Let’s say you skip staging or hold off on reducing price to meet the market.

Get someone to ensure any entry ways are secured and don't allow your tenant's elevated anxiety state become yours. 

One of the biggest mistakes starting investors make would be to hold onto a decent amount of money because the anxiety around emergency money or hesitation.

How much will having a toaster oven and cooktop/hotplate reduce the rent this unit can command?

Joint investments will just about always come with their share of difficulties and anxieties and if you don't plan for how to handle these it is far too easy for the partners to start blaming each other and taking out their frustrations on each other.A well drafted LLC Operating Agreement (OA) can plan for and anticipate the difficulties and the unknowns of the joint investment.

I'm trying to overcome my initial anxieties of diving in head first, I just feel like I need some practice before committing.

If this is the case then there is no need to change or reduce your withholdings.

I have noticed that his capacity and bandwidth has been reduced as he scales into commercial and other aspects of his business.Has anyone successfully tranistioned from a strong mentor to independent investor?

What technique do flippers who don't want to pay buyer agent commissions using to market direct to buyers?

This would reduce your livings expenses as you live there which increases your savings rate to do it again.