Hi, it's Neil Cowmeadow here with episode 446 of the Tutor Podcast, the Monday morning shot of over-caffeinated uncommon sense for anyone who wants to start, grow, and love their own tutoring and coaching business the same way as mine.
My aim is to bring you the ideas that have helped me in my business journey and life, as a teacher, property investor, mentor, and parent (even in a no-nonsense no-BS kind of way), in the hope that it helps you to have as much fun at work and in life as I do.
Although I'm here to share, I'm also here to listen. If you have any ideas that you think might be of interest on the show, or any questions, then get in touch. It's info@neilcowmeadow.com or you can find me on X, where I am @TutorPodcast. Maybe you can help me to learn something new, something different, something better maybe, and maybe I can help you and share what you learned.
I don't have all the answers and nobody does. Maybe you got a some better answers that would be helpful to myself and to others. Again it's info@neilcowmeadow.com or @TutorPodcast on X, formerly known as Twitter.
If you're good with all that, well okay, let's crack on with today.
It's crept up on me lately that this is actually a very special week. It's the last day of September as I'm recording this, which means that tomorrow (Thursday) it's actually my 10th anniversary of being a property investor. That's 10 years of buying residential properties in the background of running my teaching business.That particular journey started after I had a big cycling accident in Spain and realized just how close I was to being in deep financial trouble – the realisation that I (and perhaps you, too) might be one accident or illness away from going broke has driven me to build an investment portfolio and given me a significant degree of financial freedom.
This is not a bragfest – frankly, if I can build something significant in the background of my teaching business, then anyone can – including you. I share this with you to:
Inspire you, because I am proof of what is possible for you, and
Because there’s a point that’s worth sharing – especially if you are driven and prone to self-neglect, as I am: Celebrate the Wins!
You know how it goes – you’re in it every day, working hard to make something happen, build something, help someone – no matter what it takes, you’ll do it. You’ll do more for anyone else than you’ll do for yourself – just like I will.
You set a goal, reach it and screech right past without stopping, because you’ve already got your next goal in the crosshairs and you have a ridiculous tendency toward tunnel vision. Sound familiar, or is it just me?
It’s as though you’ve just completed a marathon and breezed straight past the finish line without bothering to collect your medal or souvenir tee-shirt, so focused are you on the next marathon on your calendar.
Understandable – perhaps even laudable – but I’ve come to believe we miss something valuable: reinforcement and confirmation of the victory and the triumph of the struggle. We – as the old saying goes – don’t pause to smell the roses, to savour the sweet smell of success: no, we just ring the bell and call out “next!” as we re-roll our sleeves and pitch in to the next project, and the next…
I’ve been aware of this trait for years – my wonderful ex-fiance and friend more or less dragged me kicking and screaming to accept my degree after years of work around my job and home renovation project, my businesses and being dad to Alex… I’m grateful to her for strong-arming me to the ceremony, because it turned out to be a cherished memory that we would never have made.
It was a pretty big win.
So last weekend I sat down to reflect on the first ten years in property, on the achievements, pitfalls, lessons learned, promises kept and friends made along the way.
The portfolio has grown to something significant and is still growing, and I’m almost proud to have gotten this far.
But more than the financial and property parts of that business that I have grown – I realised that the business has also grown me in return.
A wise man – I think it was the great Jim Rohn - once pointed out that the greatest wins are not on a balance sheet or revenue statement: they are the person you become along the way.
Man, he nailed it.
So tomorrow morning I’m going to pause and celebrate the last ten years in property… and while I’m at it I might allow myself a smile and think about what I’ve managed to achieve in the last 27 years teaching guitar, collaborating on musical projects, writing books and songs, developing and refining new learning pathways to help my tribe, and so much more.
Most of all I’ll be grateful that I tried, that I didn’t listen to the doubters and the inner voices who wanted me to stay who I was back then.
So now it’s your turn: pause and think about your own wins in life and business… really pat yourself on the back and notice how you’ve grown and built in your own life.
And most of all – remember to be grateful to yourself for believing in YOU and for you taking the chances that made all the difference to you and to those around you.
You did great, didn’t you?
We're going to wrap it up there because I've got things to do, people to see, and I know you do too. So I'm always trying to keep this brief. If you enjoyed the show, please like or subscribe. Feel free to send any questions or feedback to info@neilcowmeadow.com. Leave me a message on X where I am @TutorPodcast, and all being well, I'll see you in the next show. I hope this has been useful to you. Till next time, stay healthy, stay useful. Remember that you're always loved and you're never alone. Have a fabulous day.
