What type of investor are you?

Most people do not understand the importance of determining what type
of investor they are. It is one of the most important concepts you should learn; your profile will govern how you invest your time, energy, and money from now and into the future.
To help establish your profile, examine your aspirations, which are based
on how you answer the following questions. (No one but you will know
your answers, so be honest with yourself.)

• Why are you doing what you’re doing?
• Why did you take the risk?
• Why did you spend the money?
• What are you going to do with it?

I ask this question at seminars all the time: “Why are you doing this?” The
typical response is, “I want more money.”
There’s a reason why you are doing this... why you are sitting there reading
this, and spending your time learning how to become a real estate investor. Why are you doing what you are doing?

I would like to share a story with you. When I was a young boy my father
worked extremely hard; combined with many long hours, we did not see
him very often. There was a time when we lived in Boise, Idaho, and his
job was in Salt Lake City, Utah, where he worked six days a week, 12-hour
days. On weekends he would make the six-hour drive home to Boise. He
would sleep in his car on the way so that he would be able to spend all day
Sunday with us. He did this every week for two solid years. I recall that as
a little kid (I was only six) that I really respected my dad for that. I
remember thinking: “That’s amazing that my dad would make that
sacrifice.” I recall another time when I was older and in high school, I was
on the high school wrestling team. I had wrestling practice and a meet
every week; my father usually missed them because of his work. He had
to make sure we had food, shelter, water, and an education. It’s my guess
that many of you sitting and watching me are thinking, “Yeah, I had to
miss my daughter’s ballerina recital just last week and that killed me
inside.”

I shared my father’s story with you because I need to make this perfectly
clear: achieving your financial goals will be tough. Any investor who has
been investing for a while will tell you that you’ll always go through tough
times. No matter what you do, there will be something that is tough for you
to deal with and overcome. You will experience rough times that will seem
almost impossible to get through.

If money is the only motivation you have, it will leave you empty. But if
you have deeper motivations – like freedom, time to be with your family...
all those things that mean more than just money – they will help make you
successful. These motivators will force you to wake up in the morning
earlier than ever before; they will help you work later than you’ve ever
worked before; they will help you work harder and be more effective than
ever. That’s why understanding yourself, understanding why you are doing
what you’re doing and being honest with yourself, are the most important
things you can gain from this learning.