The value that we have inside of ourselves is always at state of wanting to do more and achieve more. While it is always an empowering opportunity for us to create meaningful relationships and connection with this, the real catalysts of these opportunities are when we are left with no choice but to become better than we may have ever imagined. In other words...dates matter! Continuing our series of episodes this month that feature guests that have made positive contributions to starting Your Speaking Voice LLC, and the podcast Speaking From The Heart, John Schuchman, podcast host and founder of the real estate mastermind Real Estate Survival Guide, shares his drive to help others think outside of the box, but why relationships truly matter the most, especially when life and death are at stake. This emotionally charged episode reminds us of the power of what purpose is, but what more is at stake when being there at the right place, at the right time, even when it may not have been the best timing or place to be before.

WARNING: Portions of this episode discuss suicide, which we strongly encourage seeking help when you are feeling depressed, have thoughts of wanting to harm yourself or others, and are feeling empty inside. If in the United States, please call 988 to seek assistance, or 911 if it is a true emergency. For those outside of the USA, please consult your nearest resource in the country you reside in.

Guest Bio

John is a successful realtor with eXP Realty in Central Pa. Formed under the John Schuchman & Maddison Berrios Group, John helps his clients buy and sell their homes and other types of properties. Struggling with various careers before his calling in real estate, John was able to, in a mere year, triple his income, transforming his venture into a lucrative six-figure real estate empire. By challenging the conventional norms of lead generation and marketing tactics, he achieved this remarkable feat instead of resorting to traditional, often intrusive methods. In addition, he helps other relators through The Real Estate Survival Guide, originally starting as a podcast and evolved into a mastermind and coaching network to help resolve a variety of different situations in the industry. John’s refreshing approach emphasizes authenticity and empathy, and has reinvented the industry. John and loving wife Valerie have two children, a boy and a girl, and reside in Lancaster, PA.

Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/JohnSchuchman/

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/TheRealEstateSurvivalGuide

@therealestatesurvivalguide on Instagram

• National Suicide Lifeline (988) (https://988lifeline.org/) - This dedicated webpage talks about the various amount of resources that are available when dealing with a mental health crisis of any kind. DO NOT DO IT ALONE! Find resources in your area (even outside of the United States) if you need assistance with a crisis.

Website: https://www.therealestatesurvivalguide.com

Visit Our Website: https://speaking-from-the-heart.captivate.fm/

Visit Our Business Website: https://www.yourspeakingvoice.biz

Support The Mission Of The Business! Donate Here: https://speaking-from-the-heart.captivate.fm/support

Intro/Outro By: Michael Dugan, Podcast Host: Voice4Chefs

Welcome to the podcast where relationships, confidence, and

2

determination all converge into

an amazing, heartfelt experience.

3

This is Speaking From The Heart.

4

Joshua: Welcome back to episode

number 124 of Speaking from the Heart.

5

Today, we're continuing our month of

not only recognizing individuals that

6

have made a positive contribution to

my business, Your Speaking Voice, LLC,

7

but also my overall podcast, Speaking

From The Heart, that you're listening to

8

right now, and I've already had awesome

guests so far this month that have made

9

such a big difference in how I've been

able to keep moving forward, but this

10

next one really drives it home for me,

and I'm really excited because this

11

person has made it to the top 1 percent

of overall podcasts in his own industry

12

niche, and I'm really excited to be

sharing him on the show with you today.

13

Today, we'll have John Schuchman,

and John is a successful realtor with

14

EXP Realty in central Pennsylvania.

15

Formed under the John Schuchman and

Madison Berrios group, John helps

16

his clients buy and sell their

homes and other types of properties.

17

Struggling with various careers before

his calling in real estate, John was

18

able to, in a mere year, triple his

income, transforming his venture into a

19

lucrative six figure real estate empire.

20

By challenging the conventional norms

of lead generation and marketing

21

tactics, he achieved this remarkable

feat, instead of resorting to

22

traditional, often intrusive methods.

23

In addition, he helps other realtors

through the Real Estate Survival Guide,

24

originally starting as a podcast, and

evolving into a mastermind and coaching

25

network to help resolve a variety of

different situations in the industry.

26

John's refreshing approach emphasizes

authenticity and empathy, and

27

has reinvented the industry.

28

John and his loving wife Valerie

have two children, a boy and a girl,

29

and reside in the Lancaster County

area, and I have to say, John is

30

somebody I have known for so long.

31

It goes back to even some of my early

childhood years, and I have to say,

32

John has come such a long way from him

working his "W-2" job, which we'll talk a

33

little bit about with his backstory, but

I think what you're going to get out of

34

this conversation today is a few things.

35

First off, dates matter, so pay attention

to the dates, because we'll certainly

36

talk about those at the end of the

show, but if you haven't been putting

37

yourself out there, if you've been having

imposter syndrome, and if you've been

38

afraid to think outside the box, you're

not living life, and John will certainly

39

show that living life, especially

with getting rid of the debt that you

40

have, makes such a big difference, but

I have to say this episode is really

41

important, because both of us have

something in common, which is about

42

suicide, which I'm going to warn you.

43

We do dig into quite a lot of the

details relating to both of our

44

experiences, but it also serves as an

important lesson that we're all human,

45

but I have to urge all of you, please.

46

Seek help.

47

Call 9 8 8 if you ever need assistance

because your life is really important.

48

If it wasn't for John stepping in,

I don't think I would be here today,

49

and I really literally mean that.

50

But with that, let's go to the episode.

51

All right, we're here with John Schuchman.

52

John, thanks for sharing

your heart with us today.

53

John: How are you, man?

54

Good to see you.

55

Thanks so much for having me.

56

Joshua: Dude.

57

Thanks so much for being part of this.

58

You know, I've been waiting for this

moment where I could finally say, I have

59

the man that literally talked me into

finally doing this, and I'm so happy to

60

have you finally on the show, so thanks

for taking some of your busy schedule

61

from your family, your real estate

business, and just doing this with me.

62

It means so much.

63

John: I should apologize.

64

It's my fault, right, or to the audience,

if you hate the show, I'm so sorry, right,

65

or if you love the show, you're welcome.

66

Joshua: Yeah.

67

You know what?

68

You're right.

69

It could go both ways, so

if you hate the show, please

70

message John Schuchman at- no.

71

John: Yeah, that's right.

