big deal, but it is short-term. I am impressed with those that can continue that for long periods. Anyone can lose forty pounds, but can they keep them off and continue to progress on top of that? That is the real victory, not the short term game, but the long term sustainability. 
  • ​I am sure Rio will look at his patterns, and he is already consistent. I know he is leaving a few things on the table, and he knows it as well. Once Rio figures that out, he will be a 100 deal a year closer. He has demonstrated that already. The conversation I had with Rudy was the same. He is thrilled about being able to produce what he did in the first four months of this year over what he did all of last year. He was our rookie of the year. I asked him if he would hit 15 million? He has demonstrated that he can do that, and the only thing that can stop him are the thoughts and the pain points—misinterpreting them for breaking points. 
  • ​Rudy is on the trajectory despite what is considered to be a hit to our economy. Now it is up to him if he believes that perspective to be his truth. His eyes lit up just as Rio did. That is what fuels ambition, seeing something more significant for yourself. It is no longer about trying to sustain what we did last year; if you are consistently doing the reps, there is no question about pushing yourself to the next level. You are building capacity, and maybe you were misinterpreting the pain points as well. 
  • ​Maybe we are misinterpreting the pain points of today, against what they were two years ago; your capacity is much greater, but you are allowing the story to bring you down. You are much greater than those pain points, and now you need conviction and determination that your goals are within your grasp.
In Closing
  • Sometimes we don't realize how far we have come and how much we have grown. Things that used to debilitate us are now a walk in the park. We think that it is supposed to continue to debilitate us. How could it be through all that you have experienced in the last year or five years? How could those same things debilitate you today? They shouldn't be able to, and they don't. It is the thought process around us that debilitates us. 
  • ​We have all grown. If you have been here for three months, three years, or ten years, you are not the same person. This is a time of reflection; are we allowing the same things that threw us off three years ago to throw us off today? We have to question that because your capacity says otherwise, and the story hasn't changed. 
  • ​Challenge those beliefs and challenge yourself to ask what it would look like to be a 10 million or 15 million dollar producer? Closing 100 transactions a year; it may not happen right away, but it doesn't mean you quit on the idea. In 2014 I confidently proclaimed that we would sell 300 million as a brokerage and have one hundred agents. It didn't happen for three more years. There were many times that I thought my goal was foolish or wondered if it would ever happen. It was merely a pain point, not a quitting point. 
  • ​I stuck to my resolve, made corrections, grew, and pushed myself; no, that is a child's play. I have a big goal that we will be a half-billion-dollar sales company, with 150 agents. We have to have the highest sales per agent in the entire state; we are going to get there. People can see themselves there with new perspectives. Like Rio, who will close 100 transactions, Rudy will do $15 million in sales and like you who will push yourself to the next level. 
  • ​What is your story? How about you get it this year? How about we forget about all of the noise that is out there? People are misinterpreting the Coronavirus as a quitting point, a breaking point that broke them. We see it, and it is a little painful, and it sucks; it's a pain point, and it is all about interpretation. Your consistency forges that interpretation. Let's get back on our game and see greater things for ourselves. 
  • ​There is a world of opportunity out there for us, because of the way your competition has interpreted this time. It's not their breaking point; it's their pain point. I will change my breathing, change my stride, you will change your tactics, and you will keep going. I am going to go after these last 24 miles with a vengeance. I am going to go hard because I know I can take it. 
  • ​It is a constant thought process when the alarm goes off in the morning of WHY? Why did I do this 100-mile challenge? It is one of those moments where I have learned there is a fear when things change. When things change in our economy, if I make the pain points harder on myself, I can get through anything. That is what triggered this 100 miles. I looked at this situation and wondered if it was going to be as messed up as they said; I was going to make sure I brought on more pain to myself so that this thing doesn't break me. It won't break me. It's been a conditioning process, and I feel thrilled about the future, and so should you. 
  • ​If you have fallen off your game a bit, begin again. You know what you need to do to get your life, business, and marriage in order. You know exactly what to do, and you need to get back to those simple, daily things. You will create the ability to see the perspective and know that if you can do this, what else can you do? Maybe that is the thought process of today, of what else we can create. 
