Some Ramblings

Johb T. Reed
My wife informed me late last week that a REI guru was coming to town tonight. His name is Robert Allan. I've heard the name, but I haven't looked at his material, so I thought I would do some online searches. Interestingly, I found a web site of a person named John T. Reed that has personal reviews of just about every REI guru on the planet. I spent a good 40 minutes looking at his comments on the REI gurus I am familiar with. To my surprise, he gives no recommendations for just about all of them. He seems to have done his research, too, judging by his comments on them.

Even after reading his comments, I haven't been swayed in the least by my own venture. Why? Because I know REI works. I have read posts by ordinary people like myself who have freed themselves from the corporate shackles and are now enjoying life on their terms. Plus, I have personally met a couple people who have done the same thing.

From what I gather from John T. Reed, he may or may not be smearing these people for his own advancement, however, he never really comes out and says all their stuff is worthless, either (although he hints at hint from time to time). I don't care if Robert Kiyosaki fabricated the truth in his Rich Dad, Poor Dad kids as long as his methods work - which they do. That is the main point.

A Time for Reflection
With the holiday season right around the corner, my life has been shifted somewhat from REI to not-REI. I haven't devoted a lot of my free time to REI this past week, and I really don't see myself doing it anytime until after the holiday season is over. There are just too many distractions right now - at work and at home. My JOB is demanding more of my time in order that some dealines in January can still be made. And home life has struggled as I prepare for the holiday season. I plan to take the last two weeks of the year off as vacation, but it will only be a vacation in the sense I won't be driving to work every day - I'll still be working, though.

Once the holiday season is over, however, I plan to go full force back into REI. I've managed to fulfill one milestone, but I have several more to complete by the end of January. And I don't want to procrastinate.

Situational Analysis
One of the things I am going to do between now and the new year is write down several scenarios and analyse them. For example, what if I meet with a seller in the near future. What will I say? How will I convince him I am on his/her side? And what if the seller agrees to sell me thir property? What method will I use? Who can I flip the S&P contract to? How can I close? What will my exit strategy be? How can I be assured my documents are legally correct and that I have all the required documents? And so on. I want to better prepare myself for the opportunistic time, and not blow it because I missed some crucial step because I was in a hurry to close my first deal.