You can't do everything yourself... If everything in your business depends upon YOU, then you don't really have a business - your business has YOU. It took me a LONG time to learn that, as I was essentially a one-man shop in my Web Hosting business for a very long time. Now thankfully I had learned this lesson by the time I got into Real Estate. But old habits are often hard to break...

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Intro...

Welcome to Episode #36 - VA's (Virtual Assistants) & Your Rental Real Estate Business Team

So back in 2015 when I first got into Real Estate Investing, I knew that I would be buying distressed properties for rehab into rentals - but that I'd be doing very little of this work myself. Even still, I couldn't resist the temptation to do certain things myself - since I'm a pretty handy guy.

So while I wasn't doing anything major or skilled like putting in flooring, electrical work, HVAC or anything like that - not even painting. But I did a lot of minor stuff, like putting up blinds, changing locks and door knobs, installing the occasional dishwasher or garbage disposal. For my second property, I even put in the bath vanities myself and did some tile back splash work. I enjoyed this hands on activity, especially because it was often work done with my son who was 8 at the time (he's now 12). But I also knew that I couldn't scale this business and expand to other markets, if I was doing any of the rehab work myself.

So as I moved forward with each project, I tried (often unsuccessfully) to remove myself from the rehab process and instead rely upon vendors and contractors to handle the work. I got better as each project moved forward, but with the properties being right here in my back yard (none more than 20 minutes away from where I live) - its hard NOT to do certain tasks myself - things that I'm fully able to do and may actually enjoy doing.

Like, why should I pay someone something around $30 per hour to install blinds, and they take 4 hours to install 8; whereas I can do it myself in half that time for FREE!? I'll save $120! Some people charge like $175 to install a fan (that I bought for $50) - so I can save that money by doing it myself! Or will I? We must remember that our time has value also. What is your personal hourly rate? I've not set one for myself, but it is certainly more than $30/hr. And what's it worth to remain at home with family on a Saturday or Sunday instead of being at a rental property doing work? Even if you enjoy that work!?

And there are many things that I'm fully able to do myself, but I HATE doing them. Like I have 2 pressure washers (two!) that I use once per year on my own house. But if I had to pressure wash homes for a living, I'd charged $1,500 - because that's hard work. I'll gladly pay someone else $150 to handle it for me, but I do it myself for the house I live in, only because its also good exercise.

But I have to force myself NOT to do certain things myself, and to instead rely upon others to do those things on my behalf - even if I'm able to handle them myself at a perceived cost savings. I must value my own time more than the savings. But its hard to maintain that stance, especially if someone wants $175 to install a damn fan. Thankfully, I can get it done much cheaper - by members of the team that I've built.

Just this weekend I got a call from a tenant reporting that a hose has come loose from the water heater, that spewed water everywhere in the basement prior to her finding the cutoff value. Luckily it was noticed before any significant water damage occurred. I had her open a ticket and post a picture to the ticket, and I could easily see in that picture the issue. The clamp holding the hose to the base had come loose, and it just needed to be re-attached and tightened, plus maybe replace the clamp at most.

Now I could have easily driven over and handled it (all my tools are right there in the back of my truck) - but instead I called the person on my team who handles my general repairs and maintenance tasks, and he called the tenant back to arrange access to handle the issue. And if upon arriving he had determined that he couldn't handle it, I would have then called the plumber on my team to handle it instead. In either case it would have cost me money to handle (much more if it had required my plumber) - but I got to continue sitting at home in my pajamas.

But the interesting thing is what I was doing at that exact moment in my pajamas when the tenant called to report the leak - that ultimately got handled with no action required on my part, other than a phone call and a few text messages.

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So at that moment I was on the website Upwork.com - and I was in the process of writing a job posting for a General VA (Virtual Assistant) to aid me in my Real Estate Business.

This posting was to find a VA to not just aid me in various general tasks, but also to aid my Administrative Assistant. My Administrative Assistant (I guess my AA) is actually a trusted family member. She handles those things for me that require information or access that I just wouldn't be comfortable giving to someone on the other side of the world - whom I've never met in person and have no direct access to.

For example, my trusted AA has access to my merchant account and my QuickBooks accounting system, and my tenant and property management systems - and just about all my other critical systems. So this role has to be someone I have direct access to here in the USA, and for me, it helps that I've known this person my entire life, trust them implicitly and love them dearly. This person would never do anything intentionally to harm me, and they have perfect skills and time available to perform in this role for me - and I can train them for anything else.

But this person can only do so much, like I can only do so much. So it must be determined, what is the highest and best use of our respective time? For me, its certainly not fixing leaks or putting up blinds, even if I'm good at it and might enjoy the time spent working with my hands - plus the cost savings.

