Consistency Beats Intensity: Real Estate, Running, and Real Results

What if your next breakthrough isn’t a giant leap, but a mile before sunrise and one honest conversation about money and fear? We sit down with Vanessa, a San Antonio agent who turned a decade in multifamily into a resilient, people-first real estate business—and a healthier life along the way. From a childhood marked by financial hardship to a career reset after a team non-compete, her story shows how small, daily actions compound into real change.

We unpack how she rebuilt her book of business through rentals, tireless follow-up, and showing gigs, then scaled with better systems and high-trust buyer consults. Vanessa explains why waiting for interest rates to drop can backfire when competition returns, how to read total payment (not just principal and interest), and why local market expertise beats national hot takes. You’ll hear how she keeps first-time buyers calm with clear steps, right-sized education, and the emotional intelligence to mirror their pace and goals.

Beyond transactions, we explore the habits that fuel performance. Vanessa quit alcohol, embraced consistent movement, and used that discipline to show up more clearly on camera and with clients. Authentic social media—sharing fitness wins, setbacks, and lessons—helped her build a community that refers and returns. She and her husband are now planning to keep their current home as a rental and buy again, building long-term wealth one decision at a time.

If you want a practical, human playbook for buying a home in a noisy market—or growing a real estate business without losing yourself—this conversation delivers. You’ll walk away with better questions to ask, smarter ways to think about timing and financing, and a reminder that identity changes before outcomes. Subscribe, share this with a friend who needs a push, and leave a review telling us: what small step will you take today?

Transcript

Daily Improvement Challenge

SPEAKER_00 0:00

At the end of every day, look at yourself in the mirror and ask, did I get better today? Monday, get better. Tuesday, get better. Wednesday, get better. If you do that for five years, ten years, fifteen years, how much better will you be? Are you getting better every single day? That's the real question. And it all comes down to taking small steps. You don't have to accomplish everything in one day or even one week. Just focus on getting a little better every single day.

Vanessa’s Podcast Background

Mark Jones 0:36

Welcome back to real estate AF, where the AF stands for and finance. And today's episode is for anyone who's feeling pressure of the market, buyers, agents, and honestly any human with a pulse. So my guest today is Vanessa, and she's one of the rare people who sit at the intersection of real estate, community, discipline, and authenticity. Which is a fancy way of saying she doesn't move like the typical agent. For Vanessa, real estate isn't just numbers, negotiation, it's emotional. It's fear, it's timing, it's identity. And that moment when people go, wait a minute, I can actually do this. That's what we're gonna be talking about. And it has to do with rates and headlines and hesitation and people making smart decisions. We're also gonna get into how she built community beyond the sale, how she shows up in social media like a real human instead of walking billboard, and why her fitness discipline running all the things that she does kind of translate into her business and everyday life. So whether you're trying to buy your first home or grow your business, or just become the next version of yourself, you're gonna get some value out of this. So without further ado, let me introduce Vanessa. How are you?

SPEAKER_01 1:58

Hi, I'm doing well. Thanks for having me, Mark.

Mark Jones 2:00

Absolutely. And it's been a long time coming.

SPEAKER_01 2:02

I know.

Mark Jones 2:03

Truly.

SPEAKER_01 2:04

It has.

Mark Jones 2:04

So before we start, you mentioned something that I wanted to uh kind of touch on. You mentioned you had a podcast and it feels weird being on this side. Tell me about your podcast.

SPEAKER_02 2:14

Oh my gosh. So me and two of my girlfriends, they're out on the East Coast. We met through an online coaching group during the pandemic. Okay. And our coach was like, You four, it was four of us at first. You should do a podcast. And we were like, why us? I don't know. We were just like, okay, let's go with it. Yeah. So we had named the deals and heels.

Mark Jones 2:34

Love it. Okay.

SPEAKER_02 2:35

That's catchy. Yeah, it was. But not all the girls were like wearing heels. So they were like, oh, we don't know this is right. I'm like, well, let's just talk about real estate. And you know, and it was it was a lot though for four people. And then we weren't all together. Yeah. One was in Houston and the other two were on the East Coast, Boston and uh Philly.

Mark Jones 2:52

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 2:53

And so we were doing, you know, on Zoom. And it was cool for a little while. And then we kind of figured out not everyone meshed together. One of the girls that was like, This isn't for me. She left. And then it was three of us. And so we rebranded and we were more than real estate. Yeah. I like that. Yeah. So we had four pillars. We talked about business, wealth, family, and geez, what was the last one? I can't remember. It's been a while.

Mark Jones 3:15

Some good stuff, I guarantee.

SPEAKER_02 3:17

It was good. We had interviewed some heavy hitters. We had interviewed like Ricky Caruth and Girls of Grit. Oh, wow. We were just it was it was great. It was it was fun. We had a lot of fun doing it. And we did that for I think almost three years.

Mark Jones 3:31

Wow. And what kind of put it to a close? Everybody kind of went their separate ways. It just got tough talking to the same people over and over.

SPEAKER_02 3:39

I think it was tough not being in the same room.

Mark Jones 3:41

That I will admit 100% is why I don't do virtual. I did it a couple times on a different podcast that I had with a friend up in Idaho. It was fun, but it you don't get this. You don't feed off like the 1000%. Yes. The energy going virtually is not the same as when you're in the same room. I not only hear you, but I feel you.

SPEAKER_02 4:04

Yeah, for sure. I mean, it was great. I learned so much. I had so much fun. Uh, communication skills is huge. Being able to interview someone is a skill. I loved it. I miss it a whole bunch, but I know that in due time, maybe I can get back to that.

Early Life And Multifamily Years

Mark Jones 4:21

On your own. Yeah. Bringing other people. Maybe I can inspire you to do that. I know. As a matter of fact, we just we just had someone last night start their first podcast in this studio. We took everything off the walls. It's like totally different podcast. Yeah. It's pretty cool. It's so cool. So we're here today to talk about you. And I want to start by allowing you to tell us who you are, the real you, the, the, the, the stuff behind the social media, where you came from, and how you got into this business.

SPEAKER_02 4:51

Okay. Well, born and raised, I'm a native of San Antonio. Grew up on the Northeast side. And then my parents, they owned a business and things didn't work out. We bankrupt out of that and the house. And we ended up moving in with my grandparents. And that was out in Lavaca, which is now known as Southtown.

SPEAKER_05 5:08

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 5:08

And so I went, you know, pretty much grew up there, went to high school out that way, Brackenridge, King William area. And then, you know, as I got older, it was basically started as a lifeguard. I was a lifeguard. And then I was like, hmm, I need to get a real job. And one of my uh girlfriends, she was a lifeguard with me. She was in multifamily. And she was like, You would be so great at leasing apartment homes. Like, come over here, interview, see if you like it. You'll make some money. You can get half off your apartment.

SPEAKER_05 5:34

Very cool. Okay.

SPEAKER_02 5:35

Okay. Okay. So I did that and got the job and switched out my flip-flops for high heels and did that for 10 years. Really? All of my 20s. Holy cow. Okay.

Mark Jones 5:47

And all with the same company?

SPEAKER_02 5:50

No, I moved all over. Yeah. I started off at like a class B property, a lot of issues. Crazy time in my life. I learned so much. I think I grew up really quick. And I used to talk about real estate too, like to friends, like, oh, I want to get my license one day. But I didn't know what I was talking about. I just knew like maybe that's a thing. I don't know. I met some guy one day that was, it was uh he was leasing an apartment and he told me that he flipped houses and he did it all without a license. He was like, You need a license. You can I can teach you how to do it.

