The Property Unleashed Podcast

Four Steps To Change Your Life

• Mark Fitzgerald • Episode 355

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We share a simple four-step formula to set clear goals, model proven paths, do the hard work, and pivot with the market. Along the way we talk mindset, habits, networking, and social media tactics that make property investing more focused and sustainable.

• defining the life you want and pricing it
• modeling mentors to avoid reinventing the wheel
• doing uncomfortable work with weekly commitments
• resting to reset creativity and energy
• staying consistent and persistent in key actions
• pivoting strategies as rates and rules change
• building skills, habits, and daily inputs
• networking with intention and following up
• using simple social media to stay visible

Check out educationtoaction.com for more information there
We have some fantastic free tools and resources that can help you with your property investing
New for 2026, I am launching a property investing inner circle


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SPEAKER_00:

Let me share with you the four steps that will change your life. Hello and welcome to the Property Unleashed podcast with me, your host, Mark Fitzgerald. Great to have you joining me here today. So I'm going to share with you four very simple steps that if you put into practice can completely change your life for the better. These steps I ran through in one of my private sessions on the Property Unleashed community that we have put together, which is called Education to Action, ETA. What's your ETA? And in these sessions, myself and a lot of my power team and other coaches like to share our skills, our knowledge, and what's working for us right here, right now. Now, as an avid listener to this podcast, I want to share one of these sessions with you. At the end of these sessions, we always have time for a QA. We like to talk to our community, ask them what they've been up to, and support them on their property investing journey. If of course you're interested in having a bit more support and help, then do check out educationtoaction.com for more information there. But for now, let's jump into it. Ponder this the reason you aren't where you want to be is because you don't have the right information. A lot of the times I overthink things. In fact, I had a chat today with a lady who's been a bit of a coach and a mentor to me for quite some time now. And she just stopped me in my tracks when I was talking about something and said, Mark, you're overthinking it. So we all do these things. You know what I mean? It's not just like you feel like it, I feel like it as well. And it gets gets really, really to the point where we think we've got to, we must know everything, we've got to have all of that information. And sometimes we've just got to take action on what we're doing. So I do believe that having the right information, there is a purpose for that. And realistically, when we're out and we're starting, you know, at the beginning, at the beginner, as they say there, you're struggling, you're you're worried, you're unsure about what to do and things. And then, of course, a bit of knowledge can really, really help you to give you that confidence so that you know what to do, you know what to say. But most of the time, we're all just winging it anyway. So don't worry too much about it because you know, when when we feel that we don't have all of the answers and we're just trying to, you know, fumble and bumble our way through, that's what we're all trying to do anyway. And we all certainly do start there. But I find myself fumbling and bumbling, I'm doing it right now, fumbling and bumbling my way through most things. So it's just a case of get used to it because that's what life's all about. So, would you like to know the four things to achieve anything you want in life? That formula there. Put your hand up if you are. I just few face like a scene. You're just being kind now and putting your hand up, aren't you? Just furring. But no, brilliant stuff, brilliant stuff. So, realistically, this is the secret formula, and I'm I'm only sharing this with my elite friends. Do you know what I mean? Because this is what's gonna completely and utterly change your life. And I tell you what, you might want to write this down because you're you're gonna struggle with this because it is so, so complicated, it's really gonna stump you. So, what we've got to do for step one, and there are four steps to this, is work out exactly what we want. Now, if you were with us on Saturday or not, but you make it a habit of writing down your goals, setting your targets, and knowing what you want. Brilliant stuff. But what do you want? And we're gonna just gonna cut through some of that today. Some of us already know what we want, but some of us are still trying to find it or aren't 100% sure. Step two is find somebody who has done what it is that you actually want to do. Because we don't have to reinvent the wheel here. We're in a fantastic community where there will be people here that are doing or have done exactly what you're trying to do. So it's about tapping into those people and talking to them. Step three is the hardest step of them all, and this is where the rubber meets the road and we have to do the work. Now, this is where a lot of people come unstuck because this is where it's challenging. This is where your fears, your doubts, your worries, and everything can catch up with you. And step four is actually a real step that you'll always have on an ongoing basis because we have to learn to pivot and we