Why knowing your values can help you raise money from property investors

In this episode we discuss:

• How values shape life
• How to create a more relaxed and balanced lifestyle
• The values exercise and how things change every year
• How to make decisions when there is no clear direction
• Our free values exercise
• The first question to ask yourself before making a decision
• The trade offs of taking on extra projects
• Taking stock and making a decision based on what you want to do
• Creating a northstar for yourself
• The single easiest way to combat shiny penny syndrome

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Transcript

Al: 0:02

Hey guys, you're listening to arrays in finance talks with Sam UNAL. We are on an absolute mission to help developers raise their first billion from investors. So they can go on and do deals with six figure profits.

Sam: 0:14

So if you're not moving forward with your property business, or a lack of cash than this podcast is for you, we're going to seek dive into all aspects of raising private finance. So thanks for listening, and let's dive in.

Al: 0:33

Welcome, everyone. This podcast episode is all about how values impact your decisions when doing business. There he goes, knife that was better, wasn't it for this smooth operator, this is a big one for us. But before we go into it, we have done an episode previously on values. And that was geared more towards how your values can help you connect with investors. So if you want to listen to that, next, that will be perfect. But this one is all about more about you, and how it really impacts your decisions. And it was big for us, wasn't it? It was a huge, sort of part of our journey together. Back in 2017,

Sam: 1:15

oh, my hand as feminists.

Al: 1:19

I feel like hugging? Yeah, no, it was a big thing. It was a really huge part of of this whole process that we went through. And, you know, it's one that, you know, I've I've used since then. And I know you've used since then, not only personally but setting up this business. We used it, didn't we in terms of the raising finance club? That's one of the first discussions we had, you know, what do we want this business? What do we want this company to be all about? What do we value the most? And? And how will our products align with that? And how will our customers align with that? That was one of the first chats we had. So

Sam: 1:56

yeah, exactly. My yeah, I've used it plenty of times, like since we first did the values exercise, when we're in a room, like you say, in 2017, we went through all then worked on it quite a lot, man looks at all sorts of different things around the values. And then since then, you know, things change every year in life, things do change, things do change, indeed, different things happen. You change as a person. And then you might have different values one year, or you might be trying to achieve something different once you've achieved like the previous goal, or you're just changing for one reason or another. And then your values might change as well, and what you're looking to achieve. So I quite often, well, every year at least once a year, I look at what my highest values are yours to say at least once a year, and then make decisions for what I'm going to go out and do based on that.

Al: 2:49

Yeah, I can think of for little human beings that do shape our lives, certainly in terms of, you know, what we're trying to achieve, and, and also not only what we're trying to achieve in terms of the goal of where we want to take our businesses, but actually, you know, what's the lifestyle, like, what's the time with them like, and I know that was a huge part of the sort of transition for me when I got into property, one of the biggest drivers was I had kids on the way so I didn't want to be working all the time, in terms of on other people's sort of structure, I wanted to work on my own structure. And I wanted to work in the way that I wanted to work. And I think that was a massive, massive driver for me to create that that sort of lifestyle. And I know it's part of yours as well. So

Sam: 3:39

I think it's quite easy as well, for people to just go absolutely overboard when it comes to like, what they want to achieve and how much they want to work when they start working for themselves. I think everyone's probably got different reasons for this. But I see it quite a lot in people that come from the corporate world when they come out and they want to create something different for themselves and a more relaxed lifestyle and a more of a balanced life. Yeah, but because they've been in corporate for so long. They just go hell for leather and create create something that like this beast of a thing. That whatever they're doing in property, and they're just working and working and working and just like flat out stressed, like beyond belief, just like they were in their job before. And they haven't got the balance and that that's what they wanted to achieve when they left their corporate life. But they just go in and create it all again. Yeah,

Al: 4:38

I like well, I mean, I could I mean, I wasn't in corporate but as, as a golf professional, a lot of my stuff was weekends, right? So I didn't, I wasn't at home on weekends. That was the way it worked. And for me the thought of that, when kids came along was just a non. It was just a non negotiable I'm changing that I don't want to be away for the weekend. So how do I change that, and I make sure that that sticks in that way as well, I don't go back to, oh, I've created, you know, the beast, that then, you know, I have to be out away on the weekends doing all this stuff. That was really key to me. And I do see that as well may I think that it's, it's difficult because when there's a lot of factors isn't there, when you come out of a certain job or industry or whatever it might be to then go and recreate the pay packet that you had, or as quick as possible, you know, there's a lot of pressure, if you've got family and stuff like that, or if you you know, you haven't got family, and you just want to live a great lifestyle, you know, that comes with a price tag. And sometimes everyone might move too quickly or too fast, or just build without thinking what they're building. Direction. Yeah, no direction at all. So it's definitely something to consider, it can also

Sam: 5:55

be quite hard to make decisions, if you have really haven't worked on your values. So you're just you're making decisions when you're just in your own head. And you might spend a little bit of time when you're maybe presented a deal to go, yeah, that looks good. The numbers work, I've already got a couple of projects on the go, I'll just I'll go for that as well, because it works. So there's no real sort of process. And that can lead down the road here, like we say, with no real direction, and then you can end up just being overworked. I'm like really stressed, and then you're just in a place where you just think, Okay, why didn't actually take that project on, I didn't need to do that. Yeah.

