Surrounding yourself with like minded people

Dear guys,

Started to think back to the "Why you can't invest now" thread and am thinking about the importance of the people you talk property to and associate with.

I believe this can have an impact on your development.

http://www.somersoft.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=5331&highlight=invest

Playing devils advocate can always be healthy. However what impact does talking property with people who will never invest in property have on yourself?

Does talking and trying to convince others to invest in property and secure their financial freedom benefit oneself through strengthening your resolve to achieve this or should you spend more time to surround yourself by likeminded positive thinkers?

What do forumites think on this issue? Do you consciously concentrate on surrounding yourself with positive likeminded people and avoid being with "gunnas" or negative mindsets?

Cheers,

Sunstone.
 
Last edited:
Excellent thread starter SS.

IMHO you can probably do more damage to yourself than benefit to others by persisiting to "convert" others, for want of a better word.

My Example: My realisation that I dont have to rely on Centrelink / Super etc on retirement came about not suddenly overnight as I have heard of others, but gradually over a period of about 12-18 months in 2001/02. Before that I was doomed to continue a life of service to an unappreciative employer, in a job which I almost enjoy. But by neccessity - not by choice.

Since then I have made a conscious decision, in true Kyosaki fashion, to get off my ass and take responsibility for my future. Dont get me wrong, I have yet to buy an IP (first one will be this year) and I'm a long way from even contracdicting my boss, let alone quitting. But I'm so determined to do it that I can almost smell the sand in Tahiti and the pearls around my wifes neck. There is not a chance in hell that I am going to claim a pension from this or any Govt.

The point is that most of our friends are of the other mindset. They are quite happy to continue on the treadmill of life and just get what they get at the end. To them there is no other way. It frustrates me when I attempt to gently bring up the conversation to retirement/investing etc. and they put up the walls as though its "whats he selling us now?"

So what do I do? I now have two circles of friends. My originals and my "new" investor friends (most of you people who I have not even met yet). And In general the two dont mix, but I know where I'll get the most inspiration and motivation.

Any other opinions???
 
ITS A WAST OF TIME TRYING TO TELL PEOPLE WHO HAVE NO NOUSE TO GET OFF THERE ASS AND MAKE A LIFE FOR THEM SELF i HAVE DELT WITH PEOPLE 100 TIMES SMARTER THAN ME BUT THEY LIVE IN ONE OFF MY ROOMING HOUSES WHEN I ASK WHY THEY SAY ITS ALL TO HARD
AND THEY SEEEM TO THINK YOU ARE JUST BRAGING OR THEY KNOW ITS ALL GOING TO CRASH AND PROPERTY WILL GO BACK TO 1980 PRICES (I WISH IT WOULD TO BUT NOT A REALITY) SO I WILL ONLY DISCUSS PROPERTY WITH LIKE MINDED PEOPLE.
 
Birds of a feather flock together

If the shoe fits , wear it

If they don't think property investment is for them , don't try to change their mind, seek people who do . MITCH
 
There ARE days when it's all too hard, for a multitude of reasons.
And that's when the people who are going to succeed are separated from the rest - because instead of giving up, they stick with it and find a way.
At least that's what I tell myself on days like that.... hehehehe
And on days like that it's invaluable to be able to call an investing friend, or logon to a chatroom and find other people who've been through the same fires and come out the other side. Maybe not exactly the same challenge, but I always find it gives me the strength to grit my teeth and continue forging ahead.
I'd never bother ringing any of my non investing friends on that sort of day.
 
In my opinion it doesnt matter. If you are motivated enough, you will still achieve what you want regardless of who you talk to or try to convert.

You could talk to the Kings Cross bag lady or Kerry Packer about whatever, it wont change a thing if you dont have your own motivation.

When you finish talking its up to you, the talkings not important, its what you do after it that matters.

I dont think surrounding yourself with likeminded people matters that much either, (I wish Freestylers would stop sending me those dumb emails) It just makes things easier, sort of like this forum which would have to be the best information resource on property investing in Australia. (and a bunch of great people).

I have friends who own businesses who understand what im doing on a basic level but i dont really closely know anyone involved in property investment, so i dont bother trying to convert or even talk beyond the superficial to them about it.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
When I started in property, I tried to talk with people- but got sat on. Nobody wants to know- they're usually just waiting for you to fall flat on your face anyway (I know, I had the same attitude to other people once upon a time- and wish now I didn't!)

