Some thoughts...
Reading books is never a waste of time.
You can have a broker add you to the MLS search engine for property search returns, and you will get the data just as quickly as a broker. 4 minutes - or 400 - will not make or break a deal here.
If you have a good agent, you can see properties ASAP.
If you are licensed, you have legal and professional obligations that may burden you as an investor.
When you sign a contract with enough meat on the bone, the money will come to you, fast - even if you have a tiny network.
If you have no network, make one - the instructions are just a click away.
If you can find sellers, you can make enough money wholesaling to get yourself where this post begins - with you financing a deal all by yourself.
Bonus points: you are now talking to - and perhaps pals with - investors that have money and experience.
What's not to love about that?
If I had to advise family on this, I would easily say the following:
Forget the license - it's ballast, a millstone.
Toss the crappy podcasts - they are actively harming you.
Start working your search, and don't stop until a deal shows up.
Find investors and make a private network.
Become an investor yourself.
Here is a question for you:
Which is easier - making flipping podcasts, or actually flipping?
Find the investors, and lose the pontificators.
All the best!