In a recent conversation with my coaching client, an IT Business Vice President at a large financial services company, she shared her dream of starting her own real estate investment company.
Despite her high-level position and a plan to stay with her current employer for at least five more years, she couldn’t shake the idea of flipping houses.
Thoughts of her dream were never far from her mind.
She had the urge to start pursuing her dream, but she felt stuck.
👾 The “What If” Doom and Gloom Monster
When I asked her if she could buy a house to flip today if she chose to, she said yes—she doesn’t have to wait.
Yet, when I followed up with, “So why aren’t you looking for houses to flip? This is your dream.” her response was something I hear often when someone has a big dream: “What if I buy a house and lose money on it?”
Ah. That’s why she was stuck. She just met up with the “What If” Doom and Gloom Monster 👾
Money has a way of crushing (or slowing down) our dreams.
But it isn’t just money that does that. The unknown is daunting, and without a crystal ball, it’s easy to focus on everything that could go wrong.
She was stuck because she went from “I have a career dream” to “What if I make the investment and it fails?”
She took herself too far into the future of her dream and all she could see was what could go wrong.
She let the scary monster 👾of self-doubt, money fears, and all the “what ifs” become her truth. When in fact, they were only true because she decided they were. Believing the doom and gloom monster seemed smart, safe, logical.
And this monster was keeping her from taking action on her dreams.
Shifting from Doubt to Action
In the Career Alchemy Academy, one of the key lessons I teach is how to avoid falling into the trap of “I have this dream” to “Here are all the ways it will never work.”
Instead, we slow things down. We move back into NOW. We do less “futurecasting” and more present-moment connection.
When I asked my client what she would do right now if she knew her investment would be a grand slam, she had all kinds of ideas. She would:
- Begin building relationships with realtors and banks.
- Research what makes a good investment property. Take a class or two.
- Tap into her network for referrals on folks who could help with the home improvements.
- Discuss her dream more specifically with her partner. Not just as an idea.
- Crunch the numbers.
- Keep her eye out for houses she could flip just for fun.
She came up with many things she could be doing RIGHT NOW that require little to no financial investment.
Plus … she would stop waiting on her dream. She would feel the energy of planning her exit strategy out of corporate. She would be pursuing her passion for real estate and have more fun now. She would build on her belief that her career dream is more than just a pipe dream.
She already was feeling less stuck and scared. She realized that even if the first flip is less than perfect that’s okay. She has more information to protect
against a big loss. She has more knowledge of what to do and how to do it. She is not going to let the “what if” monster stop her.
Remember: Keep your eye out for the 👾 “what If” doom and gloom monster that loves to lurk around your career dream throwing out all kinds of limiting thoughts and excuses. You can conquer the monster by taking small steps right now to build your connections, know-how, and confidence. Bring your future into your now … leave the doom and gloom monster behind.