To have met with people who have succeeded in property has been a huge help to me- without some of that, I would not be very far along the path at all.

This forum is of huge value for being able to talk with people who have similar aims, and who have had varying degrees of success along the investing path.

Coming here is a breath of fresh air. People actually want your opinions, and you can learn so much from other peoples' contributions.
 
Originally posted by Pedro61
So what do I do? I now have two circles of friends. My originals and my "new" investor friends (most of you people who I have not even met yet). And In general the two dont mix, but I know where I'll get the most inspiration and motivation.
Pedro,

Don't forget the people like me who are in both groups- you probably realise now why I never mentioned anything to you before about anything to do with investing.
 
G'Day all,

Beware: (Long Post....Hans Christian Anderson would be proud)

A story I would like to share..........

around 3 years ago I had a net annual passive income after loan committments of around $35K from property investments and figured twas time to take things a little easier and basically leave the so called "rat race" and do what I wanted to do, when I wanted to do it and not be accountable to anyone else.

I was pretty impressed with myself having achieved this level of "perceived" prosperity in a period of only 7 years and having done this all by myself.

I didn't really talk about it with anyone and I figured I had been really lucky, because as sure as hell I didn't think I was any smarter than anyone else, I just assumed I had been in the right place at the right time and things just happened to me which had turned out for the best.

I also realised that regretfully I had a wife and 3 kids that were a vacuum for money and that my $35K per annum would need to be supplemented somewhat if I were to continue to maintain my mediocre existance. I felt that I should be able to earn at least another $15 to $20K working from home as a Licensed Estate Agent as I had made quite a few contacts during my working life.

I now found that I had heaps of time on my hands and started spending some (a great deal actually) time on the internet.

Property was my great fascination and using that great search engine "GOOGLE" I would spend hours, days, weeks on there trying to uncover property related web sites.

I remember like it was yesterday the day I came across the Creative Real Estate Investing website, and I recall doing an all nighter reading every post on there. ( actually didn't go to bed that night at all, kids got up and I made out that I had got up an hour earlier, told the wife I fell asleep at computer).

The site was by a bloke called Andrew Gray I think and there was reference to the "somerset" forum.

Well that became an obsession, to find this "somerset forum"

Didn't take much, I found it, but it was deserted, it had been replaced by a newer one, not this current one, the one before this one, still I read the posts and figured it had been frequented by Aussie investors.......I was one step away from property heaven.
Found the newer forum, (the one before this one), and starting reading all the posts, didn't actually register for ages, (months), just kept reading the posts.

I was amazed at how many like minded people there was and how they seemed to be such a close knit group, I actually read that others had done what I had done and some so much better and smarter than me.
I figured "this is great" I can read what they have done, learn and also do what they are doing and they will never know.
This was a turning point in my investing career, I now, no longer felt that I had done so well, I felt that I should have done better.

Just reading what like minded people had achieved spurred me on, I was no longer Robinson Curusoe, there was others, average people, who were living off property investment income.

Yes I had read Jan Somers books and others as well, but when you read a book written by someone, there is no interraction, who knows if they exist or not, but these people on the forum were real people, they were in Australia and they were alive and posting everyday.
I registered so that I could post and hoped that if i did eventually post they would show mercy and not try to belittle me by making me out to be a novice and not worthy of being part of their close knit online community.

Then I took it one step further, I logged into the chat room.......
Immediately I was pounced upon by Asy, probing questions from her had me quivering at my keyboard but the worst was yet to come. The next morning I logged into the chat room again, this time TW was on and she also did the questioning thing.

I wrote earlier in this post that finding this forum spurred me on, you better believe it. I recall telling TW that I owned 17 properties back then, the number is now over 50.
my net worth has nearly quadrupled, ( a property boom like we've had has also helped somewhat..), I no longer need to supplement my investment property income from other sources if I don't choose to, I had real funding problems back then, I have learnt other ways to fund property purchases and development.

No one single post or one single poster made this change in me,
but a combination of reading postings from like minded people with a desire to better themselves through property investment and also the questions that are answered from learned people that probably dont apply to my situation today but may apply "one day."

