By Denise Lones M.I.R.M., CSP

It was a cold and rainy day when I sat down with my broker for our weekly meeting.  I was a relatively new agent in his office, but I was slowly learning how to double (and then triple) my income without working seven days a week.

After going over the week’s numbers, I said to him, “I love the results I’m getting since I started to do things the right way.  Someday I’d love to help others rise past the struggles that I’ve suffered through the last couple of years.”

“That’ll never work,” he said with a condescending smirk.

I stared at him.  Did he just try to crush my dream with a throwaway line?  I felt like a knife had just been nonchalantly shoved into my heart.

I walked out of his office in a fog and went back to my desk.  As the day went on, the rain pounded down even harder.  But with every drop that fell, my determination grew.  Nobody was going to tell me what I couldn’t do.

By 5 p.m. that day, I realized that my broker was a little man with little ideas and little dreams.  He couldn’t see what my mother and father had instilled in me.  My hard-working parents built a restaurant from scratch.  With hard work and determination, they rose above all challenges to create a successful business.

“Never give up!,”  my parents always said.  “If you can dream it, you can do it.”

Thank goodness I didn’t listen to my broker!  If I had, I wouldn’t be here talking to you today.  My parents were right.  If you can dream it, you can do it.  I’m living proof.

The problem is that most of us don’t dream big enough.  It was only when I started to see myself as a well-known instructor that I started to become one.  If I had kept the image of “average real estate agent” in my head, that’s all I would have ever become.

I can’t tell you how many agents are stuck in the “That’ll-never-work” mindset.   Are you one of them?  If you are, it’s not your fault.  We live in a society that tells us certain things are possible and others aren’t.  We believe in arbitrary rules based on what others tell us.  By doing so, we limit the possibilities of what we can actually achieve.

For example, an agent called me about a year ago to sign up for coaching.  At that time, she was making $60,000 a year.  When I asked her what she wanted to make, she said, “Oh, I’d be thrilled out of my mind if I could make $100,000 a year.”

“A hundred thousand?,”  I asked.  “Why so low?”

“Low?,” she said.  “Are you kidding?”

“Based on what I already know about you from our short conversation, $100,000 is going to be easy for you.  You should set your target higher.  Two hundred thousand is more like it for you.”

“Two hundred thousand dollars?  Denise, how is that possible?”

I spent the next entire hour explaining to her that not only is it possible, but for her it’s going to be easy.  But only if she allows herself to dream big and implement the systems that make the dream work.

A year later, guess what?  She’s achieved her new dream that I helped her to see.  She’s on track for even MORE than $200,000 this year.

It’s not that she didn’t want to dream big.  It’s just that nobody ever taught her to do so.

One of the hallmarks of successful people (in any field) is the ability to dream big.  The bigger your dream, the bigger your reality becomes.  What you focus on the most-and put the most effort into by taking action-becomes reality.

And here’s another secret: When you dream big with others in mind, there is a greater likelihood your dreams will come true.

When we decided on $200,000 as a goal, I asked my agent friend, “What will you do with the money?”

“I want to help others,”  she said.  “I want to inspire others to succeed.”

At that moment, I realized I was in good company.  I saw the flicker of energy in her eyes-the same flicker in the eyes of the young girl who was told “That’ll never work.”

Ha!

Because she has included helping others with the money she makes, she is destined to achieve her goal.  There is something magical about including others in your big dreams.  All I can say is that it works.  It worked for me, and it’s working for my new agent friend.

Think it.  Dream it.  Make a plan to do it.  Take action.  Never give up.

Decide who you’re going to take with you on your journey.  How will you help others with the success you create?

Then, take massive action.  Develop a system for each dream-a system that propels you and runs while you sleep.  Design it, create it, and watch it grow.

Finally, make good on your promises.  Show others the power of dreaming big and help them to achieve their own dreams.

Warning: It won’t always be easy.

Those few people in this world who really do achieve their ultimate goals and dreams will tell you that it was no freewheeling joyride along the way.  In fact, what makes achieving goals so sweet is the journey itself-the struggles won against difficulty and treachery.

Don’t let outside influences nor challenges stop you from accomplishing your goals and dreams.  Stick to your plan.  Never give up.  The world will try to kick you down, but it’s your choice to stay standing.

It all comes back to the words of my parents: “Never give up.  If you can dream it, you can do it.”

Thanks, Mom and Dad.