Ash Atkinson was born and raised in the small industrial town of Sudbury, England located 60 miles north of London. He grew up riding horses in the English countryside developing his skills in the equestrian world from a young age.

“Being an equestrian had a huge bearing on my path to entrepreneurship. Equestrianism is definitely the most humbling sport on the planet. There are days where you are on top of the world and everything is going awesome. Followed by days you can’t seem to do anything right. A roller coaster exactly like entrepreneurship that enforces the mental resilience to keep pushing forward in the difficult times. I believe that ultimately your passion and determination for success always prevails through regardless of what difficulties and challenges you face in life. The sport also gives one the understanding of responsibility for something other thing yourself, which can really attribute to learning both leadership and communication skills.”

At the age of 20, Ash moved to Germany to work for the largest horse breeder in the world. He spent 2 years learning the art of producing young horses, as well as the business, sales and management side of the sport.

Being able to work along side individuals from all over the world allowed him to start creating a network of connections from all different backgrounds and cultures.

“I am a great advocate of the law of reciprocity, everyone I meet I am always trying to think of ways I can add value to their lives or introduce them to someone that can help them get to where they want to go.

I believe that the people that ultimately succeed the most in life are the ones that put out the most value in the world.”

After his time in Germany, he was ready for a new challenge and so thanks to his newly created global network, he set forth for Mexico where he spent his next 2 years.

“Mexico was the biggest culture shock for me, there is no middle class, there is either extreme wealthy or extreme poverty. What was incredible was how generous and amazing even the poorest people are and how welcoming they are of westerners.

The country is definitely not as dangerous as the global news makes it out to be, but you have to have your wits about you and not put yourself in a situation that could turn ugly fast.”

“After almost 2 years, the culture and way of life became a struggle for me. Everything moves very slow and I was ready to embark on a new adventure.”

This led him to California, where he really found his footing, after about 2 weeks I knew that the US would be a place I can see myself living for a long time to come. The opportunities, experiences and people you meet are amazing. The American dream is 100% alive and possible. “I started to leverage my contacts in Europe to source sport horses that we knew would be perfect for the American market. I know I have a good eye and understanding for the type of horses Americans are looking for which has created a reputation for me as a trusted person to over-deliver on a client’s needs.

Chacco Latté – The Oaks, California 2016

Ash then saw himself getting a little too comfortable again and knew if he wanted to keep growing as a person and expand his network he would have to look to move elsewhere.

This thought process took him to Wellington, FL, home of winter equestrian. He had always heard and read articles about Wellington as being the “Disneyland for horses” and the place as an equestrian you had to be. “This has been the best move I have made to date and really opened up my eyes to a whole other world of people who would typically be inaccessible in a normal environment.”

“Changing your environment is crucial if you want to grow in life. It forces you to completely operate out of your comfort zone. I have now lived in 4 different countries, 2 of which I didn’t speak a word of the language before moving to. They were the English-speaking ones. As well as multiple locations within each of those countries. Each time I have made a move it has forced me to adapt and operate completely out of my comfort zone.”

He has created a pool of investors and clients for the management, acquisition, and sale of high-performance show jumping horses. “This is incredibly exciting for me as there is a lot of pressure involved to make the best decisions you can and consistently create returns for everyone involved.”

Ash also has a tremendous passion for real estate, having already invested himself in a commercial development project in Chicago. He also has plans to expand his real estate holdings as well as a desire to pursue his dream for large scale development projects across the US and Europe.

He passed the Florida real estate license exam. However, he was frustrated at seeing every real estate agent out there using the same cookie cutter marketing techniques to get deals as everybody else. Which for the most part, are a complete waste of time, effort, energy, resources and money. Hence why 85% of new agents quit within the first 5 years.

“The reality is that you have to stand out and be different to get noticed.”

Palm Beach, Florida

This led him to start Magna Marketing. A Marketing Agency that specializes in getting real estate agents booked appointments with qualified buyers and sellers. “We do all the prospecting, outreach, follow up, qualification, nurture the prospects as well as book them in the real estate agent’s calendar.

The days of sending out mailers, relying on your sphere of influence, Zillow and referrals, to name a few strategies, are gone. The real estate agents we work with no longer have a feast or famine way of living or worry about where their next listing is coming from. We are seeing some awesome results, in a lot of scenarios agents are double their commissions in as little as 6 weeks.”

Ash is also a fitness fanatic; at the time of writing this article he is participating in a fitness challenge called 75 hard.

“I am currently on day 53 of the challenge, which consists of 75 days, 2 workouts per day, 45 mins each, one has to be outside. As well as no alcohol, 1 gallon of water, reading 10 pages of personal development. If you mess up or miss any of these tasks you have to restart at day 1.”

This challenge is designed to create mental toughness and force you to get sh*t done even when you don’t feel like it. Having not drunk any alcohol and only water has exponentially heightened my mental clarity and productivity, which is really translating across my businesses in terms of growth and profits.

Ash’s future plans are to use new, unique and different marketing strategies to gain considerable traction in the real estate industry at a rapid pace. He understands that the real estate industry isn’t just about selling property, it’s about developing a personal connection with people and really grasping an understanding for their wants, needs and desires and in turn presenting them with the best possible solutions.

What’s next for Ash? “My short term goals are to build Magna Marketing to helping over 200 real estate agents multiple their monthly take home commissions by consistently getting booked appointments with qualified buyers and sellers, whilst at the same time allowing them to take time back in their lives to focus on what truly matters to each agent most in life.”

Chimney Rocks, Kentucky

If you are a real estate agent that has the desire to double their business in 6 weeks whilst at the same time working less. Shoot me an email to [email protected] with your contact details and we can set up a time to talk about your goals.

“My longer-term plans are to make a big leap into real estate development, I envision building an oceanfront luxury high rise condominium building, called One Magna Park.”

Follow him on Instagram @ashatkinson1