have to learn to move with the times, particularly when you know Rachel Reeves or one of the governments wants to start pulling the rug from under our feet. But as property investors and property business owners, it is really about us making sure that we move with the times, that we adjust with things, and we make sure that we're in the right places. And of course, if we can do all of that, we can then get the results that we are looking for. So let's just go into a little bit more detail on these four steps before we jump into the QA and have a chat with people and things like that here. And this really is where it all starts. Because if you don't take the time, and this will take time, you won't do this in like a 15, 20-minute session. This will be an ongoing process. But is what is it that you really want? Because what I said, I said this Saturday, and I'll say it again now. The challenge is if it's not exactly what you want, you won't do it. You'll be too comfortable because it's not really what it's a nice idea, but it's not truly what I want. And I think that I've done quite well in what I've done. To the point is because it has been really what I've wanted to achieve with a passion, and I've thrown everything at it. So you've got to work out what do you want your life to look like? Who, what is the person that you want to be? And you'll have heard me say this before. You know, I want to be the best husband, the best dad, the best property investor, and the best business person or owner I can possibly be. Those are the four areas that I constantly always work on. And that's what I want to be out there. I also want to be a great speaker, and I just want to enjoy myself and do some good deals. But it have you written it down? Have you got it in front of you? Is it something that you're looking at all of the time? What do you want your life to look like and how do you want to live it? So, how where do you want to be working? What do you want your business to look like? What free time do you want? How do you want to live and what sort of lifestyle do you want there? Write it all down. And then what I would highly suggest that you do is put a price on it as well. Because at the end of the day, business, property investing, and life, it really is a numbers game played by a team. So we are gonna have to a lot of the time structure ourselves with our numbers. The numbers drive us. But what do you want your lifestyle to look like? And have a bit of fun with this. Sit down with your significant others, if you've got any kids or whatever, like that, and price it as well. If you want to fly everywhere, business class, put a price on it and realistically price out your ideal life because that could be what you're chasing. What do you want it to look like? So, how much do you want to weigh? What sort of you know, person you want to be? Do you want to be nice and fit and healthy, a gym nut, or are you just happy to be content, just looking after yourself, doing the right things? What sort of clothes do you want? Do you want a bit of bling? You know, some people like a bit of bling, nothing wrong with that. And if it's you, then get it right wrote down exactly what you want. And how much do you want to earn and why? And that's a great one. When you actually say, Well, I want 10,000 pounds coming through each and every month, why is there a specific reason for you to actually be chasing that down? How much does your ideal life cost? And why do you want to do that? So if you've got those three segments there and you've priced everything up and you've said, This is the life that I want, this is how much it's actually going to cost me, then that might be your financial target that you're chasing. And how many deals, how many opportunities do you have to do to be able to hit that? And a lot of the time it's not as many as you think, unless you really want, you know, to be a multi-multi-millionaire next week. But most of the time, we can do this to checkpoints and to stages. Step two is how do you get it? Well, first and foremost is to find somebody who's already done what it is that you want to achieve. You know, it could be a friend, co-worker, it could be somebody in ETA, it could be a coach, a mentor. But remember, you don't have to reinvent this. And of course, that person probably went through the same sort of challenges that you went through as well. So you can learn from these people. And of course, you can get it from books, podcasts, you can ask, AI now, you can do all sorts of great things if you're struggling or stuck with anything like that. Follow them and learn what to do. Now, don't stalk anybody, you know, let's not be out there crazy stalkers or anything like that. But we can follow people, and all we've got to do realistically, I mean, sometimes you can, if it's somebody that's a few runs up the ladder from your good self, is take them out for a drink, buy them a meal or something like that. That'll be the best 20, 30 quid you've ever spent because you can learn so much from it. But really, try not to reinvent the wheel if you're trying to do something. Try and just follow simple systems to do it, but don't overcomplicate it. Study what they're doing, study the actions that people take. And of course, make sure that you journal things yourself, make sure that you don't skip anything, because sometimes there's some difficult tasks, there's some difficult jobs, or there's some uncomfortable things that we need to do that we think, oh, just skip that bit because that I don't really like the feeling about getting out there or doing this bit or doing that bit. And those