SPEAKER_05 6:17

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 6:17

But I wasn't, you know, ready for any of that. So, anyways, did that for 10 years and then realized that I was I was climbing the ladder a little bit. I made it to assistant manager. I ended up getting into multifamily where they would we would pre-lease them. They were brand new and we would lease them up, sell them, and then go to the next one. Wow.

Mark Jones 6:34

Okay. Yeah. So I made selling portfolios for people. Yeah. Yeah. Wow.

SPEAKER_02 6:37

It was great and worked myself up to assistant manager, but I could never get to manager. And I just realized that there's a ceiling here. And I just didn't love the environment. Yeah. But what I did love was helping people find a home. Even if it was an apartment.

Mark Jones 6:53

Hidden gem, helping people get into a home, bettering their life, starting the that foundation of potential wealth.

SPEAKER_02 7:02

Yeah.

Mark Jones 7:02

Now I want to stop for a moment and ask you something a little personal because you mentioned it. You were younger when your parents were going through the bankruptcy situation. In what ways, if any, has that kind of helped you in your everyday life or with your customers, things of that nature? And the reason why I'm pausing here is I believe that financial literacy, and this is becoming a trend on the podcast, should be taught sooner. Growing up, my parents were very transparent with the finances, with me and my brother. My wife, on the other hand, completely different. So at a certain point, it was like we sat down and educated on all the different things that go into it. But I want to know how that affected you growing up, thinking, acting, making your decisions.

SPEAKER_02 7:51

Dude, you know, I grew up kind of alone, honestly. Like after all of that happened, it was tough living in a little, like uh it was a tiny house, my grandparents' house, they still own it. And we were living all in a room, my brother, my mom, and me all in one room. So me and my mom slept in the same bed, my brother slept on the floor. My dad was, you know, they had divorced or they were going through the divorce, and he was living with his parents. And so it was crazy, I guess, to see that we were kind of living like this different lifestyle. I didn't really understand it. And I was, I was starting a new school too, and girls were really mean. And it was just, it was a weird time for me. My brother ended up going into the military. So, and he was like my best friend. So him leaving was it was tough. But yeah, I remember watching my parents go through all of that and just seeing a lot of things that oh, I mean, I would never want my son to see today.

SPEAKER_05 8:40

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 8:41

But I think somehow it instilled in me some type of, I don't know, grit or resilience or just wanting more out of life. But nobody was mentoring me, no one was showing me the way they didn't even know the way. Love them to death. Yeah, no, you're right. But they didn't know what was what they were doing, you know? And kind of where I think for real estate, that it wasn't something that I didn't say I want to be a real estate agent now. You know, I just knew that I just wanted more for myself, and I just didn't know where that was. And I really went down a lot of different paths to get there, a lot of trial and error.

Breaking The Ceiling And Licensing

Mark Jones 9:16

Yeah, you and me both. Heck yeah. I mean, I guess very relatable in that that regard on the trying different things, knew that I wanted more, didn't know what to do or how to get there yet. Yeah. But I saw this and saw that, and it's like, let's try that, let's try this until something sticks.

SPEAKER_02 9:33

Yeah. And you just don't know what you don't know. I know when I was working in the apartments and I had finally started thinking about getting my real estate license, and one of my tenants said, Hey, I work for David Weekly Homes. Have you ever thought about new home sales? I'm like, What's that? And he was like, Oh, well, I mean, it's like what you're doing, but like on a bigger scale.

unknown 9:51

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 9:52

And I was already getting my real estate license at the time. When he so I didn't realize that you couldn't have a license when you went into new home sales. I guess some builders were like, you have to deactivate it.

SPEAKER_05 10:02

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 10:02

And I was already on my way to obtaining it. And so when I interviewed and they were like, You're hired, I was like, but I don't want to deactivate my license. So I was like, what do I do? Right. I just did 10 years of apartment leasing. I could have been in new home sales, but I didn't know. So what did you do? I said no, I'm gonna go all in on real estate.

Mark Jones 10:24

Boom. What year was that?

SPEAKER_02 10:26

So I got my license in 2018.

Mark Jones 10:28

Okay, okay. Wow.

SPEAKER_02 10:30

I came home and told my husband in February of 2019. I was like, put my two weeks in.

unknown 10:37

Ooh.

Mark Jones 10:38

And his reaction was what are we gonna do about money? Right, right.

SPEAKER_02 10:44

We don't have a NASDAQ. And I was like, put it on the credit card. And he's like, You're crazy. My husband's an accountant, by the way. So he was like nervous.

Mark Jones 10:53

Oh, I can only imagine that. And that's a big transition. But the fact that you decided to go all in, now what enabled you? What motivated you? What was the driver of you going all in? Because you could have continued to do a little of this, a little of that while you did real estate or what have you. What was it?

SPEAKER_02 11:14

Dude, so I'll be honest, years prior to that, I had stumbled upon personal development. Okay. Jim Rohn was my mentor. Yeah. Okay. Him personally? No. Okay. I was like, no way. That's just beautiful, right? Like that's the goal in life. It's like you're still influencing even after your past. Absolutely. Like it's it's a beautiful thing. And I was really, I had I had learned about him and I would listen to him every day, every day. And I had got into and at the time, herbal life was a thing.

Mark Jones 11:43

Okay. Yeah. Multilevel.

SPEAKER_02 11:45

Yeah. I was like, let me dabble in this. I like fitness and I like people. And I've been in sales my adult life. So let's do that. And so I had did that for a little while and I had hit a roadblock later and ended up giving up the whole notion of going, you know, full on force with that. But yeah, so the personal development, I think, is what had me thinking bigger.

SPEAKER_05 12:07

Yeah.

First Year Struggles And Rentals

SPEAKER_02 12:08

And I realized what the environment I was in in the multifamily was, it was really toxic. And I couldn't choose the people I wanted to be around. It was like, this is where you work, these are the people you're with. Like, you know, get used to it. And I remember I would cry leaving home. Like I would tell Tom, like, I hate this job. I don't want to see these people. I would just cry. Like I would, it was terrible. And so that's when I was like, I'm just gonna go all in on me. But I I just I think that's because of all the inner work I had been doing up to that point.

Mark Jones 12:38

Okay, that makes sense.

SPEAKER_02 12:39

Yeah, and it naturally felt like the next level for me. I'm like, if I'm doing this in apartments, yeah, I would do this for houses.

Mark Jones 12:46

I can't disagree with that. So let me ask you then when you did plunge into this new pond, so to speak, and then figured out, oh, wow, it's not a pond, it's an ocean. Holy cow, we've got rough currents.

SPEAKER_01 13:00

I felt like a shark in the multifamily.

SPEAKER_02 13:02

And then I felt like a tadpole when I came into uh residential. And I had I always knew I wanted to start at Keller Williams. Like I knew that's what I wanted to do. And I got myself there and I went through the training and quickly realized that well, this is a lot harder than I guess I didn't really have an expectation. But you know, now I gotta go find people to help. They're not coming to me like they were in the apartments. And I think I helped about six people rent a house that year. And I thought I was gonna be the rental realtor forever.

