#84 - Pushing Timelines and Finding Freedom: 10 Life Changing Lessons I learned from Listing My House on Airbnb

In today's episode, I am going to share 10 Fun Lessons I learned listing my house on airbnb. These are raw, unfiltered lessons that were initially intended for my eyes only. As I reflected on these lessons, I just thought there might be something in these lessons that sparks someone to do something cool. Let that be you.

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Podcast Tags:
self-improvement, mindset, growth journey, intentional living, spiritual awakening, financial freedom, personal development, entrepreneurship, goal setting, wealth building, real estate investing, tax liens, networking, becoming your own bank, short term rentals, STR, airbnb, airbnb host, healthy living, health conscious, subconscious, reprogram your mind, authentic living, breaking free, infinite banking, living from the inside out, mindset transformation, letting go, success habits, financial literacy, meditation, positive psychology, resilience, abundance mindset, habit formation, emotional intelligence, self-reflection, investing in yourself, mental wellness, empowerment, inspirational stories, healthy habits, actionable advice, overcoming ...

Transcript

Intro:

Hello Everyone! Welcome to The Game of Life Podcast; I am Alexandria Burek and I am your host.

Thank you for picking my show; you will find this show is a blend of personal stories and life lessons covering a wide range of topics that are designed to help you live life, a little better everyday; my goal in sharing these personal stories, wins, whatever it may be is always to inspire you–my life is so radically different now even I am a bit amazed at the transformation. With that, no better time to get into it than the present. 

In today's episode, I am going to share 10 Fun Lessons I learned listing my house on airbnb. These are raw, unfiltered lessons that were initially intended for my eyes only. As I reflected on these lessons, I just thought there might be something in these lessons that sparks someone to do something cool. Let that be you.      

Admittedly I missed a couple of episodes here, and I am happy to be back. Hopefully in the absence of new episodes the last two weeks you guys had a chance to go back and listen to some of the earlier episodes you may have missed. Both makeup episodes (E82 & 83) are posted–this is the episode that is officially for this week–and with that we are BACK ON TRACK baby. Now letttttttttts get into it.

Personal Update:

My goal with the personal update is to put my money where my mouth is and lead by example. I often preach about making a mental note of your daily wins, taking a second to reflect on what you’re thankful for, and to spend some time developing your mind–this section is designed to be a source of inspiration for those behaviors and habits. With that, we will kick it off with wins.  

Wins: 

First, I got a massage. I needed a massage so bad after the weeks of hard, physical labor and then that longggggg drive. I feel like my poor massage therapist was sent offroading. Now I am feeling RESTORED.             

Second, I am happy to report that I am back on track with being nicotine free–for a second there, I took a trip back down smoker lane–I did a u-turn and am back to being smoke free. Quite amazing how much better I feel and how much time I have to do good things. That is a W.         

Third, I set very specific, measurable goals for my time in FL. I am really excited to see what I can accomplish in this time away from my “normal life.” I might be close to knocking one of these off by the end of the day, at the very least the end of this week–YAY. The more I think about it, I am going to try to accelerate my High Value Endeavor timeline aggressively and see what happens.      

Gratitude: I am so grateful for the way my pets have been behaving. They are just a true joy to be around, they have rolled with the changes and I am just so thankful and grateful for that. Not to mention, they are healthy and seem happy. 

Original Thought: No one but you and God knows your true potential–do not taint your ambition or courage by allowing others to comment about what you are capable of. The best way to do this, is to show them. Don’t offer other people, no matter who it is or how much you love them, to plant that seed of doubt in your mind–just go do it and let them be astonished. 

10 Fun Lessons I learned from listing my house on Airbnb

So on my last morning in WI before hitting the road for St. Petersburg, I was understandably a bit scared, a bit sad, quite excited, and as much emotionally drained as I was filled with anticipation. 

In order to cope with this mix of emotions I decided to reflect on, and make a note of, what I learned and how I grew from this experience–I thought at the very minimum this would tee me up to having a good perspective and positive attitude before hitting the road. 

My hope is that you get something out of this raw, honest, personal experience and perspective that either motivates you, inspires you, or confirms the decisions you are making or have made about your own life–if this episode does none of that, I hope you at least find it entertaining. 

