What’s a guru.. and how do you find the one that’s right for you? According to google, a guru is an influential teacher or popular expert. We have multiple guru’s for different aspects of our lives. Today, I want to share-
1) Why you need a guru
2) What to look for in a guru
3) Who our favorite guru’s are and why
Disclaimer- This post is based on my own personal opinion (good or bad) and isn’t sponsored.
Why you need a guru – People talk about guru’s and how they’re cliche or just trying to take your money.. this can be true in some aspects. Sure, they have conferences that they sell expensive tickets to, write and sell books for profit or even offer guaranteed programs that you can purchase. Yes, all of those things are generating income for them and in a way, you are their claim to fame. They’re successful because they sold an idea that you bought. However, there are tons of gurus offering FREE advice, podcasts, guidebooks and tools for consumers to use. Guru’s are important because they provide inspiration and ideas. I can’t tell you how many podcasts I’ve listened to that have helped me in my personal relationships, my work success and financial goals. Guru’s are important because it’s an easy way for us (regular folk) to look at their success and see what worked for them. It allows us to bypass years of trial and error and making mistakes on our own. To simplify, think back to grade school when you learned how to count. You learned it because your teacher told you that’s what you’d be learning that day. You trusted them because they already knew how to count. Without your teacher, would you have realized on your own that you needed to know how to count? Doubtful. Now imagine how much longer it would have taken for you to learn how to count without their help. Where do you start..? How do you do it.. ? What happens when you fail..? Your teacher told you what you should learn and how to learn it. Now think about guru’s from that same perspective.. as adults they offer us insight on what we should learn about and how to learn about it. My husband Jeffery always says “I don’t know what I don’t know”. It’s such a silly thing to say, but it’s so true. How can you quit your job if you don’t understand how to make money without working? How can you ask for a salary raise if you don’t know how to negotiate? The list goes on and on. This is why you need a guru.. to inspire and motivate you, to help you grow and achieve the life you are capable of creating.
What to look for in a guru – This is a big one! How do you begin to find a guru? Truth be told.. lots and lots of googling. Whatever topic it is that you’re interested in, google it! Research who the experts are in that field. For us, we love personal finance. So when we researched “passive income real estate” on google, Grant Cardone popped up. Finding gurus in your field is as simple as that. The next part of the process is to try and get to know as much about them as possible. This is an important step because you want to align your beliefs and interests with them enough to be interested. Interest is the first ingredient to motivation and the urge to learn something new. If their motivator is making more money and yours is tied to passion or vice versa, you may not get a lot out of their teachings. Figure out what they believe in, what motivates them and what is of no interest to them. Remember that you will not find a guru that believes in the exact same things as you (nor should you – how boring would that be). You want to be able to learn something new from these people and ideally you want them to have different opinions than you within reason so you can grow. Once you have a guru, follow them on facebook, instagram, linkedin, etc. Attend their webinars, watch their youtube channels, listen to their podcasts and utilize every free tool they offer for you to learn from. If their teachings are working for you, figure out a way to incorporate them into your daily life. This is how you build successful habits and practices.
Our favorite gurus – I have a ton of gurus that I follow on social media, listen to their podcasts, practice their teachings and read their books. The topics they teach vary from real estate, personal finance, women in the corporate america to other topics like travel and mindfulness. After discussing our favorite guru’s with Jeffery, I’m listing out the top 3 guru’s that we interact with the most. We both think highly of these guru’s but also have our likes and dislikes about each of them.
Dave Ramsey– Jeffery & Brianna’s pick
Likes: Dave offers great starter information for anyone looking to crush debt and become financially free. His plan is straightforward and he offers a proven 7 step process for getting out of debt. We have loosely followed his advice along our journey and it’s never steered us wrong. We like Dave’s teachings because he focuses on living at or below your means (this is huge for maintaining financial freedom without a high income). Dislikes: Once you are at baby step 7, it’s unclear as to how you should move forward. He doesn’t focus as much on generating passive income or continuing to grow your net worth.
Grant Cardone– Jeffery’s pick
Likes: Grant has a “whatever it takes” mentality. He’s a real estate genius and has a lot to offer people that are sick of the status quo, just be warned that he may come across more forward than you would expect. We loosely followed his advice with regards to real estate and were able to generate passive income for a few years. Although we sold our rental properties in 2020-2021, we still like his teachings and mentality. Dislikes: He can come across a bit arrogant if you don’t know his background and story. He likes nice things – but who can blame him?
Simon Sinek– Brianna’s pick
Likes: Simon is an inspirational speaker that focuses on how to improve yourself. Personally, I believe your mentality about life and how you handle things is the #1 determining factor of your success. It’s not about how you were raised, luck or even how hard you work.. it’s about how you respond and react to the things that happen to you. He focuses more on the psychology behind success rather than the actions. Dislikes: Since he tends to focus more on the mindset, it’s harder to walk away with a clear picture on how to accomplish something. With Dave, there’s a method on how to accomplish financial freedom.. with Simon, it’s up to you to decipher how to accomplish your version of success on your own.
We have learned so much from guru’s and I hope this post inspires you to find your guru if you don’t already have one! If you do, I’d love to hear who they are and what you like about them in the comments below.
