The Pursuit of (Rubik’s) Happiness December 18, 2006

There’s a new movie out ‘The Pursuit Happyness‘ starring Will Smith, as Chris Gardner. There’s a scene in the trailer showing Chris solving a Rubik’s cube and subsequently landing the internship. My first thought was, “I remember that, those were fun.” Today I was reading Jim Cronin at The Real Estate Tomato and ran across his post “What is a Meme…” He mentions being able to solve a Rubik’s Cube in less than a minute from time to time. My uncle could always solve the Rubik’s Cube and I was always amazed. I never gave it enough time to really try and solve it, yet I was always intrigued. I was always trying to tackle it one side at a time, instead of trying to think ahead to the end result. He would always tell me that it’s easy once you find the “Golden Key.” Eventually I gave up trying it my way, and let him teach me the method. After finding the golden key, I could solve it relatively fast.

I face the same type of resistance from time to time, customers who want to attack their real estate purchase or refinance like I used to attack a Rubik’s cube. The side they knew, would be nice and pretty, but fail to come together as an entire piece. There are many lender’s who will fulfill the side that works and leave the rest in shambles. By not taking the time to teach about the full effects of a certain program, the drive-thru loan officer just left their customer spinning the colored cube. With the right planning and information the end result is much more rewarding for both the mortgage consultant and the customer. If you’re dealing with a competent loan officer, ask plenty of questions about the pros and cons of the loan you’re applying for. Your mortgage consultant should be your resource in the transaction, not necessarily just the lowest bidder. If your loan officer can’t help you find the golden key, find someone else. Your success and future wealth will depend on it.

I married my beautiful wife last weekend, and I’m living my American Dream. I’m buying a shiny new cube on the way home tonight to brush up on the reemerging puzzle fad. My pursuit of happiness is well within my grasp, as long as I can keep the golden key on top, and work the plan, everything will come together.