72

Give them my address.

73

They can show up.

74

They can send hate mail.

75

Joshua: Yeah.

76

John: But I will say, Josh, like

I think when I do interviews like

77

this, I have a podcast and you

know this right, for realtors

78

specifically, but I think podcasting

can often be a thankless job, right?

79

I say this all the time.

80

I think I said that to you probably

when we first discussed that, so I just

81

want to say, thank you for what you're

doing and how you're trying to serve

82

people, help people and share your story,

because I know not a lot of people will

83

thank you, because I've been there,

done that, so thanks for what you're

84

doing, man, and thanks for having me.

85

Joshua: That means so much to me, and

I have to thank you because you allowed

86

me to be on your show too, which for

my listeners, if you're interested in

87

checking out when I was on your show,

the Real Estate Survival Guide Podcast,

88

I will put a link in the episode notes

so you can go check John out and all

89

his other awesome tidbits, especially

if you're a real estate agent, you

90

definitely need to be talking to John.

91

He'll help you out, but John-

92

John: I appreciate it.

93

Joshua: I let the audience know

about what you have accomplished.

94

You have done so much in the real estate

industry, but there is a backstory as

95

to even how you got started with it,

and I'm wondering if you could share

96

all about that, and how you even fell

into this career in the first place.

97

John: There's a great Albert Einstein

quote that I love that maybe I've

98

actually shared with you before, but

maybe not, that says everybody's a

99

genius, but if you judge a fish by

its ability to climb a tree, it'll

100

grow up its whole life thinking that

it's stupid, and I think really, that

101

probably describes- I get chills saying

it again; probably describes me to a T.

102

I've kind of had- you know this.

103

I've had every W-2 job you

can probably ever think of.

104

I've been all over the place, and I often,

when I tell people about this journey,

105

I wasn't robbing from the cash register,

or sleeping with the boss, or like

106

anything incredibly terrible, but I could

not keep a job to save my life, really.

107

From the time I was like 18 to, I

don't know, 32, 33, whatever it was,

108

maybe 31, but a couple of years ago.

109

Actually, no, that's not even true.

110

My first job was when I was

16, so probably for 15 years,

111

probably half my life at that

point, I could not keep a job.

112

I was with friends this past weekend.

113

We both have two kids and we went to Great

Wolf Lodge, and we were kind of sharing

114

about how my friend Tim, how he first

talk to my wife, so we went back through

115

years and years of Facebook messages,

and in this one video, he's like, "Oh.

116

This is when you got this management

trainee program at the bank.", and I'm

117

like crying in the video that I got it.

118

It's just so wild.

119

I've been from job to job.

120

I worked at Chick-fil-A,

banking; multiple banks.

121

I've been all over the map, and could

not keep a job, and I think, you know, a

122

lot of your audience will relate to this.

123

I'm a visionary.

124

I'm a dreamer, and like a W2 job, I

think a lot of your audience see this.

125

A W-2 job is just absolutely not for me.

126

I was never happy there.

127

I was always looking for the next thing.

128

A client of mine recently has been at the

same job for 30 years, and that literally

129

makes me want to puke, because I feel

like I absolutely could not do that.

130

I think the longest I had

a W-2 job was three years.

131

I was always looking for the next

thing, right, so all that to say,

132

falling into real estate was- I lost

133

I'll never forget the day, you know this.

134

I kind of went into like a

suicidal, bout afterwards where

135

I like, did not want to be alive.

136

My wife, I would say, it was the only

person that kept me alive at the time,

137

and after that, that summer, was looking

for jobs; couldn't get another W-2 job.

138

Ended up talking to some friends who were

in real estate and saying, "Would this

139

be a good fit?", and they said it would.

140

Now I even got into real estate,

and I don't know how deep we want

141

to go, but got into real estate

then, eventually had success.

142

I'm now doing really well, but it

took about a year to kind of build

143

that up, so that's kind of like

the 15 second, maybe five minute

144

version, of kind of the backstory on

how I got into what I'm doing now.

145

Joshua: I remember those days, John,

and I know that you were there for me.

146

I really haven't talked about this

side of my story on my show, but for my

147

listeners, John was a big part of when I

actually tried to end my life too, which

148

was literally almost a year later, where

I was on the fritz of like, "I don't know

149

why I'm doing this whole thing called

life.", and I remember you calling one

150

of my friends, Melody, and being like,

"Hey, what's going on with this?", and

151

Melody is one of those people that I'm

actually going to have later on this

152

show, so, for my listeners, can't wait for

that, but we're here with John, and I'm

153

really glad that both you and I have come

from some of those similar backgrounds

154

to kind of push ourselves up, and I'm

still a little bit behind where you're

155

at, but I'm catching up, cause even in

my second year here of doing this, I'm

156

now achieving like this vision of what I

really want to do, and I have to owe it

157

to you, because if it wasn't for some of

your motivation, I probably wouldn't be

158

doing what I'm doing, which completely

different industry, but yet, not quite

159

because you're actually branching

into a lot of those things as well.

160

John: Yeah.

161

The entrepreneurial space.

162

I also would say this is serious too.

163

I know we see things on social media,

and we don't take it seriously, but

164

I think, Josh, you were probably the

first person that I took seriously that

165

they were not well and did not want

to be alive, and so I'm like, "Dude.

166

This dude's probably going to be

pissed, but I better make some calls."

167

I remember trying to call family

members, call people that we used to

168

be friends with, and to be honest, oh

man, I'll be honest with you, Josh.

169

I was kind of shocked at the people

that were just like, "Oh no, don't speak

170

to him anymore.", and I'm like, "Dude.

171

This is like an emergency.

172

I don't want to hear this.", like,

"No, I don't talk to him anymore."

173

"I want you to help me.", and

that's why, like, it was so cool

174

connecting with Melody, because

she was like, "No, this is serious.

175

We need to do something.", but

all that to say, I would say to

176

you out there listening to this.

177

If someone tells you like, they're

serious about ending their life, or not

178

wanting to be alive, you need to take

it seriously and you need to, first

179

of all, tell them that they matter

and they're important, and not just

180

BS to their face, like actually mean

it, and then check in on them, and

181

then get them help if they need it.

182

Josh, and again, I don't know how deep

we want to go into this, but I know

183

you kind of said nothing's off limits.

