Pour Decisions to Inspired Dreams

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Colin joins us for birthday cake, a Nip of Royal Salute 21, and a conversation that got a lot warmer than expected.

He opens with his worst financial decision — a brand-new Mercedes coupé bought purely on emotion, when the same money could have bought a property. But the real substance comes when Bindi asks what keeps the fire in his belly now that he's already retired his parents. The answer: inspiring a generation of Australians to take charge of their financial futures, and funding three nights of emergency accommodation for the homeless for every client he serves.

We get into the assumption Colin thinks is costing Aussies the most ("she'll be right, mate"), the half a million dollars he's spent on personal development and what he'd take back, and why proximity to the right people beats proximity to the loudest people. There's a story about Peter and Sue Irvine, a mentor he couldn't afford and served instead. There's Matt and Paula, whose kids became property owners at 17 and 19. 

Plus Alex gets called out on his own worst decision, and Colin gets called out for taking ten months to make a referral.

The whisky was excellent. The conversation was better.

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Transcript

SPEAKER_02 0:00

Welcome to Poor Decisions, the show after the show. I don't know when we're gonna start that, but it is your birthday, so not only have we got an incredible cake, we have The Royal Salute. So when I knew you were coming on, uh I was very intentionally, I need to get the best whiskey or one of the best whiskies that I've ever had. And I didn't get the Chinese Lunar New Year one. I almost did. I almost did. I was like, I don't want to. Uh so the Royal Salute is named for the youngest whiskey, the 21 is the 21 salute, and the youngest whiskey in here is 21 years. So very special. They started this blend the year that Queen Elizabeth was coronated. And so they've been making this blend for many years. I've had it many times. It's a very, very special uh bottle, and you can tell I probably one of the only guests I'll buy one for the episode four because it's still got the plastic on. Ver look at look how beautiful. Look how beautiful that is. Oh my god. And this, they have these beautiful ceramic or porcelain, I think, maybe bottle. It's just it's a gorgeous experience, and we haven't even tasted it. But the reason I chose it is because you have air. You have airs. Uh but no, I think it was uh from my perspective, something special for yourself on your birthday to have you here and just wanted to honour you and get you something nice, mate. But normally I try and make a joke out of it, and that's why I was thinking Lunar New Year. Uh Bindy's I got Bindy Bindy's poor decisions was a very Aussie.

SPEAKER_00 1:46

You can't hear me, but this is well now you can. Royal Salute. 21 years old.

SPEAKER_02 1:53

Have you have I told you the backstory behind the 21 salute that I got him?

unknown 1:57

No.

SPEAKER_02 1:57

So it was uh first blended in either 1953, 56, or 63. I can't remember which combo of those numbers. Uh one of them.

SPEAKER_04 2:07

This is going well. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 2:08

I haven't even had any whiskey. I told it to Rob Creedon the other day. I practiced on him, and he's like, that's really great, mate. I'm glad you said that. Uh but you got the years wrong. He's googling it as I did it. And I was planning on writing it down, I forgot. But it was made for Queen Elizabeth's coronation. And uh it was named for the 21 salute when you get coronated, but also 21 is the youngest whiskey that's in there. So it's uh yeah, quite a lovely thing. Alright, let's get some ice cream.

SPEAKER_04 2:38

Yeah. So much food over here today. I don't know what to do with myself.

SPEAKER_00 2:42

Oh my god. This is the best ice cream cake. 70 bucks, can you believe it? But I'm worth it. Do you know how many referrals I give to Alex? We are recording. Stop. I'm editing this out.

SPEAKER_01 2:59

I'm not that neat, clearly. We drink four minutes button. Alright. Good health, my friend. Thank you.

SPEAKER_02 3:06

Oh, let's taste this.

SPEAKER_01 3:15

Bindi. Your thoughts? Wow.

SPEAKER_04 3:18

It's a lot nicer than the last one. Like a lot.

SPEAKER_00 3:22

Is it really?

SPEAKER_04 3:23

It's not as nice as the one you picked for me.

SPEAKER_00 3:26

Well, Bindi, I'm special uh special. It's about three times the price.

SPEAKER_04 3:31

Yeah, yeah. It definitely tastes more regal.

SPEAKER_00 3:35

Well, there's a saying if you're gonna do something for Colin, you might as well do it well. Otherwise, just don't do it.

SPEAKER_04 3:42

Oh, I've already made notes to get some honey for next time you can't. I know how you like your water.

SPEAKER_02 3:50

Oh man. This is great cake. I know. Wow. We're just gonna wait until this is done. Bindy, what do you think of the show?

SPEAKER_04 4:00

Uh I loved it. It was probably the show so far with the most like quotable segments in it. I think you're definitely uh you definitely have a way with words and a like lots of wisdom, like hints of wisdom just throughout, which was really nice. And there were so many things that I was like, as Alex said before, I was like scrambling to write down because they were just really good things um to take note of, but also just so many things, so many little hints to stories that I just want to know more about. So uh I feel like we could talk to you all day, Colin.