Instead, I outsource this work to a person on my team - who is grateful for the work. And I spend my time doing those things that only I can do. For example, at this point no one else would be able to hire this VA to benefit me and my business. I know what I need... I know what I'm looking for.

And that is a person who speaks and writes English VERY well. I must be able to easily communicate with this person via Skype by both audio / video and text chat. They must be expert with using computers and the Internet. I can't be spending time showing someone how to right-click their mouse.

They must have knowledge and skills of using Social Media, conducting Internet Research, and just certain concepts of United States Real Estate in general. Second only to English skills, they must be teachable. I have to be able to tell or show them how to do something once or twice, and they've got it. I don't have time to be going over the same thing 4 or 5 times.

So I'll find this person to be my General Virtual Assistant (GVA), and I'll start them with a single task - and then one by one, I'll give them progressively more tasks until I get them up to full time hours.

My plan is to conduct this work of bringing on a GVA in association with my primary trusted Administrative Assistant (AA) - so that I can train my AA on each task while also training the GVA. So that when I need additional VA's or must replace the GVA at some point, the next one can be handled entirely on my behalf by my AA.

Again, I'm thinking about how to protect my time for what is my highest and best use - and that's not training VA's over and over again. Plus eventually, my AA will be able to find, screen, hire and train VA's on my behalf - without me. I will have fired myself from this job, to move-on to higher dollar activities. I have to repeatedly ask myself - what is the highest and best use of my time? And you know what that is?

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I need more distressed properties to rehab into rentals. I need them for myself to grow my own portfolio of rental properties; and for the investor clients I work with as their Realtor.

I need deals, deals, deals... I need them from the MLS, from wholesalers, and from any and every off market source. So the highest and best use of my time right now is everything related to marketing for deals, analyzing deals, making offers on deals, getting properties under contract, and on - for me and for my clients. And a lot of what is involved to do these things at a high level involves repetitive tasks that can also eventually be outsourced to a VA.

And over time, I'll get to the point where each VA is working on a single aspect of the process, so they can do one job well and at a high volume... I'm trying to build a deal assembly line. When I get there, I'll again fire myself from several roles. Ultimately my singular role will be as an ambassador for Blue Chariot to raise capital. Anything else will ideally be handled by a combination of my AA, GVA and other VA's, plus vendors, contractors and other team members - including strategic partners, like Garrett White, who I interviewed in episode #17.

You may recall from that episode that Garrett and I are building a house - our first new build project. Well its done now and under contract to be sold - set to close next month. The combination of a great GC and Garrett managing the project (with input from myself as needed) - has resulted in what should be a highly profitable exit. Now we're looking for another vacant lot to do it again, so I'm documenting the process and steps that I undertake in looking for lots and making offers. And I expect to be able to hand this process off to a VA tasked with this singular endeavor. And I know this is far more likely to meet with success, than me trying to do it myself. Because I can't be consistent with it, so its just hit or miss when it depends on me.

But outsourced to a VA that repeats the same process and actions daily, I'm 100% certain I'll find our next vacant lot and get the GC back to work on another profitable project. And think, its not just profitable for ME. Yes, I benefit, but so does Garrett. So does my AA. And any GVA and VA's on my team also benefit. The GC benefits, as does every vendor and sub-contractor on his team. My lenders benefit, as do vendors and other members of my team. And the resulting home owner or tenant benefits. I could go on and on - but you get the point... By being a Rental Real Estate business owner who is willing to outsource and leverage other people to grow your business, you become like the SUN - shining on everything, and a whole lot of things revolve around YOU. Because I didn't go anywhere near as far as I could have in detailing all who benefit from your efforts as a high-level Real Estate Investor.

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So benefit yourself and others around you by being the best version of yourself that you can be. And you won't get there by trying to do everything yourself. VA's are a great way to build your team. If it can be done with a computer / the Internet or a phone - then why not use a VA? We are in the most amazing time to be alive in the history of the world. The Internet and technology have made a world-wide work force of intelligent individuals available at our fingertips. Leverage them! We need their help, and they need and want the work.

You may be able to pay a skilled VA as little as $5/hr (and I've seen offers to work for even less) - and that $5/hr may be 5 times more in an hour than the average person makes in an entire day in some countries. You don't think they want that job!?

