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“Don’t be afraid to make big mistakes.”   ̶ Ali Hamed, ReferralExchange Founder

From working 120-hour weeks, sleeping on an air mattress, and listening to the Jurassic Park soundtrack 8,000+ times — our founder, Ali Hamed, went on to write the code for what is now the largest agent-to-agent real estate referral network in the nation. He recently shared his journey to success at the 1000Watt “Turn On” event in Portland.

For Ali, it all started with walking away from his dream to become a professional baseball player, followed by several failed ventures. But, as he reminds us, it’s not about failure or falling down, it’s about seeing that what you do next is indifferent to all that has happened – approaching every event in your life with “fresh eyes.” For Ali, failure is no obstacle, and it shouldn’t be for you either.

Below are five life lessons he learned from his journey.

  1. Your heart must be in it. To reach any goal, it’s imperative that your heart must “burn with hunger” for it.
  1. There are no short cuts – don’t believe the fairytales. Build “brick-by-brick,” find the rhythm to your drive, don’t expect anyone to help you and always be in doubt.
  1. Don’t be afraid to make big mistakes. You’re going to make a lot of mistakes. You will find the right path through the wrong ones.
  1. Don’t listen to the saying “never quit.” That’s a trap. Play the cards as best you can in the games you want in life, sometimes the house wins and sometimes it’s your lucky day.
  1. Every day is Day Zero – a fresh start. Even if you win or lose, have a good day or a bad day; just remember, every day is a new opportunity.

Your real estate business is bigger than you think. ReferralExchange matches your clients with 3 great agents and pays you a 25% referral fee at closing.