Going Hard- Conquering the Seattle Condo Market

***Disclaimer- I know I’ve gone a little soft in the past few posts and gotten a little deep so here is your uncensored post proving I am still pretty Harrrrd. Enjoy.***

(The following paragraph may require some knowledge of baseball)

Photo Credit- Mr. Empey

The bases were loaded, I was 12 and we were down a run in the 4^th inning in the district all-star baseball tournament. I remember these specific details quite well.

Homeboy on the mound thought it would be a good idea to try and sneak a fastball by on the outside corner, clearly he was scared. I was in fact the clean-up hitter and at 12 years old, I was 6ft tall and I'm sure a bit intimidating.

I swung hard, real hard and crushed the hell out of that fastball for an opposite field grand slam, giving us the lead and what would be the winning runs.

Now I am not trying to live in the past with this post, but rather to explain my take on things. I have always been and all or nothing type of guy. Mediocrity just seems too damn boring.

It was always a strike out or a home run, a no hitter or a bad loss where I’d walk (or bean) like 8 dudes (some on purpose out of frustration).

Confidence/Swag/Boldness/ whatever you’d like to call it

Excerpt from Robert Greene’s Phenomenal book The 48 Laws of Power

Law 28- Enter Action with Boldness

If you are unsure of a course of action, do not attempt it. Your doubts and hesitations will infect your execution. Timidity is dangerous: Better to enter with boldness. Any mistakes you commit through audacity are easily corrected through more audacity. Everybody admires the bold; no one honors the timid.

Photo Credit - Ian Sane

Got Swag? Why the hell not?

Why do anything half way? Why not enter into anything you do with boldness?

Swing for the damn fences already, life is too short as it is.

That is what I have tried to do for the past 3 years and documented here on this blog. While not everything has always been perfect, I have created an amazing life for myself and enjoyed experiences and places most people my age only dream of. I am uninterested in what others say is foolish, impossible or not practical. I am interested in doing amazing things, living an amazing life and becoming the best I can be in all areas of interest I pursue.

Set Big Ass Goals

• ·         When I was 330lbs I set a goal compete as a bodybuilder. I ended up losing 100lbs and deciding stepping on stage wasn’t nearly as important to me as just being in good shape. But the crazy goal drove me forward getting me close, showing me what I really wanted.
• ·         When I wanted to start traveling I set a goal to live abroad 3 months a year. I did this not once but twice and after seeing much of Europe and South America, I was content to stay home for a while and build a solid foundation in Seattle, but make a point to take sporadic long term trips throughout life.
• ·         I wanted to build a popular blog, get a few hundred hits per day. This is something that really took off and I was astonished that I pulled in my one millionth visitors earlier this year and my following shows me that there are a whole bunch of people that this message resonates with.

Not all my goals have worked out, but most of them did. The one certainty is that the goals I didn’t write down never even got off the ground.

So What Am I Doing These Days?

In a word, Hustlin’.

I started my career in real estate when I was 18 years old and did quite well for myself before the market crashed, buying a few properties before I turned 20. Of course the market crashing took away my income and wealth I had built and this downfall was what propelled me to make many positive life altering decisions, many of which I’ve documented here on this blog. This momentary defeat in retrospect was a mere bump in the road that has driven me forward with a new energy.

Having been down to my last dollar many times and spending my last few quarters on a beer or two, I know a little bit about struggling now. Trust me, that shit isn’t fun. But it sure creates a hunger inside you.

Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the face. ― Mike Tyson

I hit the mat hard, but I got back up, I always will, til death.

Stunningly enough I feel much better having hit bottom. I feel relentless with nothing to lose and it is pretty damn liberating. After all there is more than one billionaire in this world that at one time has been bankrupt.

My City

Photo Credit- JustunMarty

I returned to Seattle in December and after a brief hiatus and world wandering I have returned to the real estate business here with one goal. I will become the best realtor in Downtown Seattle, focusing my efforts on the in-city condominium market.

I’ve been doing pretty damn well so far and have managed to drum up quite a bit of business, but I am not aspiring to make a mere living. Naturally, I want to conquer the market and crush all competitors.

I am made for the big city atmosphere. When I arrive in downtown an immediate feeling overcomes me, a different energy arrives to deal with the frenetic pace of the city. I was made for this.

I know as a buyer I would want to work with an agent who was young and hungry, not withered and comfortable. After hitting bottom, I know that I can never and will never lose that hunger.

I am, forever, a shark. I will take on all comers relentlessly. The time is perfect and the condo market in downtown is heating up. Better yet no one is doing it right. There is blood in the water, its kill time. The absence of hunger around downtown is alarming, no one seems to want to step up and conquer the market.

