Winning Strategies to Succeed in the Real Estate Business

In the book "The Peebles Principles," real estate developer R. Donahue Peebles shares the winning strategies of his highly successful entrepreneurial career. Peebles is the Chairman and CEO of The Peebles Corporation, a real estate development company with portfolio that includes four-star hotels, luxury and commercial properties in Washington DC, San Francisco, Las Vegas and Miami Beach.

Here are some of the principles that he followed in his real estate career that led to his success:

Principle #1: Control the Deal
When going into any major deal, you need absolute control over some key element. If you want to win as an entrepreneur, never negotiate a deal unless you are essential to it.

Principle #2: Make your Money Going In
The best risk to take in any deal is the early risk, when you can in for the least.

Principle #3: Being Lucky Means Being Ready
Opportunities come to everyone, but the winner is the one prepared to take advantage of them when they arrive. Put yourself in the right place at the right time, and you can seize these opportunities.

Principle #4: If the Key Doesn't Work, Change the Lock
Not every deal succeeds. If you have failed with one approach, look at the elements. Don't be afraid to do a reality check on any situation, and be flexible enough to change it.

Principle #5: Be a Bulldog on Details
Never underestimate the importance of dealing with key details yourself, especially final details, and especially when it comes to influencing people whose help or support you need.

Principle #6. Listen to your First Instincts
If your gut tells you that a deal is too risky or that your partners seem untrustworthy, pay attention, step back, and reflect. If you go ahead anyway, do so with extra protection, especially in terms of documentation.

Principle #7. Respond Quickly to Attacks
If someone is attacking you, take them on immediately in order to save you more trouble later on.

Principle #8. Get Inside the Other's Heads
Understanding what the other parties want is your key to successful negotiations. Find out what they want and give it to them

Characteristics of Successful Entrepreneurs

I have received a copy of the book of Barbara Carey, a successful inventor-entrepreneur who have made millions from products such as hair tools/accessories Hairagami, Motivation Mirror, feminine protection products Dittie, and Friendship Bracelets. She is one of those success stories that we all love to hear -- turning a shoestring startup capital of only $6,000 into over $40 million.

In her book The Carey Formula: Your Ideas are Worth Millions, she gave a list of what she thinks are the characterists of successful entrepreneurs. These are:

• Being Observant = always stay aware of what is going on both in the marketplace and the world around you. Barbara even keeps notebooks where she record her thoughts and what she noticed during the day that she calls her Book of Knowledge
• Being Emphatic = having an understanding of what people want and need is important to an entrepreneur. Think of products that can make an average person's life easier, or more fun.
• Being Knowledgeable = developing an understanding of the marketplace and the competition will go a long way toward success amd save you countless of fruitless labor. Barbara makes it a point to thoroughly scan the retail ailes for products that needs improvement or updating, from prices to packaging.
• Being a Visionary = you need to have the desire to create a dream, the perseverance to follow it, and the intelligence to orchestrate it.
• Being Passionately Independent = when you are possessed with a passion for creation and a desire for freedom to be your own boss, you are well on your way to becoming an entrepreneur
• Being Self Confident = give your ideas your full effort from start to finish
• Being Persistent = you need to have the persistence to bring your worthwhile projects to market despite all the challenges and obstacles you will face
• Being Realistic = develop your instinct to know when to cut lose or when to stay on course as some challenges are simply too big, too costly and too risky to continue
• Being in the Moment = learn from your mistakes and learn from them