SPEAKER_00 4:34

Yeah, I couldn't believe that was an hour and a half. It depends on who's asking me the questions. So my assertion is there's power in questions because the right questions would elicit the right answers. That's another quotable quote.

SPEAKER_04 4:46

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 4:47

She's already overwhelmed, mate.

SPEAKER_04 4:49

Yeah, enough.

SPEAKER_00 4:50

Well, how fun is it, Bindy?

SPEAKER_04 4:52

You like it? It was fun. It was fun.

SPEAKER_02 4:55

Um I just want to attack that cake with a spoon.

unknown 4:59

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 5:00

Yeah, you're you're ready for me to start. Yeah. Okay, well, in true poor decisions style, uh, Colin, what we're gonna do is we're gonna start with our favorite question. What is the worst financial decision that you've ever made? And what did you learn from it?

SPEAKER_00 5:21

I think I kind of alluded to this in the main episode, but um when I'm young, dumb, and full of you know what? Uh vigour. Vigor, strength, enthusiasm, ambition. Um, I um I've I've I'm not like a car person, but um, you know, I had a lot of friends.

SPEAKER_02 5:41

This is the man who drives the Mercedes.

SPEAKER_00 5:42

I was gonna say, what kind of car do you drive for the people?

SPEAKER_02 5:44

Well, look, you know, you gotta You gotta be a little bit Asian.

SPEAKER_00 5:49

I'm fully Asian. I'm fully Asian, okay, no problem. I like my car. I like to drive from A to B. Uh Well, the the poor decision is this, or poor decision. Um, Mum and Dad always said to me, son, whatever you do, um do something smart with your money. And when when when they refer to smart, it's you okay, mate? Yeah, I just I only held a little bit of cake I was laughing at myself. Um but but always invest in something that grows and multiply. Uh, you know, if if if you've got ten dollars, put it in something that's gonna get you twenty dollars at the end of the you know, whatever you invest in. So it's basically invest in assets that grow in value. So never buy a liability. A liability would be a car because you drive out of the garage, your brand new car, and you're gonna lose value straight away by a factor of 20 to 30 percent, you know. Um, but I couldn't help it. I bought a brand new Mercedes, it was a coupé, um purely out of emotion. Two-door coupé, two-door. Shut up. Two-door coupé, yeah, but that's what a coupe is. Coupes are two doors. Yeah, so yeah. So um just making sure.

SPEAKER_04 7:01

I don't think he was a family man back then.

SPEAKER_00 7:03

No, then no, I wasn't, but I I spent too much money on it, you know, and I I I could have bought another property, admittedly, if I hadn't bought that property, uh that car, which was totally out of emotion. It was it was silly. So I learned, look, I mean, it made me happy for a period of time, but you know, true happiness is not in stuff. Um, you know, I believe in I I believe that, you know, we do more for others than we do for ourselves. And I could have stewarded that money a little bit better. Um and I had fun for it for a little while, but shortly after believing, I got married, and obviously the coup pages didn't suit my family and my growth and all that. So it was a very short-term thinking. It was not long-term at all. Um, and you know, but at the same time I had the money for it.

SPEAKER_04 7:53

So I think sometimes the lesson is just getting it out of your system as well. Like you gotta do that.

SPEAKER_00 8:01

Mustang. You see, if you had not buy that and bought that Mustang, you would have got an investment property. That's my assertion.

SPEAKER_02 8:09

No, I wouldn't have. I didn't have the borrowing capacity, and I didn't know you when I bought it.

SPEAKER_04 8:15

Excellent. Okay, um, Colin, this one's just for you. Uh, you mentioned in the main episode um that you were really motivated to retire your parents. Like that was a big driver for you to become really successful. Um you've done that. What keeps the fire in your belly now?

SPEAKER_00 8:33

It's a very interesting question. Um, I often think about what's next, you know, because I've achieved some tremendous things in my life, and I'm incredibly grateful. I mean, you know, I I owe a lot to a lot of people. Uh and but what motivates me now is the people that I get to serve that I get to love. I love my customers, I get to serve them every day, you know. Um, and I'm gonna do a bit of a show and tell because this is probably a good segue. I can't believe the questions are so good segue into what I do. This book is called Inspire. Uh, and it's a book that I read many, many years ago. I can't believe a book that's already got Inspire in it. I would have authored this book otherwise. But Inspire is why customers come back. And I'm just gonna read you one little small quote in terms of why I do what I do now. Okay. Make sure your customers, one of the one of the topics in that is um uh what could be more inspiring than a crusade. Anyway, it goes on to saying that make sure your customers are true believers. The key to engaging your customers with a cause is to find people who identify with your mission and will happily pay a premium for the emotional connection they get from supporting it. Anyway, all that is to say is my greatest passion purpose right now is to inspire a generation of Australians to take charge of their financial futures by investing in smart, strategic, sustainable property portfolios. Because here's the reality, okay? We're all living longer than ever before. Some research is telling us that we'll live into our ripe 90s and hundreds by the time we get there. So look at the retirement of a generation of people that are going to get into that. Let's say we retired at 65. Most Australians will live to 85. That's the current life expectancy at the moment. So that's an extra 20 years of living to do. It's a lot of years. The average super at the moment for an average Australian is about 200. Actually, it's females are 200, males are 300,000. So call it 300,000. Simple maths will tell you 300,000 divided by 20 years of living, that's about 15,000 a year to live off. We know this this cost of living is just exploding. People are not putting, you know, more in their super than than they were before. So my fear at the moment is that people will be too dependent on governments, on handouts, and they just don't, they're not motivated enough to think to, you know, into the near future and being able to take charge of that.