  • ​Why not you, why not now? We think that growth is linear, and one plus one equals two. But with growth, one plus one can create something completely different, something that doesn't even make sense. What we don't consider is that logically one plus one does equal two, but when you take all of the work from years past, the growth that we see doesn't make sense. We don't consider all of the reps that we have put in and the momentum. They make equations that don't add up in our minds. We are all on a great trajectory if we allow ourselves to see that. You only need to ask what it will take. 

More Episodes

CUSTOM JAVASCRIPT / HTML
I have been feeling the aches and pains of my 100-mile journey. My thought process has gone from anticipation to wondering what I got myself into. A fresh perspective shifted my momentum and now nothing can stop me. I will beat the beast at it's own game. What is your Goliath? How will you knock the monster down to push through to your next threshold? How will you push past the pain points to obtain your prize?
The Aches and Pains of Growth
  • ​This conversation today will remind you of many things that are going on in your life, relationships, business, and health. I have been on this road to 100, trying to run 100 miles in eight weeks. We have 24 miles left. We will run another 12 miles this week, and then the same next week. Some have come and gone from our group, and the invite is still open to you all. 
  • ​As I started to see the remaining miles begin to change, it seemed overwhelming. It felt like I was going up against Goliath, a monster, and the beast was what was left on the table. It can be discouraging, as in this business, when we look at what is required to get one deal. All of the marketing and months of work, preparing to get that one deal. Or, you have been producing at a high level to no end. 
  • ​It can seem like a fruitless task to consistently get up and go through the motions. Will it ever get better? Will I ever push through the next threshold? When the momentum begins to shift, it makes me feel as if I am in control. I was no longer thinking about what I had left. I am on the opposite side of that with only 24 miles remaining; I am going to beat the beast of 100 miles.
  • ​The first few times, I was excited, and I felt thrilled about the challenge. You begin to go through a period of monotony where things get increasingly difficult. I didn't feel as graceful or as energetic as I did when I first started. I would feel defeated after the runs and have to ice my legs and take Tylenol. I was feeling the aches and pains of growth. My numbers began to dwindle, and I was regressing from what I set as my standard.
  • ​The first few times, I was mentally there. When you are growing your business, and you are mentally there, things run in your favor. The moment you begin to feel the slightest bit of regression or defeat, it feels as if you are stuck and wallowing in deep mud, not being able to move fast enough. I was experiencing this; my legs were heavier and achy; maybe it's my age, why did I even do this? You come up with these thoughts while you are in the midst of pain, not realizing the things in the background that things are working in your favor. 
  • ​The momentum is working in your favor, but to get there, you have to feel the pain points, the shin splints, and the pain of losing deals. The pain points of not having anyone respond to your marketing and your video is getting limited views. These are the pain points, also known as the breaking points. It is a threshold that we are building.
Handle the Pain Points
  • There were many breaking points while I was running. I envisioned myself getting hurt on purpose to avoid the pain. This is the thought process in your head when you are in that pain point. You want to quit; you look for a reason to quit. I didn't want to call it quits; I wanted a circumstance to force me to stop. 
  • ​Many agents in our industry right now have been wanting to quit for years, and now they have an excuse for their results. The economy has been shut down; we have been mandated to stay home. That is something that they have been looking for; they can't handle the pain point. They now interpret it as their breaking point.
  • ​Whatever level you are at, there will be many times you feel like breaking. Even though you have those thoughts, you still say you will continue to push a little more. With growth, consistency will build new thresholds for you. Consistency builds capacity, which develops new perspectives. That new perspective creates growth. 
  • ​I asked myself while I was out there, what would happen if I kept going? This pain wasn't as bad as I thought it was maybe if I focused on my stride count, instead of focusing on how this sucks. If we focus on communicating and posting with our clients as opposed to the results we don't have yet. That is a hard process to own. How can we focus on something positive, on new perspectives if the pain is too much?
