I'm a motivated person and I get my work done efficiently without the distraction of water cooler chats.

Don't let the money distract you from proper screening.

They are nothing more than shiny objects of distraction. 

@Laura P.Yes people who are not serious or don't have money are a distraction for the seller; and if I am making a serious offer I want his/her focus on me. 

You'll find out pretty quickly which groups are there to provide value to the members/audience and which groups exist for purpose of creating an income stream for the organizers.As far as getting licensed or not - I think it would be distraction when you're starting out.  

Maybe they don't know much about wholesaling, they might not have funds to purchase & potentially have to hold a property, they might not know who to sell to after they get the property under contract, they might just want to build their realtor business and not get distracted with wholesaling.If you're worried that by working with a realtor, that they will take the good deals and not pass them to you, I'd just stop worrying about that. 

All of that is there to distract you, so that you don't see the construction.

The cool thing is if you stay focused and determined and don't get distracted by the next big thing, that it gets easier and faster once you have your first one under your belt.  

Then you end up going down rabbit holes of partnership and syndication which can be a huge distraction to learning the diligence piece.Anyway, I'm just rambling now but those are two 2-3 cents for the day...

If you understand that, then you're limes ahead of the masses here and elsewhere, but "don't major in the minors" and get distracted with it.Without ANY background in RE or prior purchases, you need far more basics in buying, selling and contracts 101.