are probably normally the bits that you really need to be doing. So when it starts, when you start to feel uncomfortable, you start to feel like you're stretching yourself, those are probably the most important things that you should be doing. And of course, if you have to pay for coaching, training, fast track the results or whatever like that, make sure you budget it, make sure you do due diligence on people. And if you need to push the button to get yourself to that next level, then I'm all for it when it comes to that sort of thing. But as I say as well, you've you're in the right place right here, right now, anyway. Step three. Now, this is the most difficult part. Now, why is it? Because if you don't get step one right, then when the work is hard and you're struggling, that's when we tend to slow down, we tend to stop. So we need to make sure that we don't let this break us as individuals. And of course, if you really want something, nothing will stop you. So it's a bit like I said a couple of minutes ago, you know, this could be your time. Why not make it your time? It's only you that is going to stop yourself from doing so. So if you want to get out there and you want to build this business and you're meeting people, you're putting in offers, it's not quite working for you, and you're feeling a bit disheartened. Trust me, we've all been there. We've all been there, we've all gone through that. That is part of this process, and it still is now. I still lose deals or I get rejected and things, and that's just you just get used to it. All you do is the more you do something, you just get used to it. You get better at it, but also it's not going to happen for you all the time. And sometimes you don't want it to either. In the sense that I normally find that when something doesn't work out for me, as long as I'm consistent and persistent in my approach, the next deal is normally a little bit better, or something else that I find as well. I'm like, oh, I'm glad I didn't do that one because I wouldn't have been able to do this one. So it can work out in your favor a lot of the time. Are you willing to do the work required? And that realistically is what it turn up. Are you willing to show up, turn up, commit to something, and make sure that no matter what else, you get something done each and every week to get you going forward. And it's about working harder, working smarter, and of course, being the person that stands out there and make a game of it. I always say this make sure you do reward yourself and make sure you don't burn yourself out. Take time out when you need it. Okay. As I always say, when I start having a go at myself in my mind, that's when I normally need to take a break. I normally need to switch off. So sometimes you want to have a long weekend, forget about property investing, forget about all of that. Go away, have some fun. And I'll tell you what happens for me, and I hope the same thing happens for you is when I actually switch off and I start to do something else and I chill out, I get some phenomenal ideas. I actually really do. And I have to journal those and write those down and I come back to them. And I would have never had those ideas or those thoughts if I hadn't taken that time off. Because all it's done is it took all of the pressure off of me. I was trying to think things through all the time. And these great ideas, not always great, I have to say, but these ideas have come to me. And of course, as long as you've got them down and you're going to take action on the good ones and stuff, it can work very, very well for you. And of course, you have to be consistent and persistent to win. I've got a motto thing on my wall over there that says consistent and persistent every day. Follow, you know, other roadmaps that have been built for you to help you speed up your results, but be consistent and persistent in all of the right things. Now, step four is making adjustments and pivoting when necessary because we may start down one journey. We may be doing, I was trying to do buy to let's initially when my first purchases were here. It was just going to be boring vanilla buy to let's everything else was going to be noisy, but this was my little sort of legacy piece. And then interest rates went up through the roof, and all of a sudden it started to become a lot more challenging. Not impossible, but more challenging and less rewarding in that. So then I decided to pivot and use it as service accommodation rather than doing things. Now that's not a drastic pivot, but we are changing what we're doing with the times. So as you grow, things will change, and that's all right. Because it would be boring if things didn't change. I mean, if you look at big businesses, how many big companies, big businesses now are no longer here because they didn't manage to pivot and change? And we're we're no different whatsoever. So as long as we're rolling, moving with the times, people say now AI's coming in. That's it, that's the end of the world. We're all doomed. AI is going to take over everybody's jobs. AI is going to speed things up and it is going to take away some jobs, but it's not going to take everybody's jobs. And AI is only as good as the person that's using AI as well. So what you'll find is there will be people now that specialize in AI or start to use more of AI and what they're doing to speed up their own jobs and their results. Some people will use and abuse it, but it's not the end of the world. It's a tool at the end of the day. And if we think right back, and I don't know because I didn't really know that many people then, but speaking to