Rich Somers is not your average guy. Once a federal government employee, he decided that this wasn’t the life for him. He knew he wanted something better, and working for 60K a year wasn’t going to get him there. Instead, he developed an entrepreneurial mindset. He decided that he wanted to be in a particular place financially and took the steps he needed to get there. It wasn’t an easy road, but he managed it.
Cashing In his 401K
When Somers decided he wanted to be more than just another employee, he took drastic measures. His first step was to withdraw cash from his 401 (K) retirement fund. With the money, he scouted and bought his first apartment, which he started to rent out.
He didn’t waste any time starting his business. Instead, he dived in headfirst. He’s fond of telling new entrepreneurs that if they sit around long enough, they’ll spend all of their time thinking about their business and not doing it. But behind his decision to do what he wanted to do was his mindset.
Failure Might Happen, but Fear Of Failure Is Worse
One of the most vital lessons any entrepreneur can learn from Somers is that fear of failure can lead to the worst possible outcome. Somers says that Failure is inevitable, but being afraid of it instead of seeing it as something to learn from keeps most people out of the business world.
He spent years honing his mindset to accept that sometimes failures will happen. But a failure is not the end of the road. It’s a learning experience that should push a person further into what they want to do. Somers fine-tuned his mind to accept failure as a consequence but not the end of a venture.
Spotting Opportunity In the Market
Somers’ real estate empire was built on the acquisition of apartments and rental homes that he would earn income from. He was doing a good business there, but he realized that something was missing. He learned about boutique hotels and seamlessly pivoted his business into acquiring and renting those.
Boutique hotels were not new to the real estate scene, but most of his peers overlooked them. The entry cost was low because the demand wasn’t there, and with the proper marketing, he could manage good occupancy – enough to cover expenses and make himself a good amount of money in the process.
Take Accountability and Be a Leader
Some advice Rich got from another entrepreneur as he was first getting started was to take accountability for his business. His fortunes rested on his own actions, and he needed to recognize that what he put into it would be what he got out of it – something he termed “sweat equity.”
Tacking accountability was the first step in becoming a leader and someone others would admire. He knew appearances mattered in the real estate business, so he went the extra mile to look the part of a real estate mogul. That wasn’t where his learning ended, however.
Continual Improvement Is The Only Way to Get Ahead
If you want to be a leader who knows what their industry is about, you can never stop learning. Somers knew nothing about boutique hotels when he jumped into the market, but he made it his business to read every snippet that he could about them and internalize what other people already knew.
Using that information, he successfully acquired and ran several businesses, the total value of which currently surpasses $35 million. Through his renovation plan and rental system, he says he can easily triple or quadruple the value of the properties at acquisition.
Building a Team You Can Trust Is Vital
While Somers started this alone, he realized that having people he could trust was crucial to the success he wanted to see. He might be able to manage twenty or thirty properties by himself, but thanks to his team, he’s managed to find, acquire, and earn from over 350 properties.
All his team members have equity in the real estate business, meaning they see the value of their work. He doesn’t pay them a salary because they wouldn’t need to see the business succeed. Somers believes that having skin in the game makes for better workers, and he’s right.
Discomfort Is The Key To Growth
It’s not like Somers has never been an employee. He worked for the federal government for eleven years but realized it was a safe place that allowed him to exist without taking risks or leaving his comfort zone. It’s a trap many potential entrepreneurs fall into when things are really nice for them.
The problem is that people don’t grow unless they’re uncomfortable. For Somers to become uncomfortable, he had to quit his job and get rid of his pension and retirement fund. But that fund allowed him the freedom to experiment. He didn’t have a safety net in case he failed, either. He did this because it was necessary.
Don’t Be Afraid of Failure, but Fear Regret
Somers knows that most people are afraid to start, but that’s because they’re scared of failure. Most entrepreneurs begin cautiously because they don’t want things to overwhelm them. Starting is the most important thing. For each business that starts, Somers says, there are ninety-nine of them that remain ideas.
He notes that this is a problem. People spend so much time worrying about failing that they don’t think about the regret they’d have. If someone starts a business today, they can point at the business and say they built that in ten years. But worrying about starting a business offers no tangible return.
Taking Action Is a Revolutionary Step
With so many people stuck in their own hearts, Somers says that taking action separates entrepreneurs from dreamers. Anyone can have a dream, but it takes action and commitment to make that dream a reality. Based on how successful his business is at the moment, he probably knows a little something about success.
