In the BIG 80’s, when it came to dieting, popular periodicals would advise you to “think thin.” They never actually explained how this was done, but people were aware that was what they should do. Adopt the mindset of the thin person, whatever that was supposed to be. A logical extension of this idea would be that if you want to make money, you would be able to accomplish that by adopting the psychology of the rich, right? Actually, this does work. In particular, you should adopt the attitude of the accomplished property investor.

Accomplished real estate investors are opportunists. They constantly have their antennae up and ready. They place themselves in the way of information. They “walk the walk” of the successful real estate investor, so to speak. Because of all this, they notice things that others disregard.

Ken McElroy, writer of “The ABCs of Real Estate Investing,” which is part of the Rich Dad, Poor Dad series, says it's all about seeing patterns. If you check out enough properties, study enough areas, speak with enough people, he claims, you will start to notice these patterns. Then things will begin to occur. You may start to seem lucky. And, McElroy says, it may be luck, but it is a sort of luck that comes from being prepared.

Don't forget: fortune favors the prepared mind. Opportunity is all around us, but if we do not stay alert, these opportunities may as well not exist. The alert mind notices opportunity.

Ken McElroy stresses repeatedly the fact that becoming a successful property investor is a process. It is not something that happens overnight. It is something that you work towards each and every day. As you work through this process things will start happening for you.

Someone who is successful concentrates on doing a little at a time, on learning this or that thing, or making this particular deal. It's a “walk before you can crawl” process.

For instance, McElroy says that if you've found a potentially profitable deal, you can get funding for it as other people will inevitably want a piece of the action. It isn't about negotiation skills necessarily, McElroy said. Of course, skillful negotiation can net you an even better deal on occasion, however you don't need to worry about whether you are good at the negotiation table. Just look for good deals.

Although they are constantly evaluating risk, always aware of it, good investors are not scared away by it. They decide whether or not a risk seems reasonable. If the numbers add up, says McElroy, then it's a good deal. If it's a good deal, the smart real estate investor goes for it.

Easy.

People who don't know how to accurately assess risk may believe that every deal is too risky. They make the assumption, for example, that a bigger deal may be too risky for a novice to handle. They make that assumption because they think the investor is investing a lot of his own cash into it when, in reality, a bigger deal stands to generate a larger sum for those involved. Therefore, you may be able to find backing for this sort of deal. In the end, you may put up less personal money than you would have on a smaller deal.

Property investment is similar to anything else you want to learn how to do. For one thing, you have to learn how to do it. And you learn by doing it. Go out and look at properties. Take trips to cities as if you were intending to buy. Go online and read about areas. Check out what others have said regarding the real estate in a particular area. Get to know people. Before long, you will know enough to begin considering actually making a move. You do not have to have a stack of cash at your disposal before you start playing the game. All you need to do is get out there and enjoy the process. Search the Minnesota MLS for opportunities and everything else will come eventually.