184

I remember you saying to me like,

"Well, John, you don't even...",

185

I mean, you were upset at the

time and obviously you were mad.

186

I had called and you were

like, "You don't even get it.

187

You're married.

188

Your life is perfect.", and I

think the big lesson here for

189

everyone is like, that's not true.

190

Married people struggle

with mental health things.

191

I have two kids, and to be honest,

sometimes, they make me struggle

192

with my mental health, even though

I absolutely love them, and they

193

the best thing never happened.

194

I feel like a lot of people tie their

self worth into like their family, or

195

relationship status, or job, or income,

and if you do that, right, and I'm a

196

person of faith, so I'm not going to

shove that down people's throats, but

197

I feel like any worldly thing that

you kind of try, like your self worth

198

too, is ultimately going to leave you

not satisfied, and I would say that to

199

anyone listening to this, that I feel

like even in real estate, and I drive

200

the car I want to drive, and I have a

house that I really like, and there's

201

still days that like are a struggle,

and stuff doesn't make me happy.

202

You know, I used to be the guy,

that like bought the latest

203

iPhone every single year.

204

Well, that's why they do that,

man, because they think, oh.

205

Well, now the iPhone 14, or 15, or

whatever they're even on now, like they're

206

like, "This will make you happy.", and

so, anyway, we kind of went off the

207

path a little bit, but if you're looking

at stuff thinking this is going to like

208

ultimately solve- you're searching for

something, something greater, and so, I

209

mean, I'm not going to tell people what

that is, but I think you have to go on

210

that path of self discovery to find that.

211

There's a great quote.

212

Man, I'll try to find the quote.

213

Joshua: Well, I was going to say, while

you're looking for that, I have to

214

say what you shared about reaching out

to other people and like, "Oh yeah.

215

I don't speak to Josh anymore."

216

Those are the people, John, that even in

the last few years, I've said, I actually

217

have had to ask myself this question.

218

I've had to say, "Is this serving

my purpose to have this friendship?

219

Are they actually really friends

to begin with, and B, is it helping

220

me to get to where my goals are?

221

Am I surrounding myself with the

tribe that I need to be surrounding

222

myself with?", so those things have

really been defining the last over

223

four years of my life, which I have

to say that, yes, I was super pissed.

224

I was so mad that everybody wanted

me to be safe and all that, but now

225

looking back, if I would have never

had people like you that would have

226

reached out, I think that it would have

never came to where I'm at now, which

227

is leading the best version of my life.

228

I can literally say that, hands down.

229

John: And helping people

now through your business to

230

discover the purpose inside them.

231

Joshua: Exactly, and you're finding

that purpose for not only yourself, but

232

also others, which I want to talk about

because this is just, I feel like when I-

233

John: I will share that quote.

234

I'll share that-

235

Joshua: Oh.

236

Yeah.

237

Yeah.

238

Get the quote.

239

Yes.

240

John: Quote with you.

241

So it's by C.

242

S.

243

Lewis who wrote the Chronicles of

Narnia and like that whole series and

244

he said, "If I find in myself a desire

which no experience in this world can

245

satisfy, the most probable explanation

is that I was made for another world."

246

Now whether that's for me, I believe

that's like heaven and all that.

247

I believe earthly life is just kind of

a stepping stone, but anyway, I just

248

find that quote very interesting, right?

249

When you kind of feel not satisfied, not

fulfilling your purpose, it's probably

250

cause you were destined for more.

251

Josh, I know one of the things you've

thought about is really, when you

252

started this business was like,

"No, I'm meant to do more than just

253

this nine to five mundane thing.

254

I have more purpose.", and that's

kind of what led you to here and I'm

255

definitely doing some of that as well.

256

Joshua: I am one step closer to be

able to say, "Goodbye W-2.", and I say

257

that literally to people too, and I

have to thank you for it because you

258

got that drilled in my head, so it's

something that has been in my thought

259

process of, "Am I really living what

I really want to live?', and I've

260

been doing that and I'm still working

on it, but I know I'll get there.

261

Everybody gets there at their own pace.

262

John: Yeah, but what I think a lot

of people, you know, I see this in

263

real estate, and because I have this

membership, and I coach realtors, so

264

many realtors want to do it like part

time on the side, and I'm sort of like

265

the best thing that ever happened to

me was being shoved into the deep end.

266

When I lost that job, February 26,

267

you know his name, cause you know,

we were talking before and you're

268

like, "Oh, you're going to Florida?

269

You staying with Vincent?"

270

He's one of my best

friends and mentor of mine.

271

I'm in his mastermind group as well, and

I remember calling him that day, February

272

26, 2019 crying, like crying like a

little baby, Josh, and I said, my wife

273

was pregnant at the time, and I'm like,

"Vince, I just lost my job.", and he

274

goes, "This is the best thing that ever

happened to you.", and I'm like, basically

275

I was thinking like, "Shut the heck up.

276

You have no-", but I think

I said, maybe I cursed.

277

I don't know.

278

I was mad, but I said, "You have

no idea what you're talking about.

279

My wife is pregnant.

280

We don't even have savings.

281

We don't even have this.",

and he's like, "John.

282

I've seen the entrepreneurial

spirit in you for so long.

283

Now you have a chance to go.

284

You have no choice but to make it happen."

285

Now, at the time, I thought it was

photography, but then he saw me like

286

get into real estate, and really love

it, be good at it, have a lot of fun

287

with it, and be able to serve people.

288

Some people will ask you like, "Well,

what's your volume?", and I'll kind of say

289

sometimes, this is the cleaned up version,

but I'll say, "What do I want to do?"

290

One of my goals this year is sell

a crap ton of houses, and serve a

291

crap ton of people, because yeah, I

want to make money and provide for

292

our family, but the biggest thing is

like, when I am able to serve people,

293

all the other things will follow.

294

The income and everything else

I need is going to follow when

295

I just really serve people.

296

Joshua: It will, and I've found that

even as I've been building this, all

297

the things that I'm like, "Please God,

will you be able to give this to me?"

298

It comes, because I'm building

it, and, it's funny, because I've

299

had other guests, John, on the

show that I usually call it value.

300

What's your value that you're bringing,

not just to the table, but what's the

301

values that you have inside yourself?

302

Those are the things that you're

ultimately selling, and you're

303

one of those wholesome people.

304

I'm just going to call it what it is.