There is such a diverse mix of people on this forum, and lessons can be learnt from others activities and mistakes continually.

Yes, being around or involved with like minded people has definately made a huge difference to me and also provided the stimulus to keep moving forward in the face of adversity.

hows that saying go?............."You can't Soar with the Eagles when you surround yourself with Turkeys"

regards
 
Hi all,

I guess that it is interesting to see that we’re not along! That there are people out there with the same interests and problems we have. When I started investing, I tried to tell all my friends. I wanted to join forces with them and leverage in our time to do research and to put capital and borrow money together. I thought that in that way it would be easier. However, I quickly realise that it does not work like that. Life facts and stats mean nothing to this people. They all are worry about of all the what if…? questions that they don’t ask themselves about the consequences of the what if I don’t do anything?.

It is funny but, a couple of friends read Rich Dad Poor Dad and are following the book word by word. The issue is that they are following the steps of the Poor Dad J. At this stage I have not time, not energy and not interest in trying to help them any more. The good news is that one of my friends was listening and now he’s fully awake. We are now helping each other and it is great to have someone to talk to and to make investment plans. It is also great to have a site like this.

On another note, there was an article in the Financial Review yesterday (they took it from the RBA site), in which was said that property investment loans had double since the 80s. The question is, Is it because there are more people investing now or because the ones that were there are getting bigger?. What do you think?

Regards,
James.

PS. Some days I also question my strategies and go through my mistakes. Some times I ask to myself whether it’s right why I’m doing. Some times I don’t know… The question that keeps me going is What If I don’t do any thing????. I started with nothing and the worth that could happen is that I end up with nothing. The last part is already guaranteed if I don’t do anything. So, I don’t know about you but, I better do something.
 
__________________________________________________
I wrote earlier in this post that finding this forum spurred me on, you better believe it. I recall telling TW that I owned 17 properties back then, the number is now over 50.
____________________________________________________

This question goes to Jakk,

I would be very interested in listening and learning from you how one can accumulate 17 or 50+ properties in a short life time. This type of achievement fascinates me. What's the right strategy?, how to find the funds?, how can I do it?. How much time do I need?. How can I join the club?

Regards,

eager to learn,

James.
 
Hi Jakk

Great story!!:) Can you eleborate as to the mix of properties and type of locations, Capiatal cities country etc.

From previous posts you called yourself the slumlord just wandering where that originates.

Cheers
 
Dear Jakk

Although I find just about everyone and everything on this forum inspiring, there is something about what you say and how you say it, which always seems to flick a switch for me.

I have been wallowing about in self pity the past couple of days since VCAT, where the objectors to my clinic application decided to make personal comments about me, and when I defended myself, the Chairman reprimanded me rather harshly. (Think: et tu, Brutus?)

But after reading your post, I remembered why I am doing this, and my creative little mind started buzzing again, looking at the situation from different angles.

And after all, this is what the 'like minded' thing is about. I don't personally know anybody - repeat, anybody! who has done or is even contemplating doing what I do. (Yeah, Jude, I know I know you, no offence, but we are 50kms apart, on different sides of town!) I suppose brain surgeons or lion tamers lament that, too, but then again there are Associations of Brain Surgeons or whatever, where they can get together to talk about the latest styles of lobotomies.

And I have gone along to various meetings of 'investors' from time to time, but everybody has such differnet styles, and I really can't listen to stories about how awful and wicked real estate agents are (being one and really proud of my hard worked for licence).

So I appreciate your posts, Jakk, and your droll sense of humour. Your energy permeates your writing and you obviously believe that the way to deal with obstacles is to pole vault over them.

From 17 to 50 properties in less than five years is a great example to set. Even if these are mortgaged to the max, controlling this number of assets is a triumph by anybody's standards.

Thank you for contributing your story of discovery. We all have a road to Damascus, on which our conversion takes place. Sometimes, particularly after a difficult week / month, it's important to remember how and why we got ourselves into property in the first place, and what we hope to achieve.

Thanks again

Kristine
 
Originally posted by Jakk
Then I took it one step further, I logged into the chat room.......
Immediately I was pounced upon by Asy, probing questions from her had me quivering at my keyboard but the worst was yet to come. The next morning I logged into the chat room again, this time TW was on and she also did the questioning thing.

