Real Deal REInvestor Network

The following is a response I had to Sam Ally, MMM  Challenge Director/Mentor in which he asked what I learned from attending a recent REIA meeting in Orlando, FL......
________________________________________________

Man I'm glad you asked! I learned quite a bit last night. In order to explain it I have to go back a couple months.

Before being accepted into the MMM Challenge I had the impression that all real estate investors were, well for lack of a better word--a$$holes (pardon my French). Every investor I spoke to in the beginning seemed cold, un-interested, very egotistic and just plain snooty. Why did I feel that way? Well I'm not exactly sure. It could be that subconsciously I was intimidated about being out of my comfort zone or element and I was making excuses not to network with anyone. Who knows!

Anyway, last night I forced myself to break out of my shell and comfort zone. If someone was going to be cold and impolite, then screw them! I'm a force to be reckoned with dammit--or so that's what I kept telling myself! LOL But, strangely enough I noticed that I was way wrong about these people. By talking to these investors I realized they are just like me and some even know LESS than me! That's a fact! Imagine that! These people are looking for help and not only that, they are HUNGRY for deals! Sure some of them were negative and opinionated,  but over-all they were all very approachable and willing to help a newbie like myself with anything. I thought that was great!

Another thing I learned is that ACTION speaks volumes and although you may not know everything there is to know about real estate, ACTION is  the secret ingredient that will take you where you want to go. What I mean by that is this. Well, Tanya Venable and I sat next to a gentleman who happened to be Canadian. After introducing ourselves, he began to mention that he's looking for a buyer for 3 deals he's got under contract. So we asked how long he's been investing and get THIS! He replied that he's only been in the U.S. for 1 WEEK! And he's already got 3 deals under contract?!!! That was amazing! This guy doesn't know the country, much less the local neighborhoods and he's still managed to get 3 deals under contract. Now if that's not inspiring AND a kick in the butt then I don't know what is! I proceeded to talk to him about his deals and how he found them and asked if we could have lunch sometime and talk real estate. Sure he's not a guru or a real estate veteran, but I still believe there are volumes to be learned from a foreigner who decides to get up and move to a whole new country, who doesn't know crap about the local market, and STILL get 3 deals under contract in less than a week. If anything, I wanna know what his wife is feeding him!

There were many people I spoke to and connected with. I was nervous at first, but then I became relaxed and happy to be there to meet these like-minded individuals. Through listening and engaging with these folks, I realized that the majority of investors are eager to help another fellow investor in any way they can. Networking and connecting with investors  helps build relationships which I'm confident will help me in my business and on a personal level as well.