305

You're one of those wholesome people that,

yeah, you have worked through so many

306

different types of jobs, but you bring

that experience and understanding that

307

for other people that are like, "Yeah,

I'm going to just do this part time."

308

"No!

309

Put both feet forward and do it."

310

John: Yep.

311

Yeah.

312

I mean, there's people all the time,

Josh, that will say to me like, "Well, how

313

did you create a six figure real estate

income in a year?", and then they want

314

to do it while they're doing another job,

and I kind of say like, "Look, I get it.

315

If you have to do something to make

ends meet.", and I'll tell them.

316

Josh, I don't even know you knew this.

317

When I got my real estate

license, dude, I DoorDash.

318

I Uber Eats, I Grubhub.

319

Anything I could do in the

freaking car, and I also drove

320

for like Uber and Lyft as well.

321

Not food delivery, like people

delivery, and what I would do with

322

it, man, is when I would pick someone

up, they're my captive audience.

323

You know, this is going to sound a

little creepy, Josh, but think about it.

324

When you are in an Uber or a Lyft,

you're basically that person's

325

prisoner for 15 minutes until they

get you to your destination, so

326

for me, it was like, "Well heck.

327

I'm going to be nice.

328

I'm going to talk to them, and at

some point, this conversation is

329

going to come back to real estate."

330

now, no one ever from that bought

a house from me, and that's OK, but

331

there's business cards floating out

there from- oh geez, was that five,

332

six years ago, that you don't know,

maybe that person calls one day and

333

picks up the phone, and says, "Hey!

334

This is weird.

335

I met you in an Uber once.", but I

was basically unapologetically myself,

336

and when I teach people now, Josh,

I'll kind of say, cause you see it.

337

I'm on social media talking about real

estate, but I try to do it in like

338

a humble way, and here's the deal.

339

It's kind of like when I refused to

put my business out there on social

340

media, Vincent actually said this once.

341

"I'm being selfish.", right?

342

Now, people listening to

this would be like, "No.

343

No.

344

No.

345

You're being selfish when you talk about

your business.", and I thought that too,

346

and then Vincent was like, "No John.

347

Do you know realtors in Lancaster

County that are absolute garbage?"

348

"Yes."

349

"They're going to lie, cheat, steal?"

350

"Yes."

351

"Okay.

352

Are you going to do that?"

353

"No.

354

Obviously not."

355

"Okay.

356

Then you're being selfish by not

telling people you're a realtor."

357

That to me, if people get nothing else

out of this, is mind blowing, because so

358

for instance, Josh, when you're teaching

people how to be a public speaker, use

359

their voice, etcetera, but you're not

willing to put yourself out there, you're

360

being selfish, by not telling them about

what you do, and I've gotten criticism

361

and complaints and this and that.

362

I mean, I had a family member once that

was like, "Well, it's very clear from

363

social media that all you care about

is your clients, and how much money

364

you make.", and I was shocked, but I

realized, "Hey, that person is hurt.

365

I'm sorry that you're

hurt for whatever reason."

366

What am I supposed to do?

367

Talk about you every day on my Facebook?

368

That's weird too, so it wasn't even

like their birthday, so I think, if

369

you have a business, and you're not

putting yourself out there, you're being

370

selfish, but there's a way to do it.

371

Josh, you see my stuff.

372

I don't go, "Hey, do

you want to buy a house?

373

Hey do you want to buy a house?

374

Hey, hello, anybody?"

375

I'm just myself.

376

I share stories.

377

Stories sell.

378

I genuinely care about people.

379

I probably send Josh 50 to a hundred

organic Facebook messages a week,

380

just checking in with people.

381

There is no agenda.

382

It is just checking in, and what

I've learned is, well, guess what?

383

Realtors see those messages, and

they see what I'm doing differently.

384

They want to join my membership.

385

I literally had a client that I

was talking to actually today.

386

About a year ago.

387

I just said, "Happy birthday!",

and I, you'll see this, I do it in

388

a Facebook message, not as a wall

post, cause I want to be different,

389

and they said it was their birthday.

390

They're like, "Oh, thank you so much."

391

I said, "You're welcome."

392

24 hours later, after not

communicating with this person for

393

13 months, they said, "Hey, by the

way, I don't know if you remember.

394

We have a rental property

that we'd like to sell.

395

Can you help us?"

396

That was not a coincidence.

397

Joshua: Wow.

398

John: It was not a coincidence.

399

It was like, I reached out.

400

She remembered, "Oh yeah.

401

John's the realtor we had talked

to before.", and now they're going

402

to sell a home with me, so anyway,

I'm all over the place, but you got

403

to be willing to share your story.

404

Stories are the most important

thing in your business.

405

Yours, mine, everyone's is how

are you sharing your story?

406

I love real estate

because it's not about me.

407

I am not the hero.

408

I am not, and that-

409

Joshua: Yeah, and that's the key.

410

John: I connect people.

411

Joshua: Yeah.

412

I was going to say that's the key

difference, because you and I are

413

like on the same wavelength with this,

and I think that's why I really have

414

enjoyed seeing your progress, being

able to see you evolve into what you

415

are, because the magnetism of this

is that we all have these values

416

that we're bringing to the table.

417

I really want to talk about that,

because you are doing something

418

different in the real estate industry.

419

Tell us, if you can, as much as you

can, why you think it's important

420

to value what other people are going

through, in terms of the buying and

421

selling process because let's be real.

422

You could just do your job

and be like, "I'm done.

423

I don't need to worry about

this because I did my piece."

424

You go above and beyond, but why?

425

Who cares?

426

John: Yeah, I think it's because

relationships matter, Josh.

427

At the end of the day,

relationships matter.

428

Right behind me, I'm looking at a board of

my clients, and these are ones I need to

429

update it, but it's ones that have settled

recently, and as I look at it, I have one

430

client that they, in November, said- Oh.

431

Well, they put out on Facebook, "Hey,

we're looking to buy or sell a house.

432

We don't know what we can afford.

433

Can someone help?"

434

I went to college with them,

so I messaged the wife and I'm

435

like, "Hey, I'm happy to chat."

436

Most realtors do that.

437

I think it's all about doing

something different, right?

438

I have success cause I do something

different, so I'll share these examples

439

with you, so a lot of realtors would

have been like, "Oh, they want to buy.

440

They want to rent.

441

Nah, screw them.

