My saving habits are lacking to save the least, and i am running on the "treadmill" of big corporation business where i'm trading time for money.

Get on the bus, or stay on the treadmill.....as a T-Shirt I once saw put it"If U ain't the Lead Dog, the View Never Changes"

John, go open that HELOC so you don't miss out on the next one.For people years and years away that are just reading this who like the town they live in and will probably be there for another 5 to 10 years or more, go do the NYT rent vs own calculator, and buy a house for you and your family. 5% down gets you in the door of homeownership and off the rent treadmill, and if you get fortunate with appreciation, there's your REI down payment.

Because you will hold a property for many years, what happens after the first day is far more important than what happens on day one.Financial IndependenceIn order to have financial independence you need a income replacement equal to your current income that also meets three requirements:Inflation compensating: Rental income keeps pace with inflation, enabling you to pay inflated prices to maintain your standard of living.Persistent income: Your income will last so you will not run out of money.Reliable income: Your income continues even in difficult economic times.Unless rents keep pace with inflation, your time off the daily worker treadmill will be short.

There's no parole for federal prison, but the slumlord will earn 54 days off for good behavior for each year he prays, jogs on the treadmill, does his situps, and moves his bookmark through Tony Robbins's books.

Finding reasonable ways to overcome your own laziness and excuses and then executing with frequency against the things you need to do.For example in my fitness instance, in the winter I use the excuse of "I hate treadmills" and "it's too cold I'm not running" so I bough a rogue echo bike and literally put it at the foot of my bed.

Excercise to me is no different than eating or sleeping for maintaining optimal performance..... it's a requirement.I get up every morning between 4:30-5:00 and do an hour of treadmill, elliptical mixed with weight lifting on certain days. 

My parents had a treadmill in the bedroom that was used to dry clothes.

It’s the 3rd and 4th years that’s the business really picks up and you can start leveraging your experience, equity and your established real estate connections to start scaling your business to attain financial freedom.If you are willing to dedicate 5 years to this business and have patience while trusting the process and taking action you can retire within 3-5 years in most cases and if you choose to be less active you could still retire within 5-10 years which at 40 years old is still going to give you the opportunity to retire at 45-50 years old and get off that salary treadmill that so many people are saved to.Great job on asking such an important question!

He is not on a ladder going up; he is on a treadmill.