You need to do what you say you will do and take consistent focused action every day, answer the phone when it rings and follow up and follow through.

If you aren't already a member, The Richmond REIA Meetup Group, Richmond RING, and THINK Meetup Group are all good places to start networking, as well as Bigger Pockets of course.Some advice on finding a mentor: know what you bring to the table.

And how can I quickly communicate that to these good folks before the bell rings and they move on to the next "date"?

More backyard seating and a fire ring, if possible, would also be great.

and the ring she wants costs roughly $5,000.

If we find it is a tenant caused probable, we charge them for the cost of clean out.Depending on the price of the insurance, it may be worth it, but if you only have a few houses, the odds of not having a back up is in your favor.As an investor and future owner of many more properties, you should try your hand at doing it yourself; Rent the machine with the auger and motor on itTurn the water off to the commodeDrain it as best you canRemove the two closet bolts (when replacing, don't tighten too tight or your brake the porcine commode).Remove the wax ring--- messy, stinky -- use cloves - don't get it on your clothingLife the commode from the waste line......guaranteed you'll get water on you (hope it is not yellow)Now feed this heavy cable down the waste line as far as you can go.Push the start button on your machine and watch the cable spin as it seeks the block, oh, be careful because sometimes stuff will fly out and may  smack you in the face.If you are lucky you'll find a baby's toy, a rag or some sort of material that may be unpleasant; bag that ugly stuff for later disposal.Oh, did you buy a wax ring?

It does not ring, your message goes straight to the prospect's voicemail.

If you've got nothing to offer you need to put your own money in the ring.

Craigslist and bandit signs are OK too, but you have to answer the phone when it rings.

The basic position we called "associate" was ringing up customers, stocking shelves, cleaning, etc.