So right now I'm reading a book (audible.com) called "Virtual Freedom". If I like it once finished I'll add it to the books page with the other great books at: andlandlord.com/books/ - but so far it has provided some great insight into the justification and process of outsourcing to VA's. The author of the book owns a VA staffing firm, and it appears they charge $495 to do all the needful to find a VA for your business on your behalf. And it involves all the screening and interviewing and everything that you then don't have to do. I may try that, but I'll go with Upwork.com first, as the current Webmaster (Zohaib) for my Web Hosting business (ViUX) came from a job I posted on Upwork back when it was still elance.

So everything you see at ViUX.com (V-I-U-X), BlueChariot.com, andlandlord.com - and many other sites of ViUX clients, and several other sites - all came from Zohaib who lives in Pakistan. And I meet him on what later became Upwork.com. We're now close enough that I've gotten pictures from his weeding and of his child as she grows.

Although I've never meet him in person, we've worked together long enough - and we've corresponded through chat and video on Skype many time over almost a decade now (maybe not quite that long). But I consider him to be a friend at this point. Yet I've never met him in person. Since my wife isn't likely to be going to Pakistan, I probably won't be meeting him anytime soon. But he travels a lot, and so maybe the next time I'm in London or if I go back to Dubai - I'll try to have an in-person meeting with him.

So Zohaib is just one of many examples of how I've successfully used Upwork.com for many projects. The intro and outro of this podcast was handled by someone I found through this site. And many custom coding jobs where handled here. So get out of the habit of trying to do everything yourself.

If you're not, then stop making excuses for WHY your not where you want to be - and leverage other people to get there. VA's are a great thing that the Internet and technology now make possible - so if there's anything that you can document that you need to get done, outsource it to a VA. Build your team with VA's, vendors and local contractors - and make great things happen in your Real Estate Business in 2020. You certainly Can't do it by yourself! Believe me - I know - I tried.

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Outro...

Disclaimer

I've done a lot of traveling recently... Want to know how my Rental Properties (and other businesses) allow me to fly almost entirely for FREE? You should, because you can also!

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Intro...

Welcome to Episode #35 - Credit Card Points Hacking… Your Rental Properties Can Allow You To Travel For FREE!

Now I'm relating this topic to my Rental Property Business; however, everything I'm going to say here relates just as well to ANY business you may choose to start - that will have some type of (and amount of) monthly expenses. And I also benefit here from having more than one business.

Regardless of your business, free travel starts with getting a business points credit card - and some are better than others. But you may thinks its hard to impossible to get business credit - especially early on... It's not really! It just requires a little time and focused effort. Certain steps when undertaken correctly will make it easier than you may think to get business credit established for your new business endeavor.

Now if your personal credit sucks, then you'll have some work to do in that regard before likely being able to get credit established for your business - but its not impossible even then. But like I said, the ticket to free flying is to get a point credit card for your business. You can even start by getting a points credit card in your personal name, but using that card exclusively for business purposes. Now DON'T mix business and personal expenses on the same card, even if its in your personal name - and certainly don't put personal expenses on your business card.

Either way - business points credit card; or personal points credit card used exclusively for business... You want to put EVERY legitimate business expense that you can onto this card each month. EVERYTHING... If it can be paid by credit card, then that is how you should be paying for it, and always on a card that generates points each month based on the transaction volume for that month.

Now if you're among the debt adverse (those who believe all debt is bad debt), then this may sound risky or outright foolishness to rack up a credit card balance each month. But just like you were going to pay your bills in full for the month, you will also be paying this credit card in full - just in the following month. No more or less money goes out, but instead of paying your bills directly, you will instead charge those bills to the points card, and then pay that SAME MONEY to the credit card in the following month. Be disciplined about this, because if you fail to pay the card off in full, then you are going to get hit with interest charges - which defeats the entire purpose of this endeavor. So if you are not financially disciplined, or don't think you can be in this - then stop listening to this episode and I'll have another show for you coming later.

But for those who can be disciplined, you're just putting the credit card temporarily in the middle of financial transactions that were going to happen anyway, at the same times, and for the same amounts. And you just put that money aside for an additional month, and pay it to the credit card in the following month when you get the bill.

But for doing so, that credit card is going to reward you with POINTS. Points you can use in some cases for many different things, but I like to stack points for FREE travel. Now as I mentioned, some cards are better than others. For example, I have a "Miles" card that whenever I try to redeem the points for a flight, they require me to pay some amount of real money in addition to some amount of my points. And that sucks... so I've yet to use those points and will likely end up cancelling that card.

But my favorite cards allow me to pay entirely in points... I don't even have to come out of pocket for taxes or anything! That's my American Express Cards. Now these cards can be expensive... I believe the American Express Platinum Card is something like $550 per year; and I think the AMEX Gold Card has an annual membership fee of like $250. So you have to make sure it's worth it for YOU , but these cards also have a ton of additional benefits that for ME, make it well worth the cost.

