This is Wealth Indicator #2 in my series! It’s fair to say that there are a lot of ways in which most people think and act differently than successful people, and this is particularly true for successful entrepreneurs. One of these key distinctions is what I call “acting simultaneously, not sequentially”. Most people are taught that things are supposed to be done in a certain way, one after the other, in order to achieve a certain outcome. For example, you first have to go to school, get a good education, and then that allows you to get a good job, and eventually retire happy and wealthy. Of course, most people realize this is fiction, and that this approach doesn’t work anymore. If you look at how most people learn as children, they are ingrained with this concept of doing things one at a time, sequentially, and step by step. However, what I’ve witnessed in my 20 years of entrepreneurial experience, as well as observing those around me is completely different — I find that the truly successful and wealthy people I know do things simultaneously instead of sequentially. What does this mean? Entrepreneurs tend to take on a lot of different projects, and try to accomplish several steps all at the same time, rather than doing things in an orderly way. In other words, they pile on a million things, and people around them look at them and say things like, “are you crazy?” This is one of the main reasons that most entrepeneurs have chaos in their life, which of course most people interpret as a bad thing. The reality is, most breakthrough ideas or opportunities occur when you are going through chaos in your life, because the chaos itself means you’re placing stress on a system not intended to deal with it. For example, starting a business is a very challenging process, no matter who you are. A lot of people get neck deep into the process, and then start to feel the turbulence and chaos of the business. Many people back away from this, because it’s a feeling they’ve never felt before. Just as they’re about to have a breakthrough, they pull back.. inches from the point where they are about to take off. The truth is, a lot of success can come from a time of chaos, and it’s the wealthy entrepreneurs that keep the vision long enough to live through the times of frustration, anxiety and uncertainty. Here is a fact — wealth is attracted to big ideas, ambition and massive action. These things also tend to attract frustration, anxiety and chaos, and that is precisely the problem. When most people feel these things, they misinterpret it as bad feedback — as though they’re doing something wrong. These feelings are actually a natural part of creation, because your brain goes through a re-wiring of sorts, trying to cope with all the change and activity you’re undertaking. So if you go into a business recognizing this, you can be much better equipped to deal with it. I see this in many of my real estate investing students. They get into the business, and realize quickly that when I say it’s not easy, I’m not lying! They start to feel the stress and anxiety, sometimes ‘overwhelm’, because there are a lot of moving parts. However, it’s the people who push through that and remain committed to the DECISION they made to be successful. To the extent they’re able to push past the feelings of anxiety and frustration, they are more likely to come out the other end successful. My students that do a lot of things and get great results always tell me that it wasn’t easy, but that it WAS exciting and rewarding. There were times they wanted to give up, but they chose instead to remain committed, and then the breakthroughs started to come. They did a deal that made them $60,000, or they were finally able to quit their job because they remained focused on their goals. So remember that chaos is NOT a bad thing when you’re in the process of starting or growing a business. Obviously, chaos needs to be checked and removed from the system as you stabilize, because it’s not a healthy thing to have permanently in a business. However, don’t automatically think there’s something wrong if you’re feeling anxious, overwhelmed, or frustration.. because these are the feelings that usually come just before you have a major breakthrough in your business. Taking on alot of things at the same time can create a lot of stress and anxiety, but my experience and observation of many other wealthy people is that they tend to do more things at the same time, rather than trying to do it in a clean, nice and pretty way. Entrepreneurship and becoming wealthy is not a simple, easy, clean, pretty process. It can be hard, complex, dirty and messy, so don’t listen to those around you when they say you’re taking too much on!]]>