Mark Jones 13:39

And you had already known how that works. You were just pushing them over and getting paid a little bit more than you used to, maybe, maybe not. Um rentals are not much now. At that time, did you go into those rentals with the hopes that you would convert them eventually to a buyer? Because a lot of folks don't even think about that concept. And it's like, whoa, whoa, whoa, you're building your pipeline. I mean, unless you intended to be in this temporarily, they're still gonna need a home one, two, three years later down the road.

SPEAKER_02 14:12

That's what I learned a lot from multi-family is the follow-up. I was a beast with follow-up because that's all I did. I worked in a CRM every single day. You clock in, you call your people, you make it happen. So I was like, okay, well, let's do this and this business. And then so with the rentals, you know, I had turned a few of them into buyers later down the road, you know, years later, not instantly. But yeah, it was it was tough. I had good people around me at Keller Williams, so they would remind me that this is gonna turn into something later if you stay, you know, in relations with them.

Mark Jones 14:42

So who were who were some of your coaches over at Keller Williams at that time? Because you guys had to go through what bold training? You had to go through, right? Yeah, I had to go through bold.

SPEAKER_02 14:50

Steve Collins was one of my coaches. Man, yeah, I know. He's a good dude, and everyone was great. I um Shiba Ramos was one of my mentors, Steve Galvan. Okay, Moses Thatcher. We had gone to we were in high school together. No way. Yeah. Oh, cool. So it was so funny when I ended up there because I was like, hey, we're here together.

Mark Jones 15:10

Yeah, Moses and I go back. That's cool. Yeah, very good.

SPEAKER_02 15:13

I a lot of I ended up picking up showing agent gigs early on. People saw potential in me and they thought I was great, and they offered me opportunities and I went with it and I learned so much. Anywhere I could get an opportunity, you want me to go put your open house signs out? What do you want to do? Like, I was busy, I was touring new model homes. I'm like, how do I just get into the business and just learn it? So I'm very ambitious in that way. But I think just because I've personality.

Mark Jones 15:38

Well, you do, and I I we figured that out the first time I met you. It was like, okay, she's she knows who she is and she knows what she wants. But at that time, when you first got in, you mentioned that you were doing a lot of things. And for those of you out there, you don't get paid to do any of those things that she was talking about. We talk about it quite often. A lot of the newer agents that got in after 2020, 2021, when it was rain everywhere.

SPEAKER_02 16:04

So easy.

Mark Jones 16:06

And we talk about going back to the basics. We talk about there is no shadowing anymore of, hey, I just want to know what the heck I'm supposed to do. So I'm gonna follow you around, or I'll I'll be your gopher. I'll do the free work so that I can get the valuable lessons, if that makes sense. 100%. What it what what inspired you to do that? What enabled you to do that? What was it?

SPEAKER_02 16:28

I I think it just again just goes back to one of Jim Rohn's quotes is work harder on yourself than you do your job, and you can earn a fortune, not just a living.

SPEAKER_03 16:38

Yeah.

Joining A Team And Learning Fast

SPEAKER_02 16:39

And that was just part of my my just my values, you know. It's like, how do I just get busy? And when I had saw that, it was kind of a trickle effect. You know, I started doing showing agent gigs for one agent, and then another one would ask me another, and it kind of just started to become in a flow. And I'm like, oh, if I'm busy and in the energy, and it just all kind of starts happening. But I was like, but when am I gonna get a sale? Like, why am I doing only rent holds? All of my SOI with people from high school, and everyone had not so great credit, and nobody could buy a house yet. And so everyone was like, help me rent, help me rent. And I'm like, geez, I need to meet more people. Yeah, I need to expand my SOI. But I was still figuring that out. And then the pandemic happened. I was a solo agent at the time, and I had realized quickly with Keller Williams that I mean, I was a starving agent. They were taking all my money. Yeah, I get it.

SPEAKER_05 17:32

You know, I do get it.

SPEAKER_02 17:33

So I was like, where else can I go? And EXP was like the new trendy thing. It was innovative, and I was I had heard good things about it. One of my other mentors at the time, he had left to EXP and he became like a YouTube star.

SPEAKER_05 17:49

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 17:49

He had grown his YouTube and he had called me one day and he was like, Do you want to, you know, change brokerages? Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 17:55

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 17:55

Yeah. I was like, he's like, Do you want to change brokerages? Come to EXP and then be on my team. And I had vowed that I was never gonna be on a team because I felt like it was gonna put me back where I was in multifamily, like under someone.

SPEAKER_05 18:06

Sure.

SPEAKER_02 18:07

But then I was trying to be realistic and I was looking at my pipeline, I was looking at his pipeline, and like this makes sense.

Mark Jones 18:14

Sure, I'll take those crumbs. Let's go. That that is a how do I defining moment because many would allow their pride to get in the way of not only making money by doing that, but also learning more because you can only learn so much about doing a transaction without doing a transaction. You get what I mean?

SPEAKER_02 18:40

Even today, there's they're different. Every transaction is different. I'm learning something new all the time. I've been doing this, what now? It's my eighth year of birthday.

Mark Jones 18:48

Yes. Matter of fact, I just had a very veteran agent text me about a deal and say, Hey, do we need a survey on this property? We haven't ordered one yet. And I said, We need a survey. She said, Well, the other lender I used doesn't need one. And I went, Maybe they didn't tell you because every finance transaction needs a survey. And the reasons for that are dot dot dot. Yeah. Oh, that's weird. Okay, well, uh yeah, we'll get the title company to order it. But it was like mind-blowing to this agent. Now she's not in San Antonio, but it's just like, what do you mean? Yeah, what do you mean? Do we need a survey?

SPEAKER_02 19:24

I know.

Mark Jones 19:24

Your job's to protect your customer. Don't you want a survey for your customer? We're the boundaries that's what I wanted to say, but we don't know each other that well yet. So I was like, let me be kind.

SPEAKER_02 19:34

Yeah, you're good at that.

Mark Jones 19:36

Chat GPT, please bring this down a notch.

SPEAKER_02 19:38

This is what I really want to say. Make it sound nicer.

Mark Jones 19:40

Exactly, exactly. Yes, yeah. So let's talk about your journey as a person. Your what you've gone through as far as shaping this tenacious consistency. And then we'll get back to real estate. But I want kind of to sandwich this in on this discussion because I think folks need to know more about you and how you've kind of, I don't know, crafted yourself into this beast.

SPEAKER_02 20:09

Oh, thank you. You're so sweet. Um, oh gosh. I mean, like I had mentioned, it's been a lot of just trial and error, right? Like just trying to figure it out. I I truly can't say where this like it just wasn't taught to me to try to get better or go after whatever it is, you know. I I think having stepped into personal development, that was the big eye opener for me. But I also have a very addictive personality. So when I like something, I like something. And that also can shoot me in the foot.

Mark Jones 20:41

It's very true.

SPEAKER_02 20:43

So I I went through a lot of my own, you know, issues of my own vices and you know, self-doubt, but but then always seeing the bright side. And and then there was a point when I was on the team for we about three years, we killed it, dude. I had done so much business. And then I realized, well, I'm not growing my own business, I'm growing his business, and things were kind of slowing down. And I decided, okay, I'm gonna take a chance on myself again and do it on my own. And that was a hard year for me. It was 2023. I had left the team. I didn't realize that I had kind of silly, but I knew I had signed paperwork joining the team, but it was a non-compete for two years. Oh shit. Yeah. Okay. And I hadn't been generating my own clients because I was being fed like all the time and I was all in on the team.

Mark Jones 21:32

So let me ask you this how deep was that non-compete? Was it everything associated with I've got my first closing from this team, but now they're sending me a referral. Do I now have to kick that back over to the team? And if so, do I still at least get a cut?