I remember that!!! It was a great chat session Jakk, I think I have the logs here somewhere...

I remember my first time in the chat room... TW pounced on me too!!

Not many ppl know this, but that's how I got the 'asy' nickname...

I was unsure of chat rooms, and forums, since I had never been in one, so I wrote my name backwards... (larysa=asyral).

Then when I got into the chat room, and TW started grilling me, she couldn't be bothered typing out 'asyral' so she cut it in half, and hence, 'asy' was born!

I decided I liked it, and so I hung on to it. I decided I liked TW too, and hence she became one of my best friends, or the 'fab four' as I call them, oddly, two of whom I met here on the forum!

It's funny how when you surround yourself with like minded people, and you really feel you can relate and discuss all sorts of things that others just don't understand... you can find friends that were just waiting to happen!

We all have so much to learn from each other. I am just so happy to be on the journey with all of you!!!

asy :D
 
G'day All

I don't find it very easy to "surround yourself with like minded people".

Generally in day to day activities I find people fall into 4 categories.

a. They hear what you and other people do to ensure they have a comfortable future and they just couldn't care less, "she'll be right mate I'll think about it some other time".

Time moves on, but there is hope for an awakening with age.

b. "That's really interesting I should get of my bum and look into doing that sort of thing". However if you throw out some more bait you find that the will to do something is just not there.

These people may eventually admit to themselves that nothing is going to happen unless they put in the effort to make it happen.

c. "How did you get into that, what kind of magic do you posess that allows you to do that? I wish I could do that but I'm not that lucky. It would never work for me".

The defeatest attitude before even making an attempt. How can you have friends that are achieving a certain amount of success with something that you would also like to do and yet not interact with them to help you? I still can't work this one out!!?? Maybe it's some sort of light bulb affect. Pride thing or something.

d. They just needed the spark to ignite the fire and away they go. The source could have been many things, a book, this forum, or just a casual conversation.

I haven't been the source of the spark for anyone yet. I get most of my inspiration from this forum and I'm sure a lot of other people do as well.

Enough of the ravings!

Rick
 
Hi all

Me dips me lid to ya Jakk, and bows 3 times to the east.(Drouin is east of here:D)

Stories like Jakk's are the inspiration to many and should be consistently told as there are always new people on the thread wanting to know how it is done; or if it is really possible. To meet people of like-mindedness, the property investors monthly meetings that occur in most of the capital cities can be attended. Perhaps at each of the meetings at least one of the attendees could give a more detailed rundown of where they are at and how they got there.

There was a thread on the old site called "Forum Favorites", I think, that had inspirational stories in it.

bye
 
Jakks story is very inspirational. Thanks. It makes me think that I should be entering the chatroom. Like minded people where I live are rather rare.

Might have to increase the internet time we pay for so I dont blow the budget:D

Tamara
 
Hello All,

Great story Jakk. I think we can all draw inspiration from other people and their stories, one way or another.

I have been reading the posts on this forum for a while, and find it very fascinating and inspirational.

I am only new to property investment, but feel that there is so much to learn.

This forum is a great source of information and so accessible.

And Sunstone, like Mitch has said, "Birds of a feather flock together".

Cheers,
Survey Mal
 
The concept of surrounding your self with like minded peope is one that most succesful business people and property investors understand.

Napoleon Hill in his great book "think and grow rich" mentions mastermind groups. It's a concpt that I have used over the years - getting together with like minded business people from different walks of life over breakfast once a month, and brainstorming.

I guess that's what this forum, or the MSN one, or Freestylers is about.

You can't fly like an eagle in you scratch around with the chooks
 
Yes Jakks please tell us more....

Over the last 2 years when people have asked me what to do , how to do it. I have shown them books ,mags and spent a lot of time telling them of my own expirences. Shouldn't have bothered.
It hasn't tempered my enthusiasm and getting on here gives me a lift if I need one. Would like to have a circle of friends who do this because them you can really chat over a glass of wine or a coffee. I would like to be able to compare notes on a local footing but otherwise I will just keep comeing back here.

Elwyn.D


PS. Footy's back!! Go Cats..
 
Back
Top