It’s not what happens that matters, it’s how you respond.

CRE Success Principle: Don't wait for conditions to be perfect; create the circumstances that allow you to succeed.

Last week, my family and I were bumped off our connecting flight home, turning what should have been an 11-hour trip into a 32-hour journey.

But instead of getting frustrated, I decided to look for the silver lining.

That extra day gave us a complimentary extension to our holiday, and the airline they rebooked us on had superior inflight entertainment options (hello binge-watching the ‘Frasier’ reboot).

This, and a couple of other experiences from the break, got me thinking about how often commercial real estate leaders face getting “bumped off flights” in their businesses—that is, challenges beyond their control.

The insight? It’s not the event itself but how we respond to it that determines the outcome.

The same mindset applies in uncertain markets. Leaders who focus on opportunities, even in tough times, create success for themselves and their teams.

In fact, some of my clients actively embrace difficult market conditions—because they know that discerning clients turn to trusted advisors when times are tough.

If you’ve been feeling stuck or constrained by the external environment, I think you’ll find value in episode 204 of Commercial Real Estate Leadership; it’s all about turning challenges into opportunities.

Episode transcript:

Singapore Airlines bumped me and my family from our flight home.

Now, this is a fact. But the way that I choose to interpret that fact is really on me.

And that's based on my disposition. It's based on my perspective. It's based on my attitude.

And my interpretation of it is going to then determine what it means and how it impacts me.

And I think it's the same thing in business.

What's going on in the external environment are facts that you don't control, but the way that you choose to respond to the external environment is going to determine what that means to you.

Let's discuss.

Hello. Welcome to episode 204 of Commercial Real Estate Leadership. I'm your host, Darren Krakowiak.

Thanks so much for joining us for what is the first episode that I'm recording in 2025, the second episode that I'm releasing in 2025.

Because I had the foresight to record one episode at the end of last year. That would be our first episode for 2025.

And it's a good thing I did that because now we only had a 55-minute layover in Singapore.

And Singapore Airlines booked us on that flight, but they determined that we were going to miss the connection because of that 10-minute delay for the first flight.

So, we didn't get home until another 24 hours later.

And I was ready to get home.

I'd had enough of maple syrup, coated pancakes for breakfast every day, and Thai massages.

But my return to work was delayed because of that issue with the connecting flight.

Now, what I'm going to talk to you about in today's episode is something that you may be well familiar with.

And if you're well familiar with it, then I believe you've probably got the perspective, which is that, “You know what, here's an opportunity to hear from Darren about the way that he interprets things.” And it's an opportunity for me just to remind myself of how I can be deploying this skill.

Now, if you're not familiar with what I'm talking about, then this is an amazing opportunity for you to change the way that you see the world.

You've probably heard of the idea of, ‘let's control the controllables, let's focus on what's within our control.’

This is like that, but it's also about how the circumstances that you find yourself in can lead to a positive outcome rather than a negative outcome, if you choose to respond in that way.

Because, you know, it isn't just as it is. It's as you see it. And as I said before, that's based on your perspective.

So, let me just give you a few light examples from the holidays that I just came back from, and how some things which some people would say is undeniably a negative thing can be reinterpreted as a positive thing, right?

So, the first thing was that we stayed at this resort that we've stayed at now 3 years in a row, and obviously, happy to be there.

But it was under construction, and it meant that, for example, the breakfast restaurant where we eat breakfast every morning was closed.

So, they had this makeshift restaurant in a function room that wasn't as great.

But that was an opportunity because it meant that they also had alfresco dining, which we weren't usually eating outside our breakfast.

So, we got to experience eating breakfast outside, which was nice.

Now, another reason why we go to this resort every single year is because the weather is pretty good.

It's not too hot, but it's still a tropical climate.

But they were going through a little bit of a cold spell.

And when I say cold spell, the average daily top temperature was probably about 28 degrees.

But that meant that the pool wasn't quite warm enough for us to splash around in every single day.
And the pool was sparsely populated throughout the trip because that 1- or 2-degrees difference between, let's say, 28 degrees and 30 degrees, I think makes the difference between the pool feeling cool and between it feeling like refreshing versus the temperature outside.

And there was a little bit of wind as well.

So that could have been disappointing because a big part of holidays is me playing with my daughter in the pool.

But, how do we interpret it?

Well, we're right here at the beach as well. Let's spend some more time on the beach.

Let's get Juna more familiar with dealing with waves, and she got better with dealing with waves.

Another thing that I did was I got this flotation device, which was like a floating lounge with net at the bottom.

So, I could lie on this lounge, and I could also put my Bluetooth in and lie on the lounge and just get a little bit of coolness from the water, but I wasn't completely submerged in water.

And I was still enjoying the water. So, I found a way to enjoy it, right?

And I got this cool new floating lounge as well, which I liked.

Also got a little bit sick while we were on holidays.

Me and my daughter got sick. And originally, I thought it was a food poisoning, but I think it wasn't because it was like this 12-hour bug, and then my daughter got it 2 days later.

And, I think the positive sort of spin on that was, well, at least we didn't all get hit at the same time, right?

So at least my wife could take care of my daughter when I was sick, and then when my daughter was sick, I guess we kind of just laid low for 12 hours.

And a 12-hour bug is better than a 48-hour episode with food poisoning or COVID or something else, right?

It could have been a lot worse.

I mentioned before the flight connection. A little sidebar on this, the way that you choose to interpret circumstances also influences the final result.

So, when we got to the transfer desk, they said to us, OK.

And it was about midnight, so I was tired and I just wanted to get home, right?

