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Financial Freedom Myths

By Lynn Andris

Freedom

Heading into the 4th of July weekend it seems appropriate to talk about freedom. Americans have a heritage of pursuing freedom, and that pursuit still requires a great deal of myth busting. If American colonists were willing to accept the status quo and the idea that the British form of government was the right form of government, just because it was the only one they knew, our country would be very different today.

Fortunately the majority of those that traveled to the new world had a different idea, they wanted freedom and the ability to choose their life’s path regardless of their legacy. Our nation was born from the idea that tomorrow is what we make of it, and that anyone from any background or any walk of life can work to achieve their dreams and leave a different legacy for their children and grandchildren.

So today, many of us are pursuing financial freedom. We don’t want to work for someone else our whole lives. We don’t want to continue to contribute to our retirement account hoping we don’t die before we run out of money or to wonder if the government will still be able to provide social security for our retirement. How can you feel good about that kind of future?

At Lifestyles Unlimited® we encourage everyone to pursue financial freedom through real estate investing. When you create passive streams of income you can wake up each morning and choose what you want to do- and that’s a future all of us would enjoy. We believe real estate is the best way to accomplish this because other people are willing to lend you money to invest in real estate.

Funding

If any of you have tried to get someone to lend you money to try some market timing (especially now with the market bouncing all over the place) or maybe to fund your passion for collectibles and sell them on Ebay, or to start your own website to promote a great new product or business idea, you know how much enthusiasm that’s met with. You have a hard time finding people who want to invest in those types of ideas- yet you can turn around any day of the week and find a lot of sources of funding for real estate investing- traditional lenders, private money lenders, investors looking for more solid returns on their IRA’s- they’re all willing to help you realize you’re dream of financial freedom through real estate investing.

Real estate is something that everyone knows a little bit about. Everyone understands to some extent how real estate works- we all live in homes or apartments, so we know a little part of the equation. So then what keeps us from financial freedom if we know that real estate is a great investment, and we know that there are people out there who would like to lend us money in order to purchase real estate, to make those passive streams of income. How come everyone isn’t doing it?

I think it’s because there are some widespread myths in our culture that prevent us from achieving our dream of financial freedom. Many myths that keep people from real estate investing are based on fear. They’re myths that we’ve internalized from family, friends, the media, and popular thinking. Of course our family and friends love us, and are trying to help us not hurt us. But sometimes those legacy ideas really work against financial freedom. It’s important that we be able to recognize those things when they happen and be able to move in a different direction in spite of the messages we’re receiving all around us.

Calculated Risks

If you’ve ever heard someone say or even thought to yourself “There’s no way I could invest in real estate. Real estate’s a gamble. Real estate’s risky.” Robert Kiyosaki, author or Rich Dad Poor Dad, says that there are people out there who honestly believe that real estate investing, or any type of investing, is all about luck. Real estate investment is not a guessing game. Real estate investment involves financial analysis to determine where you should spend your money. Real estate is one of the safest investments you can buy. The stock market’s beyond your control. The return from savings, CDs, and money market funds are so close to nothing, that they definitely won’t be able to make you any money. You have to be able to take a calculated risk in order to make money. That’s the key to it- it’s a calculated risk.

The more you educate yourself, the less risky real estate investing becomes. However, don’t think you need to know everything before you start taking action. It’s a process, just like everything is- but you need to jump in at some point and start doing. After that it’s amazing how far the learning curve arches up.

Anyone can invest in real estate if they’re willing to raise the capital and educate themselves on the process of investing and managing real estate. Unfortunately, many people get stuck on those first few steps- they don’t set realistic goals, they don’t right them down, they don’t publicly commit to them, and they don’t review them everyday. They get off track- sometimes for years. They’re putting their dreams on hold to deal with the urgent things in life instead of the important things in life. If that sounds like you, any day you can turn that around and change it. The biggest part of changing it is realizing that that’s what’s happened to you and making that commitment to get back on track. Set those goals, and let everyone around you know what those goals are- it’s a great way to hold yourself accountable.

Peer Groups

Of course there’s a risk to any investment, but there are ways to minimize that risk. One way is to find a peer group that’s already doing what you want to do, and doing it successfully.

Another myth in our culture is that of the rugged individualist. A lot of our history is based on those stories of those individuals who have pulled themselves up by their boot straps, all by themselves- that self made man. But no one succeeds completely on their own, and if you look deeper into their story you’ll see the critical opportunities and people in their lives that have made all the difference.

Malcom Gladwell has written a great book, called Outliers, that talks a lot about that rugged individuals, and that really there’s a lot that goes on behind the scenes of any successful person. Kiyosaki points out that it’s important to have that peer group and that team around you. He acknowledges that what really creates risk is neglecting to educate yourself.

When you neglect your financial education, you’re losing more money than you can imagine. Not only the money you invest if you leap without looking, but also all the money you’ll never make if you don’t ever leap at all.

You don’t have to hope for profits in real estate, you can make them happen by using your skills and learning to protect yourself from things beyond your control. Realize you need a team around you, it’s not something you’re going to do all by yourself.