Any advice for a beginner? Mentors?

[Jon Lewis]

Hello  I'm currently in my sophomore year college pursuing a degree of Electrical engineering. I always pass by these abandoned buildings or abandoned plots of land ask “ what can we turn this into and how can this be beneficial to the area? Maybe its just my optimism I find the idea of real estate very interesting. I'm open to any responses or ideas. I'm reaching out not necessarily for profit but to learn. Of course we all want to make money and care for four families. I personally want to learn from those with experience. I'm coming into this with no experience and no biased ideas. As the wise say “ once you think you know it all you stop learning “ 

[Vince Scipione]

I would like to point out how awesome that your first thought was, "how can we add value to people lives" That sort of thinking is what will get you far in investing. 

To answer your question I would highly recommend shopping around on the BP online bookstore and finding a couple of books that stand out to you. Buy 2 or 3. Start reading them everyday. You will accumulate a lot of knowledge quickly. I would shy away from a mentor as mentors specialize in specifics and you dont know your "specifics" yet. You need the exposure to see what piques your interest. I would start there. Hope this helps.