How to get started without driving full speed into a wall

On the BiggerPockets Podcast the guests are always asked "What do you think sets apart successful real estate investors for those who give up, fail, or never get started?"

Often times the guests give one of the following answers:

• Grit
• Perseverance
• Thick skin
• Follow-through

For the purpose of this article though I'm going to call it tenacity. According to Merriam-Webster, the definition of tenacity is 

• the quality or state of being tenacious

Of course this then breeds the question what is the definition of tenacious. Again I enlist the services of the ever wise Merriam-Webster

• persistent in maintaining, adhering to, or seeking something valued or desired

I would hope that many of the podcast guests who have answered this question would agree that this does indeed sum up their view of what can set apart a successful real estate investor from those who give up, fail, or never get started. 

Now, however, this does bring about a question with regards to persistence. I am of the belief that there is such a thing as running with blinders on. This analogy to horse racing is aptly applied because in horse racing the purpose of the blinders is to force tunnel vision for the horse and not allow it to be distracted or frightened by something on the sides of it. I argue that many investor who decide to be persistent will do so in a very linear and direct fashion, having already made up their mind about what their end goal is going to be and the path they will take to get there. What they often fail to see though is that there are situations which can occur where this path actually leads to a dead end, and that the detour to continued success was actually to the side, but because of their blinders, they missed the turn. 

As newbie investors it is very possible to fall into this trap. 

This is where you need to introduce the other half of the equation in order to balance the scales. Rumination.

While tenacity is what allows the newbie investor to plow headlong down a path until they hit a dead end, On the other hand there are the other newbie investors who spend all their time thinking and planning and worrying about which state to start their LLC in to protect their yet to be purchased asset, that they never actually make a decision. Enter rumination. 

For consistency lets check in again with Merriam-Webster for a definition of rumination.

• to go over in the mind repeatedly and often casually or slowly

Most often on BiggerPockets you will hear this term more commonly referred to as analysis paralysis. It is the act of being so concerned over every aspect of every detail and contemplating every scenario and strategy which may unfold to the point of taking no action.

In reality the truly successful investor manages to balance both of these traits in relatively equal proportions. You need to have enough confidence and conviction in your success to take action, yet humble enough to understand you do not have all the answers and you will make mistakes. For this reason having spent some time planning and researching and considering what those mistakes are most likely to be and having some thoughts about how you would resolve them, are also prudent actions. 

For these reasons I might venture to think that if someone were to ask me the question of what sets apart successful investors from those who give up, fail, or never get started, my answer would be balance.

Look up balance in Merriam-Webster and you will find several definitions, but there are two which, when considered in together, most apply to our situation

• a counterbalancing weight, force, or influence
• a means of judging or deciding

What does having balance mean to you? Are you trying to get started but out of balance one way or the other? Post in the comments and we can discuss how you could improve your chances for success.