So I feel a little more empowered to push back a little on the nonsense. :-)My lender, who was cc'd on my emails, wrapped it up nicely.

I have also empowered many new investors to begin on the road to financial freedom through both conventional and unconventional investing strategy.  

(Not sure if that's the case in Bakersfield but I could imagine the reconstruction efforts at Paradise is pulling some of that talent away from the area) I do firmly believe if we are ever going to solve the housing shortage homeowners need to be empowered with a pull yourself up by the bootstrap solution--even better with networks to enable such solutions. 

Everyone is empowered with more knowledge and action  steps to make them successful!

Here are mine in no particular order.1) Bigger Podcasts - Listening since the beginning @Brandon Turner2) Empower with Clayton Morris - A real feel good podcast.

After living in the mainland and now in HI the pay here is 30% less and cost of living is about ten percent higher than the rest but the good thing most people are cool driving around in Toyota’s unlike most affluent places in the mainland.It’s 2018 the Internet empowers you to connect with others who have done it remotely.

Helping others can be empowering and reading about other's successes is really motivating.Couple other things -- Surround yourself with a support system of like-minded people (like joining REI Club which was mentioned previously) and keeping learning, read books!

I would think if anyone really is so busy that they can't answer their phone at least 50% of the time or reply to an email within an hour that they should hire a knowledgeable, empowered assistant to do their work for them.So -- am I being unreasonable? 

The first thing that strikes me is how dis-empowered you feel.

In life, including real estate investing, you will make mistakes but the awesome part is learning from them and applying that knowledge to empower you to better.