Coffee With Closers

What makes a piece of digital artwork sell for $69.5 million dollars?  Scarcity, an NFT and a story.   On this episode, Eric Forney and Michael Bounds discuss the rising emergence of NFTs, what they are, and how understanding them informs how you should be running your own business.  They discuss the scarcity fundamentals that make NFTs so valuable and so trusted and how the story behind the digital artwork is what drives up it's price.  They also explain the importance of an immutable public ledger as it pertains to creating indisputable value to certain items.  Eric introduces the idea of digital real estate and how important it will be in the future for both advertising and creating entire businesses and experiences.  They ultimately both agree that the popularity of NFTs should remind any business owner that it is their chief job to be the communicator of the story of their business.

Is it possible that the government doesn't want you to pay taxes? Eric thinks so (with the caveat that you should talk to your CPA and not just him) and this week, he explains why he thinks so.  With over 90% of the tax code being made up of rules for credits and deductions, it seems that the tax code itself is set up to be used to decrease your tax liability.  Eric and Michael discuss the meaning of contracts, and the difference between the content of a contract and the context of a contract.  Any contract is written and then able to be interpreted in different contexts by different people, and the same approach can be applied to your taxes.  They discuss a few interpretations of the tax code that are useful to know for your own business, and how the government wants the business owner to keep more of their profit to be able to then employ others who will go use their earnings on taxable events, stimulating he GDP.  They conclude that the most honest thing you can do is understand al

On this episode, Eric Forney and Michael Bounds continue the underrated or overrated series, debunking the possible lies you've been told about real estate and how to succeed in it.  This week, they break down their different opinions on how your listing sign should look, if you should be answering calls from your clients at midnight, and if you can run a successful business by texting clients (SPOILER ALERT Eric is kind of a boomer about it). Check out the Disruptance YouTube channel to watch the full episodes, and comment if you disagree on any of their assessments of underrated or overrated. Also, leave a comment about any subjects you want Eric and Michael to cover. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCTz80Sf-vkaLV0aILIUVpxg

On this episode, Eric Forney and Michael Bounds start a new series of underrated or overrated, debunking the possible lies you've been told about real estate and how to succeed in it.  In this episode, they break down their sometimes opposing opinions on wearing suits or sweatshirts, driving a granny caddy or a Viper, if cash is king or cash is trash, and if a Bitcoin offer on a listing is laughable or an exciting deal.   Check out the Disruptance YouTube channel to watch the full episodes, and comment if you disagree on any of their assessments of underrated or overrated. Also, leave a comment about any subjects you want Eric and Michael to cover. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCTz80Sf-vkaLV0aILIUVpxg 

On this episode, Michael asks Eric about who he is and how he got to where he is.  Eric shares how his constant curiosity paid off for him in the jobs he worked before he transitioned into real estate.  He explains how he learned a lot about how a business is run while he was at Sherwin Williams, because his mentors were great at both sales and running the business.  He talks about learning about P&Ls when his job performance became dependent on them, and how he learned how to play the game of business through creatively working the P&L.  He discusses what the transition to real estate was like after he got fired from Sherwin Williams.  He discusses how he became totally obsessed with becoming the best agent, and when that happened realizing he needed a new goal, which came in the form of learning how to share his knowledge and teach other people how to sell by building up a team.  He also talks about the difficulties of having and maintaining a team.

On this episode, Eric Forney asks Michael Bounds about who he is and how he grew his business to what it is today.  Michael shares a few of his previous jobs he had before he discovered real estate when he went to buy his own home.  The rep convinced him he could be good at real estate, so decided to pursue it.  Michael explains how needing to beat out the competition motivated him to always be working.  He discusses the obstacles he overcame with building a team, hiring people, leading people and creating clarity for his team.  

It's almost completely possible to run your business from your phone now, but which apps are the most useful for the entrepreneur? On this episode, Eric Forney and Michael Bounds share the apps they use most every day and how they improve their daily life.  Eric discusses how YouTube is his source for learning anything and everything, and Michael explains how Audible helps him churn through books to gain knowledge.  Michael breaks down how committing to using Zoom well has made it so he is able to sell real estate without leaving the house, and he can pack more meetings in per day than before.  They also discuss the benefits of Slack, Click Up, Apple Notes, Google Calendar and more.   

