Drive for Show, Putt for Dough
I shot a 97 last week. That was my best round yet. I started playing golf about 3 years ago and am enjoying the challenge. I first took lessons to learn how to hold the stick and make contact with the ball, which was surprisingly difficult. I remember accidentally breaking a stick in half was the highlight of my first lesson. Yes, I was rocking hard. I was trying to show off and hit the ball further than a friend. That was embarrassing. Travis took me to one of his favorite courses for my first 18-hole round. Again, I thought I had to hit the ball far away, so I swung hard. The ball sailed … straight to a house.
It wasn’t long before I started hitting the ball steadily, so I recently took lessons to see if I could hit straight. He had hopes of scoring less than 100 this year, so it was satisfying to hit that goal last week. The instructor in my recent lesson told me over and over again to control my club speed and practice my short game. Keeping the ball in play by focusing on hitting it directly, rather than far, and getting better at putting, would reduce several strokes from my game. “It won’t look as good as the big drive,” he explained, “but it will win you the round.” That’s why they say, “drive for the show and hit for the dough.” A far trip looks great, but your money is consistently won in the short game.
The same idea is true in baseball. The most valuable baseball players have high batting averages and reach base regularly. They don’t go for a home run every time they go to the plate. Home runs are exciting and rewarding and fans love them, but at what cost? Great home run hitters also have high strikeout rates. Focusing on simply making contact with the ball to get to base helps avoid an out, while moving runners around the diamond. This is how the best teams win games. Singles win games.
This is also true in real estate. I have a client in mind who is always looking for a home run. He’s a great guy! He has a big heart and is a lot of fun to be with. He is also a fantastic builder and rehabilitator. However, the problem that I have seen is that he is passing the singles, so he can swing for the big one. You want to do six figures on all turns, or more doing new construction projects. He keeps waiting for the perfect deal, or he gets into trouble doing deals that are too big for him. Either way, you are not helping their cause. There seems to be a simple solution looking at him from the outside, but he has the mindset that he needs to do it big. A short drive down the street or a simple base hit is not exciting enough for this seasoned real estate investor.
I have another client who is only looking for base shots or the easy chip of the trees. He is making deals for earnings in the range of $ 15,000 to $ 20,000 in Denver. Some would say he’s too skinny, but he does it three or four a month !! And he recently got lucky and is going to win over $ 100,000 on a single pitch in Denver. You understand that luck is behind you and you are happy, but you are not thinking about those big paydays.
The annual income difference between these two highly skilled investors is more than half a million dollars.
Even the best investors I know work to get a simple shot off the tee. They want the base to be easy and secure over and over again. Some of them have increased what they consider to be a base hit, but all started small. It’s a process to work on, but no successful investor that I know of is ever trying to hit or overcome a hurdle. They take them when they present themselves, but they are on the hunt for the direct shot down the middle; This is why I would suggest keeping your real estate business simple and growing with it over time. Don’t do a bad deal, but don’t pass a good one. Our office will be more than happy to have a conversation with you about your real estate plan or a specific deal to help guide you to success. Consistency is key. Whenever I swing my club for a big drive, I come up short. The easy swing without pressure produces large impulses. Remember … four singles without losing your butt is better than taking a big swing and missing.