442

I'm not going to make any money.

443

I'm going to make a few hundred

bucks to help them find a rental.

444

It's not worth my time,

energy, or effort."

445

Absolutely wild.

446

I connected with them, talked about

what it would cost to rent or buy,

447

what they wanted to spend in rent,

Josh, was basically like, let's say

448

$1,700 a month, and it wasn't going

to happen where they were looking.

449

Basically, between us, really, they

were looking in York, and so it wasn't

450

going to happen for $1,700 a month,

so I could have just been like, "Nope.

451

It won't happen."

452

Instead.

453

I had a conversation, said, "Hey guys.

454

If you decide to rent, that's fine,

but let's have a conversation."

455

They realized that they could afford to

buy not their dream house, but a nice

456

house for about 1900 a month, okay,

at the time, finances and whatever.

457

I could have been lazy

and been like, "Nope.

458

$1,900 is not going to work.

459

Fine."

460

Instead, I went to them and be like, "Hey,

this is going to be hard, but you can buy.

461

Are you willing to make sacrifices

in your budget somewhere else

462

so that you can buy a home?"

463

Dude, a couple of months ago,

they spent their first Christmas

464

in their new home, right?

465

Got the home at list price,

or a little under, whatever.

466

They got in a new home.

467

Another client, they were looking, and

their budget was, we'll just say like

468

$450K to $475K, okay, because they

were looking for a large property.

469

A lot of realtors would have been

like, "Nope, can't find anything."

470

Basically they were going to sell

daughter's house, and her elderly parent's

471

house, sell two, move in together.

472

When we got the parents, the elderly

parent's house, under contract for

473

$25,000 more than it was listed for,

and so I saw a listing for $500,000.

474

I did not say a word to them.

475

I scheduled a showing for myself, and I

went in, and I called the lender and said,

476

"Hey, can you run numbers, because in this

$450K to $475K range, we're super tight.

477

It's just not happening for what

they need in the Landisville

478

area.", and she said, "Sure."

479

She ran the numbers, and with the

$25,000 more, her parents were making

480

on their house, she could basically get

the $500,000 house, and it was less per

481

month, because the rates had just dropped,

and parents were making $25,000 more.

482

It was less of a monthly payment than

a $450,000 house we had made an offer

483

on three weeks prior, so I think the

thing is, Josh, think outside the box.

484

What is the pain point?

485

Is the pain point, "Hey,

my monthly income?"

486

Okay, well let's have a conversation,

cause I'm not going to force

487

you into a house, but you're

saying it has to be $1,700.

488

When they looked at their

budget, the first example,

489

they realized, you know what?

490

It'll be a little tighter, but for $1,900,

we'd rather own than rent for a year.

491

They'll raise our rent again in

12 months, and then we're going

492

to be back at this drawing table.

493

For client number two, it was that

they- I didn't even mention it.

494

I could have been lazy and said, "No.

495

They're not going to find anything.", and

just been grumpy and sat here and pouted.

496

Instead, I took my time.

497

I didn't even tell them, cause I wasn't

going to get them excited, until I saw

498

the numbers, saw the house, cause it

was a unique situation where they had

499

to turn like a room on the first floor

either to have a bedroom already, or

500

turn one into, so this house didn't

have one, but it had five rooms on

501

the first floor, and I'm like, "Okay.

502

Let's get creative.

503

Think outside the box.

504

Could we make this front living room a

bedroom?", and that's what they did, so

505

I just think it's about thinking outside

the box and really serving your clients.

506

Another client, I'll make

this one really quick.

507

I promise.

508

They were working with another lender

for 12 months; could not find a home.

509

They like came to me, like,

out of a bad relationship.

510

It was like a Taylor Swift breakup

song, man, and they found the lender

511

on Instagram, connected with me.

512

11 days later, we were under contract.

513

Their previous realtor, for a year,

they would say, let's pretend-

514

we're recording this on a Tuesday.

515

Let's pretend you're the client.

516

You'd be like, "Hey, this house

comes on the market Friday.

517

Can we see it Friday afternoon?"

518

He would say, "No, I'm busy."

519

Not, "I'm busy, but

can we do it Saturday?"

520

Not, "Hey, sorry.

521

My daughter has an event

or an event at church.

522

Can we do it instead of Friday at

five, could we do Friday at three?"

523

Think outside the box, man.

524

Think outside the fricking box.

525

All these clients bought homes

with me in the past three months.

526

All of them shouldn't have been able

to buy a home, or weren't in the right

527

situation, and so it's just getting

creative, thinking outside the box, and

528

at the end of the day, what's funny too

is the third client I just mentioned,

529

the realtor didn't even check in

enough, because they broke up with him

530

by just not working with him anymore.

531

He didn't text.

532

He didn't reach out.

533

He reached out to tell them, "Hey,

that home that you liked months ago?

534

It sold for this amount; way more than

you offered.", almost to make them feel

535

bad for the offer they could afford to

make, and they said, "Oh, no worries.

536

We found a home with another realtor.

537

Thanks so much."

538

Never checked in.

539

I worked with him for 60 days,

and he never checked in, and

540

so he responded like, "Oh.

541

I hope it's not anything I did.", and

I don't think they had the you know

542

what's to tell him, but they would

have been like, "No, you sucked."

543

like-

544

Joshua: Yeah.

545

You're the one reason why.

546

John: You're the reason.

547

Joshua: Yeah-

548

John: Because I got them under contract

at 11 days, so it's so wild, man.

549

Anyone, I mean, and people know

hundreds of realtors all over the place.

550

When clients come and work with me,

and 50% of them fire another realtor,

551

normally; it's probably 40 to 50%.

552

They come and work with me, a lot of them.

553

Now, I'm not- if you guys call me, I'm

not guaranteeing I'll find a house in

554

two weeks, but so many of them will come

to me and be like, "We've been working

555

with this other realtor for so long."

556

We'll talk.

557

We'll get it done.

558

We'll set up a game plan and I'll

find them a house, so I'm sorry that

559

that was like 75 hours to answer the

question, but I think it's all about

560

serving people, connecting with people,

genuinely caring about them, and,

561

"Hey, let's think outside the box."

562

What are you actually saying,

but what does it really mean?

563

Joshua: If you needed 76

hours, you could have taken it.

564

I would have not even stopped you.

565

I would have been like, "Uh huh.

566

Uh huh.

