By Stefan Aarnio
Freedomway.ca
Photo left: Stefan Aarnio and Kim Kiyosaki.
"Financial independence is about having more choices."
Kim Kiyosaki
Kim Kiyosaki is easily one of the most impressive women I ever met. She has a level head, manages her image and brand very well. In addition, she has a very pleasant personality and is a shark when it comes to acquiring and negotiating real estate.
Kim Kiyosaki is most famous for being the wife of Rich Dad Poor Dad's Robert Kiyosaki and I have heard from multiple sources that she is the powerhouse that drives their real estate empire.
I remember seeing Robert on stage in 2010 and he said that his wife had just closed on 3 golf courses and 2 country clubs last week. It is rumored that Kim owns more Real Estate than Robert and that she is the one who actually makes all of the final real estate decisions.
A very impressive woman indeed, and when I met her in Las Vegas, I asked: "Where can a guy like me find a young Kim Kiyosaki?"
She replied "I have a really nice niece!"
A perfect answer.
Although she has an amazing track record and brand, I think the strongest thing about Kim Kiyosaki is that she stands for complete financial independence.
Women have been historically dependent on their Husbands/Sons/Grandfathers/Men to support them and she really is an advocate for women to be in control of their financial future.
I would take this message a step further and say that all investors and business people need to hedge and never rely on one source whether it be a business partner, a supplier, a joint venture partner, a contractor or a spouse.
The more experience I get in the field, the more I learn that I always need to hedge, hedge, hedge and bet against myself and my team so that I do not get into a financially dependent situation where I lose control of my business.
Some real life examples:
Every Real Estate Investor has been taken for a ride at one time or another by a bad contractor. Unscrupulous contractors know that new investors don't know what to pay and rip them off.
I had a very bad experience some years ago with a contractor who bound me to an agreement, monopolized my project and was completely incompetent.
I had to pay this contractor $25,000 to fire him, and he monopolized my cash by legally halting my next construction draw. I lost all control of the project and was at his mercy. What was even worse was that I did not control materials for this project - the contractor did. It was VERY difficult to take control of this project after it had spun out of control.
Today, I follow Kim's principal of NOT being dependent on one source for ANYTHING.
I now work with 3-5 contractors on every project, whether digital or physical and I ALWAYS CONTROL MATERIALS. You cannot rely on one person to come through. On any project you must always keep as much control as possible in your hands.
When contractors see 3-5 other contractors prowling around, they know that they can be replaced and have to compete to earn loyalty. You have full control and they do not.
When it comes to banks, I bank with 5 banks and keep my resources scattered. Again, they compete for my business and they fight to earn it with lower interest rates and waived fees.
When I sell or wholesale deals, I make sure there are many end user's interested. DO NOT RELY ON ONE PERSON or you lose control. Always have back up offers incase the first one falls through.
When I raise money I always have 3-5 investors interested so that I can get the terms I want.
When I'm financing a deal I always use a mortgage broker and he shops the deal to 30 lenders, we get 95% of the deals done because the lenders have to compete for the business rather than you competing for them. I see other investors rely on one bank to close their deals and their chances drop to 0% when the bank starts offering them bad terms.
Follow Kim's message that she sends to women all over the world and take it a step further. Whether you are a woman or not, think like a Rich Woman and hedge against your risks. Never be dependent on one person or source for YOUR success. Keep your leverage and negotiating power by soliciting multiple suiters. Think like a woman, they are much smarter than men when it comes to social capital and relationships: let your suiters compete for your business.
Thanks for reading,
Stefan Aarnio
Freedomway.ca
P.S. Please share this article if you found it helpful!
Freedomway.ca
Photo left: Stefan Aarnio and Kim Kiyosaki.
"Financial independence is about having more choices."
Kim Kiyosaki
Kim Kiyosaki is easily one of the most impressive women I ever met. She has a level head, manages her image and brand very well. In addition, she has a very pleasant personality and is a shark when it comes to acquiring and negotiating real estate.
Kim Kiyosaki is most famous for being the wife of Rich Dad Poor Dad's Robert Kiyosaki and I have heard from multiple sources that she is the powerhouse that drives their real estate empire.
I remember seeing Robert on stage in 2010 and he said that his wife had just closed on 3 golf courses and 2 country clubs last week. It is rumored that Kim owns more Real Estate than Robert and that she is the one who actually makes all of the final real estate decisions.
A very impressive woman indeed, and when I met her in Las Vegas, I asked: "Where can a guy like me find a young Kim Kiyosaki?"
She replied "I have a really nice niece!"
A perfect answer.
Although she has an amazing track record and brand, I think the strongest thing about Kim Kiyosaki is that she stands for complete financial independence.
Women have been historically dependent on their Husbands/Sons/Grandfathers/Men to support them and she really is an advocate for women to be in control of their financial future.
I would take this message a step further and say that all investors and business people need to hedge and never rely on one source whether it be a business partner, a supplier, a joint venture partner, a contractor or a spouse.
The more experience I get in the field, the more I learn that I always need to hedge, hedge, hedge and bet against myself and my team so that I do not get into a financially dependent situation where I lose control of my business.
Some real life examples:
Every Real Estate Investor has been taken for a ride at one time or another by a bad contractor. Unscrupulous contractors know that new investors don't know what to pay and rip them off.
I had a very bad experience some years ago with a contractor who bound me to an agreement, monopolized my project and was completely incompetent.
I had to pay this contractor $25,000 to fire him, and he monopolized my cash by legally halting my next construction draw. I lost all control of the project and was at his mercy. What was even worse was that I did not control materials for this project - the contractor did. It was VERY difficult to take control of this project after it had spun out of control.
Today, I follow Kim's principal of NOT being dependent on one source for ANYTHING.
I now work with 3-5 contractors on every project, whether digital or physical and I ALWAYS CONTROL MATERIALS. You cannot rely on one person to come through. On any project you must always keep as much control as possible in your hands.
When contractors see 3-5 other contractors prowling around, they know that they can be replaced and have to compete to earn loyalty. You have full control and they do not.
When it comes to banks, I bank with 5 banks and keep my resources scattered. Again, they compete for my business and they fight to earn it with lower interest rates and waived fees.
When I sell or wholesale deals, I make sure there are many end user's interested. DO NOT RELY ON ONE PERSON or you lose control. Always have back up offers incase the first one falls through.
When I raise money I always have 3-5 investors interested so that I can get the terms I want.
When I'm financing a deal I always use a mortgage broker and he shops the deal to 30 lenders, we get 95% of the deals done because the lenders have to compete for the business rather than you competing for them. I see other investors rely on one bank to close their deals and their chances drop to 0% when the bank starts offering them bad terms.
Follow Kim's message that she sends to women all over the world and take it a step further. Whether you are a woman or not, think like a Rich Woman and hedge against your risks. Never be dependent on one person or source for YOUR success. Keep your leverage and negotiating power by soliciting multiple suiters. Think like a woman, they are much smarter than men when it comes to social capital and relationships: let your suiters compete for your business.
Thanks for reading,
Stefan Aarnio
Freedomway.ca
P.S. Please share this article if you found it helpful!
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