I do though.

Goal- Sell $5 million of real estate in the next 12 months

I'm swinging for the fences and aiming for the top of those high-rises.

Used to not be allowed in the building, but now we on the rooftops-Wiz Khalifa

Up we go…

Suppressing Selfishness- The Key to Finding Unconditional Happiness

Photo Credit - tipiro

One of life’s great mysteries that transcends from billionaire bankers to down and out drunks is the search for everlasting and unconditional happiness. It is not surprising however that very few of us even have a clue as to what would truly provide us with this elusive and possibly unrealistic dream of eternal joy.

I have always looked forward, dreaming of the future and creating my castles in the sky in my daydreams, mentally molding my future empire, excluding no detail in these wishful ponderings.

What I am now realizing is that nearly all ambitious dreams and materialistic yearnings stem from some form of selfishness and vanity. While these two principals can be tremendously effective motivating factors, they are not what any great man should base his life’s plan on, as these pillars will crumble when more important, more fulfilling and more righteous needs inevitably arise.

Applying This Idea to Everyday Life

Here is the way I see things. At different points in my life I valued wealth, travel, creating a business and fitness over all other things in my life, literally all things. All of these things can unquestionable be rewarding in their own way, in no way should they be put in front of the things that truly matter in life.

Valuing others needs above your own may be the only way to ever experience unconditional happiness. Putting your family, friends and occasionally even a perfect strangers needs above your own, making this selfless sacrifice is something that so few of us in today’s society even consider.

The bottom line is that new Mercedes, waterfront property and that flashy suit might temporarily give you a feeling of satisfaction, but do nothing to cure the emptiness and yearning for more that lacking a real selfless purpose creates.

The Danger in Isolation

To dig further, let me use an anecdote from my own life.

For years I prized travel as the most important activity in my life and my wanderings did teach more about the world and its people that I could have ever imagined. What it also did however was teach me a great deal about myself. While the drunken nights and unforgettable journeys will always bring a smile to my face, this is not to say that being across the world and not knowing a person in the city I was in didn’t wear on my mind. That feeling of utter and complete loneliness was something that made me realize that no matter where I went and what I saw, I had left so many things I loved deeply back at home.

This isolation made me realize that it is not the places or the things that will matter when we leave this earth; it is the lives that we have affected and the legacy of good or evil that we have left in our wake that will remain.

My Reconciliation

My point is that we need a purpose. Wealth, the urge to travel, the yearning to be great at what you do, these are all more than noble pursuits. But they must be done in conjunction with an overarching story and purpose and such pursuits without these principals are done in vain.

My urge to provide for my girlfriend and our family, to be able to help my parents as they get older and to help all those who I hold dear as friends to create a brighter financial picture through real estate is what drives me forward. I am in a unique position where I have the ability to completely change the financial future of my clients with relative ease, setting them up for their selfless pursuits in the future.

My goal is to create the urgency in you to have an overarching purpose. Not just for the next trip overseas, the next promotion or pay raise, but rather for the greater good of your family and your loved ones. Without this commitment to the greater good of selflessness, all too many of us will allow these pursuits to fall by the wayside, waiting for brighter days which may never come.

Loving outwardly and having a selfless purpose that you can direct your pursuits in is in my opinion the only way that you will ever find unconditional happiness.

So now... What is your purpose?

Spring Cleaning- Time To Clean Out My Closet

By- Rick A. Griffith

Photo Credit- Nicholas_T

It is drizzling outside, not cold, but certainly not warm.

The bare branched trees line Colby Avenue in downtown Everett as I suck down enough caffeine to kill an Olsen twin at Starbucks and pound away violently at my laptop keyboard. Apparently typing powerfully with a purpose creates the best blog posts; in my mind anyway.

It has been almost 3 months since I arrived back in Everett, a city located just north of Seattle, and I am settling in quite nicely. Though in past years the mundane grey skies and continuously mediocre weather would wear on my spirit, today I feel that I could not be any happier than I am right here on soggy Colby Avenue surrounded by liberal hippies and Mac book flaunters. Yes the very same things that used to annoy me to no end are now almost endearing in this place that I have left and come back to, seeing it with new eyes, gaining a fresh perspective on my own hometown.

We shall not cease from exploration, and the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time. - T.S. Elliot

But the skies will clear; at least that is what we are to believe. When they do spring will come and remind us why we all love the Pacific Northwest so much. It seems that up here, as in life, it takes the cold, solitary, dull days in order to make us fully appreciate the bright, warm and beautiful ones. I’ve learned to find happiness amidst the chaos, the monotony and the indifferent times. This is what growing up feels like.