other business owners about when the internet first came in and the amount of business owners that said, I'm not going on that thing, it's a fad and everything like that. And most of them went straight out of business because they just didn't adapt to things. So we always want to be making sure that we get the latest news, that we're listening to the updates and things. And if anything needs pivoting and changing, we get in there and we pivot and we change it. Of course, some people will like the new you, and some people won't. And that's fine because some people say to me, Mark, you've changed. You're not the same as you used to be anymore. And I'm just like, what, in a good way or a bad way? Well, no, you're just different. Yes, because I've educated myself and I'm always trying to better myself. And that means hopefully I'm changing into a better person, a better version of me. But some people will won't like that. I've lost friends over that that all of a sudden have fallen out with me. We've never had a bad word in our life, but they've fallen out with me because they think I've changed. Uh, I don't think I have. I, in fact, I think I'm a nicer person than I've ever been. Uh, not that I was ever a bad person, but this will happen. You will change, you will improve, you might outgrow the people that are around you as well. And I do also find that I get into a lot of situations now where I'm sat there and I'm looking around and I'm listening to the level of the conversation, and I'm thinking to myself, and I don't say anything, I'm not ruder, but I'm thinking to myself, crikey, you lot are all just moaning, just moaning constantly about things. Nobody's got a nice thing to say about anything. It's just like that negative environment. So we like to put ourselves into a better environment where we can help and support each other. Try to not put yourselves in those negative environments, obviously, as much as possible, but you will change as you start to grow. Remember all markets change, stay up to date with marketplace and adjust to the market conditions because nothing ever lasts forever and it will never all stay the same. And of course, look at learnings and knowledge and everything as an investment in you that nobody can ever take away from you. And that's one of the things, even if it was rubbish, you've learned not to do that one again. You know, it's at the end of the day, it's all about making sure that you're growing as a person and you're giving yourself a chance to take the information in. When I do any trainings, when I do and I do a lot of trainings, I do a lot of home studies, I do a lot of different things to better myself. I normally watch it once, I normally then listen to it when I'm walking around, walking the dog and stuff, and then I'll normally go through it again. And I tell you what, every time I do it, I notice something new, I learn something new, I take in something new. Now, for me, I'm obviously a slow learner by the sound of things there. You might be able to take things in a lot better than me. But it takes me about two or three hits to actually get something. So I now know what I need to do to be able to take that input in. And I'm very, very quick when I get a new training to stick it on one and a half speeds and think I'm taking it all in. And then by the time I get to the end of it, I've probably missed half of it. So take the time to be able to go back over things and be as specific as you can because once you've mastered the four-step formula and what you're trying to achieve, what you're trying to do, and what you're trying to get out of life, then you'll be able to start moving yourself forward. And of course, you just then need to review things on a daily basis. And I love this quote by Jim Rowan. We must all suffer one of two things: the pain of discipline or the pain of regret. And if you've never listened to Jim Rowan, you get him on audio ball or whatever, absolutely phenomenal speaker, says the most simple things, but they make so much sense. And of course, it can really help move you forward. I listen to him a couple of times a year, if I'm quite honest with you, and his collection. So once you've nailed that yourself, I'll go through these quickly. Your mindset, you want to shift your mindset and start thinking how you can help people in your property investing. So never go in there and start thinking to yourself, you know, oh my God, I hope I get an idea, I hope I get an opportunity. Go in there and think, how can I actually help them? Even if it's an agent or a landlord or whatever, how can I help you? What do you need help with? Go in with that attitude. Make sure you're always working on your skill sets and bettering yourself as you're moving forward and start to build in. You know, we've got a new year coming. Everybody's going to be heading for the gym, aren't they? In January, January, February. Gyms are going to be making an absolute fortune. I might open one just for three months just to do that and then shut it down and make it into something else. But get some daily habits in there, you know, get some steps in there, get some water in there, get, you know, really start to try and look after yourself because I've been looking after myself now the last few months a lot more than I normally do. And I tell you what, I feel amazing. I feel absolutely amazing. I feel energized. I feel like I could take on the world and everything. And it's really, really helped me. And the more hands you shake is a great saying, the more money you make. And it really is all about relationships. All the money you make in life