Is having a mentor important?

During the Brisbane purchase I was concerned the kids weren't getting the amount of attention they needed, I guess it's all for the greater good so we can help them down the track. Half the family actively dissuade us, the other half a neutral

We'll keep pushing, but you're definately right it can be a lonely journey!

 

Just make some friends with mutual interests (e.g. investing)

 

Exactly. Then mentors are amongst your friends.

 

And kids for play dates

 

I spent the morning showing a mum and dad from my youngest's class around an estate then we sat under a gazebo and hashed out some ideas whilst their 2 kids and my 2 kids played on the playground. Win win for everyone.

 

Dont forget mentors cannot give advice unless they hold appropriate licences.

What sort of ideas do you wish to bounce?

 

True to some degree. I went to that buyers agent more a chat because they would not stop calling =desperate to me anyway I had plans at the time to move out of my grandmas house and buy my own a ppor first then invest about two years after that was the criteria I gave them.
I was mislead and told buy buying positive cashflow and receiving equity increases every year would put me in my own home much sooner . In a nut shell I paid a commission of 30 odd k to buy somewhere I really didn't want to because the advice of a so called expert .
Iam not saying Iam not blame here also I did do due diligence but not enough as the result of the loss clearly shows
Btw I stil live in a lounge room at my grand not my own home because of the investment I made , but Iam more motivated this year then ever to make changes big changes and get out of this mess not using that buyers agents ideas

 

I think the difficulty with have one mentor is that you learn their style which is not yours. Those that I know who have mentors have felt they have not been served well. I have many investors that I admire and learn from, I keep an eye on their projects as I am assessing my next move. This way you develop your own style that you are comfortable with. At the same time you need to be open to new ideas.

 

I'll take you up on that next time we are both in the same state.

 

First session pencilled in! Lol talk travelling or property first I think everyone can learn something from everyone here, it's just about getting out and chatting

For some it may be stepping outside your bubble and jumping in and meeting new people outside your normal friends and family.
I know pretty much no one in the whole state of wa, I had a chat with some bloke cause he had qld number plates the other day! I learnt about nut farming! I never would have done that a few years ago

 

I'm not a believer in having a single mentor either. But if you can group together with investors as peers you are exposed to differing strategies and points of view etc. From there you can choose your own adventure from snippets of what has worked for others and forge your own direction with what works for you to get to your personal goal. Whilst having that kind of peer group around you will keep you motivated and enthused. PC is as much as most of us have. For now. . .

 

What a fantastic open attitude

 

Good post @Tim & Chrissy.

I think having a mentor (formal or informal) that has achieved what you want to achieve can certainly help along the way. He/she can help you avoid some mistakes, reduce risk, speed up the process, referrals for reliable contacts, and educate.
PC is my main resource when I look for property related advice, and I reach out to some more so than others.

Also you mentioned that one of your contacts didn't write back to you after the second email you sent them - it is possible that he/she was busy or email is not their preferred method of contact. Maybe give them a call, or shoot them a LinkedIn msg, many ways to reconnect with them.

Also, another thing I find is that when things don't go exactly the way you want it, i.e. reno taking longer than expected etc.. It's comforting to know that your "mentor" has experienced these issues before and they reassure you - it's normal for these things to happen and it's apart of the proccess

 

Basically just what our plan is, see how other people plan to achieve their goals and the vehicles they use to get there. Things we have picked up from PC and implemented are:
Splitting the loans to draw a clear distinction, don't X coll, other types of investment that may suit us outside property, areas with new infrastructure and good CG prospects.

We found the meetup was probably the most helpful, we learned more in one night that we had on a month on the forums.

We know people have to be qualified to give particular advice, we look for new ideas and then go away to do our own research to see if those ideas are a fit for us.

 

@bob shovel can you please pencil me in for an engineering 101 session with you

 

I made a similar mistake when I was 20. I went to a financial planner recommended by a family member. He pushed me to invest $60k in a DFO style shopping centre and Timbercorp agricultural projects. I put in $30k and lost around half that. It was a very valuable lesson.

 

Thanks Taku,

You've summed up my thoughts on what a mentor is beautifully! The gentleman who didn't get back to us was a friend of a family friend, he is a commission only RE agent but is in it more to keep his finger on the pulse of the market.

I honestly think it is just a general lack of interest in mentoring from the people we sought out. They are all in their 60's & 70's, all had different strategies (e.g. one purely purchased farms, another inner west Sydney only) and all had children with no interest in following their advice, so as with anyone, they got sick of trying to help people over the years who then ignore their advice.

 

Sure can!... Although I think ive posted all my knowledge already, I'm running low in the brains department

 

It's like the old "learn from other people's mistakes" but in the form of "learn from other people's experiences"
You can't do it all but you can learn a bit of everything,then choose your path and people you're around

 

Stop it