How Do You Have Time to Be So Active on BP?!

Rental Property Investor · Bettendorf, IA · Member since 2017 · 187 posts · 256 votes

Ok time for a reality check. I'm busy. You're busy. We're all busy! And we're all on BP. Some are learning from others, some are sharing their knowledge with others. But all of you are spending time here. And some of you are spending an extraordinary amount of time here.

So my big question for you is this: how do you possibly have time to be so active on BP?! I'm genuinely curious to hear how much time per day or week do you spend on BP, and how do you fit that in with everything else you have going on. Thanks!

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Russell BrazilBusiness Member

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Real Estate Agent · Washington, D.C. · Member since 2012 · 17k+ posts · 30k+ votes

I actually consider posting on BP to be a part of my job. Roughly 2/3 of my business now comes from here. If I dont spend time here, then Id need to spend time and money on other lead generation activities.

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Russell BrazilBusiness Member
Moderator
Real Estate Agent · Washington, D.C. · Member since 2012 · 17k+ posts · 30k+ votes
8y
I actually consider posting on BP to be a part of my job. Roughly 2/3 of my business now comes from here. If I dont spend time here, then Id need to spend time and money on other lead generation activities.
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56 Reply
Mark H.
Richmond, VA · Member since 2016 · 215 posts · 129 votes
8y
I work from home and have a feast or famine type job. Gives me plenty of time to be on here. I also check it right before bed and sometimes once or twice in the afternoom/evening after work. It also helps that I don't read all of the forum boards. Just about six of them.
4 Reply
David Cruice
Rental Property Investor · Raleigh, NC · Member since 2018 · 179 posts · 192 votes
8y
Fit it in when I can. Not always easy but good Karma comes to those who pay it forward. If you want the universe to be good to you, you have to be good to the universe!
32 Reply
Chris MasonPro Member
Moderator
Lender · CA · Member since 2015 · 9k+ posts · 10k+ votes
8y
Originally posted by @Chris Jensen:
Ok time for a reality check. I'm busy. You're busy. We're all busy! And we're all on BP. Some are learning from others, some are sharing their knowledge with others. But all of you are spending time here. And some of you are spending an extraordinary amount of time here.
So my big question for you is this: how do you possibly have time to be so active on BP?! I'm genuinely curious to hear how much time per day or week do you spend on BP, and how do you fit that in with everything else you have going on. Thanks!
My day is full of these little 5-10 minute gaps where I can't get back to work on something until someone else finishes their part and passes it back to me. 5-10 minutes isn't really enough time to get to work on a different file, but it is enough to read a BP thread and reply to it, and it keeps me in work-related mental place, unlike say facebook or youtube.
28 Reply
Dean H.
Rental Property Investor · Salem, OR · Member since 2016 · 202 posts · 305 votes
8y
I'm a " binge " dweller on BP. When I'm busy I just disappear for awhile and like wise if time allows " poof " I swing back thru for awhile. I have a weekly 3 to 4 hour drive and lately I have been using that to listen to podcasts. It is amazing how much knowledge is available here and I sincerely hope that what little knowledge I contribute is valuable to some.
10 Reply
Chris Jensen
OP
Rental Property Investor · Bettendorf, IA · Member since 2017 · 187 posts · 256 votes
8y
@Russell Brazil, interesting that you consider BP part of your job. Even more interesting that it generates so much business for you. Great to have something you enjoy doing also pay dividends. A virtuous cycle. Thanks for sharing.
3 Reply
Chris Jensen
OP
Rental Property Investor · Bettendorf, IA · Member since 2017 · 187 posts · 256 votes
8y
@Mark H. so your personal situation allows you to spend lots of time on here, but you narrow your focus so you can dive deep. Nice strategy. There's a lot going on at BP... I'd be curious to know which forums you find most helpful.
2 Reply
Chris Jensen
OP
Rental Property Investor · Bettendorf, IA · Member since 2017 · 187 posts · 256 votes
8y
@David Cruice, definitely true about Karma. I personally find that I try to pay the universe back by serving others, but it ends up blessing me even more! BP can serve many purposes, and certainly one of them is to help others be generous.
3 Reply
Chris Jensen
OP
Rental Property Investor · Bettendorf, IA · Member since 2017 · 187 posts · 256 votes
8y
@Chris Mason, nice! BP helps you maintain focus and clarity. I like it. Definitely better than the mind-numbing effect of other social media sites. Thanks for taking a few mins to share that perspective.
@Dean H. sounds like you're spending a good deal of time here. Do you find other aspects of your life are suffering a bit, and how do you balance it all?
1 Reply
Clifford Paul
Rental Property Investor · Member since 2018 · 483 posts · 956 votes
8y
It's pretty easy once you have a great property manager and other people to do the little things in life that take up your time. Like laundry, lawn, pool, house cleaning, car detailing, dog sitter, ranch hand and personal assistant. Come to think of it I could spend a lot more time here.
8 Reply
Anna Buffkin
Investor · Pawleys Island, SC · Member since 2015 · 324 posts · 385 votes
8y
Stay at home mom.