Next week I begin an ascent back to a position that is not unfamiliar. A career and lifestyle I have always loved yet fell out of touch with. The high stakes, limitless possibilities and complete creative control make for a career tailor-made for my own rebellious and ambitious personality.

I am settling in for good here in the Seattle area, diving head first into a career that I enjoyed for years, yet took a sabbatical from, leaving in search of deeper meaning. After seeing the world, what I wanted and more importantly what I did not want from life; the time to focus in and build a strong foundation for my life and future aspirations is now.

Without any further foreshadowing, what I am speaking of is my decision to again renew my career as a real estate professional here in the Seattle area. Being a professional in the real estate industry is something that I am damn good at; I wouldn’t say this if I was not. This is an industry in which I am truly built for and now am prepared to thrive in with the important lessons that I have learned over the past few years.

I will not sales pitch anyone reading this that is not my intent with this post. I will say that I am quite gifted in this role as a tireless researcher, relentless negotiator and unbelievable deal finder. These are things that have only grown since my time away from the business, with my maturation as a man and my commitment to doing things the right way, something that stemmed from lessons that I have learned from my past mistakes.

My Intentions

I have a few objectives right now and I will share them with you here so you know what I am about, straight up.

I intend to live my life according to God’s plan, doing my very best in everything I take on.

I intend to provide an amazing lifestyle for myself and my family.

I intend to always be learning, always be growing and never let my pride inhibit my progress.

I intend to always do my best in motivating, inspiring and guiding my friends, clients, readers, etc… never placing my own motivations over those in need.

Cool?

An update was in order, it’s been a while since I posted anything. I’ll continue to travel throughout life, improve my fitness, and write about my life, my adventures and my business here on the blog.

If you need a house around Seattle, I will find you the best deal period. If you need travel advice, weight loss advice, I’d love to tell you what has worked for me. It is humbling that nearly a million readers have visited LivingBueno in the past year, I hope my advice and stories continue to inspire, challenge and push my readers forward in the direction of their dreams.

Top 10 Life Goals After Turning 25, What Do You Want From Life?

 

Photo Credit - Reinhard Pantke

Split, Croatia

June 2011

It was just uncomfortable. Warm, crowded, and even smelly.

In fairness it was my probably my own fault, as I was in fact wrapping up a one and a half month backpacking tour through Europe. Needless to say, my clothes weren't spring fresh. But I will say it anyway. I smelled like someone you might find at your local Whole Foods wearing a hemp t-shirt and dread locks after a 2 week bender.

Perhaps my lucky seat partners in the waiting area were even a bit unhappy as I sat shoulder to shoulder in an inordinately crowded airport terminal in Split, Croatia. It was a warm summer day and my backpack of dirty clothes was perched high in my lap,  as I sat sweating and waiting for my flight to London.

Seconds later the attendant mercifully announced that my flight was ready to board. I boarded the plane and fell into my seat exhausted and slightly hung over. I let my head tilt upward and just smiled thinking about my crazy journey. Sometimes travel can be painful, but that smile is proof that the temporary pain is worth the everlasting memories. I remember thinking for a moment, if this thing crashes, I didn't do too damn bad, my life I thought was a success.

I was wrong though...

The fact was that I just hadn't answered my why yet. What did I want from my life?

Other than a checklist of goals I had set aside, I had nothing much to show for. I had no source of inspiration, no legacy to leave behind. I had nothing but great experiences all over the world and a checklist of cool things I'd accomplished in my journey of self discovery.

Photo Credit - Dawn

But How Did the Idea of This List Ever Come About?

A while back now I created a post, listing of the top 25 things I wanted to achieve before my 25th birthday. I made lists on both my 23rd and 24th birthdays in an effort to track my self improvement efforts and set out goals that I wanted to achieve.

I guess you could say this was a quarter life bucket list of sorts and I am proud to say that many of the goals I set out to conquer were achieved. Now that I am 25, and in fact rapidly approaching 26, I feel that it is time for a new list.

The New List

Turning 25 was really when it hit me that I was a true grown up. It was quite easy to mess around in my early 20's and simply get by, much of society encourages this in fact. For myself, I did not have a clear picture of what I truly wanted with my life and instead underwent a 2 + year period of self exploration and improvement. That period of my life is much of what is documented here on Living Bueno and I am glad to be able to look back and reflect on this important time in my life and provide ideas for other going through a similar stage.

Tonight however, things feel different and it is once again time to look forward, this time far beyond a one or two year window. I feel compelled in fact to make a new list of goals, a list that will serve more as a life plan that I can share with you. While my previous lists were more goal driven, including fun trips, physical goals or new skills, this list will focus on the bigger picture.