SPEAKER_02 21:50

It wasn't specific on that, okay, for sure.

Mark Jones 21:52

Because I had chopped that thing up.

SPEAKER_02 21:54

Dude, so many people were telling me like, forget the non competitive. No, you can't forget the non competition. Compete. Nope.

Mark Jones 22:00

Like, I all it takes is one, and you're like, wow, I have to pay what?

Resilience From Childhood To Career

SPEAKER_02 22:05

Right. I was like, I'm not gonna put the energy into trying to fight this thing. Clearly, I signed it. It's a learning experience for me. It is what it is. I did have some clients that wanted to come back and work with me, and unfortunately, I couldn't at the time. And so it was tough. It took a big mental like toll on me because at one point I was happy that I had taken a chance to step out of the team, but then I was looking ahead, not really knowing where I was going and how I was gonna build back up and what we were gonna do. Tom had been, my husband had been in real estate with me for two years on the team really as my showing agent because we were so busy. So he left his full-time job. Yeah. But then when I decided I was gonna quit the team, he was like, Let me go back to work so you can rebrand and rebuild, and we need to float the boat a little bit.

Mark Jones 22:50

And you said he was an accountant?

SPEAKER_02 22:52

Yeah.

Mark Jones 22:52

So you were accounting on him to show your people. Like uh, come on.

SPEAKER_02 22:58

I know, yeah, and he was good at it. That's awesome. He's good at it. That's the goal, too, is for him to get back into real estate. We can talk about that, but basically, yeah. So, you know, once I had left the team, I had I had had a downfall. Like I had been drinking too much alcohol, I was working hard, but I was partying just as hard.

SPEAKER_05 23:16

Sure.

SPEAKER_02 23:16

And finally, just at the end of the year, I was looking at myself and everything we had done that year. And I knew if I didn't make a big lifestyle change, I wasn't going to create the business that I wanted to create. I wasn't gonna attract the clients I wanted to attract. And all my values were skewed and they weren't aligning anymore. And I was just, I was really disappointed in myself and scared, honestly, for my health and just mentally. I'd never been so foggy before. And so I decided I was gonna give up alcohol. And that was the one thing, right? Because that's like the book. Yeah. You know, what's the one thing you can do?

Mark Jones 23:53

That's right.

SPEAKER_02 23:54

I was like, well, that let's start there. And it didn't fix anything overnight at all, but it changed the direction.

Mark Jones 24:02

Yes.

SPEAKER_02 24:02

And I was committed. And long story short, I mean, two years later, here we are, alcohol free.

Mark Jones 24:09

Boom. Congrats.

SPEAKER_02 24:10

Yeah, lost all the weight, healthiest I've ever been. And now my business is finally thriving. It's taken that long, though, you know, and it having saying saying that I'm going into my eighth year of real estate, yeah, you know, you would think, oh, she has it all together and she probably has like this big old like business. And it's just like for me, it didn't look like that. It was a lot of this.

Mark Jones 24:34

Well, I I can tell you, having been in this business quite a while, 14 years, I come across a lot of realtors that say, I've been in real estate for 20 years, I've been in real estate for and and that I have witnessed more times than I can even count of the experienced agents that don't know that much. Oh why? Because they're either not practicing their craft, they're not a student to the game, they haven't sold a ton of transactions, they just had their license. Maybe they didn't have good mentorship, they didn't have the right drive, maybe it wasn't the right industry, many different reasons, but there's a difference between that and who you've become, truly. And it has something to do with that inner fire of wanting more. It's gotta be.

SPEAKER_02 25:24

Yeah, I mean, I really want to prove to myself that I can do this with without someone just handing me, you know. I mean, clearly I still had to convert and close and earn the client's trust. And I mean, the only thing I was really missing was just procuring the client. So that's why I had said, you can do this. Like, if he can do it, you could do it, girl. You know, but I literally just it it I said that out loud, and then going through it, it was hard. And and you know, bills weren't getting paid because we just didn't have the same amount of money anymore. And I mean, I think that's a lot that people don't talk about. Like it looks sexy online, you know, the videos and everything, and it looks like we're doing all the things, but really, like behind closed doors, you know, no one knows that you know, we were struggling and bills weren't getting paid and we were behind on everything. And and even to be honest, like to this day, we're finally just getting caught up on things that you know had been had to take a back seat just so we can make sure that there's food on the table and a roof over our head and of course and still push through, dude. And like, especially with having given up a vice, people, whatever it is you choose, your vice and choice, right? And I had to face myself every single day, yeah, and push through. But my why was was because I wanted I want to create this identity, you know. I want to step into this person that I've made up in my mind. Like, why can't, you know, I be the one to create this generational wealth for my family? Like, why not me? And the truth is, I mean, it can be you. Yeah. And so that's kind of where we're at now. And I'm still figuring it out, you know, there's still days that I doubt or things are so good. This has been my biggest thing. Okay. Things have been so good that I'm waiting for it to crash.

Mark Jones 27:19

Yeah. There, there's a there's a word for that or descriptor for that, which is you're kind of tiptoeing through this because you've gone so far up the hill that it's like something is destined to fall apart. Like, right?

unknown 27:35

Yeah.

Mark Jones 27:35

Right? You know, I get it. And I've been in that situation many times where everything is just going so good.

SPEAKER_02 27:43

Yeah.

Mark Jones 27:43

All I'm I'm right where I'm supposed to be, right is how I articulate it. And sure enough, it's like, nope, we're still, we're still moving.

SPEAKER_01 27:52

Yeah.

Market Reality: Rates, Headlines, Hesitation

Mark Jones 27:53

And it has, I don't know the exact answer to this, but my uh explanation of it is you're right where you're supposed to be. I know you're following of faith with Christ. It's not supposed to be easy. We're not supposed to just skip through this, especially if our goal is to tackle the world. And that's kind of what you've set out to do in your scopes. Is when I wake up in the morning, I'm that person right there is gonna succeed. I can see it through your posts, I can see it when I talk to you on deals, I can see it when I talk to you on deals with the customer. It it's it's very rare. It is. So that being said, why is that such a big pillar? The the idea of helping people purchase a home and getting through navigating the higher rates, navigating the chatter, the headlines, the the market's gonna crash. All I have to do it too. You know what I mean? But I want I want to see what what your take on this is. What are you doing these days?

SPEAKER_02 29:02

Yeah, I mean, I think my biggest thing is being honest and transparent with my clients and just telling them, you know, I don't create the market, we navigate and giving them just real life scenarios, you know, because like you everyone's always waiting for the rates to drop or the prices to drop. And then it's like, well, where does that get you? Now you're overpaying because now everyone's out doing the same thing. It's, you know, what hand are you dealt right now and what can we make out of it? And having a partner such as yourself to be able to lay it out for them to see their the opportunities there, right? It helps so much. And I think people appreciate that I care. I think they can feel that. I had a buyer consult not too long ago with a couple and they were just so nervous. They're like, we haven't, we don't know where to start. We don't know what what is earnest money, what does anything mean? And that's, you know, for of course like first-time homebuyers. But by the end of the conversation, they were like, We feel so good. Like you explained everything in bite size, but you didn't tell us too much either.

SPEAKER_03 30:07

Right.

SPEAKER_02 30:08

Because I I would tell people like, we'll cross kind of that bridge when we get there, but here's like the the where we need to start.