Currently, my kids are in bed and my husband is sick and lying down. I do a little accounting from home for my pre-children employer, but otherwise my job is caring for our twin 2 year old boys, managing the house, and our 8 rentals. Being a mom is a full time plus job with a lot of random down time.
Also, my son, Logan is really clingy. Sometimes I look at BP while he is engrossed in Pal Patrol glued to my lap.
I listen to the podcasts at the gym as my YMCA has a good children's program in the morning. Also 7 of our 8 rentals are about 1.5 hours away. I sometimes listen to podcasts while me boys sleep on the way to go to one as needed. My boys are going with me to look at a 4plex tomorrow. They will probably sleep the whole way back while I listen to the new podcast. I call my boys the junior partners.
13 Reply
Chris Jensen
OP
Rental Property Investor · Bettendorf, IA · Member since 2017 · 187 posts · 256 votes
8y
@Clifford Paul, haha well I'm glad I helped you come to that realization :)
@Anna Buffkin yup your life sounds full. Just like mine. Good for you for making time during the craziness for things that are important to you. I imagine that's a never-ending challenge. Best of luck!
0 Reply
Alvin Sylvain
Los Angeles · Member since 2018 · 464 posts · 471 votes
8y
I work very hard 8 hours every day. I carpool 1 hour to work, and 90 minutes home, every day.
.
When I get home, I'M TIRED, no matter which one of us was driving.
.
But I find participating in forums like this to be relaxing and enjoyable. And what the hey, if I'm going to spend time on an online forum, it might as well be one with potential to help me make some money, right?
.
So it's either this or play video games until bed-time.
3 Reply
Rachel H.
San Antonio, TX · Member since 2009 · 3k+ posts · 1k+ votes
8y
@Chris Jensen Mostly as a hobby and for entertainment purposes. ;) Though I do enjoy hearing stories and experiences from others as well as learning about different niches.
2 Reply
Steve B.
Engineer · Portland, OR · Member since 2014 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
8y
@Chris Jensen I barely manage to fit it in between video games, binge drinking, and downloading movies. However I read “miracle morning” so I only sleep 2 hours a night, and now I can make a little time for wasteful indulgences like BP
21 Reply
Jason D.
Rental Property Investor · St. Petersburg, FL · Member since 2017 · 3k+ posts · 4k+ votes
8y
I have a lot of downtime at work so I spend a good portion of that time on BP. I really enjoy seeing what other people in the field are up to and helping when I can. The networking here is also an invaluable tool that is absolutely necessary to be successful in this business, so it's time well spent.
4 Reply
Jay HinrichsBusiness Member
Real Estate Consultant · Summerlin, NV · Member since 2014 · 45k+ posts · 66k+ votes
8y
for me its my morning routine of coffee and one screen on my emails and funding docs coming in from the east coast and the other screen on BP, then my aviation site I like.. and like now when I just came back from a Vendor dinner in Indy to check.. for a few minutes before bed.. its just part of my routine.. I don't do facebook or linken or any other type of social media so this allows an hour a day or so for BP.. and I check It every day even if I am in Thailand or Paris.. or Tel aviv or Singapore.. all the hotels have wireless.
And the fishing lodges I go to up in Canada have wireless.. so until I take my next true boonies trip I always have my routine .. as long as I have a wireless. I don't use bp on my phone though.. don't like that too hard to use that .
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12 Reply
Ali Hashemi
Investor · Southern Indiana, IN · Member since 2017 · 178 posts · 95 votes
8y
That’s like asking how someone has time to read the paper or watch the news or catch a game. Time management & also multi-tasking :)
4 Reply
Kevin Moules
Rental Property Investor · Turlock, CA · Member since 2018 · 226 posts · 147 votes
8y
I have lived by a saying since my college days., "You can sleep when your dead" :) . I work full time and run a handyman business after work and on weekends to support my family. I jump on BP after everyone has gone to bed and until I can no longer keep my eyes open. Case in point, its currently 11pm here in CA. I try to visit at least 2-3 times a week but other nights I am trying to analyze properties and look over the MLS listings. Still I do not spend the time I should on RE since I am still looking for my first deal.
1 Reply
Gilbert Dominguez
Investor · Detroit, MI · Member since 2016 · 211 posts · 144 votes
8y
Well, I am retired now, Not !!!
I did not expect retirement to go the way is has but now I have plenty of time to go around scouting properties and doing residential design work that fits the kind of lots all around me and even around the world. I have more time to travel now and have meet ups with fellow investors both old and experienced and new, seeking knowledge which I am more than happy to pass along whenever it can prove to be of benefit to others.
Since retiring I have probably made more deals and invested more money than ever before. Thank God I am also making a lot more money from my projects.
One thing you look for when retired is something that will keep you cerebral, intellectually stimulated and of course a place to socialize and talk about common interest, this is what Bigger Pockets has become for me. I think we have something like 1,000,000 members now , is that right?