What is the future of real estate and technology? In this episode, Eric Forney and Michael Bounds discuss Zillow's recent acquisition of ShowingTime, not long after their acquisition of DotLoop, and the repercussions this has on the real estate industry.  They explain how the home buying process has friction in it for a reason, because it is a large, important transaction that has massive impact on the buyer and seller.  While it might soon be possible for the consumer to book a showing immediately on Zillow, what that doesn't include is the filter of someone working with an agent, where the agent has qualified this person as someone interested in buying, and it's not a random person just being easily allowed into a listed home.  They discuss how Zillow isn't innovating anything really, just acquiring companies in other service areas to real estate, and how it's so important to be at a company that owns its technology so your CRM and CRM data don't also get bought up by Zillow.  They share

How will the solo real estate agent do in the new landscape of new technology and the on-demand nature of business? In this episode, Eric Forney and Michael Bounds share their thoughts on how they believe the solo-preneur is about to go extinct.  They discuss how being a part of a team typically means access to the efficiency of systems and models, but sometimes the solo-preneur feels resistant to it because they want to do things their way.  They talk about the benefits of working with different people, where you may be a visionary and could benefit from an integrator.  In this climate where tech is going after all agents' market share, the individual agent is left being the one most affected, and sitting in that discomfort of that reality is the only way for the solo-preneur to realize they need to find a way out of it. 

Real Estate to the moon! On this episode, Eric Forney and Michael Bounds discuss the unique situation that arose when a group of Redditors short squeezed Game Stop stock, and why, even though the short term gains of the stock are enticing, an investment in real estate still elicits far greater returns.  They explain how the situation arose, and how hedge funds managed to make it impossible for retail traders to continue to trade the stocks, causing a loss of trust towards the stock market.  Where stocks are income generating mainly based on speculation, and thus isn't a stable, predictable form of investment, real estate is heavily regulated and an extremely predictable investment.  Michael and Eric discuss how short of random outside variables, buying real estate consistently earns you back 3x your investment over a 30 year period.  While the allure of the possibility of making quick cash is enticing with the current stock market, there's no arguing the safety and guaranteed return on rea

2020 was certainly not what anyone expected it to be, but that also means there was a lot that could be learned from it. On this episode, Eric Forney and Michael Bounds look back on the last year and discuss what they learned and what they would have done differently.  Michael shares how having time to sit out on his deck helped him gain perspective on what's truly important, and how it could be heaven on earth if we all started acting a different way.  Eric discusses how he created so many habits and routines around his environment in 2019, so losing that environment made continuing some habits more difficult.  They discuss what was lost in only meeting people virtually and not physically, and how leadership had to change because of it.

Why do we procrastinate and how can we get ourselves out of that pattern? On this episode, Eric Forney and Michael Bounds flesh out where procrastinating comes from and how to combat it.  Michael shares how he procrastinates the most on items on his list that bring about conflict, like inspection responses.  He discovered, though, that if he just pushes through and knocks it off his list, he has a clearer mind and isn't anguishing over one task.  He also talks about how he has learned to delegate certain tasks to his assistant so he knows they will get done immediately.  Michael explains to Eric that Eric is a rebel type and that in a book he read, he's learned that Eric needs a clear WHY for him to do a task and do it before a deadline.  Eric agrees and shares how he struggles the most with self regulation and that he has learned he has to artificially create environments around him that force him to self regulate which leads to him getting tasks done and not procrastinating on them.

What makes people the most successful - hard work or getting lucky? On this episode, Eric Forney and Michael Bounds debate whether hard work or luck is the key indicator of success.  They discuss how some people feel like hard work is what gets them to the point where luck happens, while others feel like working hard is the only pathway to success.  Michael shares how he has always felt like he needs to stay ready so he doesn't ever have to get ready, so he feels luck goes against everything he has built his career on, and Eric argues that some of the most successful stories from the most successful people include huge amounts of luck, like Warren Buffet and Bill Gates.   

