Stop Setting Goals

OK! OK! OK! ... I get it - I am going to revisit the work of James Clear.

In the last week, his work has been referenced at least half a dozen times on the podcasts I've listened to .. and this morning while reading Dan Martell's Buy Back Your Time, I came across this statement from James:

“Goals are the results we want to achieve. Systems are the processes that lead to those results.”

It's like the universe is conspiring to get me to continue to focus on building and refining my processes, rather than fixating on results.

Not sure why, but as I write this I'm hearing "If you build it, he will come". Must be another part of my mind telling me to just trust the process.

A few years back, when I first decided I wanted to pivot to becoming a real estate investor, I set the goal:

Replace my commission-based income with wholesaling and fix/flip income.

But the problem? ...I didn’t have a repeatable process to hit that target.

I was treating deals like one-off events—hustling to find one, grinding out the details, and then starting all over again from scratch. It was exhausting.

I NEEDED BETTER SYSTEMS

It's really no different then when I started training for my Spartan races. I didn't just set a goal to run the 3 races, totaling over 27 miles and hope for the best. I followed a training plan—a system—where each week I increased mileage and reps in the gym to build endurance.

Real estate investing is no different.

Success isn’t just about ambition; it’s about having a machine that produces results over and over.

So I built my own deal-making system:

1. Lead Generation: Every day/week, I have a structured way of sourcing motivated sellers.

2. Automated Follow-Up: When leads come in, they’re automatically put into a CRM that sends texts, emails, and call reminders, so no lead gets forgotten.

3. Quick Analysis Process: I have a streamlined way of analyzing deals—so within minutes, I can tell if a deal is worth pursuing or passing on.

4. Offer & Negotiation Templates: Instead of figuring out each offer from scratch, I have templates based on different deal structures.

5. Exit Strategies Mapped Out: Whether I wholesale, flip, or hold, I know my options before I even make an offer.

Having this machine in place means I don’t have to rely on motivation or luck. The system works—even on days when I don’t feel like working.

Right now, I have three deals in play, and all of them came through this system:

1. 2534 Iverson – I closed on the purchase 2 days ago and have the property trashed out and a contractor lined up to start work on Saturday. He's estimating 8-10 days to complete the work, which gives me an outside chance of getting the property on the market the first weekend in April.

2. 205 Catalfa – The journey with this property started last March. I've written about the property 18 times in the 12 months that she's been mine. There was a rollercoaster with financing the deal from a straight private money loan and some other options, ultimately closing with both Subject To and seller financing. The renovation was smooth. Then I had a buyer that needed to sell their home in Florida before they could close AND they wanted to rent it before they closed. Those tenants/buyers decided in December that they wanted to stay in Florida, so I had to relist the property a couple weeks ago. Happy news is that I have a new buyer under contract with no home to sell and a close date of April 21st.

3. 12820 Caldwell – This was going to be a novation, but thru working with an expert disposition person, we were able to find a buyer to assignment the contract to. This is on track to close March 26th.

4. 302 Fidgeway – This seller just wants to move his mom down to Atlanta with him and his family. I presented 3 options to him, with options 2 and 3 providing the most to his bottom line. He interrupted me and told me he just wanted the cash offer because it was going to get him down to Atlanta the fastest. I shared with him my Cash Offer and he quickly agreed. I sent him my contract, which he forwarded to an attorney and realtor. They both poo-pooed the simplicity of the contract and almost got him to pull out of the handshake deal. I conceded to allow his realtor friend to writeup the contract, on what will likely be the standard realtor forms in Maryland, so we can ratify the contract and begin the short process of closing on the property on April 11.

Each of these deal didn’t happen because I got lucky. They happened because I built a system where leads, follow-ups, and deal-making happen consistently.

I'm currently working with an AI company to build multiple Voice AI Agents to further automate my follow-up system. The Voice Agents will integrate into my existing CRM and pass information about the calls made, and also send back full transcripts as well as links to the audio recordings of the calls.

This new Voice AI will allow me to not only follow up with the Cash Offer Leads I purchase one at a time, but also to partner with another local investor who purchases lists of Vacant and Out-of-Town owners. We are going to split test his current list to see how my Voice AI Agents compare to his virtual assistants at connecting and setting appointments.

If you're interested and/or willing to help me test/tweak my Voice Agents, let me know and I'll have either Grace or Julie give you a call.

When I was chasing goals with no systems, I was 100% setting myself up for frustration after frustration.

But, with the right systems in place?

I'm beginning to experience that success becomes predictable.