The way I have done real estate is mostly from gut feelings about a property's potential for generating income and appreciating. Except for when I first got starting and losing money left and right once I learned a thing or two about investing I have been on a 30 year winning streak. I always say 30 years even when I first joined Bigger Pockets and although by now its been closer to 36 or 37 years I still always say 30 years. I figure that is enough to get the point across and also saying 30 years has become a kind of habit for me so I just leave it.
I am fascinated by those that take the time to actually learn all of the technical concepts of evaluating a property and figuring out expected profits , taxes etc. I guess I will always be one of those old timers that has learned to find water with a stick and never be one of those really technical guys although of course I can see the value of being technical. I will always be like an old elephant that can smell water just underneath my feet and not relay on technical analysis but I also realize not every one was born to just get lucky as much as I have.
4 Reply
James MasottiPro Member
Rental Property Investor · Washington Township, NJ · Member since 2015 · 1k+ posts · 976 votes
8y
I honestly should be more active than I am. I sort of feel like I'm in a weird spot in my investing career where I'm no longer the newbie where I need to post lots of questions on the forums. BP has also been around for so long now I can usually find a ton of threads where people like @Jay Hinrichs , @Rachel H., and @Russell Brazil, or @Chris Mason, or @Steve Babiak, or any number of other super intelligent and seasoned members of BP have already answered my questions. I've also had the opportunity over the years to network (mostly online) with a handful of these folks and others, that I can just send them an email or private message directly.
Bottom line is I don't often start new threads to ask these questions...therefore the number of posts I make goes down.
Furthermore, when it comes to answering questions...I like providing people with references and resources more times than not rather than just my opinion. So my responses tend to include links to previous blog posts or forum threads or a specific website continuing the source information for the question the person is asking. As a result it's often a rather time consuming process for me to type up a response to someone's forum post...and as you said we're all busy and I sadly just don't make my time on BP as much of a priority as maybe I should.
Thing brings me to my third point...the majority of the threads where I do comment, are around the key words that I follow. These tend to be around my markets...both of which are relatively small, so they don't always have a ton of traction. Unfortunately for me though since I invest in Wilmington Delaware, I get a lot of keyword alerts for people investing in Wilmington, North Carolina ( a super hot market right now, sadly impacted by Florence currently) as well as the very large number of people talking about Delaware Statutory Trusts(DSTs) for doing their 1031 exchanges. So...I also filter through a lot of this.
When I do decide to post, I'm a slow reader, so I don't often jump into threads that are already super hot and popular with hundreds of responses, because I always feel obligated to read all the posts before commenting. Usually once a thread gets past the first page, either
1. the persons original question has already been answered
2. There have been several follow up questions asked
3. An entirely new discussion (debate) has broken out in the ensuing pages
As a result of these things if I don't read all of those long threads I view my post as being non-value added to the conversation, so I don't make it.
For this reason I often find myself looking at brand new discussions, or responding to unanswered forum posts that do fall into my limited wheelhouse of knowledge.
All this means I post rather infrequently due to my own overthinking about the value and purpose that I have on BP. Biggerpockets has given me so much in my time as an investors that I want my contributions to be truly value added.
Anyway...that's probably enough for now :) Just my perspective though.
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2 Reply
Matthew McNeil
Rental Property Investor · Boise/Portland · Member since 2017 · 709 posts · 742 votes
8y
How do I have time to be active on BP?
I need to spend time here.
Its an investment in knowledge and the opportunity to build on a wealth of experience that other BP member are willing to share - free of charge. And, people on these forums are genuinely trying to help each other out. I've gleaned a pocketfull of nuggets that have fine tuned my investment strategy.
2 Reply
Ian WalshBusiness Member
Lender · Philadelphia, PA · Member since 2016 · 2k+ posts · 1k+ votes
8y
5 minutes. Busy is a choice.
4 Reply
Ian Tvardovskaya
Investor · Columbus, OH · Member since 2017 · 86 posts · 74 votes
8y
@Chris Jensen I realized that I spend 1hourish a day on FB and other socials in my downtime. To make myself a better investor I switched the BP and FB app locations on my phone. Now when I just pull out my phone my muscle reflexes pull up yHE BP app. It's a great way to learn and interact without budgeting extra time.
2 Reply
Chris Jensen
OP
Rental Property Investor · Bettendorf, IA · Member since 2017 · 187 posts · 256 votes
8y
@Kevin Moules, yes! Plenty of time for sleep when we're dead. Sounds like your life is full. Mine it too, so I can relate. Much of my real estate researching and learning happens after 10pm, crazy. Keep up the search for that first deal!
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