For instance, my latest trip, I didn't need any of the rental car add-on's (that jack-up the daily cost), because my AMEX Platinum Card covers everything. It also paid for my Global Entry and TSA Pre-Check fee.

So each month I charge all my business expenses to a points credit card - or at least those that can be paid with a credit card without incurring an additional fee from the merchant or vendor. Because some vendors may charge an additional fee of something like 3% to pay with a card. I don't do it in those case, but for all others, I pay with a points credit card whenever and wherever I can.

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For a Rental Property Business, expenses paid by credit card can include many things, such as: Insurance; Power; Water; Security Systems; certain Repairs, Maintenance, Cleaning; Lawn-care; Internet; Cable or Satellite; and on... especially in the case of multi-family Rental Properties.

You certainly want to keep your expenses to a minimum - but where you'll have them regardless, try to pay them with a points credit card. The end result will be points accumulated each month so that you can later redeem for FREE travel. And setup any that are reoccurring each month on auto-pay, so that is one less thing you need to thing about.

So each of my businesses have certain expenses that I pay by credit card for this reason. And like I said, some expenses are monthly re-occurring, and I just set them up on auto-pay; others I pay manually with a points card as they occur. Now granted, my Web Hosting Business (ViUX.com) has the highest monthly re-occurring expenses paid by credit card, so it generates the largest amount of points for me each month, but that doesn't change the power of using my Rental Property expenses to also earn FREE travel points.

Turn expenses that you were going to have ANYWAY - into YET ANOTHER way that Rental Real Estate Investing both creates income and makes you wealthy (both financially and in experiences). Because how much more likely are you to travel, when your airfare is FREE!?

I've been on at least a dozen flights so far this year, and I've yet to pay anything for airfare. Twice I paid for upgrades to get more legroom on longer flights and twice I had too much junk to get home or had done a poor job at packing, so got hit with checked bag fees (I hate those fees). But my card even reimbursed me for those, because it was on my pre-designated airline. And in some cases being a holder of certain airline cards gets you a free checked bag and priority boarding. You can even work it so that your hotel and rental car are paid with points. And with regard to the pre-designated airline, some of my bookings on that airline credit me back for up to 35% of the points spent!

So I can use points to book flights on the pre-designated airline (in my case Delta), and they may give back 35% of the points so that I can use them again. Its almost hard to believe... If you have a business (having Rental Properties is a business) and you're paying anything for airfare when you travel, then you're doing it wrong!

And since it's free, I could upgrade to Business or First Class, but even with points, I'm cheap - so I'm right back there in coach. Because a $500 ticket is 50,000 points, so I can't justify paying 2 or 3 times as much just to sit nearer to the front of the plane - even when using points. If I do that, I'll start running out of points and end up having to pay with money like everyone else. Although I may splurge for First class for our 20th anniversary next year if my wife and I are on another really long flight (like the 13 hour flight we had to Dubai in August). Maybe we'll go to Europe or to Japan for the Olympics - First Class for FREE with points!

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So my purpose for this episode is NOT just to make you aware of the concept of paying for business expenses with a points credit cards to get free travel. It's also to get you thinking differently about debt and credit cards in general. So I must go back first to something I mentioned earlier to learn what type of person YOU are.

Again, if you cannot be disciplined to pay off the card in full each month that you used for this tactic - then I told you to stop listening to this episode several minutes ago. So don't say I told you to run up a bunch of debt and ruined your business, killed your credit and whatever. I didn't do that... That's on YOU!

But for those of you still listening who CAN be disciplined enough to handle this properly - NOT doing this, is giving up a potential profit center for your business. Further, as you practice this, you'll start getting higher and higher credit limits - which will aid in your having an increased opportunities for your business.

And as your limits increase, it may also result in higher credit scores for you if using a personal points card exclusively for business expenses; or if using a business points card for which you are the personal guarantor - and it thereby appears on your personal credit reports for that reason. And having higher credit scores (up to anything above 740) will get you better rates on your cards (both business and personal) - but also better rates on your Rental Property Mortgages.

Do you follow what I'm saying? Having one or more points credit cards with high available limits that you use for business expenses and pay in full each month, will not only generate lots of points that you can use for FREE travel - but it will also aid in getting the best rates and terms on mortgage refi's and purchases of additional Rental Properties. So this practice stands to make and save you money in multiple ways!