  • ​During this time, I didn't realize that through all of the pain, my body was doing a magnificent thing. It was regenerating new cells, repairing itself, making me stronger. My mind was going through the same process. It was developing new thresholds to handle pain, and control my breathing. It was adapting, and that is the beautiful thing about our brain and our bodies; they adapt once we stop focusing on the negativity and start seeing what is coming out of this. 
  • ​This past Sunday, I ran my fastest four miles to date; mile number 76. I did it in under 28 minutes. I accomplished that by:
  • ​1. I didn't think because I slowed down in the middle of the challenge that I was regressing and getting worse. I had to understand that I was going to get better, but it would take time until I was running full force again. Then I began to see new perspectives by asking Jesse to help me get under 29 minutes. Jesse is like a gazelle frolicking through the forest. I am not making fun of him; he appears to elevate off the ground when he runs. I caught myself trying to copy his style, trying to get loose and take steps as he does. In this pain point, I had to realize that someone elses game isn't necessarily my game. Everyone has different styles in this business, but if they stick to what makes them unique, they will grow exponentially. I stopped myself from progressing because I was caught up in how I thought I should be running. I couldn't be there; it wasn't me, and not the way I was created. 
  • ​2. I began to embrace my stride. It may not be graceful; it is precisely who I am. As opposed to letting my hands go loose, I noticed that I run better with my fists clenched. I began to take longer strides and let the momentum go. I stopped thinking about how my running pattern should be, or my posture; I merely let it be. Overthinking our strategy is what can hold us back many times. The way one Top Producer creates his business is nothing like the next person. When we get caught up in that game of how we think we should change our structure and what works, to match someone else, is when we start feeling like we are regressing. 
Misinterpreting the Breaking Points
  • I know now that if I can handle the pain, and continue to push myself, what is the next best time that I can get on my four-mile run. I am going to continue to push myself. That is what creates momentum in general, is a new perspective. What else can I do? What else can I create? If I can do this, what else can I do? 
  • ​I saw perspectives change this weekend as I was talking to new agents. Speaking with one of our agents, Ruben is a very matter of fact. He knows the quickest way from point A to point B is a straight line; no bullshit and no excuses. He was having a conversation with another agent, Rio, and says he should be a 100 deal closer a year. That shatters perspectives; it shifted them for Rio, I could see it in his face. He is now considering what it would take to be a 100 deal a year producer. 
  • ​I will tell you what it takes. It takes what he has been doing this entire time. But, instead of focusing on hoping to sustain what he has created, he is focusing on what it will take to get to the next point. There will be pain points, breaking points, but with a new perspective comes new possibilities. It's no longer about reproducing what we created last year, but seeing how far we can take this. A new perspective gets us up and going. 
  • ​If you are feeling sluggish, having low energy, and not thrilled about the business, maybe you have forgotten what you wanted. It isn't laziness, you have forgotten to push yourself. We allowed it to become an option. Once you get momentum, and it is hard to get it, but it is easy to burn down. That is the tough part and the significant difference between Top Producers and average Producers. Average Producers, at any time, can produce what a Top Producer does, the problem is they can't repeat the cycle, because they can't get past their thought process. 
  • ​They have demonstrated the skill set, and once you have done it, you can repeat it over and over again, if you commit to being consistent. That is all it takes. You can be consistent for a short time, but can you sustain that for years? That is the challenge. 
  • ​The 100 miles is a big deal, but it is short-term. I am impressed with those that can continue that for long periods. Anyone can lose forty pounds, but can they keep them off and continue to progress on top of that? That is the real victory, not the short term game, but the long term sustainability. 
  • ​I am sure Rio will look at his patterns, and he is already consistent. I know he is leaving a few things on the table, and he knows it as well. Once Rio figures that out, he will be a 100 deal a year closer. He has demonstrated that already. The conversation I had with Rudy was the same. He is thrilled about being able to produce what he did in the first four months of this year over what he did all of last year. He was our rookie of the year. I asked him if he would hit 15 million? He has demonstrated that he can do that, and the only thing that can stop him are the thoughts and the pain points—misinterpreting them for breaking points. 
