Three Levels
Now, a couple weeks ago when I had the wonderful opportunity to fill in for Del, I mentioned three sort of levels of questions that I get when people ask me about getting started with real estate investing.
And all three really deal with a common theme, which is to a varying degree people ask: “Can I really do this?” And the basic level of question would be first: “Is it even possible to build wealth with real estate?”
Now, I would imagine that if you’re listening to Del’s program and even if it’s your first time, then it’s very likely that you’ve graduated past that level to the next one where people ask: “Well, is it even possible for me?”
And that would be you would ask questions like: “Well, do I have enough money to get started,” or “Is my credit good enough,” or different questions like that. Then once you can answer that question that, “Yes, it is possible for me.” And by the way, while it is easier to start with great credit and money, it isn’t necessary.
But once you can answer the question that, “Yes, it is possible for me,” then the third level is usually identified by questions that begin with the word “how.” For example: “How do you find good deals? How do you analyze the property so that you know it’s a good deal? How do you find tenants? How do you get them fast?”
Mentors
In short, my mentors, Del Walmsley, obviously, Bruce Richards, a guy that really took me under his wing and showed me the ropes here—they always draw from a little book called “The Richest Man in Babylon to really answer all of these questions. It really brings these answers home.
And this is one of those books that is just a classic. In fact, it’s so old that the copyright even expired. You can download it for free, a PDF copy of it, at our website. It is a part of the free starter kit. Just go to delwalmsley.com and click on the little yellow box that says—I think it’s a blue and yellow box that says free real estate investor starter kit. It’s on the right-hand side of the page.
You can get your free copy of that book right there. And as a matter of fact while you’re there, go ahead and click and get the downloads for every one of those free tools there. They really are fantastic. But this is a book that was published over 80 years ago. If you haven’t read this book, do so.
Articles
Steve Davis often refers me to articles. He recently referred me to one that he came across that applies a section of this book to a more modern circumstance. It’s a fictional book. It’s set in the Babylonian era, 3,000 years ago or some timeframe like that. So you can e-mail me at askJeff@luinc.com and I will send you a copy of that article that Steve shared with me.
But Del even goes so far as to say if you are not in the financial position that you want to be then the reason is because you violated one of the rules—and there’s 15 or 17 of them here in this book. Actually I think it’s more like 10 or 12 if I remember correctly. But Del has even built a three-hour class he calls Mastering Personal Wealth right around the principles that are in this book.
And one of the stories that is in the book George Clason tells of a couple of working class people just lamenting over their lot in life when one of them reasoned that to learn what the wealthy know who do you have to ask? Do you go to your teachers or your parents? Or if you grew up in middle or working class family like I did, what could those people tell us about building wealth?
They certainly gave us the best information they had. I know that my parents, my teachers, my friends, my coaches, these people loved me and I loved and respected them, but they had never achieved the results I desired. So did they really have the information that I was after? I’d say no.
Discussions
Now, in many circles money is unfortunately a taboo subject, right—like religion, sex, politics? So if you want to know how to build wealth and prosperity, we’ve got to go to rich people, right, people who actually do discuss it.
By the way, I know that I’ve been at the dinner table with wealthy folks and you know what they talk about? They talk about money right there at the dinner table. Why, because they’re sharing with their children what they know.
And I think that unfortunately—if you’ve Robert Kiyosaki, if you didn’t know, he’s the author of Rich Dad Poor Dad. He wrote a book before Rich Dad Poor Dad where he talked about this information is not in the schools, but parents who don’t have it think it’s supposed to be taught in the schools.
Information
Before the break we were talking about going and getting the information that we need, that this little book from 80 years ago has addressed that information a long time ago. In fact Andrew Carnegie over a hundred years ago said if you aren’t getting the results from your life that you want, then find someone who’s getting the results from their life that you want and imitate them—do what they do.
And it seems that that would be a very simple process. It’s unbelievable to me how that formula is just so basic. In fact, anytime that I have gone and discovered something, I’m just baffled at its simplicity. And that’s one of the things that my mentors—I guess the deeper thing here for me was that while it’s simple, it does take effort.
And when you go and do what they do, it seems as simple as just, “Ask all the millionaires that you know.” But the problem is you’d think, “Why didn’t I think of that already?”
Many times you start going through your list of people that you trust the most and you realize that, you know what, mom’s not a millionaire. Dad, no. Uncle Bob, Aunt Minerva, no, no. Boss isn’t; his boss isn’t—maybe he makes a lot of money, but he’s always working. He’s out of balance—wouldn’t want his life. Or what about my old economics teacher, no. My stockbroker, my doctor, no.
Associations
So what if you don’t know any millionaires? What do you do then? Well, two points: Robert Kiyosaki writes that who you spend your time with is your future. He says your associations can be an indication of where you’re headed.
He recommends writing down the names of the five people you spend the most time with today. Beside their name write down where you think they’ll be in five years. Now, remember this is about the amount of time you spend with them, not necessarily the type of relationship or how close it is. So it may be that co-workers make the list but your brother or sister might not.
Then he says write down where you think they’re going to be. It’s where you’re headed as well. If what you want is different from the results of this exercise, the results that you think these people will achieve, then what you have to do is surround yourself with like-minded people.
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