I agree completely that being PREPARED is the most important overall though.I have been meeting with potential Private Investors/Partners (they bring the money, I bring the deal and PM) with a WIDE variety of 'styles and wealth'..... meaning plumbers, engineers, retired farmers and entrepreneurs with networth in the 8 digit range. 

Go to a few BP meetups and see if you can get together with other aspiring starter and grow together. 

For one of my courses this semester, I have an assignment to interview an entrepreneur and would love to interview someone who has invested in real estate.

I am doing a rehab and I am considering a spiral staircase.

Entrepreneurs tend to seek other pathways.

Most importantly I'm an aspiring investor! 

I'm also an aspiring buy-and-hold investor, and a licensed agent as well. 

Scott*(1) Dealmaker’s Guide to Commercial Real Estate: Strategy and Practice for the Intelligent Investor by Ray Alcorn*(1) All You Can Do is All You Can Do, but All You Can Do Is Enough by Art Williams*(1) Hamburger America by George Motz*(1) Wealth Attraction for Entrepreneurs by Dan Kennedy*(1) Landlording on AutoPilot by Mike Butler*(1) Start Small, Profit Big in Real Estate: Fixer Jay’s 2-Year Plan for Building Wealth by Jay DeCima*(1) Building Wealth One House at a Time by John Schaub*(1) The Best Real Estate Advice I Ever Received by Donald Trump*(1) Turning Pro by Steven Pressfield*(1) Tribal Leadership: Leveraging Natural Groups to Build a Thriving Organization by Dave Logan*(1) The Crash Course: The Unsustainable Future Of Our Economy, Energy, And Environment by Chris Martenson*(1) The Advanced Guide to Real Estate Investing by Ken McElroy*(1) 123 Home Depot*(1) Entreleadership by Dave Ramsey*(1) The Goal by Eliyahu M.

Looking to network with local investors/entrepreneurs in the DFW metroplex. 

Confessions of a Real Estate Entrepreneur by James A Randel.