Don't even know where to begin

[Ali Khan]

Hello Everyone, my name is Ali Khan I'm extremely excited to be here! I'm in school and don't have a lick of an idea of how, why, where, and what I need to do to get started in the RE business. Whether it's short sale, whole sale, agent or broker. In Texas, so I need some guidance!

[Jibran Najmi]

Ali,

Welcome to BP!

I am currently in school as well at UTA down the street from you, and my family lives in Plano.

Currently, I am a licensed Realtor in TX, and am working on building my business here locally with the long term plans of being an investor.  To get started I would actually encourage you to simply focus on yourself.  Rather then trying to figure out what "niche" or "strategy" you should pursue, I would say just start by educating yourself.  The best way to do this in my opinion is to begin reading books about subjects that interest you.  If that interest is real estate, start by reading books that will educate you on the different mechanisms and levers within the industry that will allow you to eventually decide which niche or strategy is best for you.  A couple book recommendations:

Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki

The Richest Man in Babylon by George C. Clason 

Any books off of www.biggerpockets.com/books

As you read, I think you will realize which niches are best suited to you as everyone is different and doesn't see things the same way.  I would also adopt a few habits to make your "education" a little more meaningful & intentional:

1) Write down everything.  You can't manage what you don't measure, and you can't measure it unless you write it down.  Use checklists.  Set goals. Put a time limit on it.  I usually will not accomplish something unless I put a solid deadline on it.

2) Write out 100 goals real estate or non-real estate related.  This sounds crazy, but everyone has 100 goals, they just haven't written them down.  Sit down, take 30 minutes and write down any and everything you want out of life.  Whether its a Ferrari, a career or even your future spouse, sit down down and write down what those things ideally look like.

3)  Define your long term end goal.  Start with the end in mind.  If you don't know what direction to go you'll never get there.

4) Develop a routine.  It might be that everyday you sit down and analyze 3 deals/properties.  Now that is defined, the question becomes Do I know how to do that?  Where do I find the properties to analyze. Slowly but surely as you work your way to answering these questions the end will become easier and more apparent.

5) Reach out to people and find ways to create value for them.  Value is not necessarily economic ($$$).  Value can be answering a question, helping solve a problem or simply being a sounding board.  Find ways to create value.

I hope this is a good spring board for your journey through the real estate world.  If I can be of assistance in any way please don't hesitate to reach out to me by email, phone or BP.

Good luck to you.  

Regards,

Jibran Najmi