I just immersed myself into as much real estate investing topics as I could for months.  

I suggest immersing yourself in education first to get started. 

You should join TREIA or other organizations like that and just start immersing yourself in the community to figure out what is successful in this area and what you are drawn to.I want to flip a house next.  

Others immerse themselves in the business.

One of the bigger issues that I see with the area although people more immersed in it who live and work there were less concerned, is that there is a demographic outflow from the south side and there is a lot of crime.  

If you've never been immersed in this environment much before there are a lot of things you will learn and hear about money and finance that just go against what you've likely been taught before.Outside of networking locally I would also suggest that you learn to LOVE READING.

I have more confidence in my practice now being that I am immersed in it daily now.

In the mean time though, I've been immersing all of my free-time in real estate information like the BP podcasts, books, forums, networking events, etc. and looking at deals in the market so I won't necessarily be a complete novice.

By surrounding yourself with like-minded investors and immersing into the world of real estate you'll be able to accelerate your learning and take the action faster!

Think of it as a language immersion program, but for RE.