SPEAKER_02 11:01

I think it's a great point. One of the things that I'm seeing a lot at the moment is we go from your example of you know buying the expensive car to having kids and using kids as the crutch for spending money and dopamine hits, and we kind of just have this reactive thing, and then suddenly we get in our 50s, realize how much super we have, go and just throw it all on black on a property that we hope is interest only, you know, and going to just grow on capital. And we actually don't craft a portfolio that's sustainable and take that step early enough in our careers, in our lives, and it's why we talk so much about when to invest, when to make those moves, uh, you know, kids going from daycare to school and those expenses and those costs, because the the thing that I think a lot of people are missing is that inspiration, that long-term thinking and where you want to be in three years, I think is really important. Yeah. But I wish more people thought about 20 years and 30 years, especially in their 30s.

SPEAKER_00 12:03

Correct. And and so building on that, as much as it is inspiring people to do something smart and strategic about their money, there's a real course and purpose in why I do what I do. There is a plight of homelessness. Um, you know, we have a massive shortage to the tune of two to three hundred thousand properties according to AMP as of today. Wow. That's a that's a huge issue, and that's why a lot of people are being pushed out of the housing market, and we feel for them, right? Uh there's a serious problem with homelessness in Australia. A developed country, fair enough. I come from a developing country, it's the norm to go down the streets and you see people sleeping on the on the streets. But to come to Australia and to witness that as a migrant, that that pains me.

SPEAKER_02 12:43

It's interesting because I was so shocked in in London when we visited there in 2018 and or 2017. And I'm just like, man, we we're there as like as developed countries, quote unquote. We just can't tackle these issues sometimes. And now what the scary thing is, like, I think there's always going to be a sphere of humanity that doesn't quite nail it in life and sadly falls behind and whatever. But just to hear families just not able to battle through the rental crisis and I know find rental properties and it's very, very sad.

SPEAKER_00 13:16

So so, as part of my purpose and course, I support a lot of charities, churches, communities. Um you know, and one of the charities I support, uh Mission Australia actually. So here's my take on it. I'm a lot more intentional now about my giving, um, and because there's only so many properties I need, you know, and and so for me, it's for every client that I'm I'm I've got the privilege to inspire, to educate, to empower, to inform and uh and build a property portfolio with. I support three nights of homelessness, uh three nights of emergency accommodation for the homeless and the vulnerable. And so the business has now become a you know platform for me to serve and to give and to be generous in the marketplace, you know. So that's what drives me now. You know, I've I've I could easily retire today if I wanted to, but I I'm 45 years old, I've got so much fight, so much energy. Like this, I'm only just getting started, man. So there's so much more. I I just feel like God has gifted me with just so much, and because of that, I just need to be a good steward of that. I want to steward my my talent. Uh you know, admittedly, I you know, I I just acknowledge that I'm just gifted and and I I want to steward that talent, you know, and the t the limited time we have on earth, uh and the treasures that I've been blessed with. I'm not gonna take it to the grave with me, so I want to give back, you know? Awesome.

SPEAKER_04 14:42

Love that.

SPEAKER_00 14:43

You love that?

SPEAKER_04 14:44

I do. Um Colin, from where you sit professionally, yeah. What what is the most costly assumption that you think Aussies make without realizing whether it be an assumption in the property that they buy or their strategy longer term uh towards retirement, what what's the most costly thing that you think see Aussies assuming?

SPEAKER_00 15:08

I try not to relate it too much to property, but uh you know, when I came to Australia, I used to have this work ethic where I go into work at six o'clock in the morning and I wouldn't get out of there by seven or eight o'clock at night, right? The the it's not just the hours, but we work hard. We we we uh we see our career pathways as something that's really important to set ourselves out for the future. Coming to Australia, you know, it's it's a bit more laissez faire, but but also the flip side is I I feel like Australians take life a lot more into consideration. Work life balance I'm talking about. You know, they put more emphasis on family, on health, which is actually a positive thing, and I've had to really grow into that. But the assumption, and I think that what what I think this society, and I and you know what I'm so privileged. I get to because I grew up in Malaysia for 90 years of my life, and then I came here when I was 20. I I lived the Asian Malaysian lifestyle, and then coming to Australia, which is a Western culture, I get to step back and look at those two cultures, and I bring the best of both worlds, my work ethic, but also putting some importance in life, you know, and living life to the fullest. You know, that's important. So, but the danger on the flip side is that the the psychology, I think, uh, for a lot of you know, I'm talking I'm generalizing, is the whole attitude of she'll be alright, mate. It's all right, the government will look after you. Ah, well, you know, don't worry about it. And so there's a lot of emphasis about saving for the future, about thinking what's gonna happen, you know, when I reach retirement, you know, when we become grandmas and grandpas, and that's the perfect opportune time to spend time with your loved ones and your grandkids. But the truth and the reality is that most Australians are having to work longer than ever before because they can't afford to retire. At the age of 65, you ain't set yourself up, yeah. And look, God forbid, but you know, at the age of of retirement, if there's anything left in the pension for us, great, but God forbid none none of that because we've got an aging population, yeah. So my worry and and a lot of the assumptions at the moment is things will be okay. I don't think it's gonna happen. Like we lived in a generation where it was great, but now I worry for the next generation.