567

Uh huh."

568

John: Josh is going to just

listen, and then get to this

569

interview and be like, "Yo, people.

570

You got to cut this.

571

He sucks."

572

Joshua: Yeah, yeah, exactly, but no,

first off, John doesn't suck, for the

573

record, and I will keep this all in

for the record too, that you don't

574

suck, and that the reason why you don't

suck is that everything you just said

575

for the last several minutes is so

true, and that makes you approachable.

576

That's what I'm building.

577

I want people to feel

like they're approachable.

578

I feel like they should

have a voice in it.

579

They should have the ability to

change the relationships, confidence,

580

determination, the values of my business.

581

It's so important, so this is actually

my final question to you because we're

582

almost out of time, although you gave a

75 hour answer, but I have this one final

583

question, and it's so important to me,

because of everything that you've been

584

through, everything you shared, everything

that I know for as long as I've known

585

you, which we're fitting so many years

into one half hour, 35 minutes segment.

586

Are you still thinking outside the box?

587

Are you still challenging yourself,

John, to be better than even what you are

588

now, and if so, how are you doing that?

589

John: I love this question.

590

It's so funny because I know you're

only sharing the audio, but you can

591

kind of see the lighting behind me.

592

I always want to grow and improve,

so a couple of months ago I said

593

to my wife, let me just tell you.

594

I spent way too much money on Amazon.

595

Valerie, I'm so sorry, but I ordered

lighting because I felt like this is my

596

new office at our new house and I like

it, but the background was just garbage.

597

I didn't like it.

598

It was like a white wall.

599

You can even see these

black marks over here.

600

I have to paint it, but I

was like, "You know what?

601

How can I improve?", and everyone I

looked at who was doing a YouTube channel,

602

which I want to start soon, and all

these different things, they just had

603

something, whether it's a ring light over

here like I have, or some colored lights.

604

If I could find the remote right now,

I would show you how I can change them,

605

or put them on rainbow mode, and my wife

said, she wasn't criticizing, she's like,

606

"Well, why do you need those lights?

607

You have already been recording

videos and there hasn't been

608

an issue.", and I said, "Yeah.

609

There hasn't been an issue, but I don't

want to just be good enough.", right?

610

I said, and she was fine with it.

611

She totally understood.

612

She's like, "Oh, that totally makes

sense.", like, I don't want to

613

just be good enough for my clients.

614

I don't just want to be good

enough for the realtors and lenders

615

through my membership that I get

to coach every Monday morning.

616

I always want to be improving, and with

what I do, Josh, and the membership,

617

right, these realtors pay me every month.

618

Just this week was like, "You know what?

619

I need to make sure the recording is

posted every single Monday, without fail."

620

Are they going to cancel?

621

Maybe, maybe not, but I always

want to go above and beyond, so

622

I wasn't doing a good job, end of

623

Well, so spring of 2024, I wanted

to be like, "You know what?

624

No.

625

We're going to make sure this is

recorded.", so all that to say,

626

I always want to be improving.

627

I hope that for my next deal,

or next client, I'm better

628

for my real estate clients.

629

I hope for the next realtor that I

talked to about growing their business

630

through social media, I hope I'm better,

and each conversation makes me better.

631

I'm never satisfied, right?

632

It goes back to like that.

633

Why wasn't I good at W-2 jobs?

634

Because I was always like searching

for the next thing, so I don't sit

635

here on my laurels and be like, "Oh

yeah, I'm just going to sit here, not

636

improve, not do anything, not reach

out and be better at relationships."

637

I always want to be like growing

and improving every single day.

638

Joshua: And dude, you've been doing

that, and I'm just so proud of you,

639

because I remember those struggles

for you, and here you're rocking it.

640

You're killing it, and it's such

a great experience, just from an

641

outsider's perspective, knowing you as

long as I have being able to do that.

642

John, I want to give you

the last few minutes here.

643

How can people reach out to you

if they're interested in maybe

644

buying, selling their home?

645

Maybe they want to join the mastermind

group through the Real Estate Survival

646

Guide because they're a real estate

agent, or have some interest in it.

647

How can they reach out to you?

648

How they can connect with you?

649

I'm going to give you

the last few minutes.

650

John: Yeah, absolutely.

651

The best place to find me

is you can call or text me.

652

I know that's dangerous, but I'm

a realtor, so this is what we do.

653

You can call or text me anytime:

654

a client, yeah, I kind of go

all the way past Harrisburg.

655

I kind of go really almost all the way

past Harrisburg to all the way almost to

656

like West Chester towards Philadelphia.

657

If it's within an hour, hour and 15

minutes of Landisville, I'm helping

658

you buy or sell, and I love doing

it, and I think the other part too is

659

like the membership is for realtors.

660

What I find is a lot of people will find

it as a low budget option, cause it's

661

not even a hundred bucks a month, and you

get multiple calls a month, every single

662

Monday, and so people will find it as an

option if they are, A, feeling lonely and

663

frustrated in their business and they just

need some accountability, or B, they feel

664

like they want to grow their business on

social media, right, like I've done it.

665

In a year, through social media,

took my income from- 40K my first

666

year in real estate, to 120K, all

through organic social media for free.

667

Free is my favorite word, and so, if

you want to take your business- yes,

668

it's focused for realtors, but I have

transaction coordinators in there.

669

I have lenders in there.

670

I have a therapist in there, which

is very interesting, and yes, a lot

671

of it is realtors, but it really is a

community, a family that I've created,

672

and I'm proud to be a part of, and

really, again, John's not the hero here.

673

The group is amazing.

674

The group of people and how

they care about and serve and

675

collaborate with each other.

676

That's what makes the group.

677

Yeah, the Real Estate Survival Guide was

created by John, but the people make it

678

special, and the people make it so fun.

679

I mean, we took off a few months ago,

Josh, for Christmas and New Years, and

680

like, when we came back January 8th,

people on the call, it made my day.

681

We're like, all right,

"Here's the rules, John.

682

No more holidays on Mondays.",

they're like, "We're not taking off

683

ever again.", and I'm like, "All

right, so next time Christmas is

684

on a Monday, we're just meeting.

685

We'll open Christmas presents

together.", but I think it was really

686

cool for people to say like, "No.

687

We are not taking off.

688

We want to be here.", and so

we've really created a family.

