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Befriending high income entrepreneurs

Anything related to matters of the mind

JasonC

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I used to think this was so hard to do and seemingly impossible, but a mentor challenged me to focus on doing precisely this. His reasoning is that successful entrepreneurs associate with other successful entrepreneurs.

It's just like people who play certain computer games (MMORPGs) will associate with other people who play such games. Hardcore religious people will also associate with other religious people (I know because I used to be one! And I used to play such MMORPGs too.) Body builders tend to associate with other body builders. They probably spend time in the gym more than others. They probably spend time reading about different types of protein supplements.

Likewise, when you hang out with people who are successful, they literally influence you to think like them. It is the mere exposure to such 'energy' that will make a difference. When I met my best friend, I noticed I began using a lot of his vocabulary words and I began even thinking and acting a bit like him.

At the same time, I had to cut out a lot of friends who were compromising my dreams/goals by constantly talking negatively about money and business.

How often are you around people who think, "Life sucks" or "Same shit, different day" or "Why am I always so tired?"

How often do you say or hear, "I can't afford it"?

Guess what? All of these statements will literally keep you stuck, even if they aren't coming from your mind. The repetitive exposure to such language will hinder you from going where you want to go. And the more you keep saying to yourself, "I can't afford it" the more you are reinforcing a habit of lack and limitation. Hence, the importance of associating with successful entrepreneurs.

So how did I befriend successful entrepreneurs?

It was a combination of shifting my mindset, seizing opportunities, and a willingness to step out of my comfort zone.

The first thing I did was I went to a speed networking event. I had a total of 4 minutes of conversation with the other person before moving onto the next. Since time was limited, I got a hunch to ask, "What books have you read?" and the answers I got told me whether or not I wanted to associate myself with them.

One of the people I met is now a friend of mine as well as a 6 figure earner. Through her, I met her mentor, who makes double her income, and I had the opportunity to have dinner with them. Through these 2 people I met another entrepreneur who earns half a million a year. What amazed me is that they are all Fastlane people. Two of them are in their mid20s and the 3rd one is in his early 30s. Their business, btw, is network marketing.

During this same week, I kept an eye out for events where millionaires would be speaking. So I made sure to attend and sit all the way up in the front (because this is where millionaires tend to sit). I made sure to show up first (because the speaker would remember the people they meet in the beginning and at the end, but not in the middle). When I attended another event, the speaker asked if there were any newcomers, so I immediately rose my hand and chose to stand out, especially since I was sitting right at the front.

Was it awkward? Yes, but it was well worth it. The speaker remembered my name and I ended up having a great conversation with him and even met up with him for lunch. Also in that same week I got an idea to contact many millionaire marketers. Nearly all of them didn't respond, but one got back to me.

I had a chat with her and what I learned from her was huge, even though it wasn't anything new.

As I began associating myself with such people, I literally cut off contact with many of my old friends whose ideas about money and business were stuck in lack and limitation. I even had to dramatically limit contact with my parents due to their brainwashed ideas about 'getting a job' or 'working hard' which was compromising my life.

One thing I learned from all these entrepreneurs is that getting away from negative people (especially one's friends/family who are 'worried about us' or 'trying to look after us') is CRITICAL, and that it is also equally important to become friends with successful entrepreneurs.

Why? Because successful entrepreneurs associate themselves with other successful entrepreneurs! Before I met these people I didn't see myself as one, but after hanging out with them, it became much easier to see myself as successful and it is making a HUGE different for me!

So what could you do to befriend real successful fastlane entrepreneurs?
 
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tido

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Great story Jason, I'm also in search of such opportunity. Like you, the people I used to associate with and even love ones, all have the sidewalk or slowlane mentality. I find it difficult to convince them that there is such thing as the fastlane, and they avoid the conversation like I had the flu because they associate fastlane with "get rich quick" scheme. I don't even try anymore, luckily, there's the fastlane forum for fastlane minded people like us.
But besides the forum, it gets lonely sometimes because you're not fully immerse or surround yourself in the "right" environment. One thing that I would suggest that has help me a bit is joining a Toastmasters club, you would be surprise at how positive these club members are. Any great future leader/businessman/fastlaner can benefit upon improving their communication skills. Even the RDPD author Robert Kyosaki was once a Toastmasters member. The club that I am a member of at work consist of managers and high profile guys in my company. By associating with them, I will have the opportunity to network with their successful peers.
 

Ikke

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Maybe I'm wrong but aren't your friends with the people you like instead of only the ones that make money? Don't you make money by blazing your own path instead of following money trails?

I do understand that connections are important. But having rich friends won't make you rich.
 
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The-J

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Maybe I'm wrong but aren't you friends with the people you like instead of the only the ones that make money? Don't you make money by blazing your own path instead of following money trails?

I do understand that connections are important. But having rich friends won't make you rich.