SPEAKER_02 17:20

I think the it's a yeah, it's a great idea. Like we at least myself, like I've been raised with the idea that there will not be a pension when I'm 65. Um and I yeah, I don't well, I don't know how universal that is amongst my peers, but I remember um when you and I started in lending, Bindy, I would rock up I I'd be in nine o'clock for an 11 o'clock start. I'd be in two hours early because that was free time that I didn't have a call schedule, that I could get done all my work. I finished work at six, seven o'clock at night. I wanted to see Anna before she went to bed, so I rushed home. But the sacrifice there was I rocked up two hours before anyone else. And it would give me a step in to get my client's work done, got it, and then people would rock up, you know, 11.13 for an 11.15 start or you know, 1117, let's be honest. But it's just, you know, uh I think a lot of uh, you know, I look at my my younger brother Mitch, you know, I look at the work ethic that a lot of Gen Z has and I think I actually think they're going to overtake a lot of millennials because we haven't got like we grew up in such a blessed time of Australia, we just don't understand what the cost of taking that easy is going to be potentially long term. Yeah, and we're so busy in that nesting phase of life, we're missing the opportunity that's in front of us. So I think that intention, intentional wealth creation. So many of us are blessed with tremendous careers, tremendous jobs, uh, so many resources, and we're just not actually managing it as well as we could. So I think that's a great, a great point. So thank you. I need more.

SPEAKER_03 19:04

Brilliant.

SPEAKER_04 19:06

Um, Colin, in the main episode, uh, one of the quotes that I did write down that I absolutely loved is if you want to become a better chess player, play chess with better players. Um, which I think there's just so much power in that. But um, how intentional are you about putting yourself in rooms with smarter or more experienced people? And does that translate into an edge for your buyers?

SPEAKER_00 19:31

Absolutely. Um I I I I um I've been privileged to be part of uh a networking group, and being the team leader, I tend to like to open the the day with with a with a very strong conviction in terms of a of a phrase and your network is your net worth. But the other one is there is power in your proximity. So there is power in proximity, yeah, and and one of the things that I uh I'm very grateful for for my father and mother, they actually said to me, son, I don't think we'll be able to ever teach you to be wealthy because mum and dad haven't really got there. You know, so they said, I want you to go find good people around you. And I'm so grateful for that. I mean, I love my mum and dad. But just the honesty and the humility of their parents are just saying, son, we've taught you all that we can teach you. Now you gotta spread your wings. And I want you to know something, son. The people that you surround yourself with will always heavily influence how you think. And what you think about all the time most frequently is gonna be what you talk about most frequently. And there's power in words. What you talk about is what you're gonna think about. What you think about is gonna be what you bring about. And so it's more important than ever before. I I I mean, obviously, I have a lot of peers, I have a lot of people that I've been able to inspire, to coach, and to empower, and that's a privilege in itself. So I've been I've been giving a lot of myself, but I've also been given and sowing and into what you sow is what you reap, right? And so it's been very, very intentional, as humbling as it is. Sometimes I go to these people and mentor and I say, look, I just need to ask you a few questions. I and I tell them, you know, I'm struggling at the moment with my life, uh family sometimes. And and you know the power of vulnerability, just being able to say that to a potential mentor. And so you know, I I do it's and it's not just smarter people. I think there's people that are so much further in my life from a spiritual sense, from living the life I aspire to live. Um, I've got so many mentors and You know, for me, I want to also, I remember my first my first official mentor, so to say, and shout out to Peter and Sue Irvine. They're the founders of Gloria Jeans. They they live a life as a couple, as a family that I aspire to. Happily married, number of grandkids, a couple of sons. They they just embody what I would like to. They they they have a house that they welcome me and my wife and my little daughter, and we go there as a pilgrimage every year. And I remember when I first spoke to Peter, I said, Peter, I know I can't afford your coaching. I know back then he was charging something to the tune of five thousand dollars for each consult. I said, Peter, I can't afford it. And I remember he said something to me. He said, Colin, look, um, you're a good man. And he goes, I want you to see, I'm gonna share with you my vision and my mission. And I want to see if you can help me fulfill that. And you know what his vision for was? His vision was simply to share his story of how he was able to make his real marketplace his ministry. And so I knew all if all I could do was to put and he authored two books at the time as well. Incidentally, the second book I was asked to write, you know, a bit of a testimonial. But his first book was Win in Business. And I knew he wanted to help people win in business from a faith perspective. And I said to Peter, what can I do? And he goes, Well, connect me with the right people, uh, with the people that need keynote speakers, and so I opened it up to a number of opportunities, the junior chamber of call uh junior chamber international. I I was the president of the Australian Malaysian Singaporean Association, I got him as a speaker there, and he got to sell his books and do these keynotes. Some of which he he was paid for, some of it he wasn't. So for me, it was just adding value for him, you know, and and because of that, I was able to spend I would take him to the airport, he'll bring him back, I'll drive him to the uh, you know, to the to the engagement, and just being able to, you know, have him sew into my life was was just tremendous. So it heavily influences, and you have to be intentional uh what you allow yourself, who you allow people in your life to sow into you, because the power of words will either make you or it will break you.

