How I Predicted Mark Cuban Would Be My Business Partner Before Shark Tank
(Photo Credit: Flickr | Brian Solis)
I aired on ABC’s Shark Tank on January 29th and made a deal with Mark Cuban for $250,000 for a 20% stake in my test preparation company, 2400 Expert. One item not aired on television is when Mark Cuban told me he thought I was a “young Tony Robbins.” Following his lead, I’ve decided to publish my first self-development book, Self-Made Success: Ivy League Shark Tank Entrepreneur Reveals 48 Secret Strategies To Live Happier, Healthier, and Wealthier. You can order it here. I release an excerpt from the book every Sunday as a series of blog posts called “Self-Made Sundays.” Below is the first blog post.
At 2400 Expert, we use four principles in our SAT & ACT prep courses: Strategy, Example, Practice, and Review. So I’ll follow a similar format below. After reading this article, you might think I’m crazy or a genius. Both are pretty similar.
Strategy: Use the Law of Attraction
Rhonda Byrne’s The Secret describes the law of attraction — the idea that you attract what you think about. However, it’s not enough to only think about a goal. You must feel like that goal has already been achieved.
Example: Predicting A Mark Cuban Business Partnership Before Shark Tank
Every goal I have ever achieved was visualized in my mind prior to it happening. I’d like to share one such example in my life. It might just convince you that there’s something to this Law of Attraction stuff.
One principle of the Law of Attraction is to write down a goal as if it has already been achieved. So on March 2, 2015, I wrote down the following in a document on my MacBook:
“By the end of 2017, two major accomplishments for me are being selected as Forbes 30 Under 30 and having Mark Cuban as a business partner.”
Now, if you watched my Shark Tank episode, you know that I have achieved the latter. I’m still working on the former.
I did not go to New York for a Shark Tank open call audition until April 9, 2015. So a full month before I even decided to audition for Shark Tank, I had written down that I would be business partners with Mark Cuban!
Granted, I was obsessed with Shark Tank in early 2015 and was watching an episode almost daily. But this further proves my point. You attract what you think about. By visualizing myself on Shark Tank every time I watched an episode of Shark Tank, I was using the Law of Attraction (without even realizing it).
Skeptics might argue, “Well, you had a definite plan of how you were going to become business partners with Mark Cuban.” While this might be true, what are chances that my plan was going to work? 50,000 people audition for Shark Tank every year and 10-20 will close a deal with Mark Cuban — or .02% (the same chances of getting a perfect score score on the SAT, which by the way, I also attribute to the Law of Attraction).
I had to get through several rounds of auditions including an open call audition, a video audition, and phone audition just to get a chance to pitch the Sharks. In addition, once I got in the Tank, what were the chances that I was going to land a deal with Mark Cuban rather than one of the other Sharks? In fact, while I was pitching the Sharks, Mark Cuban was the first one to rip into me, saying that “a new younger guy is eventually going to come in and outwork you.” He was clearly disinterested. Then, all of the other Sharks said “I’m out.”
There was a moment in the Shark Tank that I knew that the Law of Attraction is real. With all four of the Sharks out and an unhappy Mark Cuban, my heart was sinking fast because I thought I’d be one of those entrepreneurs who gets quickly booted out of the Tank. But all of a sudden, Mark Cuban looks at all of the other Sharks and asks, “Am I the only one left? Perfect.” He then turns to me with a piercing look in his eye. At that moment, I knew the Law of Attraction was real.
What else could explain that the one person in this world that I had written about on March 2nd was now staring me in the face ready to become my business partner on June 24th?
It was the craziest example of the Law of Attraction I had ever encountered.
You might be wondering why all of the other people who think about partnering with Mark Cuban don’t have the same success? The Law of Attraction is about more than just thinking about a goal. You have to be obsessed with it, work hard for it, and really feel like you have already achieved it.
Practice: Write Down Your Goals
Do you have a goal that you would like to achieve? Begin by writing the goal down and visualizing it happening. However, you must also feel like that goal has already been achieved.
This is the same concept outlined in Napoleon Hill’s Think and Grow Rich, which I believe should be titled Feel and Grow Rich. If you continue to feel broke, incompetent, or unhappy, the law of attraction will bring more of that into your life. But if you really feel wealthy, intelligent, and happy, the law of attraction will bring more of that into your life.
Review: Consciously Think About Using The Law of Attraction
The next time you have a goal, ask yourself whether the goal consumes your thoughts, feelings, and actions. If not, you probably won’t achieve it. If so, be prepared for some amazing things to happen!
If you’re convinced, I suggest you write down your biggest dream now.
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Written by Dr. Shaan Patel MD MBA
Prep Expert Founder & CEO
Shark Tank Winner, Perfect SAT Scorer, Dermatologist, & #1 Bestselling AuthorMore from Dr. Shaan Patel MD MBA
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