富爸爸穷爸爸-第27部分

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？Stop　doing　what　you're　doing。　In　other　words；　take　a　break　and　assess　what　is　working　and　what　is　not　working。　The　definition　of　insanity　is　doing　the　same　thing　and　expecting　a　different　result。　Stop　doing　what　is　not　working　and　look　for　something　new　to　do。

？Look　for　new　ideas。　For　new　investing　ideas；　I　go　to　bookstores　and　look　for　books　on　different　and　unique　subjects。　I　call　them　formulas。　I　buy　howto　books　on　a　formula　I　know　nothing　about。　For　example；　it　was　in　the　bookstore　that　I　found　the　book　The　16　Percent　Solution；　by　Joel　Moskowitz。　I　bought　the　book　and　read　it。
　
TAKE　ACTION！　The　next　Thursday；　I　did　exactly　as　the　book　said。　Step　by　step。　I　have　also　done　that　with　finding　real　estate　bargains　in　attorneys'　offices　and　in　banks。　Most　people　do　not　take　action；　or　they　let　someone　talk　them　out　of　whatever　new　formula　they　are　studying。　My　neighbor　told　me　why　16　percent　would　not　work。　　I　did　not　listen　to　him　because　he's　never　done　it。

？Find　someone　who　has　done　what　you　want　to　do。　Take　them　to　lunch。　Ask　them　for　tips；　for　little　tricks　of　the　trade。　As　for　16　percent　tax　lien　certificates；　I　went　to　the　county　tax　office　and　found　the　government　employee　who　worked　in　the　office。　I　found　out　that　she；　too；　invested　in　the　tax　liens。　Immediately；　she　was　invited　to　lunch。　She　was　thrilled　to　tell　me　everything　she　knew　and　how　to　do　it。　After　lunch；　she　spent　all　afternoon　showing　me　everything。　By　the　next　day；　I　found　two　great　properties　with　her　help　and　have　been　accruing　interest　at　16　percent　ever　since。　It　took　a　day　to　read　the　book；　a　day　to　take　action；　an　hour　for　lunch；　and　a　day　to　acquire　two　great　deals。

？Take　classes　and　buy　tapes。　I　search　the　newspapers　for　new　and　interesting　classes。　Many　are　for　free　or　a　small　fee。　I　also　attend　and　pay　for　expensive　seminars　on　what　I　want　to　learn。　I　am　wealthy　and　free　from　needing　a　job　simply　because　of　the　courses　I　took。　I　have　friends　who　did　not　take　those　classes　who　told　me　I　was　wasting　my　money；　and　yet　they're　still　at　the　same　job。

？Make　lots　of　offers。　When　I　want　a　piece　of　real　estate；　I　look　at　many　properties　and　generally　write　an　offer。　If　you　don't　know　what　the　〃right　offer〃　is；　neither　do　I。　That　is　'the　job　of　the　real　estate　agent。　They　make　the　offers。　I　do　as　little　work　as　possible。
A　friend　wanted　me　to　show　her　how　to　buy　apartment　houses。　　So　one　Saturday　she；　her　agent　and　I　went　and　looked　at　six　apartment　houses。　　Four　were　dogs；　but　two　were　good。　　I　said　to　write　offers　on　all　six；　offering　half　of　what　the　owners　asked　for。　　She　and　the　agent　nearly　had　heart　attacks。　They　thought　it　would　be　rude；　that　I　might　offend　the　sellers；　but　I　really　don't　think　the　agent　wanted　to　work　that　hard。　　So　they　did　nothing　and　went　on　looking　for　a　better　deal。
No　offers　were　ever　made；　and　that　person　is　still　looking　for　the　〃right〃　deal　at　the　right　price。　Well；　you　don't　know　what　the　right　price　is　until　you　have　a　second　party　who　wants　to　deal。　Most　sellers　ask　too　much。　　It　is　rare　that　a　seller　will　actually　ask　a　price　that　is　less　than　something　is　worth。
Moral　of　the　story：　Make　offers。　People　who　are　not　investors　have　no　idea　what　it　feels　like　to　be　trying　to　sell　something。　I　have　had　a　piece　of　real　estate　that　I　wanted　to　sell　for　months。　I　would　have　weled　anything。　I　would　not　care　how　low　the　price。　They　could　have　offered　me　ten　pigs　and　I　would　have　been　happy。　Not　at　the　offer；　but　just　because　someone　was　interested。　I　would　have　countered；　maybe　for　a　pig　farm　in　exchange。　But　that's　how　the　game　works。　The　game　of　buying　and　selling　is　fun。　Keep　that　in　mind。　It's　fun　and　only　a　game。　Make　offers。　Someone　might　say　〃yes。〃
And　I　always　make　offers　with　escape　clauses。　In　real　estate；　I　make　an　offer　with　the　words　〃subject　to　approval　of　business　partner。〃　I　never　specify　who　the　business　partner　is。　Most　people　do　not　know　my　partner　is　my　cat。　If　they　accept　the　offer；　and　I　don't　want　the　deal；　I　call　my　home　and　speak　to　my　cat。　I　make　this　absurd　statement　to　illustrate　how　absurdly　easy　and　simple　the　game　is。　So　many　people　make　things　too　difficult　and　take　them　too　seriously。
Finding　a　good　deal；　the　right　business；　the　right　people；　the　right　investors；　or　whatever　is　just　like　dating。　You　must　go　to　the　market　and　talk　to　a　lot　of　people；　make　a　lot　of　offers；　counteroffers；　negotiate；　reject　and　accept。　I　know　single　people　who　sit　at　home　and　wait　for　the　phone　to　ring；　but　unless　you're　Cindy　Crawford　or　Tom　Cruise；　I　think　you'd　best　go　to　the　market；　even　if　it's　only　the　supermarket。　Search；　offer；　reject；　negotiate　and　accept　are　all　parts　of　the　process　of　almost　everything　in　life。