SPEAKER_02 24:12

I think one of the sad things about a lot of our generation Bindi is that they're not allowing people to sow seeds, they're allowing reels and TikToks. And like, you know, we've got Ryan Gilbank who who you know, he's coming on the the episode 11, maybe I think. Um and it's just a great example of uh someone who sends me way too many reels, firstly. Uh I'm not going to be indoctrinated. Uh, but no, like I just call him and have a chat just to just to talk. And I learnt very quickly. I'm gonna walk away with three or four things I didn't realise were an issue in my life, but I'm gonna learn. I'm gonna learn that wisdom and um that that proximity. I mean, the most power there's one really powerful thing you got through proximity to Sue and Peter. And that's Beck. Yes. So it worked there.

SPEAKER_01 25:08

Oh goodness.

SPEAKER_00 25:09

And you know, the biggest decision you gotta make in your life is who you marry. I mean, for those that are singles out there, I was very prayerful and intentional about who I got married because whoever you marry is is who you're gonna spend the most effective amount of your time in, you know, and so I wanted someone who was God loving, god fearing, family-oriented, good values, good temperament in the property industry, so we can talk properties all day.

SPEAKER_02 25:35

No, no, what you mean is so you can talk at about property all day and then not gonna get it. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 25:41

Otherwise it just goes, yeah, you know.

SPEAKER_04 25:44

I love it. Okay. Um another thing that you mentioned in the main episode was that uh you gain so much wealth, you know, in your knowledge working for Joseph that you would have done it for free. Um, I want to I'll put that on the inverse. Is there something that you've invested in in your life that maybe wasn't worth it?

SPEAKER_00 26:07

Thank you. Um sorry to bring it up. No, that's this is good. I've always been attracted to the shiny object. I think when you're ambitious, when you know that there's somebody out there that's making money, uh, you know, with the flashy cars and the private jets and all that, you can't help but listen to them because you want to go, hey, you know, how do they do it? And uh and so admittedly, I signed up and I paid literally thousands. I think I would have spent honestly more than half a million dollars in personal development programs. That's a lot of money. I don't know many people who would spend more than half a million dollars, let alone fifty thousand dollars. And you know, when you add all that up, um there are some key lessons that I've learned. And and some of those things I not that I regret, but I look at some of these people and I go, I'd never want to be like that, you know.

SPEAKER_02 26:59

And when you deep dive looking at you, Grant Cardone, no, sorry.

SPEAKER_00 27:05

Uh but when you dive deep into the story of their life, they've some of them have got broken marriages, they've got kids that don't talk to them, they're smoking, they're drinking their own drugs, they're parting the you know, and you just kind of go, Well, what's the cost of success? If that is success to me, then why am I listening to them? You know, so uh you know interesting.

SPEAKER_02 27:27

So I grew up with uh someone who is extremely successful professionally, and I actually um uh mum and dad were both, you know, well after their divorce uh within Amway. And so I spent a lot of time around personal development. Did you did you? I was like, when you said professional, I was like, oh no, I was.

SPEAKER_00 27:49

I was so good at it as well.

SPEAKER_02 27:50

Yeah, convincing, I was. You were a builder, you weren't a shopper, mate. Oh, and you knew how to do those circles. I know, I know. I've been just I've been in the I've been in it as as a teen, like not even a teenager, like it's still still there. But uh I yeah, my p my dad was and his uh ex-wife were downstream from mum. And I know I know, I know everything, mate. I know it all. Yeah, but I think for me, uh so we grew up around that. We grew up with some really wealthy people that were good friends. Um I'll name drop after this. Uh and one of them said to me, he's like, No one is the perfect person. Yeah, yeah. And so what you want to do is you want to look at things that you admire of bit by bit by bit. And I was like, wow, that's really cool. And I still kind of do that to a degree, but it wasn't until much later that I kind of aligned it with something, and you know, Dr. John Deloney, someone I I listen to quite a lot, he's an American guy that's just brilliant. And he says, Actions are a language. And I started to realize that the fruit, the reason that person said that was the fruit of his life wasn't great, but he was much admired professionally.

