Where to find good mentors

[Chris Gonzales]

Hey everyone, I'm a 26 year old college student, who is brand new to BP, and the idea of real estate investing in general. It's been about a month since I first discovered BP and the BP podcast and with it and the help of a few books I have already learned so much. My goal right now is to educate myself with the help of books and hopefully mentors. With that being said, if there are any experienced investors in the Dallas, Waco, or Austin Texas area who wouldn't mind showing a new guy a few things, or even letting me work with you part time (not looking for a job, just mentorship), I would be very grateful. I'm willing to do a little bit of traveling if necessary. Feel free to message me or leave suggestions for finding mentors, as a student in this game, I'm open to suggestions. Thanks, Chris G.

[Ben Daniel]

To borrow from a favorite Baseball movie of mine, "If you build it, they will come".

My advice is to show up on a regular basis to every meetup you can find in your area. Come early, leave late. The more you show up, the more you get a feeling of who the real players in your area are who work regularly with others, and the more recognizable you become. People who are ready and willing to be a mentor look for enthusiastic, intelligent, and dependable people. (After all, if they're at the point in their career that they are willing to lend their expertise, it takes deliberate effort on their part, and they don't have time to make an effort if you don't reciprocate.)

In going to over a hundred meetings in the past year, I've made a lot of contacts with some very savvy and successful folks, and not once did I ask to be mentored. Specifically because I found that, almost without fail, if a newbie popped up his head and asked to find a mentor at an event, the room would quietly groan and/or literally turn away in their chairs as if to say, "Not me, buddy! Don't look at me!" Plus, the newbie would show up for 2 or 3 meetings and then stop after not finding that person to guide them by the hand to the promised land. A very predictable outcome.

So, I didn't find a mentor. My mentor found me. Not kidding - I just participated in discussions at meetups, showed that I was progressing on my own by asking intelligent questions and building upon previous discussions, and offering opinions if I had an intelligent one to make. Even though it was obvious I was new, I didn't expect anything for nothing, and through active participation, I made myself memorable enough that when my mentor decided it was time for them to take someone under their wing, I was the one that came to mind first. Sure, it took a year, but I'd rather have a hard time finding a quality mentor who wants everyone to succeed than have an easy time finding someone who just wants a grunt to work for free (or pay them for the privilege!) until they burn out. I'm not paying my mentor for their time - my mentor offered to pay ME for MY time. (I declined, but you get the idea - I made myself valuable enough that I became attractive to the point where I was seen as an asset.)

@Guy Gimenez and @Erik Stark are absolutely right - it really comes down to what you bring to the table. If you don't show your value by being consistent and engaged in the meetups, especially when you don't have demonstrable skill in profiting from real estate deals yet, you are behind the curve. The value you bring as a serious, focused, and engaged person goes a LONG way to establishing your reputation. "Go the distance", as the movie says. :)