First Post
I wrote this first post a few days ago, but then a 4 year old shut down my computer before I published it. Apparently this blogging software doesn't autosave as you write. It ain't Gmail.
Rather than recreate what was lost, I'll give the summarized version here.
Personal Background:
I live and work in Tacoma WA. I grew up in nearby Puyallup, about 15 minutes away. I've got two kids 6 and 4, and a hot wife. My day job is owning and operating a gym called Tacoma Strength (aka CrossFit Tacoma) which I founded about 5 years ago.
Prior to this I was an elementary school teacher at an international school in Bangkok Thailand for three years. When we were planning our move back to America I had two business goals. One was to start the gym. Two was to invest in real estate.
Five years in, the gym is booming and I've finally got the headspace and time to pursue my other goal.
Relevant Skills:
Starting a business from scratch will force you to master a lot of skills. From negotiating a lease, learning the necessary skills of the trade (nutrition, anatomy, exercise science), marketing, managing a staff, collaborating with other businesses, systems development, customer service, to woodworking and facility maintenance.
While all those skills are important, I think the biggest ones are internal. The biggest lessons to learn have been about how I manage my own personal workflow, and to learn to balance between dreamer and business mind.
One of the adages that I often hear among successful RE investors is to treat your investments like a business. I'm reasonably confident I can do that.
Resources:
Apart from business experience, I know a lot of people. We've got 350+ members at the gym. Half a dozen that I can name off the top of my head are brokers. Others are RE investors themselves. Still others work at city hall and are relatively senior in their departments. Some are contractors, some are lawyers, some are accountants, some are bankers.
By virtue of my frequent close contact with a lot of people, I've unwittingly surrounded myself with a lot of people who are capable of helping me with this new endeavor.
That'll do for this post. Next post will be about timeline and benchmarks. After that, I'll start to outline my business plan.
Comments (4)
Hey Morgan - A word to the wise. Write your posts in Word and save them there. Then copy them into the blog. I learned this the hard way too. It's much easier to edit too. Good luck with real estate. Sharon
Sharon Vornholt, over 11 years ago
@Al Williamson Thanks for the feedback. Your website looks interesting. I'll be reading through it soon. @John Moore Thanks for the comment. You're right, I didn't mention where I want to specialize in my first blog post. It was just my first post to introduce myself and express my intention for the blog. If you look at my third post "Biz Plan" I do.
Morgan Blackmore, over 11 years ago
You didn't mention what area of interst you wish to specialize in. Review some of the podcasts and select the direction you wish to pursue. Your sphere of interest shoud be a big asset. Don't attempt to lift more weight than you are trained for. Review some of the good information that is available as well as participate in some local real estate groups to determine what's going on in the outside world. Focus on the area you want to pursue and explore the opportunities before you approach your inner circle. Good luck and welcome aboard.
John Moore, over 11 years ago
Morgan, it's great to have another person with your perspective around this place. You sound like a kick-the-door-in type of guy with an awesome network to back you up. Very cool. I'm following along to see how you're going to harness your unfair advantage and convert potential into cash flow. Please keep the blog post flowing. I, for one, will be waiting for them.
Al Williamson, over 11 years ago