1. Pushing a timeline is the best way to get things done, but maybe not the most enjoyable. 
   1. I have taken to heart the idea of really pushing timelines in order to see what’s possible. However, doing things at more of a slow and steady pace is probably better for stress management and other aspects, BUT if you are serious about what you want to accomplish, slash the timeline and be amazed at what you are actually capable of. Just be prepared to make sacrifices in other areas of your life for a little while. 
   2. Like we covered recently in the Law of Compensation episode, pick one or two High Value Endeavors, and go all in for a year or so, then look back and be amazed at what you accomplished and how you’ve transformed your life. 
2. I learned in the landmark forum that I was always telling myself that I am “trapped”—for the first time in my life I now know, I am not trapped in my house, my job, or any circumstance.
   1. Zoom out for a second and think about the stories you are creating and telling yourself. Especially the ones that don’t support your success, growth, or soul’s expansion. 
   2. Come at these stories with a critical eye and mind. Cross examine them. Decide whether these stories you are telling yourself are helpful or hurting you. Ditch the hurtful ones and replace them with better stories that enable you to play big, to play to win. 
   3. My fail safe prompt whenever I am trying to figure something out is to ask, “How can I…”
3. I may have been taking where I live for granted; perhaps I like it in WI more than I realized or cared to admit.
   1. After nearly a week away. I can say, that while I do believe I took where I lived for granted and I still love my place, I do not necessarily want to go back, I am in no way homesick. Even today, I was thinking, man. I really don’t want to leave this place. I am liking the weather (huge factor for me), I am liking the isolation (I feel absolutely zero stress to do and be for other people–I am on my timeline and no one else's and it gives me the time I need and want to do what’s important to me). 
   2. So now I asked myself, how can I come back sooner than next year. My initial thought was that I might like to be buying / finding a place before next winter (like fall / winter of 2026), but the more I think about that, the more I have pushed myself to ask, HOW can I move here sooner instead of later?
4. Maybe the real lesson or opportunity was the MTR discovery. 
   1. While I was devastated–and I mean crying everyday for a week devastated about the way I felt things were going, having to recalibrate my plan–I believe there was a MUCH bigger gift in that scenario. Which was discovering what the MTRs go for, I am now fully tuned into that opportunity with plans of getting a couple of MTRs stood up before this year ends and a couple more during the first half of the year. 
   2. This could be my short runway and it could be yours too. 
5. If it were easy, everyone would do it. 
   1. As cliche as it sounds, it is so true. Do not get me wrong, as much as I am willing to double, triple down, on this opportunity, it is hard work and it does take work and effort. Is it worth it? Yes. Once you get the place operational it is pretty easy, BUT getting it to that point takes a lot of organization and your list of things will seem never ending. 
6. I have way more grit and resolve than I knew; this experience is showing that. 
   1. I used to break down about missing a bus–like full blown I am a piece of shit, idiot, worthless and crying calling my mom because I missed a bus that runs on a sporadic schedule kind of hot mess. Now, it feels like any number of things could go differently than I planned or hoped, and I just roll with it. I find the silver lining. It is WONDERFUL. If you are like I was, all I can say is I have hope for you. If you need someone, reach out. I will help you however I can. 
   2. If I am being honest, I don’t even know how I made this shift in perspective; if I had to guess, it was honestly reprogramming through positive affirmations, years of therapy, hundreds of hours of meditation, and a lot of deep thought and journaling. If you don’t know where to start, take a walk in the morning–there are numerous studies on the benefits of walking for mental and emotional well being–you CANNOT go wrong with a morning walk. 
7. Even in the moment, as much as I have been questioning my decisions, I know looking back I will be so glad I tried I did it. 
   1. What you can’t see is that when I initially typed this, I originally had “I will be so glad I tried” and as I read that back, I realized, no, I did it. I didn’t try, I did. Making that change was just as, if not more, meaningful than the sentiment itself. 
   2. The takeaway here? Give yourself credit. Celebrate your accomplishments unapologetically. No one will be as happy as you are about your accomplishments, bask in the wins as they come. 
8. In just two years I literally transformed my whole life. I am debt free, I own a house, I have two Airbnb’s under management, I have a career I enjoy with untapped potential, my mind, body and soul are becoming more aligned by the day, and I have never been healthier or happier. I went from being miserable and hating my life, to so incredibly fulfilled and satisfied. 
   1. What else is there to say. 
   2. I started small. I kept making little changes to my mindset and my day which ultimately resulted in a huge transformation. Start small. 
9. This is all very exciting and scary at the same time. 
   1. Leaving your house, to drive 1,300 hours straight, to a place where you know no one, and you have never been is scary. It's especially scary when you have a total of 3 reservations covering one of the two months expenses and you’ve committed to paying 125% of what you pay to live now–after dumping thousands of dollars into the project. At the same time, I wanted to approach this from a mindset of, what if this actually works out. What if my place is a hit? What if I love it there? 
   2. Nearly one week in, and I have doubled my bookings (phew) and I am glad to be on this adventure. 
10. Blowing bubbles is a great way to make friends, spark curiosity and wonder, and be present in the moment. 
    1. My last night, at my favorite bar around my house in WI, I was understandably a bit sad. Even though I knew I would only be gone for 5 weeks, I was leaving my comfort zone and more friendly faces than I can count. So I said, how can this be fun. How can I make this a memorable last night. Bubbles. Bubbles are the answer. I love bubbles. So I brought them to the bar, the bar was hopping and everyone LOVED my bubbles. I made some friends for the night–I inspired one of the veteran bar tenders to get a bubble machine–another one of the bar tenders and my friend, brought bubbles out on the boat for his son. I started a bubbles revolution. 
    2. Another one of my favorite last days was on the boat, we brought the bubbles and it was mesmerizing watching the bubbles take on these beautiful colors and bounce along the water. Some of the bubbles traveled for more than 100 yards. Pure joy. 

Closeout

You guys, I hope you enjoyed this episode. I hope this inspired some of you to swing for the fences and go for it. I hope this opened your eyes to a world of opportunity. I hope this encourages you, to seek a little adventure in your own life. 

As always, Thank you so much for spending this time with me—I hope it’s making your day, and maybe your life, a little better. I’d love your thoughts on what I shared today—leave a comment, shoot me a text via the fanmail link in the show notes, either way let me know what's resonating with you! If you enjoyed this episode, please please please share the show and give it 5 stars! 

Get out in the world. Do good. Be good. Byeeeee.