689

We love welcoming people in and I'd love

690

or you can reach out, website,

therealestatesurvivalguide.com, and social

691

media, Instagram, Facebook works as well.

692

Don't email me.

693

I'll never check it.

694

I hate email, but otherwise, you can reach

out to me and Josh, I'm proud of you, man.

695

Appreciate you for having me on today.

696

Joshua: I'll put all that in the

episode notes, but John, I got to

697

take a moment before we wrap up.

698

I got to tell you this, and this is

really speaking from the heart here for

699

me, for you, and what you've done for me.

700

You know, there was a time in my life

that I was really afraid of who I would

701

become, and I think I was afraid of

what that would look like, and I didn't

702

know what that would exactly mean

for my future, what that meant for my

703

friendships, what that meant for my living

situation, what that meant for a lot

704

of things, but dude, you have radically

helped me get to where I need to be,

705

because of your persistence and being

like, "Dude, you got something to share.

706

You need to share it."

707

Speaking From The Heart would not exist

if it wasn't for your push, and, matter

708

of fact, I wouldn't exist because if it

wasn't for you reaching out that night.

709

I wouldn't be here talking to you, dude,

and I really mean that, and I think that

710

for people that are struggling, I want you

to know that there is hope, and there's

711

people like John that you might not even

realize there's a John in your life.

712

They will be there for you, and you should

embrace them, and give them a hug or a

713

kiss, whatever that is, and do that right

now, because you only have one life to

714

live and I'm living that life, and you're

finally living that life and you're doing

715

it, and for all those reasons, John.

716

You are the reason I love Speaking From

The Heart with you tonight, so thank

717

you so much for doing this with me.

718

John: Well I appreciate you man, and I

would also say, I put my number out there.

719

If there's somebody that

literally is like, "Nope.

720

I'm done.

721

Tonight's the night."

722

Give me a call.

723

I don't care who you-

I do care who you are.

724

I'm saying I don't care

if I don't know you.

725

Give me a call because

it is very important.

726

Man, and we see it with celebrities,

so like money doesn't solve it.

727

You see it with anyone, whether they

make millions of dollars a year.

728

I think I'm often impacted by thinking

about Robin Williams taking his life.

729

I'm like, dude.

730

The dude made people laugh all the

time, always seemed happy, but he

731

was really struggling inside and

just must've felt like he couldn't

732

talk to anybody, and I'll volunteer

Josh too, like, reach out to me.

733

Reach out to Josh.

734

We'll talk you through it.

735

We're not meant to do life alone.

736

We are not meant to do life alone, so-

737

Joshua: We're not-

738

John: Appreciate you, bro.

739

Proud of you too, and thanks

for having me tonight.

740

Joshua: Yeah.

741

Thank you, John.

742

You're really doing it, and I'm so proud

of you building the family and community

743

that you have, so thank you again.

744

John: Yes, sir.

745

Thank you.

746

Appreciate it.

747

Joshua: Wow.

748

That's all I can really say about John,

and his awesome life that he's been

749

leading, because if it wasn't for him,

hands down, as I've even mentioned

750

during our interview, I don't think I

would be here, let alone wouldn't even

751

be doing this podcast, because a lot

of what he has done to build his real

752

estate empire has been not only out of

conviction that people deserve to be

753

heard and to have a say in the buying

process, but his podcast, which I continue

754

to listen to, although I'm not even a

real estate person, really inspires me.

755

It motivates me to know that there are

some amazing people still out there that

756

really believe in the human connection,

and the human value process, which

757

even recently, after we recorded this

episode, John and I had some discussions

758

as it relates to somebody else that

we were helping to help sell their

759

home, to get through a quick process.

760

It just shows and exemplifies

John's spirit of wanting to help

761

others, which I really want to

thank him for being part of my life.

762

If it wasn't for him, I would not be

half the podcast person that I am today,

763

but John is somebody that really tells

it like it is, and you've probably

764

heard a lot of it even telling me what

it was like, and I really am glad.

765

I love people that tell me and

challenge me, even on my podcast.

766

That's why I leave these sort of clips

in, because it's really important for

767

you to understand that I am human.

768

Even as a coach, I am always learning

about myself, even in the past version

769

of myself for that matter, that

sometimes needs to hear the truth.

770

Sometimes, the truth that I

don't necessarily want to hear,

771

but everyone should think about

the fact that we are not stupid.

772

Everybody is not stupid.

773

If you're willing to actually just

go through the process and figure

774

out what it is that you have to

learn, you can make such a big

775

difference, and John set himself on

that track after he lost his job.

776

You have to matter in the world.

777

You have to figure out where your

responsibility is when it comes to that,

778

and he really did have a lot of choices

to make, but the stuff that we bring

779

along with us, does it really matter?

780

Does it solve anything, is really

some of the questions, and some of

781

the undertones of our conversation

today, and I think that we have the

782

desire to become something that we

never thought possible because of

783

things that have happened in our life.

784

Whether that life is full of chaos,

or it's full of positivity, or if

785

it's something in between those two

endpoints, I want you to know that

786

it's okay to feel like you're uncertain

about what the future looks like.

787

John didn't know what that would

look like either, and I didn't know

788

myself when I started my own business.

789

Sometimes you just have to jump in

with both feet planted on the ground

790

to see where it moves you towards,

which is why, the dates of February

791

26th, 2019, and February 23rd,

792

You know, after I tried to hurt myself

so many years ago, I learned about John's

793

story, and about what he's been through,

and I didn't even realize that he tried to

794

end his own life, and the day that he came

out on Facebook to share that inspiration

795

to everybody about what it meant to get

from the lowest of the lows, back to

796

the highest of the highs, I messaged

him, and I told him how proud I was.

797

This was somebody that was

still struggling with suicidal

798

thoughts, mind you, even after

dealing with my suicide attempt.

799

I know that I was feeling absolutely

bad about myself, but yet, seeing people

800

like him be so brave, willing to share

that story, even after we talked about

801

it before he actually did it, because

he wasn't sure how to best go about it,

802

made me realize that he was fighting

his demons, and he won, and he won so

803

much more because of embracing life

and what life has to offer, and that,

804

is what really is the beauty of having

this kind of relationship, not only of a

805

beautiful human soul like John, but yet,

for other people, why it's so important

806

to not be held back anymore from the

fears, the freedoms that you can enjoy,

807

so the question becomes, what do you

have to sacrifice to get to your goals?