SPEAKER_05 30:14

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 30:15

And I just truly care about people, you know. I feel like there's a lot of agents out there that are only doing it for the transaction, and then they never check on their people ever again. And I never want to be that person. I want to set the difference because that's what I would want for myself. And I helped my mean I've helped us buy a house. So I didn't have an agent, you know, to kind of see, oh, are they what's this supposed to look like?

Mark Jones 30:41

Right, right.

SPEAKER_02 30:42

But having worked with other agents on the other end, I'm like, Jeez, it's tough. Right. And you gotta navigate that too. People don't see that either. It's true, you know, because we get a bad rap, us agents. And I think people can feel the difference, especially if they've interviewed with other agents too. And yeah, it just it means a lot to me because I I feel like when you come from a place of value and just caring about the person, now life really starts to get fun and there's more opportunities. If I was thinking of it just from a numbers perspective, I don't feel like my business would be where it is right now.

Mark Jones 31:17

No, I have to agree. Matter of fact, the other day we had a uh company call and a gentleman was telling all the loan officers throughout the company what he does different. And for me, it was nothing new because I absolutely agreed with what he's talking about. Matter of fact, while he was talking, I built a website, threw it in the chat and said, Hey guys, here's what he was talking about. And it's called the high trust conversation, the high trust interview. It was kind of canned by Todd Duncan. And it is the idea of your first or second, whichever one it is, interview or meeting with that customer needs to be a pretty good long period of time, not just a quick phone call. It you need to be asking them questions. And when they answer, you need to be listening because they're literally telling you what their goals are, what their pain points are, what they have been through, what they are looking for, all of those things. But unfortunately, there are not enough folks out there that are doing this job that take the time to want to understand where they're coming from and meet them where they're at, if that makes sense.

SPEAKER_02 32:26

Yeah, 100%. And it's wild to me. I don't know how they're able to even get through when you can't meet people where they're at, especially because it can be so emotional for people. And to be able to navigate that, you kind of have to know where those pain points are and remind them of what they're looking forward to to kind of get their eye on the goal. One of the common reviews that I get from past clients is that I make them feel comfortable. And when they're freaking out, I'm the chill.

Mark Jones 32:56

Yeah, be calm. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 32:57

Yeah, which is really cool. And then and then I just have like good energy. And you've got great energy. I think people like that.

High-Trust Conversations And EQ

Mark Jones 33:03

Absolutely. Matter of fact, the folks that are watching this right now guarantee you they can already feel the energy that's coming through from you. Yeah, it's just good vibes. It really is. So, our next segment here, let's see here. Turn empathy into let's see here. So let's see here. So you lead with patience, we know that. So, how do you keep someone calm when the rates are going up and the excitement of buying a home is there, but they're also getting the chatter from their friends and all the people who have done it or haven't done it that want to give their two cents because that's a lot of what's going on right now. I know it is.

SPEAKER_02 33:42

It really is. I mean, again, again, I think it goes back to just having the the right people in place to help show what's real, right? So having you on like the lending side, being able to lay out those numbers and show them where it's at, and you being so on top of it too, because you have to know when to lock that rate, right? You kind of have to predict it before it happens. Like I think rates just dropped and then they went right back up again.

Mark Jones 34:04

Literally, yes. And I think in addition to that, what you're saying is I don't try and play this guy that knows what rates are gonna do. I'm straight up with them. And hey, this is what the rate is right now. You call me back in five minutes, I don't know what it's gonna be. But I'm more than happy and willing to literally share my screen and show you what I see and educate you on what it means.

SPEAKER_02 34:27

I do love that you do that. You know, not everyone does that. I being a lot of people are visual.

Mark Jones 34:32

Yes.

SPEAKER_02 34:33

They have to see it.

Mark Jones 34:34

I am visual, absolutely. So yeah, you're telling me something, I don't get it. Right.

SPEAKER_02 34:40

A hundred percent. And I think too, talking from experience, because I mean, we know what happens when you know the rates drop or inventories low. And and so just being able to tell them, hey, maybe you think that waiting is the better option, but this is what it's really gonna look like. And just depending on the person, I think it's really important to mirror and match and people receive the same information differently, you know. So you have to know how are they gonna understand it? So it's really important to be in tune with people because I mean, you can't talk to a person with a D personality that you know, with like a an eye. And I always have to tone it back.

Mark Jones 35:19

But but the EQ, the emotional intelligence that you have to be even able to articulate that concept right there. Many people have no idea what that even means. To be able to, I've extracted enough out of this customer their emotion, how they behave, the kind of questions they ask, the kind of responses and how they give them to me that I need to tone myself down a little bit, or I'm gonna scare them away. In many cases, I have to do the same thing. It's like, well, nope, I can't send them that funny picture or that gif, but these people I can't, you know. Is now would you say that that's inherent, or it's something from life experience? Where does that come from?

SPEAKER_02 36:03

Gosh, you know, right? Because I I can't say that someone taught me how to do that.

Mark Jones 36:07

I guarantee no one taught you how to do that.

SPEAKER_02 36:10

I think it's honestly just from having been in sales since I was like, geez, 20 years old. Okay, you know, but I think the love and like empathy I have for people stem so much deeper. I don't know if because I craved that as a younger and as a child because I saw like the hurt and stuff we went through. So maybe I just felt like I wanted to give that out. It's really interesting when you start going back and trying to unlock all your childhood trauma.

SPEAKER_05 36:34

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 36:34

And just trying to see how it all lines up. But even when I was a lifeguard, I mean, I was I was jumping in, I was saving people. Yeah, you know, I was teaching people how to swim. I got so much like gratitude out of people came to me, they didn't know how to swim. And then by the end of our six weeks, they were just freestyling like Michael Phelps, you know? It's like cool. And so now I just get to do that on a different level, but with gosh, people's biggest assets.

Mark Jones 36:58

That's a cool analogy. Yeah. Absolutely. They're swimming in capital inequity. Yeah, I know. That's very cool. Yeah, for real. So I've got another little segment here before we get to our next one, but I want to ask what would you do type situations. What advice would you give to, let's say, someone that sees inaccurate information online? Because we know that's just rampant right now.

SPEAKER_02 37:29

Oh, I know. Well, first, it's like, where are you getting your information? Are they even in the state of Texas? Are they in San Antonio? Because San Antonio looks different from Austin, you know? So it's like, where are you getting that info? And then making sure that like, let's have a an actual conversation. And this is where, too, as I've grown as an agent, right? It's if you're not gonna book the call and give me your time to really talk about what's going on, then you're not really serious.

Mark Jones 37:54

I love that. Yes. And and many can't be honest with themselves, even if they have the idea in their mind that this is they're not ready or they're not willing, or they're not able.

Social Media, Authenticity, And Misinformation

SPEAKER_02 38:06

Yeah. And I always tell everyone, I mean, it's not too soon to see where you're at. Like, let's everyone get so scared when it's hey, we need to see where you're at. You should probably apply with the lender. No one wants to do that. My credit, I don't want it to hit my credit. And it's just how do you overcome that?

Mark Jones 38:22

Come to me, loan bot. That's that's how you overcome it, just so you know. Okay, go for it.

SPEAKER_05 38:27

Plug it, plug it.