There's the age-old saying work smart not hard, but does that actually work in reality? On this episode, Eric Forney and Michael Bounds dive into the merits of working smart versus working hard.  They discuss how time on task is a very important indicator for how well you will succeed in real estate.  They also examine how working hard is the only way to get the results you want when you're chasing a six pack or trying to improve at football or basketball - you can't outsmart how much time it takes to get results in those arenas.  They talk about how working hard can mean practicing things you don't enjoy doing, but the practicing of those things is what can allow you to do what you love at the highest level possible.

It would be easier to live in a world where money provided happiness, but since it doesn't, what do we need to do to find it? On this episode, Eric Forney and Michael Bounds talks about the search for happiness.  They discuss how we think there are things we can do in life that will guarantee happiness - get married, make more money, gain status - but those things only temporarily improve upon our happiness, and we are left still searching for deeper meaning.  They talk about how comparison is the thief of joy and a way out of happiness, and how it's important to focus on what you can control instead of comparing yourself to what you don't have.  They discuss the importance of valuing time over money, and investing in experiences instead of things.

Does the word discipline have a positive or negative connotation to you? On this episode, Eric Forney and Michael Bounds talk about the way discipline and routine actually give you freedom instead of the confined structure some people think of.  They discuss how most people don't actually like discipline or routine, but enjoy the results that those behaviors bring.  Since time is the only resource you really have, the cost really is very high for trying to accomplish things without routine.  They discuss will power, how hard it is to harness it, and ways they make themselves effectively use it.  Eric shares how he realized the more he practices discipline and routine, the closer he gets to being able to live his actualized life.

What monsters are hiding underneath your bed? This week, Eric Forney and Michael Bounds discuss the many ways we experience fear and how they hold us back.  They discuss the fear of success and everything that comes with it: will I let people down, will I lose time for the comforts I enjoy?  They also flesh out how most of our fears are stories we construct in our head that we make out to be worse than reality.  They talk about the fear of whether you are enough for those who love you if you can’t close deals and provide for your family.  Ultimately, they discuss that the way out of fear is to shift your mindset when a problem comes up from seeing it as a difficulty into seeing it as an opportunity to grow and learn.

Why do we struggle so much with simplifying our business and personal lives? On this episode, Eric Forney and Michael Bounds discuss how important it is to simplify all areas of our life, and why it can be so hard to do so.  They talk about how trying to use your brain as a filing system just leads to anxiety, and better ways to keep track of everything you need to do.  They share their experiences in creating processes for their teams to follow, and how they realized that the more complex the process, the harder it is to enforce, and it ends up costing time and money to accomplish it.  They talk about Warren Buffets 5-25 rule and how it applies to simplifying your life, and how McDonald's became as big as they are by perfecting a very simple, basic menu.

What if it's time to fire yourself from some of your day to day activities? On this episode, Eric Forney and Michael Bounds examine how difficult it can be as an entrepreneur to let go of control in some aspects of your business, but how it is necessary to grow.  They discuss how you can drill down on which activities could be done better by someone else, and how to find the maturity to be honest with yourself about those aspects of your business.  They talk about a few prolific business people who found immense success in their fields without directly doing a large part of the day to day work in their industries.  Ultimately, they decide that everyone in your business should be replaceable, including YOU.

What do you have to do to insure that your business is running at it's peak performance?  You have to consistently check in on it's health. On this episode of Disruptance, Eric Forney and Michael Bounds talk about the importance of auditing your business, and all the angles you should take when auditing it.  They discuss the necessity of auditing your people, including yourself, because as you change, there may be tasks that you aren't best suited for, and you might be able to get more done if you find someone who is great at those tasks.  They talk about how important it is to simplify processes to explain to your team, and that they should be able to be understood by a six year old if they are going to be effective processes.  They discuss how meetings should be audited as well, and how learning whether something needs to be a meeting or a memo is a valuable time saver and helps other people feel like you respect their time.  Ultimately, they decide one of the most valuable things i