I write about this tonight because I have recently had a moment of clarity where the past, the present and the future all seem to make sense and I am able to answer the question many of us cannot;

"What do you want in life?"

It is a tough question to answer and I am not saying that I know all the answers. However if I can make a list of goals and dreams geared toward self improvement, amazing vacations and physical goals, I can surely make an attempt to figure out 10 things that I want to live my life for moving forward. Here goes nothing...

The List

Photo Credit - Hamed Saber

1. To Hold God First in my life- I am realizing now that I have been treating God like a buddy in the passenger seat of my car, instead of letting him take the wheel. While I did not grow up religious, having seen the inside of a church maybe twice before my 18th birthday, I have begun the process of growing my relationship with God and according to his plan.

I am a very proud and hard headed person and it has taken me awhile to come around and give up the reigns. The amazing thing that I have noticed is that once you let go, commit to living your life the right way according to gods plan, life seems to get a whole lot easier.

2. To Build an Amazing Relationship and a Strong Marriage- This is something that will likely shock many friends who know me. For a while now I have been completely jaded, unwelcoming to the idea that I would ever get married and start a family.

Things have changed. After finding a best friend, who after a few months become my girlfriend, I see clearly that life is not supposed to be lived alone. Independence is a great thing to enjoy, however there is no greater force in this world than love. I am glad I found it and want to spend my remaining years being the best man and provider I can be for my spouse and family, with God at the forefront of everything.

3. Family Comes First Always- Growing up it is easy to let you personal ambition, busy schedule and personal probelms consume your time. It is so easy to forget about the what really matters in life, your family. We spend our time worrying about what new venture we are going to start, what fire we have to put out at the office or what vacation we are planning and we fail to realize that these are mere hiccups in the plan for our lives.

Our family is the cornerstones, the pillars that hold us up and enable us to build a life in the first place. If that client at the office throws a fit, it will be ok, it really will. If I were to lose a family member and know that I wasn't the son, brother or cousin I should have been, that is not ok.

We have no excuse in life for not loving our family to the fullest of our abilities and this is something I intend to focus on forever. Rebuilding and maintaining the relationships with loved ones that they deserve.

4. Live A Life That My Grandchildren Will Be Proud Of- This goes along with the first three on this list, however it takes things a step further. It is one thing to live a good life you can be proud of, but it is another to leave a legacy, your true mark on the world, affecting and improving the lives of others both while you are here and after you are gone.

Photo Credit- Kevin Dooley

5. Realize My Full Potential Physically- I've made some amazing progress, realizing many of the goals I set out to accomplish on my 25 before 25 list. Now is the time to take things to the next level getting my body to another level and looking and feeling amazing.

I am over 100 lbs lighter, but I have weight to lose still and muscle to gain. I want to be a role model, showing others that you can not only lose weight and get healthy, but also enjoy an amazing physique no matter how bad things are for you right now. I still have a ways to go, but I will get there.

6. To Always Do My Best and Do the Right Thing- This one is damn hard, I'll admit. I am sly, too smart for my own good and overly creative sometimes when trying to figure out how to make things work. The truth is that if you vow to always not skew the lines, bend the rules and instead conduct yourself with integrity, honor and respect, you will prosper handsomely and also be able to sleep at night. Its a hell of a personal struggle, but this is something that I always want to be known for.

7. Always Encourage and Inspire- There is nothing that bothers me more than someone who pokes holes in everything. Those negative influences in your life who tell you all of the difficulties with nearly any endeavor you try to partake in. Everything is not possible for everybody, this is a fact. However I never want to impose limiting beliefs on anyone else. Positive encouragement with realistic helpful advice trumps negativity and nay saying any day of the week.

8. To Travel The World Slowly With My Family- Solo travel is great, its amazing. In all my adventures traveling the world I have to say that the only thing missing while out on the road was those loved ones who matter the most. I want to be in a position where I can share the amazing things that I have seen around the world with the people I love the most. There is a time for independent exploration and a time to live life hand in hand and for me the latter is where I am at now.

9. To Do My Best In Maintaining Friendships Around The World and At Home- I have met so many amazing people while traveling and right here at home in Seattle. I want to reconnect with old friends and continue to stay in touch with everyone I have met along the way. Living a life with a large social network of great friends of all different cultures and walks of life is truly rewarding. This is something that can only encourage growth and continual learning throughout life.