？Jog；　walk　or　drive　a　certain　area　once　a　month　for　ten　minutes。　I　have　found　some　of　my　best　real　estate　investments　while　jogging。　I　will　jog　a　certain　neighborhood　for　a　year。　What　I　look　for　is　change。　For　there　to　be　profit　in　a　deal；　there　must　be　two　elements：　a　bargain　and　change。　There　are　lots　of　bargains；　but　it's　change　that　turns　a　bargain　into　a　profitable　opportunity。　　So　when　I　jog；　I　jog　a　neighborhood　I　might　like　to　invest　in。　　It　is　the　repetition　that　causes　me　to　notice　slight　differences。　I　notice　real　estate　signs　that　are　up　for　a　long　time。　That　means　the　seller　might　be　more　agreeable　to　deal。　I　watch　for　moving　trucks；　going　in　or　out。　　I　stop　and　talk　to　the　drivers。　I　talk　to　the　postal　carriers。　It's　amazing　how　much　information　they　acquire　about　an　area。
I　find　a　bad　area；　especially　an　area　that　the　news　has　scared　everyone　away　from。　　I　drive　it　for　sometimes　a　year　waiting　for　signs　of　something　changing　for　the　better。　I　talk　to　retailers；　especially　new　ones；　and　find　out　why　they're　moving　in。　It　takes　only　a　few　minutes　a　month；　and　I　do　it　while　doing　something　else；　like　exercising；　or　going
to　and　from　the　store。

？As　for　stocks；　I　like　Peter　Lynch's　book　Beating　the　Street　for　his　formula　for　selecting　stocks　that　grow　in　value。　I　have　found　that　the　principles　of　finding　value　are　the　same　regardless　if　it's　real　estate；　stocks；　mutual　funds；　new　panies；　a　new　pet；　a　new　home；　a　new　spouse；　or　a　bargain　on　laundry　detergent。　The　process　is　always　the　same。　You　need　to　know　what　you're　looking　for　and　then　go　look　for　it！

？Why　consumers　will　always　be　poor。　When　the　supermarket　has　a　sale　on；　say；　toilet　paper；　the　consumer　runs　in　and　stocks　up。　When　the　stock　market　has　a　sale；　most　often　called　a　crash　or　correction；　the　consumer　runs　away　from　it。　When　the　supermarket　raises　its　prices；　the　consumer　shops　elsewhere。　When　the　stock　market　raises　its　prices；　the　consumer　starts　buying。