Mark Jones 38:30

Nailed it. But that is that is truly why you are hitting right on the age-old issue that home buyers have faced for many years with the limited amount of tools. Now there's plenty more, right? But the limited amount of tools and access and transparency that was available before everybody would they'd have to rely on a lender to get their options, period. Before lenders used to incorporate soft pools, they'd have to have a hard inquiry on their credit. All of these things led to the hesitation of the unknown in addition to the no. Nobody wants to hear no, right? You'd rather not hear anything than be told no. Exactly. So I think as we fast forward into today's world, there's more access available. There's plenty more, obviously. But it's not all accurate.

SPEAKER_02 39:27

There's almost too much now, you know? People are confused.

Mark Jones 39:29

I agree.

SPEAKER_02 39:30

I mean, the the zestimates, I mean, even the calculators, they're they're confused when I show them my estimate versus what they see on Zoom. I'm like, well, are they accounting for like taxes? Are they just showing you what your principal on interest is gonna be? Good point, you know, and and with the zestimate too. Have they walked your house? Have they seen the upgrades? You know, it's just that's where I feel like that's an easier to it's easier to overcome that conversation because I can just paint it out for them on like what makes me different from Zillow.

Mark Jones 39:59

Well, what I've noticed in just this short amount of time is your inherent ability to dissect an uh objection. And what I mean by that is most people tend to want to turn around and overcome it right now with some kind of answer that's gonna shut them up or answer their question. And in fact, the real answer more times than not is to ask more questions. And that's what you've done.

SPEAKER_02 40:26

Yeah, go deep.

Mark Jones 40:27

Like, I don't know if you yeah, I don't know if you've noticed that or not, but every time I've asked you something, it comes back with another question. And I'm like, she's right.

SPEAKER_02 40:36

No, I didn't notice I was doing that, but I do like to go levels deeper. And I think too, because I do that with myself.

Mark Jones 40:42

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 40:43

And I think that's what helps me do that and and translate that into my my clients, you know. That was a big reason for my turnaround point, too, is that I'm not gonna show up for people the way I don't show up for me. And if I can stay committed and keep the promises to myself, then I can do that for for my clients. And that's where I feel like my business is going to really thrive. Yeah because I I take care of me first, like prioritize my family, and then I, you know, translate that into how I treat my clients too.

Mark Jones 41:14

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 41:14

So I think that makes a big difference.

Mark Jones 41:16

Well, it shows. I mean, so I'm gonna take a break from that because I want to ask. You mentioned consistency. I can see it on a day-to-day. I'm one that is big on consistency. It's the years too. Have it stacking type concept. It doesn't have to be massive, just a little bit every day, and then add something else every day. Right. Or every week, or every whatever it is, you've got to have a frequency. Or if not, you're just Mr. Random ass or whatever, you know. What is it that? Okay, so first off, tell me some things that you're pretty consistent on just in your daily life, not even having to do with real estate if you don't want.

SPEAKER_02 41:50

Yeah, and consistency. I mean, I've I've been running a mile a day until I messed up my foot recently. But I I work out, you know, five days a week. Movement's important to me. Um, it always has been. And that's why in 2023, when I wasn't doing that, I'm like, girl, you're not doing what you value. I'm, you know, consistent with following up with my clients. I'm checking in all the time. I make sure that I'm at my desk, you know, doing follow-up, even if it's just for like 30 minutes a day, because that's maybe all I have. But I'm trying to teach myself to just work that that business muscle, right?

SPEAKER_05 42:24

Right.

SPEAKER_02 42:24

And that's where it had started for me too, with my fitness and health. It's like if you can master this, then you can translate that into everything else. Like the whole notion of how you do one thing is how you do everything.

Mark Jones 42:33

Yes. Which I don't we're team whole ass over here.

SPEAKER_02 42:38

Yeah. So that has been such a good thing for me because now I'm building like that mental muscle, which was like my whole goal all along, is because I knew that that was what it was going to take to for my business to thrive. And what's I've always found interesting is there's people I know that they're great at business. Like they can make money. They're, I mean, they they will wake up and they'll do the emails, they'll do the phone calls, but they won't spend any time working on themselves. And I never could understand that because when I was doing all of that in 2023, I was putting on events left and right, just trying to meet new people. I was working my butt off, but I wasn't taking care of myself. I wasn't able to sustain that momentum.

SPEAKER_05 43:22

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 43:22

So I guess just it's different for everybody, but for me, I knew that I had to take care of me before I could take care of everybody else.

SPEAKER_05 43:28

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 43:29

And so I had taken a step back to really focus in on this has to be the priority. And now you can start pouring into people.

Consistency, Fitness, And Self-Talk

Mark Jones 43:36

Another thing that I've noticed just in this short time, and I don't know who taught it to you or if it it was inherent, but you do a lot of self talks. I do too. I get it. Matter of fact, I was just talking to my son by three days ago. We were leaving baseball practice. And I said, Hey, how often do you talk to yourself? And like as you're walking up to the plate, are you talking to yourself? Are you talking about it? Them, it's it's okay to do that, even if they hear you. It's it's okay. You know what? If if you're up there in the batting box and you're telling yourself whatever, and he turned to me and he said, You know, we talked about this a while back, dad. And today, since you're asking, when I was in the batter's box, I think to myself, it's good, it's good, it's good, it's not. When I realized that it's not a strike, I went, Okay, so you're you're getting it. You're getting it, and you're not afraid to level. Bring it back here so that you number one can motivate yourself, get yourself back on track, stay focused, bring that anxiety down. All of the things that come along with the value of self-talks. What do they call them? Affirmations.

SPEAKER_02 44:46

Affirmation. Some people get real wild.

Mark Jones 44:49

I don't, I'm not that crazy.

SPEAKER_02 44:51

Me either. But like, do I need to be?

SPEAKER_01 44:54

Will I get where I want to get back?

Mark Jones 44:55

Will I level up back to that? That's awesome.

SPEAKER_01 44:57

Exactly.

Mark Jones 44:58

I don't know.

SPEAKER_01 44:59

Maybe I should try it. Affirmation, buddy. Yeah, I know, right? Did you do yours today?

SPEAKER_02 45:04

Sending each other videos in the mirror.

Mark Jones 45:06

Awesome. That is awesome. But what where did where did you get that from? Or is that just something that you did because you kind of started off jumping into this world alone? Your brother had left, gone through that kind of high school-ish phase on your own, so to speak. Oh, yeah. Is that where what what was that? And how much does it actually help you?

SPEAKER_02 45:27

I mean, I think.

SPEAKER_01 45:32

Jeez, over here making me go to my I'm sorry. My childhood's not a good idea. Not sorry.

SPEAKER_02 45:39

I I think I'm terrified to not live up to my potential. I'm so scared to like look back and just see that I didn't go all in on everything that I wanted to do because of what? Because you were scared or because you were worried about people's thought. You know, I just I don't I don't want that. I'm I'm scared. I'm scared to get old and be broken. That's why I was like, you need to get back into your fitness and be strong, not because you just want to fit into pants and look good. No, for longevity or strength, you know, I want to be able to retire and travel and see the world and not have to, you know, be limping around.

Mark Jones 46:19

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 46:20

I think that's what motivates me, which is kind of weird, right?

Mark Jones 46:22

Not that I don't not at all in the slightest. I mean, I'm sitting here listening to you asking myself the same question, going, what is it that does it for you? And I'm like, wow, I'm kind of the same. I'm absolutely terrified of getting to the end and going, damn, I sure could have, but I didn't. So why give yourself an out?

unknown 46:45

Yeah.

Mark Jones 46:46

Just do it.

