Neel Dhingra is a man on a mission. Pushing himself to be different—to be better—he increased his profit from six figures to seven figures. However, even the most hardworking and passionate entrepreneurs can hit a wall. After 20 years of nonstop real estate sales, Dhingra needed to take a step back. And when he did, he discovered something new.
That’s when a gap in the industry led Dhingra to a new passion and a different approach.
Changing perspectives
After working at something day in and day out, change is often inevitable. For Dhingra, change meant shifting from sales to content marketing to increase sales. Once he took a step back, Dhingra says, he saw “there was a void in the marketing space.” And once he put his energy into content marketing, his real estate business grew 1,000%. That small shift in perspective—seeing a need for a new marketing technique—made a huge impact on overall business growth. Then, Dhingra developed a passion for helping others make changes of their own.
Lessons learned
Dhingra’s financial success gave him the opportunity to share his story at events. When speaking to crowds, he focused on one concept: There has to be a better way to overcome the walls placed in the industry. Questions like, How can people reach financial freedom? and Is there an easier way to get there? raced through Dhingra’s mind. And he knew he could teach others how to achieve their financial goals through the lessons he learned.
Dhingra himself found financial freedom when he bought his first real estate property, and he knew that more than 90% of homeowners need financing when buying homes. And so, the first lesson he wanted to give was about how to finance one of life’s biggest purchases.
Forward Academy
Enter Forward Academy. With a new passion to help people reach financial freedom through real estate endeavors, Dhingra formed an institution to teach real estate and mortgage professionals how to create a strong and powerful personal brand to help their businesses grow. Real estate is an opportunity to start investing and grow passive income, and it can jumpstart financial growth. Dhingra understood this from personal experience—and through Forward Academy, he has been able to help others make small content marketing changes that will impact business success.
Dhingra knew the academy was primarily for professionals in the real estate world, but one of the keys he teaches is helping the consumer understand the industry. To better sell a product or a service, it is important for people to understand what they are getting themselves into. Understanding the fluctuating prices, mortgage rates and other ever-changing factors helps people be more confident in their purchases. Dhingra knows from a consumer standpoint you want to be able to confidently trust the professional you are working with, and he ensures that consumer knowledge in the industry helps build a stronger relationship in business.
Teamwork
Although Dhingra has helped his company grow immensely, that doesn’t mean there weren’t any setbacks in the process. Being an entrepreneur is difficult and lonesome at times. Although often thought of as fiercely independent, entrepreneurs need a supportive team. Dhingra recognized that learning to delegate was crucial to his success. “It took some time,” he says, “but I learned to let others do the job so I could focus on growing the business.” Once Dhingra hired a team that could communicate and work together toward the same goals, his business expansion increased even more.
To be good at something in a career is great. To Dhingra, it’s even better to have something you are passionate about. “Be patient, but hardworking,” he says. Set little goals to gain momentum while trying to reach the bigger, overarching, long-term dream. Work hard to achieve it, and you won’t be disappointed.