  • ​Rudy is on the trajectory despite what is considered to be a hit to our economy. Now it is up to him if he believes that perspective to be his truth. His eyes lit up just as Rio did. That is what fuels ambition, seeing something more significant for yourself. It is no longer about trying to sustain what we did last year; if you are consistently doing the reps, there is no question about pushing yourself to the next level. You are building capacity, and maybe you were misinterpreting the pain points as well. 
  • ​Maybe we are misinterpreting the pain points of today, against what they were two years ago; your capacity is much greater, but you are allowing the story to bring you down. You are much greater than those pain points, and now you need conviction and determination that your goals are within your grasp.
In Closing
  • Sometimes we don't realize how far we have come and how much we have grown. Things that used to debilitate us are now a walk in the park. We think that it is supposed to continue to debilitate us. How could it be through all that you have experienced in the last year or five years? How could those same things debilitate you today? They shouldn't be able to, and they don't. It is the thought process around us that debilitates us. 
  • ​We have all grown. If you have been here for three months, three years, or ten years, you are not the same person. This is a time of reflection; are we allowing the same things that threw us off three years ago to throw us off today? We have to question that because your capacity says otherwise, and the story hasn't changed. 
  • ​Challenge those beliefs and challenge yourself to ask what it would look like to be a 10 million or 15 million dollar producer? Closing 100 transactions a year; it may not happen right away, but it doesn't mean you quit on the idea. In 2014 I confidently proclaimed that we would sell 300 million as a brokerage and have one hundred agents. It didn't happen for three more years. There were many times that I thought my goal was foolish or wondered if it would ever happen. It was merely a pain point, not a quitting point. 
  • ​I stuck to my resolve, made corrections, grew, and pushed myself; no, that is a child's play. I have a big goal that we will be a half-billion-dollar sales company, with 150 agents. We have to have the highest sales per agent in the entire state; we are going to get there. People can see themselves there with new perspectives. Like Rio, who will close 100 transactions, Rudy will do $15 million in sales and like you who will push yourself to the next level. 
  • ​What is your story? How about you get it this year? How about we forget about all of the noise that is out there? People are misinterpreting the Coronavirus as a quitting point, a breaking point that broke them. We see it, and it is a little painful, and it sucks; it's a pain point, and it is all about interpretation. Your consistency forges that interpretation. Let's get back on our game and see greater things for ourselves. 
  • ​There is a world of opportunity out there for us, because of the way your competition has interpreted this time. It's not their breaking point; it's their pain point. I will change my breathing, change my stride, you will change your tactics, and you will keep going. I am going to go after these last 24 miles with a vengeance. I am going to go hard because I know I can take it. 
  • ​It is a constant thought process when the alarm goes off in the morning of WHY? Why did I do this 100-mile challenge? It is one of those moments where I have learned there is a fear when things change. When things change in our economy, if I make the pain points harder on myself, I can get through anything. That is what triggered this 100 miles. I looked at this situation and wondered if it was going to be as messed up as they said; I was going to make sure I brought on more pain to myself so that this thing doesn't break me. It won't break me. It's been a conditioning process, and I feel thrilled about the future, and so should you. 
  • ​If you have fallen off your game a bit, begin again. You know what you need to do to get your life, business, and marriage in order. You know exactly what to do, and you need to get back to those simple, daily things. You will create the ability to see the perspective and know that if you can do this, what else can you do? Maybe that is the thought process of today, of what else we can create. 
  • ​Why not you, why not now? We think that growth is linear, and one plus one equals two. But with growth, one plus one can create something completely different, something that doesn't even make sense. What we don't consider is that logically one plus one does equal two, but when you take all of the work from years past, the growth that we see doesn't make sense. We don't consider all of the reps that we have put in and the momentum. They make equations that don't add up in our minds. We are all on a great trajectory if we allow ourselves to see that. You only need to ask what it will take. 

More Episodes

A.Z. & Associates Real Estate Group - 2019