Could I have maximized income by immediately increasing the monthly rent, yes and he could have just as easily decided to move out and I would be dealing with all of the above. 

Be careful trying to maximize today too much.

You could buy a property for as cheaply as possible to maximize cash flow.

Don't be afraid to buy snails; just make sure you trade up for better performers so you can maximize your profits.

It looks you intend to take on quite a project to bring the house up to par and to maximize the rent.

In other words, I was kind of thinking I'd be okay having half of a duplex rent LTR (even if it could earn more $ potentially as STR) so that the LTR rent would be like a stable foundation and would reduce the amount of daily involvement I would have to have.Your situation sounds interesting too, which if I understand, is have it LTR during off season for steady income and then switch to maximize peak STR prospects.

It depends on the area you are in but I would definitely look into short term rental or midterm rentals for traveling nurses in order to maximize profit - use tools such as AirDNA to see if your property has more potential for a greater return as an STR

Plenty of people across the globe have large gas tanks that don't have exposure to education and resources to fill their tanks completely while other people have filled their tanks to the brim, but the tank might not be large to begin with (you've gotta respect these people for maximizing their potential, imo)-I'm worth more money than most of my friends that are a lot smarter than me. 

There certainly aren't a ton of deals that are home runs, but I've found a good system to really maximize certain property types. 

You start off a little short, but you make it up very quickly.Thesis of webinar was this: A Maximum Over-funded Life Insurance Policy is the best place to store your emergency fund because it allows you to maximize your return potential while minimizing risk and maintaining liquidity.