SPEAKER_01 29:01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 29:02

And I started to realize that actions are a language. There are silent heroes out there that have had it all, they've had the great careers, they've got great wealth, they've got great family, great wife, an incredible relationship with their children. Um and I started increasingly meeting people that were uh like I got my tonsils out in 2022, 21, uh, and the doctor was just like this older guy in his 60s, like, keep, you know, protect your relationship, you know, make sure you have a relationship with your kids. I didn't even have kids at that stage. Um and he's you know, just and I could see that he'd gone through this journey and realized that he'd focused on his career so much that he'd missed the relationship with kids, divorced from his wife, doesn't know his kids. And I just realized how good it is to have those people who have had it all in your life. They do exist, they are out there. Absolutely, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 29:56

But they're still perfectly imperfect though. Yeah, you know, Alex, it's not about finding I'm not gonna throw stones in that glasshouse. But there there are some key fundamentals. There's a temperament, there's a philosophy, there's values that you need to uphold. And those you you you you you can't you can't shy away from. You know, you've you've got to keep that as the main thing. Yeah, honestly.

SPEAKER_02 30:15

I went through uh both of you know, like a little bit of a mental health journey the last couple years, and one of the things, one of the greatest things I took from my psychologist through that time was actually writing down what your values are. It was one of the most tremendous I don't know if he gave it we had the same person. Did Rick give you that? Writing down your values? Oh, like hold yourself accountable to your values?

SPEAKER_00 30:40

So good.

SPEAKER_02 30:41

Yeah. It's and it was just one of the greatest exercises I've ever done. So it's a living document within that I've got. Yeah. So you'll never find it in this.

SPEAKER_04 30:50

Um from the you know, couple of hours that I've known you, Colin, I think one of the things that's really obvious to me is that you do you understand why you do what you do and you you understand what your values are inherently well. So you know you can, you know, quite easily make decisions that are aligned with them. So step one is is definitely knowing those things, yeah, for sure. Um okay, I'm gonna flip it around because I want to hear what's the best financial advice that you've ever received.

SPEAKER_00 31:24

There's a lot. There's a lot of things.

SPEAKER_02 31:28

I came up with these questions and I didn't realise how big that would be.

SPEAKER_00 31:33

How much time do we have?

SPEAKER_02 31:36

Uh can I just say it's live on less than you make. Thank you, Dave Ramsey. Like it's it's j that basic for me. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 31:44

Yeah. Probably there's two. I I can't pick one of them because two of these are equally important to me. For me, I I read the good book, the Bible. And uh one of the things in there that that I I that I read and pray and meditate a lot on, what you sow is what you reap. Too many people think that they can just reap without sowing. And so, no doubt, you know, when you're young in your life, you know, you've got these ambitions and dreams and desires, and that's good, that's all well and good. You want to write your dreams down as much as you write your values down, you want to know what your vision is because without vision, people perish, you know. So you've got to be always be looking forward to something. You know, I've gone as far as writing down everything that I want to do before I die. You call it the bucket list, you know, and I've ticked a good portion of them. Um, so so you've got to always be looking forward to something. But I think for me, I've paid the price and I made the sacrifice, I worked hard. You know, there was a point in my life when I didn't have any I didn't have a social life. I was like not friendless, but I just I was so focused. Not a good thing. 2025 is rough. Yeah. Um so but I was very intentional about what I sew, you know, in the beginning, and I was willing to pay the price and make the sacrifice. So that's probably the big lesson that I've learned. You know, your level of income and what you're earning at the moment and whatever you do with it is directly proportional to the value that you provide in the society, in the community, in the workplace, in the organization that you work in. What you sow is what you reap. That's the first fundamental.

SPEAKER_02 33:29

Mitchell's gonna love this, by the way, because he he's a muse that was raised by someone who loves the right of politics. And uh he was lecturing me, let's just say me, the other day about, you know, you've got to do something that adds value to the world, and like, you know, in the context of day trading, yeah. Like it just doesn't add any value. And like I think the value rate of day trading is the same as sports gambling, right? Yeah, um, but yeah, it's like what you put out into the world generally has a direct correlation and creating something good that people want that resonates that makes the world net positive better.

SPEAKER_00 34:08

Absolutely, and and you know, it's it's you know, Alex, uh you're one person that I know who's added tremendous value in my life from a very deeply personal way. You know, not many people will go as far as getting an ice cream cake and getting, you know, you you know, you you you you you spoke to my heart. And there's a lot of value in my case.

SPEAKER_02 34:28

Ice cream also speaks to my heart.

SPEAKER_00 34:32

There's there's value in in just being personable and just care enough about somebody else. That don't underestimate that. So the value you can add is more than just what what time and what what talent you can you can you can provide for people. Of course, a lot of us want to provide treasure and be direct in terms of hey, you know, I've got a business I can refer you, I've got a client that I can refer you. That's direct. But there's a lot of things that you can do that's indirect. You know, you can pray for the person, you can you can give them a call and say, hey, are you okay? Uh you can connect them with the right people, you can you can say, you know, uh literally, and I and I want to shout out to this guy, Vinny. He knew that I got a puppy. You know what he got for me today as a present? He got me this little Kong toy with a little teddy bear. And I thought, isn't that just so sweet?