will come from relationships in one way or another. So get good at building good, solid relationships with people that you're talking to and people that you're meeting. And of course, if you are trying to get yourselves out there and you are trying to maximize everything, then you want to be meeting new people. Get out there, start networking, go into events, you know, come and make sure that you're following up with people after you've met them at events and things. So don't just go shake people's hands, maybe take a card or something. I actually take where is it? So I'm old school, so I actually take cards, physical cards to give people. But the amount of people, I've got a few cards here, actually. The amount of people that don't have a card, don't have anything. Now, obviously, we can we can take their number down, we can put it there. I also have a notepad on me, a stupid little notepad in my back pocket. Okay, and I get people to write down their names, their emails, and their phone numbers if they're happy enough to give them to me. Again, I could put them in my phone, but then normally I lose them if they're in my phone. I can take it from the notepad, I can put it into my phone, but it makes sure that I follow up with people. It's a little mechanism for me to grab my notebook. All right, that's not been ticked off. So I have. I am I haven't followed up with Ryan. In fact, I have actually because I'm talking to Ryan tomorrow. But I haven't followed up with somebody else. You know what I mean? Stuff like that that really helps you when you're networking. Otherwise, it's a waste of time doing it. Social media, use social media and have a presence there, get it in full swing. And of course, it's easy to use, it's easy to do. Even if you don't like having your own profile, just set a business page up and just post on that business page every now and again because no doubt if somebody gets a hold of you or the name of your business, they will go on social media and they will check you. Training events or groups, you know, Facebook groups or anything like that are always good as well. Great, great time to connect and meet people. And of course, word of mouth. You need to be telling everybody, family, friends, what it is you're interested in. If you've got a full-time job and you don't want to upset the Apple card with a full-time job, as the old saying goes, just say it's a hobby. This is my hobby. You like to play golf, or you like to do that, and you like to do this. You go and watch your football. I've got a passion for uh property, and I'm just building my retirement fund. Nobody will ever have a go at you for doing anything like that. So social media can be great as well. And here's a few things, sort of, to help you you don't need to be on every platform, but you do need to be on at least one platform, and you do need to be hosting about what you're up to and what you're looking to do. Three posts a week can make all of the difference. And again, you can schedule all of those in on one day and then forget about it and just let it post out. There's a lot of posts that used to well come out from me, but they're all scheduled on one day a week. I don't schedule them, but they're all scheduled, I know they're scheduled in on one day a week, all ready to go out there and and to do their little jobs, and that's realistically to just keep me out there and keep me noticed for better or for worse. And do you never know what to post? If you don't know what to post, take pictures when you're on Guewings, or if you're out and about and you see a bit of guttering or something like that, take a picture of that. Start to build up a bit of a gallery. If you go and view a property, okay. Normally, I mean, even a two-bed property, you've got the kitchen, you've got the living room, you've got two bedrooms, you've got the hallway, you've got a garden, you've got the front of the property. So you've got at least six pictures there. What you could actually do is put six posts together talking about did a viewing, did a viewing, did this, did this, look at this, saw this bit of damp. That's six different posts. It doesn't have to be that you're telling everybody, because what you see most people do is they'll do a viewing and they'll stick about 20 pictures on this one post. And I'm thinking to myself, there's about two weeks, three weeks worth of posts there, because you don't have to tell everybody, it's a different property all the time. You're not lying either, because it was a viewing that you did. So one picture, one post, happy days. Start to build it up, don't overthink it. And of course, if you hate social media, but you need to do it, schedule it in and make it as easy as possible for your good selves. And there you have it the four steps that you need to follow to get the results that you want in your life. I hope you've enjoyed this episode. I always enjoy bringing these episodes to you. And if you need any other further help or assistance, then do check out, as I said before, education toaction.com or go to the podcast website, which is thepropertyonleash.com. We have some fantastic free tools and resources that can help you with your property investing. And also, new for 2026, I am launching a property investing inner circle. This will be a small group of property investors that we will get together bi-monthly for live in-person sessions as well as one-to-one coaching and accountability calls. This will take your property investing to that new level with a very supportive and of course nurturing environment. Take care and come and join me again very soon. Bye for now.