A Barrel Full of Fishhooks

Last Friday, I took Michele, a new real estate investor, out knocking on sellers’ doors.  Hers was a very, very special case that touched my heart.

Recently, Michele lost her husband.  This caused her to fall into financially troubled times.  In an attempt to dig out of the I-don’t-have-any-money pit, she attended one of those “free” real estate investing dog-and-pony shows that come to town regularly.

Michele went to the seminar hoping to find an “easy” way to make “lots” of “quick” cash.  Don’t you know – this is exactly what their course promised!  Because Michele didn’t have the $20,000 cash needed to pay for the special “mentoring” package, she chose to raid her retirement account – the last money she had on earth – to buy the “guru’s” package.  In other words, she willingly dove headfirst into a barrel of fishhooks!

Before you roll your eyes, know this: Over the years, I’ve met thousands of people who have made similar decisions!  Why do you think those dog-and-pony shows continue to come to town? 

Michele’s intentions were good – she was simply looking for a way out of her financial mess.  She honestly believed she was trading her $20,000 for $1 million dollars.

Next came the classes.  Michele took their online real estate investing classes and talked regularly to a “mentor.”  One of the things the mentor suggested was that Michele join a local real estate investors group.  This is why she called me.

A few seconds into our first phone call, I realized Michele had gotten herself into a pit of quicksand.  I asked her a basic question: “After four months of mentoring, how many sellers have you met with?”  After a moment, she answered, “None.  I don’t know what to say or do.”

Michele was wrapped around the axel.  She believed that BEFORE she could meet with sellers, she FIRST had to know everything there was to know about real estate investing.  This is crazy! 

If you’re interested in real estate investing, go meet with sellers immediately – TODAY!  You don’t have to know what you’re doing, or how to structure a deal, or have the money to pay for the property.  Simply meet with the seller and ask Pete Fortunato’s world-famous question: Why are you selling such a nice house like this?  Then sit back and listen as the seller talks.

Folks, there’s only one way to get good at anything:  You’ve got to do it…and do it a lot!  There’s no short cut.  If you want to become a great creative deal structurer, you only have to do one, simple, basic thing: Meet with 10,000 sellers and make 10,000 offers.  Do this, and you’ll be one of the best, most successful real estate investors in the country.  Don’t do this and, well…you already know that failure is guaranteed, don’t you?