Al: 6:38

And also, you know, by taking that project on without having that direction, outside of, you know, the monetary goal of it, or the monetary reward, you can end up getting to bed with people that you just don't want to be in bed with, you know, like you might take on an investor that you just need, again, we've talked about this in previous episodes, but you take on an investor just purely because they've got the money, and you need the money to go do the project. And that's basically how you've based the decision on and I think there's so many more factors to it isn't there than that, you know, what's the knock on effect of that decision for your life? It's a it's a deep subject and not one that is discussed? openly, honestly, transparently. That often I feel so yeah.

Sam: 7:26

So what kind of questions can people be asking themselves, then just to kind of help out with that, with that process, when it comes to living alongside your values? Or the life you want? Like, how, how can people do that?

Al: 7:38

Well, I think the first thing is, you know, just to sort of think about the impact of something that's happening, and, you know, how does this decision that I'm about to make? How does that have a massive impact on sort of those around me, for example, whether it be a development project, a deal, whatever the size of that project is? How does it have an impact on those around me, because it will, you know, if you take a huge development on, and for example, I'm using, you know, my experience or your experience young kids, you take the development on, and, you know, you may potentially if it's a big one, and up, you know, losing that lifestyle that you kind of thought you're gonna get, and that can have an impact on the relationship you had with the kids, with your partner, or wife, or whatever that might be. It's a really, really big one. And I think it's something that maybe isn't at the forefront of what people think about when they're making a decision about doing a development. Yeah, there's

Sam: 8:40

always going to be trade offs with with any project, you know, just with running any business or whether you're working for someone else, whatever you're doing. There's always trade offs. But when I think it's important to just take take sort of stock really before you take on the project or do a certain strategy, where are you at at the moment? What are you looking to achieve? What is the life you want to live? And by taking on this project, just say it's an extra projects, maybe you're already got your two projects you want to do this year? And you get everything you want from the profit? Are those two projects? If you take on a third project that year, then what are the trade offs? likely they're going to be? Obviously just less time more stress? Less time probably spending on like just having time to yourself whether that's time with friends, you know, if you're going on holiday, if you can actually go away on holiday.

Al: 9:42

Got three like big developments on maybe consider the holiday calendar might not be as vibrant as it probably would if you had one or two.

Sam: 9:52

Yeah, and if you do go away when you're on holiday, can you actually switch the phone off and relax because you know There's always something going on with a build. So, you know, are you able to just switch off when you're on holiday and actually enjoy it. That's one of the things I've actually experienced on the last couple of projects I did, I was just yeah, pretty stressed got to, there's a lot going on with both the sites, and it's getting pretty tricky with with the builders. And I remember going fishing a couple of times, I think, right, I really need to just kind of chill out here for a bit and spend a bit of time just doing what I absolutely love. And relaxing is always a really good switch off for me. But then go down to the lake, think I'm gonna be able to switch off and relax here. And then after about, like, half a day or a day, I should have been down there for like three days. After a day, I'm just like, stuff still going on with my phone, can't really turn it off. All the time that I'm sort of not on the phone, I'm thinking about the projects, you know, just thinking about what's going on, I can't actually relax, I'm not enjoying my free time here, I'm not enjoying actually doing what I love, which is fishing. Yeah. So that can put a bit of a spanner in the works really, when it comes to actually you do have the downtime, but you don't enjoy it, because you've got so much going on with other projects. And that can happen, whether you're doing one project a year or five projects a year, but it's worth considering what the trade offs are likely to be for you. And just having that decision based on. Am I okay with this? You know, if it's if say you want to earn an extra 100k That year by doing another project, then, okay, what do you want to use that 100k For if it's to buy a second home on the coast somewhere that you've always wanted? Then okay, you can make that decision and go right? I'm happy? Well, I'm not happy, but I'm prepared. And okay, with being a bit more stressed and having less time this year, because I'm gonna work my ass off and do that extra project. Because I really want that 100k to put down as a deposit on that place near the beach that I really want. Yeah, so just taking stock and actually making a decision based on what you want to do rather than just, that will be some more money, I'll go for that.