SPEAKER_02 35:18

I went in, so I my birthday present, and kind of like, hey, we've had a big few years last year, is I've got a navy double-breasted suit. You've seen me wear it. This is a Vinny suit. Yeah, I we were meant to take Riley in, but it went over time. Uh, but I've got to go in and see him again. But it was double-breasted, drape, little bit of a drape cut, loose fit, high fit pant, like just something I've wanted for a few years. I rocked up, he knew it was my birthday, to a tiramisu cake. Like I just I Vinny just selflessly gives out. And uh funded finance, we had our first birthday. You were there at his shop. And so I think a lot of how I try to operate a lot of the time is because I see the selflessness without expecting anything back that he gives. And it's just yeah.

SPEAKER_00 36:05

And and and I just want to say this, right? Too many people they you know, they expect to get without first giving. You know, and so I think I think Well, I have a bone to pick you with you on that one.

SPEAKER_02 36:17

I caught up with someone yesterday.

SPEAKER_00 36:19

Who? Can you tell?

SPEAKER_02 36:21

Yeah, Chester. Oh. He said it took him three meetings for you to refer to him. Ladies and gentlemen. Come on, dude. Ten months. Ten months. And I don't know if we're about to edit this part out. But the man sold a brokerage business because I'm freaking good at what I do. You were as we are edited, we already met out of ocean.

SPEAKER_00 36:45

Alex. No, look, you know. No, I don't know. I gotta I gotta be mean to keep them keen. Have you not heard of that before? No, unlike some people.

SPEAKER_02 36:56

I was married at 22.

SPEAKER_01 37:04

I love it. My goodness. I believe in God's timing. Some of that, yeah. Sorry.

SPEAKER_04 37:11

This has been the most warm and fuzzy poor decisions I think we've ever made throughout that. What a roller coaster. Um, I want to end on that note. And so, therefore, my question is what's what's your favorite client story? Something that's genuinely made you proud, someone that took the harsh path, but it paid off for them.

SPEAKER_02 37:31

Can I go first? Um I just got a contract from them today. Uh while we've been in this, I got a text message from her. Um yeah, we reconnected after I less West left a Westpac, but uh just a couple that I've walked through an incredible journey with. We somehow got their first home approved when I was a mobile banker. I don't know, maybe in the call centre, they just caught up one day. Um and yeah, Jesse and Elaine are about to buy their dream home. They work with Riley, they're doing the right things. Jesse's built an incredible business. Uh, they're going to invest in property, whatever that looks like, I'm sure. But I just think sometimes walking through the journey, and there's other people, Sophia and Danny, who we've worked with, like they've got this incredible house that they're going to, you know, kind of fit into over time properly. And like there's just so many stories. But I just like the heart of what I want to do is to walk through life with my clients. Um and that will kind of cap me at a certain size, and that's fine. You know, funded will grow bigger than what I can actually take care of. But I just I think to walk through like they I the first house they built was maybe the third construction loan I did in the call centre, actually. It definitely was DL. And I remember just problem solving after problem solving after problem solving. He's a cabinet maker, tremendous at what he does. He's getting good prices on the kitchen and some of the cabinets work, so we had to work through that, and then we had to work through uh there was no driveway because he had a mate, and so we got a quote for crushed stone, crushed blue stone as a driveway, but we knew we're gonna have something different, like just all these different things, and nothing was too hard, nothing was actually a problem. And he just said, Awesome, we're gonna overcome this, we're gonna overcome this. And I just look at what they're buying now for their dream house, moving on from that home, you know, all these years later, and it's just such an honour to walk through that journey and see families kind of come out of houses, you know, the houses that we help them buy and get into. So good, Alex. I love I love just the warm and fuzzies of this, you know, making dreams come true. And yeah. Sorry that you're downsizing the pool because it's a little bit smaller than the old one, but not my fault.

SPEAKER_00 39:53

I like I like what you said, you know. At the end of the day, everyone, everyone has dreams and desires, you know, and for me, property is simply a means or a vehicle to an end. What is that end? You know, what is the purpose of what you do? Why are you living life? You know, what are you trying to accomplish on earth whilst there's just such a limited time? What memorable experience are you trying to create, not only for your families, but for the people that you are privileged to serve? Oftentimes I I get this asked, Colin, why are you in business? What do you do really? You know, and I could go into I'm in a business of I'm a property investment advisor and a buyer's agent, and you know, helping.

SPEAKER_02 40:32

You could do that very much. I could do that easily.

