From the mentors perspective

[Dave K.]

So I have gathered from a previous post to go and seek out investors at REIA meetings to find a mentor. But what incentive do investors have to become a mentor for someone? I am asking because I would like to be in a mutually beneficial partnership even if I benefit much more than the mentor. If anyone who has been a mentor knows the answer please let me know so i may prepare myself for the inevitable question of "Well what can you bring to the table Dave?"

[Rick H.]

I don't think everyone needs a mentor, however there is a time and place when having guidance can be essential.

In my early years, I stumbled around a bit while doing deals. There was very little strategy (or pattern) except that they were all purchased from property owners in default, with some equity.

Having operated mostly on my own best thinking for some time, I did not have the benefit of some of the best knowledge that was already available, in part because most of the courses and training that I found was crap and I refused to continue spending good money on inferior information (are you listening guru wannabes ?). The one guy that had good info was John Beck, prior to his obsession with tax lien stuff. Then he went over to the dark side (TV), too.

However, it wasn't until I met my friend Mike, a hard money lender, that I understood the real benefit of a mentor. He wasted no time in telling me what made a marketable deal (I was brokering loans to him in my early days).

My epiphany occurred when I stopped working on marginal deals and started focusing on marketing to a very targeted audience. Most new investor types spend way too much time trying to make chicken salad out of a single chicken-scratch property with an unreal principal rather than creating a deal flow to have many choices from. I discovered that from another mentor, Jay Abraham, nearly 20 years ago. Sing it with me..."You won't make no dough if you ain't got much flow..."

So, mentors do have their place and I've personally benefitted from the right relationships, however my experience with an overwhelmingly high percentage of students is that way too few produce anything profitable, so I insist on vetting by way of substantial up front training investment, for starters. Otherwise, you get a bunch of people who keep meaning to take action but just never get around to following through.

Which is why you've gotta stay hungry, no matter how much your income and net worth.