？Look　in　the　right　places。　A　neighbor　bought　a　condominium　for　100；000。　I　bought　the　identical　condo　next　door　to　his　for　50；000。　He　told　me　he's　waiting　for　the　price　to　go　up。　I　told　him　that　his　profit　is　made　when　you　buy；　not　when　you　sell。　He　shopped　with　a　real　estate　broker　who　owns　no　property　of　her　own。　I　shopped　at　the　foreclosure　department　of　a　bank。　I　paid　500　for　a　class　on　how　to　do　this。　My　neighbor　thought　that　the　500　for　a　real　estate　investment　class　was　too　expensive。　He　said　he　could　not　afford　it；　and　he　couldn't　afford　the　time。　　So　he　waits　for　the　price　to　go　up。
　
？I　look　for　people　who　want　to　buy　first；　then　I　look　for　someone　who　wants　to　sell。　A　friend　was　looking　for　a　certain　piece　of　land。　He　had　the　money　and　did　not　have　the　time。　I　found　a　large　piece　of　land　larger　than　what　my　friend　wanted　to　buy；　tied　it　up　with　an　option；　called　my　friend　and　he　wanted　a　piece　of　it。　So　I　sold　the　piece　to　him　and　then　bought　the　land。　I　kept　the　remaining　land　as　mine　for　free。　Moral　of　the　story：　Buy　the　pie　and　cut　it　in　pieces。　Most　people　look　for　what　they　can　afford；　so　they　look　too　small。　They　buy　only　a　piece　of　the　pie；　so　they　end　up　paying　more　for　less。　　Small　thinkers　don't　get　the　big　breaks。　If　you　want　to　get　richer；　think　bigger　first。
Retailers　love　giving　volume　discounts；　simply　because　most　business　people　love　big　spenders。　　So　even　if　you're　small；　you　can　always　think　big。　When　my　pany　was　in　the　market　for　puters；　I　called　several　friends　and　asked　them　if　they　were　ready　to　buy　also。　We　then　went　to　different　dealers　and　negotiated　a　great　deal　because　we　wanted　to　buy　so　many。　I　have　done　the　same　with　stocks。　Small　people　remain　small　because　they　think　small；　act　alone；　or　don't　act　all。

？Learn　from　history。　All　the　big　panies　on　the　stock　exchange　started　out　as　small　panies。　　Colonel　Sanders　did　not　get　rich　until　after　he　lost　everything　in　his　60s。　　Bill　Gates　was　one　of　the　richest　men　in　the　world　before　he　was　30。

？Action　always　beats　inaction。
These　are　just　a　few　of　the　things　I　have　done　and　continue　to　do　to　recognize　opportunities。　The　important　words　being　〃done〃　and　〃do〃。　As　repeated　many　times　throughout　the　book；　you　must　take　action　before　you　can　receive　the　financial　rewards。　Act　now！
　
EPILOGUE

How　To　Pay　for　a　Child's　College　Education　for　7000

As　the　book　draws　to　a　close　and　approaches　publication；　I　would　like　to　share　a　final　thought　with　you。　The　main　reason　I　wrote　this　book　was　to　share　insights　into　how　increased　financial　intelligence　can　be　used　to　solve　many　of　life's　mon　problems。　Without　financial　training；　we　all　too　often　use　the　standard　formulas　to　get　through　life；　such　as　to　work　hard；　save；　borrow　and　pay　excessive　taxes。　Today　we　need　better　information。
I　use　the　following　story　as　a　final　example　of　a　financial　problem　that　confronts　many　young　families　today。　How　do　you　afford　a　good　education　for　your　children　and　provide　for　your　own　retirement？　It　is　an　example　of　using　financial　intelligence　instead　of　hard　work　to　achieve　the　same　goal。
A　friend　of　mine　was　griping　one　day　about　how　hard　it　was　to　save　money　for　his　four　children's　college　education。　He　was　putting　300　away　in　a　mutual　fund　each　month　and　had　so　far　accumulated　about　12；000。　　He　estimated　he　needed　400；000　to　get　four　children　through　college。　He　had　12　years　to　save　for　it；　since　his　oldest　child　was　then　6　years　of　age。
The　year　was　1991；　and　the　real　estate　market　in　Phoenix　was　terrible。　People　were　giving　houses　away。　I　suggested　to　my　classmate　that　he　buy　a　house　with　some　of　the　money　in　his　mutual　fund。　The　idea　intrigued　him　and　we　began　to　discuss　the　possibility。　His　primary　concern　was　that　he　did　not　have　the　credit　with　the　bank　to　buy　another　house；　since　he　was　so　overextended。　I　assured　him　that　there　were　other　ways　to　finance　a　property　other　than　through　the　bank。
We　looked　for　a　house　for　two　weeks；　a　house　that　would　fit　all　the　criteria　we　were　looking　for。　There　were　a　lot　to　choose　from；　so　the　shopping　was　kind　of　fun。　Finally；　we　found　a　3　bedroom　2　bath　home　in　a　prime　neighborhood。　The　owner　had　been　downsized　and　needed　to　sell　that　day　because　he　and　his　family　were　moving　to　California　where　another　job　waited。
He　wanted　102；000；　but　we　offered　only　79；000。　He　took　it　immediately。　The　home　had　on　it　what　is　called　a　nonqualifying　loan；　which　means　even　a　bum　without　a　job　could　buy　it　without　a　banker's　approval。　The　owner　owed　72；000　so　all　my　friend　had　to　e　up　with　was　7；000；　the　difference　in　price　between　what