SPEAKER_00 40:34

I could do that easily. But I'm in the business of transforming people's lives. I I change people's lives quite literally. It may take a while to get there, but I'll there's one client I I was struggling because I've got so many clients that I'm just thinking, that would have been a good story, that would have been a good story. But for me, multi-generational wealth is probably the big thing for me because we are going to live in a society now where there's gonna be the biggest transfer of wealth, and if we're not careful, there's a lot of money that will be squandered away, and and a lot of people will waste that money if it's not stewarded well. So that's my big fear. They say one generation builds and another generation destroys, right? It would be painful to see that. And so, anyway, one of my clients, Matt and Paula, shout out to you both, God almighty. You know, they were part of my Connect group, and I remember when I first met them, there were there were there were just people that were they were not hungry or ambitious, but they just want to live a good life, and you know, they don't need the the fancy cars. I mean, he he runs a four-wheel drive company and the humblest and the most honoring people that you would know. Two kids, Aaron and Jesse. Now, when Matt and Paula, this is many, many years ago now, when I was a sales agent, would you believe it? And I remember they said, Colin, we've got this massive acreage out in Dural. This is in Sydney. Wells I was in Sydney, he goes, We're at the season in our life where we need to just we need to move. Um, and but before we move, I just want to chat with you about what our future is gonna look like. And so they painted a vision for me, and I said, Look, Madam Paul, I'll I'll help you out. And one of the things was to sell off their dream home. Well, the the home that they lived with Aaron and Jesse for for years. That's where they brought up their kids. But now they're in a season in a life where they know that they've only got so many years to live, so they want to make sure they entrust the wealth that they've created to their two boys. And then I got to know Aaron, I got to know Jesse very well. They were 19 and no 17 and 19 at the time, very young. Uh, and and so they said, Colin, can you sell my property? I said, sure. So I put their property in the market on Duro. I got it at an absolute record price. I'm a good salesman.

SPEAKER_02 42:54

No, really, and so Can I just say I don't think you're a good salesman? And you've got a meeting at 1.30, so you gotta run so God, yes. Uh, you can do it over there. I don't think you're a good salesman. I think you are incredibly good at like everything you do is excellence focused, right? But you're incredibly good at walking through that journey.

SPEAKER_00 43:16

Thank you.

SPEAKER_02 43:17

That's the secret.

SPEAKER_00 43:18

It's not sales, it is not sales, but I I'm not shying away from saying I'm a good salesman. But I for me, it's I'm a good conversationalist. Yes. And so I I I with all these buys anyway, long story short, I sold their property at an absolute record price. I mean, this this so this guy that he loves four-wheel driving, so it's not exactly the flattest block of man who's acreage. So we sold it for a record price, and I said to Madame Paula, let's steward that now. And they were moving to Brisbane, believe it or not, and so was I. So it was an opportune time for me, and that's when I stepped into my whole buyer's agency space. And they said, Colin, with all this money, what do we do with it? And I said, Well, how about we buy a property and invest, we'll buy a place of residence where we we have a granny flat, and that was the first, you know, um, one of my very first few clients actually. And so we bought this property in Ipswich with a granny flat, bought it for some steel when they first bought it. It was 2021 or two or something like that. And then we it was an existing granny flat, but it was not council approved. So we got that council approved. Literally, that property doubled in about four years, it was more than doubled. And so, with that equity, I remember saying to Madame Paula, now how about we help Aaron and Jesse? It almost brings tears to my eyes because I remember talking to Aaron and Jesse. Never in their life would they think there would be property owners at all. Can you imagine at the age of 17 and 19 years old? Now Aaron works for the army and for the defense, and man, I I felt for him, you know. Like and so I said to Madame Paula, let's draw some um that you can be a guarantor for them. And so Jesse has bought a property a couple of years ago. He's made, oh god, quarter of a million dollars from that already. Now, as of today, I'm about to onboard Jesse. You know, 21 years old. He's a chippy apprentice getting into his very first property. That all that would not have happened if I had not sold that property for Madame Paula and assisted them. So not only have they bought Ipswich, now I've bought them, they've sold Ipswich, and now they've bought into their dream home in Pine Mountain. Absolutely cracker of a property. And I found that property for them as well. Yeah. So what I've done is I've I've I've surrounded myself with clients in not only the generation that I'm able to assist them with, but the next generation that and hopefully the generation after that.

SPEAKER_02 45:30

I think um I love I love helping. So I've got a you're 10 years older than Bindy and I.

SPEAKER_04 45:37

Um, we're not here to insult people.

SPEAKER_00 45:40

What do you mean? I'm 35. How old are you?

SPEAKER_02 45:43

You've already given your age away. You've already said 45. Uh but it it's fun to for me helping clients' kids, like friends' kids, to be honest, you know, right like Ryan and Carl and you know uh yeah, like it's I'm trying to privacy laws. Uh they don't look at bias agents that often. Um but no, like it's it's really cool to see these people from your community and from CrossFit and the gym over the years that you're helping, you know, these these clients are a fair bit further along, they're kids now and taking advantage of those opportunities. So those are some of the the best stories that we get to walk with. And just from a little bit of a ham further along, this is what I did, or this is how I operated, this is the loan options, da da da. It makes a big difference. Yeah. Uh, we've got to run. This has been poor decisions. Thank you.

SPEAKER_00 46:36

Can I just finish with one small thing though? This is this is my last thing, right? Uh, I am privileged to inspire, but I'm also inspired by so many people around me. And Alex, you're one of them. I thank you for allowing me to inspire you, but I'm genuinely inspired by you as well. So thank you and God bless. Thanks. Bye.