Al: 12:12

Yeah, and I think you know, this is, this is where the values or having a clear understanding of what your values are, come into their own. Because you create, effectively you create by having a set of core values, stuff that you live by, effectively, by having that in place. And I mean, when I say having them in place, I don't mean, you know, downloading one of those crosswords from I know, we talked about before, like downloading one of those crosswords and choosing a load of words that resonate with you, and then whittling it down to one, two, or three, I mean, sort of spending the deep time to consider you know, what, what your core values are. And we'll we'll talk about that in, in a bit of how you might be able to do that. What this does is it really creates a Northstar for you. And when you're considering these decisions, those values are almost set there, okay, this is my filter. It's almost like this little funnel. And every decision that goes in, it's trickled through and my values are there to stop me effectively making decisions that can make your life difficult, later down the line. And I think that's, that's where they really, really come into their own. And that's where they become really powerful, is, you know, you, you feel in control of decisions. And you feel that, you know, everything's aligned, what you're doing is aligned with what I chose them to be. And I think that's really, really key. So, in terms of the values that there are, there's no real quick fix. I've joked a little bit about the crossword a few times, there's not a quick fix to doing your values, it does take some deep work. And, you know, we've we've done an exercise ourselves, and we've worked with clients on an exercise to it's not something you might associate with values, but it's very, very powerful to take through the stages. And we do have like a step by step process for this. And we spend a lot of time with clients working on this at the beginning of our journey. So if values are something that you'd like to dive into, and have a little bit more of a thought process around and a little bit more time taken to sort of really work out what your core values are. We go through a process with our clients, and it's something that me and Sam have been through as well. We've got a guide for it. It's something that we give to our clients so that they can do it. So if you'd like to get hold of that just DM us on Instagram. And what we'll do is we'll just send it straight to you.

Sam: 14:54

So one of the great things when you do work on your values and they're all written out and you understand And on a more detailed and a deeper level about how you want to live your life, then you can use them as a really, really powerful decision making filter. Because, you know, in property, I thought there was a lot of strategies when I started almost 10 years ago, but now I think there's about five times as many strategies and opportunities out there. So, you know, it can be it can be quite hard, I think sometimes for people to just stick to one thing, or maybe two things and do them really well. Because there might be someone saying, Oh, I've just done this one deal. And I only put in 15k. And I'm getting 2k, back a month for five years. And over on the other side, there's someone say, No, I've just done this really easy commercial conversion, and I flipped to a planning and made 200k. So there's all this stuff going on, everyone's only money and each different strategy. But when you've created your values, you can actually say, Okay, I've been offered this deal where I can do this strategy, I can do this flip over here. When you've actually got your values and you know what you want to achieve, and live your life day to day, you can just cut out all the noise and decide on exactly what you want to do. And you know what that's going to give you. So when you do that, you can just live a simpler life. And you can also lead a more like purposeful and intentional life that is fully like in focus or, like fully aligned with you acting and doing things in a way which are leading you whether they're keeping you in line with your values, basically, yeah, how you want to live and you can help you can say no to most things. And yes to the things that do keep you in line with your values

Al: 16:45

is the single easiest way to combat shiny Penny syndrome. I hear this a lot where it's like, I just can't concentrate on one thing I need to like I need to know everything or you know, that thing just so appealing. And maybe it just be that little bit better than what I'm doing right now. Well, this, like knowing those values is the single sort of single easiest way to combat that. Because you literally look at that thing. And you say, well, actually, that's not aligned with what I want to do. It might bring me some more money, but it's going to take a heck of a lot more time I have to build a team. There's so many different things I have to do in order to make that work. And yeah, it just it's not aligned. So therefore the answer is no. Computer says no, no,

Sam: 17:30

I say, yeah, like you say, just call the noise. And then all your all your actions are driven by your values. So you can live aligned.

Al: 17:38

Absolutely. No, I love it. It's a big subject. So you know, we would love to go into massive detail around how like the how of it, but a podcast is not going to do that for you. And that's why we're offering this sort of step by step guide that we use with our clients. So like I said, just a reminder, if you want to go a bit deeper on your values, just DM us on Instagram and like I said, we'll send it so yeah, guys, leave us a review if you are liking what we're doing to subscribe and leave us a review and share it with people that you know that might benefit from it because it just helps us to get the message out. And finally, we just really appreciate you listening. So thanks.

Sam: 18:17

Thanks a lot. We'd really appreciate any sharing you do or any feedback and comments. It'd be amazing to hear what you think. Definitely

Al: 18:24

see you next week guys. See ya.

Sam: 18:28

If you want to attract investors without asking for money, check out raising finance club.com for our free resources. And you can also follow us on Instagram and Facebook at raising finance club