Look ahead and prosper...

“One who does not look ahead remains behind.” (Brazilian Proverb) from the Jack’s Winning Words blog. Jack wrote about looking ahead to the next Olympics when he used this saying.

I think it is very useful for real estate purposes and for life in general. Often there is a tendency (human nature I suppose) to dwell on the past. Some never let go of a past success, maybe throwing the winning touchdown pass in their final high school game; and some can’t seem to let go of a past failure – losing a listing to another Realtor for instance. It is equally sad to see the 50+ year old, ex-high school jock still walking around in his tatte4red high school letter jacket reliving that final game as it is to see the brooding and petulant agent grumbling about losing that last listing opportunity.

A wise and older agent who helped me get started tried hard to get me to understand his philosophy of being able to say “So, what?” So, what if you didn’t get that listing; or so what if the sale fell through; you’re still here and the future is still ahead of you, if you’ll just turn your attention in that direction, instead of dwelling on the past.

There is a time for celebrating and a time for sadness or disappointment, but both are brief and need to be let go, so that you can move forward with life. Don’t get left behind. Life is too short to waste it by dwelling in the past. Look ahead, there are many more opportunities for you to celebrate.