I’m writing this after just attending a lunch meeting for a REIA in Sarasota, Florida. I was privileged to sit in a room with three legends in the residential real estate investing space – Pete Fortunato, David Tilney, and John Schaub. Each of these men has educated thousands of individuals on smart, savvy, safe, and effective ways to be residential real estate investors.
These three men were not the only established real estate investors in the room, but their presence made an important point. Just this morning, a young investor that I am mentoring and working with posted on social media how grateful she is for four mentors who check in with her on a regular basis. Seeing those three men at that REIA meeting and reading the post of this young investor are reminders of an important, fundamental principle:
You become like those with whom you frequently associate.
Look at the people with whom you most frequently interact. Are they going where you’re going? Are they further ahead, or are they holding you back? To answer those questions, you must be clear in your own mind (and hopefully, you’ve put it in writing) as to where you are going. What are your goals? What principles are shaping your career and business endeavors? If you aren’t clear on the answers to these questions, this is where you need to begin.
Once you have figured out the answers to these questions, look at the people with whom you most closely associate in non-family environments. Do those people hold you accountable? Do they inspire and motivate you? Are they a sounding board and a resource for helping you solve problems? If you can answer “yes” to most, if not all, of those questions, then you are around the right people.
In an economy and real estate market that is going through a significant transformation, it’s important to go back to the fundamentals. In fact, during the lunch presentation, John Schaub reminded us about many of the fundamentals of real estate investing and being in business. I’m going to address some of those fundamentals in this series.