You missed the point big time...
 
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Alana

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In the middle of a national forest (in N. CA)
Birds of a feather flock together.

I partially agree with Ikke, in that deciding whether to befriend a rich person (or even consider them as friend material) does not guarantee that you’ll become rich. Heck, there are tons of extremely wealthy folks in my neck of the woods, but it’s because they grow dope illegally (I’m not getting into the politics of that or judging them….I’m just saying that I don’t care to be carrying a gun around on me just to step outside my house because folks know I have a ton of drugs and a ton of cash….that to me is not worth the money).
That’s what I like about MJ’s book because not only does it touch on having a fat wallet, but also having a quality life. It’s the whole picture, not just your bank statement.
Sounds like you’re meeting go-getters and folks that subscribe to the fastlane mentality more or less, which is why you’re probably getting so much out of it. They are just part of your whole equation. And no one wants to befriend someone whose main aim is ‘What can you do for me.’ It’s important that you add something to the relationship(s) as well.

Good for you though for recognizing the wisdom in the cliché.
 

Astute

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A colleague asked me if I wanted to go his private members club in London a few weeks ago, and so I went with him and some others one evening. The place was incredible. There were so many young, successful people. It had an amazing vibe and had success oozing from its walls. Surrounding yourself by people you aspire to be like really does motivate you.

I'd be careful not to appear too false though, as I'd imagine most fast laners would be pretty shrewd when it comes to someone trying to take them for a free ride.
 

LightHouse

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I was with this until the network marketing thing came up.

Being around success is great, but it's only helpful in fueling your own fire. If you aren't a self starter, you will spend time thinking that hanging out with them will make you rich.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2
 
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brob742

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I was with this until the network marketing thing came up.

You and me both, LH. While seeking to associate with successful people is great, successful network marketers are simply very good sales people, not necessarily very good entrepreneurs.
 

Lights

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Hm. I'm on this forum like 1 hr a day... I think I am trying hard enough engaging with successful people.

Maybe the problem is that 50% are not truely successful? And the 25% aren't doing anything but post motivational videos.... Perhaps.
 
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Mike39

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Hm. I'm on this forum like 1 hr a day... I think I am trying hard enough engaging with successful people.

Maybe the problem is that 50% are not truely successful? And the 25% aren't doing anything but post motivational videos.... Perhaps.

Well lights nobody is twisting your arm to hang around. Nobody on here owes you anything last time I checked
 

OsmanS

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Hm. I'm on this forum like 1 hr a day... I think I am trying hard enough engaging with successful people.

Maybe the problem is that 50% are not truely successful? And the 25% aren't doing anything but post motivational videos.... Perhaps.

I agree for the most part, this is a great forum most of the time but there's a lot of people with bad attitudes who aren't doing anything.
 

JasonC

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Clearly, some disagree about network marketing, which is fine, but what I found so remarkable about them is that their whole attitude about money and business is radically different from the types of people I used to hang around.

The millionaires I met recently are not network marketers. I actually met 4 millionaires. Three of them are internet marketers, and 4th one is an author on weight loss & eating disorders. All of them also have a very similar attitude about business.

Reading books by such people is one thing, but actually getting to know them and seeing how they act and behave is completely different.

While it's true that just being friends with them doesn't make me rich, the fact that I am aligning myself with their way of thinking does make a difference for me. One millionaire actually told me making these connections with successful entrepreneurs is actually a 7-figure skill as it opens the possibility of JVs, whereas most people seem to think these millionaires are somehow gods or something of that nature. (i.e. they think they are not 'good enough' for them or that the millionaires are 'out of their league')
 
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Mike39

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Did I say people owe me something? Nobody owes me anything.

Maybe the problem is that 50% are not truly successful? And the 25% aren't doing anything but post motivational videos.... Perhaps.

Obviously the forum owes it to you to have more successful people so that we may contribute to you engaging with successful people so that you may in turn become a successful person
 

AgonI

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Hm. I'm on this forum like 1 hr a day... I think I am trying hard enough engaging with successful people.

Maybe the problem is that 50% are not truely successful? And the 25% aren't doing anything but post motivational videos.... Perhaps.

Have you checked how much you are giving back to the forum? What you are saying is, I'm not worried if I post something of value, I want to interact with the successful people only, basically be a knowledge thief. When you post valuable information the successful people will interact with you as you might have noticed already.
 
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JasonC

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Hm. I'm on this forum like 1 hr a day... I think I am trying hard enough engaging with successful people.

Maybe the problem is that 50% are not truely successful? And the 25% aren't doing anything but post motivational videos.... Perhaps.

In my opinion, getting to know entrepreneurs in person makes a HUGE difference! Forums just aren't the same. It's kinda like the difference between taking a woman out to a date and chatting with her online, or like watching a live performance versus watching it on TV. These are two very different experiences!
 

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