Episode 011: Failing Outside the Box - Lessons Learned from Business Risks | Tips and Strategies for Real Estate Agents

<p><strong>Thinking OTB Episode 11 Show Notes</strong></p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">This week Steve is busting out the Accordion File to share some insights from his past business failures. Not every venture or opportunity is going to pan out the way that we want it to no matter how much effort or how hard we want it to succeed. Every business is a risk and any kind of risk can bring about failure, but that doesn’t need to be the end of the story.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;"> </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Sometimes we take risks in order to see what happens. Sometimes you get lucky, sometimes you don’t.” – Steve</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;"> </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Failure can very often be the best teacher. Learning from our mistakes doesn’t mean dwelling on the past, but using the lessons learned to avoid those mistakes in the future.  For Steve, the way to put those failures of the past into perspective is to keep them in an accordion file. From there, he can look back on the past while keeping an eye on what lessons can be learned. It’s not about focusing on the negative aspects of the past, but what can be learned to achieve success in the present and future.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;"> </span></p> <p><strong>3 Takeaways from keeping an Accordion File:</strong></p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <ol> <li><strong>Don’t be afraid to try new things.</strong> <span style="font-weight: 400;">There will always be risk involved in branching out. That’s what Thinking Outside the Box is all about! But without those new experiences, no lessons can be learned.</span></li> </ol> <p> </p> <ol start="2"> <li><strong>Know your numbers and structure your business properly.</strong> <span style="font-weight: 400;">An accordion file is not just a random assortment of documents and numbers, but a record of what happened as it was happening. Any business needs proper organization to succeed, and organiza