808

Do you have to drive for Uber?

809

Do you have to drive for Lyft?

810

Do you have to DoorDash?

811

Do you have to pick up orders through

Instacart, Shipt, all the other

812

types of online ordering platforms

that allow you to deliver for a tip?

813

Do you know what it means to

just grind, and grind, and grind,

814

to get to where you are at?

815

You know, part of my whole story,

especially starting out with this

816

business, was that I worked at a part

time job for over eight years being

817

underpaid; completely underpaid.

818

With two master's degrees, I

was making less than $10 an

819

hour for many of those years.

820

Why did I ever think that I was

worth less than $10 an hour?

821

That was a question that I had to ask

myself over the last four years, along

822

with the other questions of why I

sold myself short to the whole entire

823

world, which we've talked about a lot

of different monologue episodes of the

824

importance of not only addressing why

you're selling yourself short, but why

825

you need to create value, whether it's

in your personal life, your professional

826

life, or even your business life.

827

Now, I get it.

828

You need to have that stability.

829

A W-2 job might be for you, if you just

want that stability, and if that's all

830

you ever want, and that's all you ever

desire, fine, but I think that when

831

we talk about what we really want to

pursue, what we really want to gain from

832

life, we have to put not only ourselves

out there, but also our business, which

833

is why relationships matter the most.

834

You have to be able to get these

opportunities of a lifetime by

835

forming those relationships.

836

I burned a lot of them, and only because

I hated myself, ladies and gentlemen.

837

I hated myself so much.

838

I wanted to die.

839

That's how bad it was, which is why I

needed to do something different, and

840

that's exactly what I did, and John has

done also, and continues to do to this

841

day, which is, when you do something

different, you think outside the box.

842

At least I hope you do, because for

some people, thinking outside the

843

box, and doing something different,

are really two different things, and

844

they are, in their own way, different

silos, so when you think outside the

845

box, remember, that it's about not

just staying with the status quo, but

846

it means also reaching new heights.

847

It means pushing yourself out there that

you never thought you could ever push

848

yourself out there before, because when

you lift yourself to new heights, Oh,

849

it's so amazing, and it allows you to do

things that you never thought you could

850

ever do, including putting yourself behind

a microphone, which both of us have done,

851

but you know, when it all boils down to

it, John just exemplifies, and I think

852

what many of my guests have exemplified

on this show, is human compassion.

853

What is needed for us to be creative?

854

What is it that our client needs to bring

value to them, so that we can continue

855

to push ourselves forward, but yet that

nagging question always becomes, What can

856

we do to improve, and that's why we always

have to have self reflection on this.

857

What kind of adjustments can we make

to have more meaningful engagement,

858

instead of just being good enough?

859

In many different ways, groupthink, which

we've addressed in some other episodes as

860

well, can be the most dangerous thing you

could ever do, and I even tell some of

861

my corporate clients, it's so important

to not get stuck in the same thought

862

pattern, thinking that you're doing the

right thing over and over again, because

863

when you do things over and over again,

that is the very definition of insanity,

864

and I turned insane on February 23rd,

865

the same thing, over and over again.

866

We need to keep improving.

867

We need to be able to do

better by being evaluated.

868

It's the very essence of why

I even started my business.

869

I want to help people evaluate what

their life is, where they're heading

870

towards, where they're actually heading

at the very end of their journey,

871

wherever that journey is, but is that

journey ending, or actually continuing,

872

because I think that we always have

an opportunity, even if we are over

873

a hundred years old, we can continue

to make a difference in this world.

874

Don't believe me?

875

Look at all the news articles, all the

individuals that have turned a hundred

876

years old, and have made such a profound

difference in other people's lives.

877

If you thought it was stupid to think

that you can't keep moving forward

878

because of what other people say to you,

and what they make you feel, especially

879

if you have a W-2 job, or whatever

you have going on in your life, then

880

you were not listening for the last

several minutes of John's interview,

881

but the thing is, you're not stupid.

882

You're afraid, and I was afraid for

the longest time, and John was too.

883

When we are able to become the best

versions of ourselves, when we find that

884

value that we really enjoy the most, it

means that the dates that we often have

885

that awakening are just the starting

points of something even more incredible

886

in our lives, and it means that we can

become something that this world desires,

887

that we desire, but if you're not putting

yourself out there, if you're not thinking

888

outside the box, if you're not finding

ways in which you can consistently

889

improve, of course this is going to be

a tough journey, but I have to say, I

890

think that no matter what life that you

might lead, no matter how tough it might

891

be, think of people like John today.

892

Think of people in your life that might

be on the down low, but yet, they rise

893

like a phoenix from the ashes, because

no matter how stupid you might think

894

you are, or how ignorant you might feel

towards all the other situations that

895

might be happening in your life, and all

the other things that you might desire

896

that feel like today are out of reach.

897

Just know that there is hope, there is

always a way, and that you are so valuable

898

and that if you need that help, resources

like 988 are available, because let's face

899

it, if it wasn't for John, not only would

I not be here, but I would not be making

900

the substantial impact of thinking outside

the box, building new relationships,

901

and oh yes, the most important thing

of them all, knowing that what I have

902

sacrificed would've been for naught.

903

John, I want you to hear this and only

you, while my other listeners also listen

904

a far, but you not only have helped me,

but you have made me whole, and I have

905

to tell you, that if it wasn't for your

tutelage, for your moments in which

906

you just paused your whole entire life

to sit down and talk to me, I wouldn't

907

be where I'm at today, and I have to

thank you, for what you've given me,

908

and what you will continue to give not

only to this whole world, not only to

909

your clients, but most importantly,

to your two kids and your lovely wife.

910

Thank you, from the bottom of my heart,

for allowing me to have this voice to

911

my listeners who I know are becoming

the best versions of themselves,

912

and they are pushing the boundaries,

where boundaries no longer exist.

913

Thanks for listening to episode

number 124 of Speaking from the

914

Heart, and I look forward to

hearing from your heart very soon.

915

Outro: Thanks for listening.

916

For more information about our podcast

and future shows, search for Speaking From

917

The Heart to subscribe and be notified

wherever you listen to your podcasts.

918

Visit us at www.yourspeakingvoice.biz

for more information about potential

919

services that can help you create

the best version of yourself.

920

See you next time.