SPEAKER_02 46:47

Right. Like just get rid of the things that are in your way and stop being a P-U-S-S-Y. I don't know if I can first on here.

Mark Jones 46:54

Absolutely. You can, as long as you use it the right way, nailed it.

SPEAKER_02 46:58

You know, and get over yourself and and and and share your gift.

Mark Jones 47:02

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 47:03

I feel like that's the thing, is that everyone has a gift, and there's just so many people in this this world, and there's people for you, and there's some that aren't. And we live in a world of social media, which is just crazy. I can imagine growing up in this time. Like the most I had growing up was my space, and even that was like top 10. I'm not on it. My life's over. You know, like it was just I remember changing that profile all the time, the music. Um it's epic. I know, it was so fun. But yeah, so now being in, you know, in a world of social media and having to adapt or die, so to speak, right? Like you better show up on camera and start doing your own videos because you're gonna be in someone else's video if you like it or not. You know, it's just the world that we're in now. And you that it can be hard, you know, to compare yourself to everyone. I had to be very intentional about like my social media and not just doom scroll and see what everyone else is doing and really just focus on my value and what I can give. And I think I think being relatable has helped me so much. Like, not like you said, just being a walking billboard of real estate, like actually just sharing real life stuff. I've gotten referrals from that where people are like, we saw your weight loss journey and it's amazing. And oh, by the way, my friend needs a realtor. I told her you're the best.

Mark Jones 48:22

You know, I'm like, Well, if that that, okay, so let's tie that together because the weight loss journey that you went on, that can't nobody in the world tell me that it was easy in in any way, okay?

SPEAKER_02 48:36

Not when you do it the old-fashioned way and yeah, stop eating workout. Yeah, weird.

Mark Jones 48:42

Anywho, sorry, but not sorry. So the idea behind how customers, how often do you share that with them? Well, like my yeah, oh just when it is appropriate, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 48:57

Kind of like yeah, I I just when I feel like I have something to say, yeah.

Mark Jones 49:02

Because on social media, you're you're about it, you know? Yeah, and I believe that from let's say an onlooker, a potential customer's viewpoint, POV, like the kids are saying.

SPEAKER_01 49:14

Yeah, I know, I know. I'm still trying to figure out how to put that in my videos. I'm like, wait, does this make sense? Right.

Mark Jones 49:20

So they are seeing someone that started something and finished. A lot of times, our elders would tell us when we were younger, well, one thing, you go to college, people know that you can finish something. Right? I didn't finish college.

SPEAKER_01 49:35

Same dude.

Mark Jones 49:36

Doing all right, right. But people see that as you set out to do something, you did it, and you're maintaining and getting better. I'm pretty sure she can do this for us if she takes that type of effort, that type of energy, that type of focus, and puts it into this. And it's, I mean, you tell me.

SPEAKER_02 49:59

100%. That's been the whole rebranding for me.

Mark Jones 50:01

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 50:02

Yeah. And it has translated so well into my business. And now I feel like I'm in the flow. Yeah. I just have to stop myself from getting in my own way with having self-doubt and always looking for the saber-tooth tiger, so to speak. You know, it's just like, just keep doing what you're doing. Just show up consistent for yourself, give a shit about people, and it'll all work out.

Weight Loss, Sobriety, And Confidence

Mark Jones 50:25

So there's a lot of folks that are probably listening right about now and wondering, well, what do you mean, weight loss journey? What what talk about that?

SPEAKER_02 50:33

Oh, well, I'm pulling it out. Let's I know, right? Well, in 2023, I had mentioned that I had been just drinking way too much, working way too hard, and not really seeing anything for it. And uh yeah, I mean, I'm a I'm a little human. I'm like five foot.

Mark Jones 50:47

The feet don't touch the ground, y'all. They don't touch the ground.

SPEAKER_02 50:52

And by the time the end of the year happened, and I was telling you I was feeling like really, I was scared. I was like, I was having chest pain. I'm like, yeah, I don't want to end up in a hospital and them telling me what I already know I need to give up and what I need to do. And how did I even get here? Like, how did I get here? This has never been a part of my identity ever. And when I made that shift, it took, geez, I don't think I started seeing any weight fall off until September. And I had started that journey in January. I mean, like a long time. And and just I was having to focus on do you feel good though? And just going with that. Like the physical will happen, but just go with how do you feel? How are you operating? How's your energy? Like, how is it translating into your business now that you just feel better and just trust that what you're doing is going to work.

SPEAKER_05 51:41

Right.

SPEAKER_02 51:42

Just having faith in the process, the action. And finally, yeah, it started working. Now I was like, oh my gosh, and you know, I'm starting to fit back into these pants, and now I feel a little more confident. Now I can start showing back up on video again because in 2023 I didn't want to be on camera. I was just so embarrassed of myself. Like, no people thought, but just me. Like, like I wanted to give her a hug. Like you're so like you were just damaged for a little bit. Like, what happened? And I think that's okay though, as long as you overcome and now have a plan to move forward. And I'm proud of me, dude.

Mark Jones 52:18

Hey, that's something to be proud of.

SPEAKER_02 52:20

And having given up the alcohol and not giving myself a pass, like, oh, okay, you've done it for two years. You deserve a drink, girl. No, I don't. It doesn't serve me, it just gets in my way. It's a distraction. Why do I want my body to prioritize getting rid of this toxin when I need him to be turning this into muscle? You know? Okay. No, you're right. What are we doing here?

SPEAKER_05 52:40

Yes.

SPEAKER_02 52:41

And so that just, you know, that's kind of what that journey looked like, you know, for me with having lost the weight. I mean, I was on a calorie deficit all year. I wasn't starved. Sure. I was doing things the right way. But yeah, you get a little bit of pain, of course. You know, to get to where you had to go. And I wanted to show up for my son. I wanted my son to see it. And then I remember one of my girlfriends had invited me to a 5K, and I was no intention of running it. I'm like, I'm not a runner, dude. We got there and the energy was infectious. I was like, what is happening? I'm like, what is this?

SPEAKER_05 53:15

Am I running?

Mark Jones 53:18

That's awesome.

SPEAKER_02 53:19

You know that movie White Chicks? Oh, yeah. And he's at the club. He's like, I gotta hate this.

Mark Jones 53:23

That's awesome.

SPEAKER_02 53:24

That's how I fell for the run. And so I told my friend, I said, I'm gonna run it. She's like, You're gonna let me walk by myself. I'm like, yeah, sorry. Like, I'm going. And so like I ran the 5K. I had to stop and walk a little bit. But then by the time I got done, I was like, This is awesome. This is what I want. This is what I want to do. So I started building my way up to that. And I'm not a natural runner, my knees don't like it at all. And I had to again swallow like my ego and pride and and meet my body where it was at. And so that's where I came up with, I'm gonna run a mile a day for a whole year. And I started that this past year in January, but I only got to that part having done well, first it was giving up the alcohol, first it was losing the weight. And now it's okay, what's the next step? Like you just keep building and building and building the better and better that you you get.

Mark Jones 54:14

And I feel like next version of you.

SPEAKER_02 54:16

Yes. Yeah. And the same thing with the business. Like right now, Tom and I are talking about we want to rent our first house out, start our portfolio, and buy another house and start that journey. Totally possible. Building wealth. And it's scary.