And they said, “Well, we've rebooked you on a Garuda flight via Bali. It's going to leave it at 11:20 a.m. or something from Singapore, and then you'll spend 6 hours in Bali airport. And then you'll go to Melbourne and you'll arrive there 6 a.m. the next day.”

And I said, “That's not really optimal, I'd really like a direct flight from Singapore to Melbourne, and I'd like to get home as soon as possible. What else can you do?”

And she had another look and she found a direct flight for us, leaving with Qantas at 7 p.m.
the next day and they got us home at 6:00 a.m. the next day.

So, they got us home at basically the same time, but it meant that instead of spending 6-hour layover in Bali Airport, we would just stay in Singapore for 20 hours and then come back to the airport and get on the flight.

And definitely it would be preferable to make the flight originally that we were supposed to be on. But the final outcome, which was that we're getting on this Qantas direct flight, was better than flying Garuda.

And by the way, Qantas is not my preferred airline.

I've done an episode before. I've talked about my issues with Qantas.

But when I got on the plane, I realized that Qantas has Paramount Plus, which is kind of like a poor man's Netflix.

But Paramount Plus has the rebooted version of Frasier, so I was pretty happy watching back-to-back episodes of Frasier on this flight.

And just on the extended layover in Singapore, of course, the airline pays for meals and a taxi to the hotel and the hotel itself.

So, you could also say we've got a free 24 hours or 20 hours in Singapore, which isn't too bad.

So, I'll stop talking about my holiday and start relating this back to probably the reason why you listen to the podcast, which is to grow your commercial real estate business.

And everyone faces the same economic conditions.

That's a fact.

It's also a fact that some people thrive while others struggle in all types of economic conditions.

More are going to struggle during more difficult times because a rising tide tends to lift all boats.

But there are some people who know that a downturn in the market is actually a good thing for them, or they've got that belief.

And having that belief often is enough to make it true.

By having that belief, they start to look for the opportunities to continue to thrive in what most people consider to be difficult market conditions.

And you know, we saw this most recently in 2024 because many business owners look for ways that they can mobilize their existing resources and also add to what they've got strategically, so that they can make the best of their circumstances.

Other people just focus on how bad things are and how that's going to have a negative impact on their results.

One of the biggest jobs of a leader of a business owner is to create the environment that your people and your clients can thrive in.

And that means that seeing the positive in situations and ensuring that your interpretation and your actions of circumstances.

It's really important because that's going to impact the environment that your people are in and whether they're going to thrive or not.

And, at its core, this is really, you know, I said, either you know or you don't know, and this is just about a growth mindset.

And it took me a long time to sort of get my head around this and to accept that there are some things which are not necessarily, definitively bad that we can have a different interpretation on different things.

So, a growth mindset is just seeing the possibility for improvement, as opposed to deciding that everything is fixed and static and that it's just the way it is.

Yes, some things are the way they are, but not in terms of the impact that it has on me.

Not in terms of the way that I choose to respond.

That's completely within my control.
And the fact of the matter is, is that you are where your retention is.

So, if you're focused on the fact that the economy's bad, that interest rates in Australia haven't started falling yet, that we don't know when the election's going to be and that's going to create a lot of uncertainty and therefore, all our clients want to sit on their hands and not do anything until the election result is known, then that's probably the outcome that you're going to see.

That's the reality that is going to be present for you if that is your belief. Because again, we are where our attention is, and the world that we see is often just a reflection of us.

Now I'm not saying that you can change certain facts that are facts, but you can change the way that you interpret them.

You are in charge of what you're focused on and how you're impacted by those things. And I think a great affirmation.

Two of my clients does this thing.

One client has daily affirmations that he's shared with me, that he reminds himself of to create the environment that he wants.

And another one said to me that, “You know what, when we're in a downturn, we're in this market that we're in right now. This is great for someone like me. This is where I thrive, this because the cream rises to the top in these situations.”

And he’s had his best 6 months that he's ever had over the second half of 2024.

And in fact, a number of my clients have had their best periods ever over the last 6 to 12 months, in spite of the fact that we've been in difficult operating conditions.

Because they've made the decision to create the environment where they can do that.

Yes, there are certain things that are going on in the marketplace in the macroeconomy that are outside of their control.

But they're in control of their own little economy and in their own little universe, and they've decided to create the circumstances which allows them to achieve the results that they want.

So, I guess my message today is, don't make decisions and let your attitude be dictated by the external environment, particularly the economic environment.

Instead, make decisions that enhance your economic conditions, and have an attitude that is focused on looking for opportunities that exist, that is looking for the good, the positive, the growth that is possible.

Don't wait for conditions to be perfect.

They'll never be perfect.

Don't wait for them to get better before you decide that you are ready to succeed.

Create the conditions that will support greater success for you.

Now, if you want some support for you or your team on mindset, the first module of our top performer program goes into great detail on this.

Because I really believe that before we can put in place all of the skills and processes and systems that are required to grow an individual's production, we've got to really work on the mindset and get them believing in the possibility of big and better things.

And that's the first module within Top Performer.

And for you or for your team, if you're interested in going through that program with the 6 modules, just send me the word "MINDSET".

Usually the code word is "GROW", but that's for commercial real estate principles.

This is about mindset. This is about improving performance of individuals.

If you want to get some more information about that and how you can get your team through this training and yourself as well, just DM me the word "MINDSET" on Instagram.

Go to our Instagram profile @cresuccess

We'll put it in the show notes, and I'll send you more information about how you're getting involved with our Top Performer program.

Hey, thanks for joining us for the first recorded episode of 2025.

I'm really pleased that you're here with us and thank you so much for listening. I will speak to you soon.