A few topics were suggested for this month’s column and I have featured two in the title above. Given my background I sort of think of them as two sides of the same coin. Let me tell you a bit of a story.

Back when I started out as a real estate (property) investor, there was no such thing as a car phone. I bought my first ‘car phone’ about five years later. It was bolted into the car with the car electrics providing power. The phone cost approximately $2,500. That price did not include a monthly contract. So, I started my real estate investing in the dark ages, long before people had smartphones.

Roll forward 15 years and I played the Rich Dad, Poor Dad Cashflow game for the first time. Carlo had a copy so he brought it over to my home. We played two rounds of the game. There was a moment during the second game when you could see the ‘penny drop’ for Carlo. I also realised that in the space of a couple of hours, he had the same emotional response to the ‘penny dropping’ it would have taken me eight months when starting the way that I had done. Being a real estate investor is generally quite a slow game and it can be very frustrating for early stage investors. Other than taking a bunch of courses, there is often not a lot of ‘doing’. Many people spend some serious money on education and then feel frustrated because they have not really started. Some will then rush in to do a deal and all too often can end up with a messy situation.

Last month I wrote here that people should stop worrying about how to get started. In summary, pull the trigger and take the first step. I suggested that rather than risk a lot of money or spend more money on courses, find a small deal and put in a bit of cash. How much? That depends on what you think is a small amount of cash.