Mark Jones 54:31

And then the cool part after that, and I will echo it is scary until you actually do it. And then you go, Wow. Maybe it was hard, maybe it was tough, but you still say, Wow. And eventually it's kind of addictive personality. You're gonna go, okay, that wasn't as hard as I thought it was. Move that around, move that around. We've got two now type concept. Dude, a couple things from what you mentioned. So the white chick's comment, didn't they slip him something?

SPEAKER_05 55:00

I was like, Oh, yeah, they did.

Mark Jones 55:04

Yeah, I remember very good memory. And then the other thing is the idea of a fitness journey is very similar to the journey of a new agent getting into the business because you've got to put in the work. You got to put in the work, put in the work, put in the work, and that agent's going, when am I gonna get the results? You were that new agent. I remember, you know. And then finally you start seeing some results. You start seeing more results, so you get even more addicted.

SPEAKER_02 55:33

Yeah, yeah. It starts kind of fueling itself now at that point. People have to get past that just trust. And then you see it, and now it's like, oh, now I'm now I know how this works. Now I can just kind of like rinse and repeat.

Mark Jones 55:47

Exactly. Yeah. So where are we at on time? I love it. Okay, so now let's skip to do do do do do do do do. Man, we've we covered quite a bit. Okay. It's time for rapid fire. Right now I'm gonna do the in the editing.

SPEAKER_05 56:02

Phew, pew, doo, you.

SPEAKER_00 56:03

Uh uh.

Mark Jones 56:05

So I started doing this segment and it became pretty fun. This is intended for just quick responses, no explanation. You don't know how to explain to nobody. I'm just gonna hit you with a bunch of questions. You give me an answer. Bang, bang, bang. Okay, okay. So, question number one one word buyers should stop saying. I'm waiting for rates to drop. One habit that changes that changed your life. You're like, I can only pick one.

SPEAKER_01 56:39

Giving up alcohol.

Mark Jones 56:40

There you go. That is a habit. If you're still doing it, not anymore. There you go.

SPEAKER_01 56:44

Yeah.

Mark Jones 56:44

Or not doing it.

SPEAKER_01 56:45

Yeah.

Mark Jones 56:48

What is the best purchase under a hundred dollars?

SPEAKER_01 56:53

Jeez, you can't even go to Costco for under a hundred bucks. Best purchase under a hundred bucks. Dude, I don't know. Why are things so expensive now?

Mark Jones 57:05

Good fill my tank up. No, I don't know. I don't know. There's no wrong answers here.

SPEAKER_01 57:13

Perry's pork chop on a Friday.

Mark Jones 57:15

Boom. Okay. And you can get a little extra something. Yes, Friday. I love it. I'm not at Lockintera anymore. That is the only downfall. Everything else, I'm so glad we're not at Lochantara. Parking was a mess. People trying to find it. Same here. Okay, so number let's a belief that you've had for at least five years that that you'd roast today. That you'd just say, what the hell?

SPEAKER_02 57:38

That like, like, I how could you think that?

Mark Jones 57:41

Like, let's correct. Yes. Like, what the hell are you thinking?

SPEAKER_01 57:46

Oh. Jeez, that's a good one. These are rapid.

Mark Jones 57:52

They make good clips.

SPEAKER_02 57:54

Yeah. That I'm invincible.

Mark Jones 57:58

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 57:58

I'm not.

Mark Jones 57:59

Okay. Very good. Hardest part about real estate that no one talks about.

SPEAKER_02 58:06

I I mean, actually, the what goes behind the scenes and how when you're when you're building up, what are you willing to sacrifice? I literally worked at um Alamo beer being a beer tender for a whole year when I got my real estate license. I was like, what can I do to float? Like maybe the groceries at least help a little bit while I'm a struggling realtor out here. So I was selling real estate during the day and I was beer tending at night.

Mark Jones 58:30

Slaying drinks. I love it. Okay, most underrated skill in this business.

SPEAKER_01 58:38

Communication.

Mark Jones 58:40

Well, not perfect, but I mean pretty good. What is your go-to song to pump you up?

SPEAKER_02 58:50

Gosh, there's so many. It just depends on the season. Right now, I like whatever it takes from Imagine Dragons.

Mark Jones 58:57

Okay, I love it. What is your morning non-negotiable?

SPEAKER_02 59:02

Morning non-negotiable is brushing my teeth.

Mark Jones 59:05

Good one to have. A social media trend that you refuse to do.

SPEAKER_01 59:14

I'm not gonna like twerk it for real estate.

Mark Jones 59:20

Bravo, man. One thing that you want your future self to thank you for.

SPEAKER_03 59:29

For having the courage to give up the things that I thought were okay to have, you know?

SPEAKER_02 59:40

I'm I'm proud of me for just like having the self-awareness, the self-awareness to realize where I'm at and where I want to go and what it takes.

Mark Jones 59:54

Two more, okay. If you could tattoo one sentence on every single buyer's brain, first-time buyer, what would it be?

SPEAKER_03 1:00:06

You're ready to buy when you're ready to buy.

Mark Jones 1:00:10

Last one, finish this. Community is community is co-creation. Okay. Okay. Well, is there anything that you would like to let the listeners know in regards to your journey, in regards to something that has helped you currently in the past? Any kind of tips, anything like that that you'd like to leave these folks with? Now's your time.

SPEAKER_03 1:00:40

I would say to dream big.

Mark Jones 1:00:46

Is that what look right at that son of a good? It's worth it.

SPEAKER_02 1:00:51

Yeah, I would say set a goal, but know that it's who you become in reaching that goal. That is the real magic. And to work backwards, you know, to make the goal and actually put a plan of action in that's that's reasonable but still pushes you a little bit, and have faith in the process and the action and take it step by step, whether that's in your own personal life and your own fitness goals or whether that's in your real estate goals, it's not out of reach for you. You might have to pivot and make some changes, but if you want it, you can get it. And you just have to have a plan and the right people around to help you reach those goals.

SPEAKER_05 1:01:35

So call me and Mark.

Rapid Fire: Beliefs, Habits, Advice

Mark Jones 1:01:37

That's awesome. Vanessa, I'm very grateful to have met you. I'm grateful for Dylan's shout out because he put the event together that I met you at. Um, and great things have happened since then.

SPEAKER_02 1:01:48

They really have. Yeah, you've been an amazing part of my journey, and I'm glad you're here.

Mark Jones 1:01:51

Same here. Thank you for joining me on this, and thank you for being so vulnerable with the folks. Think that there's plenty here for them to grab out and either apply to their daily life or their business practices. So, that being said, thank you so much. And guys out there, we're gonna continue to do this. Each episode, each guest will continue to share their true journey. Because if they don't and start doing something else, I'll stop the damn show. You know, that's just how we roll here because we talk about real estate and finance, but I want raw and uncut so that the people know that this is real. There's nobody telling you some smoke and mirror stories of trying to get business. That's not what we're about here. So thank you guys for continuing to like and subscribe. Matter of fact, let's see here. Go ahead and throw that reference up. Let's see if it'll work. Bang. Let me hit refresh on this thing. I don't know if it has refreshed. We are now at 43,200 subscribers, you guys. That's never thought that that would happen, but it has happened, and we're very grateful for it. So that's why we're gonna continue to bring you people like we just did today. You can kill that. And that being said, catch up the next one.

SPEAKER_00 1:03:11

Every day, look at yourself in the mirror and ask, Did I get better today? Monday, get better, Tuesday, get better, Wednesday, get better. If you do that for five years, ten years, fifteen years, how much better will you be? Are you getting better every single day? That's the real question. And it all comes down to taking small