Hello everyone - An Introductory Post

[David Henson]

Hello BiggerPockets,

This is my first post on this forum. I come to you as a prospective investor who seeks knowledge and education. From what I've seen so far, you guys seem like the real deal, and I appreciate any knowledge or tips that you guys can share with me. And if I can make myself useful somehow and give back to the community, I will certainly try my best. 

So, a little about me: I'm a 32 year old single pharmacist in the central Illinois area. I graduated in May 2016, have been a pharmacist for over 2 and a half years...and, while I find that the salary is great, and that my job has been rewarding in terms of personal growth, I do not see myself being able to do this job for the rest of my life. Quite honestly, it is just another form of the dreaded corporate rat race. I work unreasonable hours and am expected to keep up with unrealistic demands, every single day. My days off are usually spent just recovering from the grind, and I'm right back to it again in 48 hours or less. And if I continue on this path, this is going to be the rest of my life until I retire a frail old man - where I'll be too old and frail to enjoy my retirement, and then die. One of the most often cited regrets by older people on their deathbed is that they spent too much of their life working. This is not how I want my life to be. I'm sure almost everyone here has had similar thoughts at some point. I do not know what I would do after achieving financial freedom, but I'm absolutely sure that I wouldn't spend it here.

However, I am still grateful to have the income and opportunity that I do have, and I would like to leverage this income to achieve the one thing that I desire above all things in life at this particular moment - financial freedom, as fast as possible. I do have a high income and live a frugal, low-expense lifestyle, and because of this, my student loan debt could very well be completely paid off by the end of 2019. I am considering both stocks and real estate investing as a way to achieve this, and I would like to learn as much as I can about each one. This seems like an awesome place to learn about real estate investment and I am grateful to have found it. 

That being said, I am most interested in achieving passive income. I think my golden number would be somewhere around $4-5,000 a month. So, if you guys have any good suggestions for any books or articles to read to help me build passive income while working 45+ hours/week (plus about ~8-10 hours of commute per week - got any audio books/podcasts?), I would be very grateful. I have just purchased the BRRRR book and can't wait for it to get here, and have also read most of the beginner's guide, but am always searching for good reads.

Thanks for all of your hard work putting this site up and all the information. And, again - if I can give back somehow, I will certainly try.

- DH

[David Henson]

@Kenneth Garrett - thanks for the recommendation, sounds like Rich Dad Poor Dad is a must-have!

@Zach C. - I'm from Springfield, IL. I do not know where I'm looking to invest but for now I assume that it will be fairly close to home, within a 30 mile radius. Long-distance investing sounds like too much based on what I know about it so far.