“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”

- Theodore Roosevelt

Since my last few posts offered stories of hard times on real estate investors using FHA on this end of the country and those who are lacking serious attention to detail, I wanted to change the tune for a quick second. Theodore Roosevelt makes an excellent point about to whom credit is due. We, real estate investors, are the men/women in the arena and we are carrying the housing market’s purchase and sale activity. The opinions and negativity of friends, colleagues, and associates has no place with us. The sad part about success and failure is that most people enjoy seeing you fail or subconsciously would like to be doing better than you are. It is a mindset that comes most natural but must change. Through experience, we know that there is no perfect deal and no perfect acquisition process.

Everyone on this side of the real estate industry is at war. The major example is when someone asks you what you do for a living and your answer is, “I’m a real estate investor.” Their tone quickly changes to, “…but the market is kind of…right” We immediately move into a mode of defense to protect our industry and what it contributes to our communities. In country that is run on the “fear” of an event or an epidemic, we are constantly in verbal quarrel with spectators. Now is our time to ignore what is being said, and buy more than we usually would.

So for those of you who may be in a bad month or two, no problem at all. You are the man/woman in the arena. Your victory is in the courage to continue to remain active in the dream of owning a piece or even pieces of America. Things are never as good as they seem or AS BAD.

Blessings to your Real Estate Investing Successes,

Milton B. Yates