10. To Never Forget, Yet Let Go of The Past- Looking back is something that can be very productive in life and this blog has been my way of doing so in the past few years. However while reflection is productive, dwelling on the past does not help anyone. I never want to project feelings from past experiences of when I have been wronged on new people in my life.

Learning how to let go of the tough things that have happened and learning to trust, love and grow with someone new is a must when moving forward. Never forget where you can from, but build for the future and live in the present.

Coming Full Circle- If You Feel Lost Consider This

By- Rick A. Griffith

"Reflection is priceless"

Photo Credit - Ian Sane

Have you ever had the feeling that everything that has happened in your life has prepared you for this very moment?

Lately something is quite different within me, a change that I cannot explain.

For years now I have wandered through life in search of something, although I did not know exactly what it was that I was looking for. In this process I learned some invaluable lessons that I otherwise would have never discovered.

I remember in a 2009 interview I did with Ross Jeffries, a question that I asked about what tips he might have for people in their early 20’s trying to find out a direction for their lives. His response was that it is up to the individual to find their own path.

“Do not be scared to be lost, this is natural.” He said.

“I thought I wanted to be a comedy writer in my 20’s and it took me a while to realize that that just wasn’t what I was made for, or even wanted from my life”

"I would always tell myself, No ordinary life! I didn't want an average life, I wanted more."

Of course Ross went on to become well known for being featured in the NY Times Bestselling book “The Game” as well as being one of the subjects that Tom Cruise based his character in the movie Magnolia off of, not to mention building a successful business in teaching men how to be successful with women as a top dating coach.

I know now that being lost, seeking answers and experiencing turmoil in your personal life can be an amazing experience. Sure this can be extremely uncomfortable; you will be unstable, reckless, emotional and at times flat out depressed.

However what else could ever force positive change. Having a life that is just good enough not to make positive change is the epitome of misery as you are truly inhibited from ever achieving your dreams.

To find a balance between pipe dreaming and reality, you must at some point leave your comfort zone and test the limits of what is possible, putting yourself into tough situations in order to see what is and is not possible for you personally.

Over the past few years I’ve tested these boundaries in many different areas of my life.

• I’ve been flush with cash and unhappy as hell.
• I’ve had my back against the wall without a dollar to my name and still been happier than ever.
• I’ve traveled all around the world in places where I had no idea where I was, how to ask for directions or what I was even doing in this place. The thrill of this was unreal, some of the most fun I've ever had.
• I've at times been depressed coming back to ordinary life, trying to make life at home as fulfilling.
• I’ve been over 100 lbs overweight miserable, having health issues and extremely depressed.
• I’ve been 110 lbs lighter swimming in the Mediterranean Sea off the beaches of Sicily with a shit eating grin on my face.

My point is this. I get some flak for being irresponsible, unstable and unrealistic. That is fair.

However I would like to counter by asking you this.

Do you know your own limits?

Have you been up and down enough in life to realize exactly what it is that you want?

Or

Have you spent your life holding on as hard as possible to avoid ever having to change?

I am not championing my lifestyle the past few years, however I am also not quick to condemn it. This period has been essential in my growth into adulthood.

My mistakes and triumphs have painted a clear picture of EXACTLY what I am capable of and what I am not. I now know my limitations.

I write this today because things in my life have changed in a very real way as of late. I have come full circle in the past few weeks and I have realized that it is possible to live an amazing lifestyle, shunning the status quo lifestyle and seeking greatness all while right here at home in Seattle. It took a few years of gallivanting around the world and finding myself to realize this, but it is now hitting me like a Pacquiao left to the face.

It was ok to be lost, to wander through my early to mid 20’s in search of meaning, direction and a sense of self. It is ok for you to wander too, in fact I highly recommend you to do this in order to find exactly what it is you want.

At some point down this road, an abrupt change in your mindset will occur. For me it literally happened within a few days of arriving back in Seattle this holiday season.

Travel, weight loss, self improvement, writing, this blog, these were just tools in getting me to this point. Life skills and experience I acquired along this crazy road.

I have discovered the career path that I want to follow, the place I want to live and a person who I care about deeply. And this realization all happened at once when I realized that I was finally happy with being who I was, who I had become because of this period of being lost.

And so I ask you again,

Have you ever had the feeling that everything that has happened in your life has prepared you for this very moment?

Until recently, I had not.

Today I can tell you that I have. The proof however is in execution, not in blog posts.

You will notice a new voice on the blog, more confident, more realistic, and less idealistic. This is a maturation of thought, not an abandonment of optimism.

I hope that you will follow my journey into a more stable lifestyle. That being said you can be sure that I will never stop challenging myself and whatever journey I embark on, I will always attempt to be the very best that I can be, this time within my own limits.