And even if you charge thousands to such cards each month, as long as you pay them in full, your reported balance on your credit report will be low to none - so you can even avoid impacting your Debt-To-Income-Ratio. To this end, I make note of when each card updates on my credit reports, and I make sure to auto-pay the balance in full prior to that date each month. And then I schedule my reoccurring business expenses via auto-pay with each vendor to hit the card after that date. As result, my credit card balance shows as ZERO on my reports, because the balance goes up and back down again prior to reporting each month.

I'm leveraging the points credit cards to auto-pay my bills and increase my credit scores while getting FREE travel points in the process. Now like I said, American Express is my favorite points card, but be aware that some AMEX Cards don't allow you to carry a balance anyway, so those don't work as well for the credit report and credit score hacking - since they don't report the same. But other cards, including some from American Express do report your balance and credit limit, and also generate points. In fact, if you have multiple AMEX Cards, they all generate points to the same bucket - so it works very well to have multiple - each with different features and benefits.

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OK, so that's it for today... Put a plan in place as to how you're going to STOP paying for airfare and travel for FREE. If you're a business owner with significant monthly expenses, you should NOT be paying to fly anywhere. The only exception to that is if you have need for frequent travel and your business expenses just aren't high enough each month to generate sufficient points to account for your volume of travel.

For example, if your business expenses are $5,000 per month and all $5K can be paid by credit card; then you may only generate 5,000 points per month. And it might then take you 10 months to generate 50,000 points, which is a $500 ticket - which may not seem like anything to scream about. But as your business grows, so will your expenses. What do you think the credit card payable monthly expenses would be on a 20 unit apartment building?

Also, some cards have double and triple point promotions for certain categories. You may want to use one card for gas and another for dinning out if they offer bonus points for those categories. Also, many cards provide bonus points for just signing up - which can be high enough in some cases for a free flight. You can also get bonus points by referring friends and family to sign-up for a card using your referral link. Oh, so let me know if you want to apply for a points card so that I can send you my referral link for that card.

I'm at the point with my businesses that I'm generating significant points each month. Yes, that means that I've got a lot of expenses, but I'm also profitable. If you're profitable and your expenses have been optimized to their lowest possible level, certainly you should be benefiting from those legitimate expenses to travel for free and potentially increase your credit scores in the process.

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Outro...

Disclaimer

Your Business Name, your Website & Domain Name, your Phone Number - these and much more form your Business Brand. Your Brand is VERY important - but at the same time, it's also LESS important than ever before.

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Intro...

Welcome to Episode #34 - Starting Your Real Estate Business

So I'm sure you're aware that my Business Brand is "Blue Chariot", which is part of the name of each of my Real Estate Business endeavors and related service offerings. There's Blue Chariot Properties, and Blue Chariot Management, Blue Chariot Realty and this [... and Landlord!] Podcast is by Blue Chariot Media. There are various Domain Names and Websites for each of these, and likewise each contains some version of "Blue Chariot". The main website that encompasses all of them is BlueChariot.com.

My phone numbers for these various entities are 844-YES-BLUE, 844-321-BLUE, and 844-USA-BLUE... Notice the trend? Business Cards, Refrigerator & Car Magnets, Shirts, Hats, Social Media Accounts, and more - all feature the Blue Chariot Name / Logo, Website Address, Phone Numbers... I could go on, but I think you've got the idea. A LOT of effort has gone into creating "Blue Chariot" as a Real Estate Business Brand - I've even Trademarked it!

And as I've said in the intro, this is all VERY important - but at the same time, LESS important than every before. So should you go through all this effort in creating your Real Estate Business!?

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In short... Absolutely NOT! Worrying about your Business Name, Domain Name, Website, Phone Numbers, and on (right from the start) - may just become an excuse of non-action, delays and wasted time, while you could be working on obtaining your first or next Rental Property.

Now don't get me wrong - there is a time and place for these Business Brand building efforts... But don't put the cart before the horse. Get your first property. Get 2... Get 3 or 4! Because your first properties are likely to be held in your personal name anyway. You may choose to hold title along with your spouse, but try to get them in just your name alone if possible (up to as many as 10). As this keeps your spouses name free for 10 more - for a total of 20.

And if you go with multi-family properties (Duplexes, Triplexes, and Quads) - that could be as many as 80 doors before you really need to go the commercial route. Although its unlikely you're going to find 20 Quads that you'd actually WANT to own - but you see what I'm saying... Optimize the use of loans in your personal name to get as many of them as you can and with the highest door count - before you really ever need a business entity.

I actually created my first "Blue Chariot" Business Entity (Blue Chariot, Inc.) in January of 2015, right after I decided to go all-in on Real Estate Investing and becoming a Landlord. This was actually a mistake, because I did it wrong. I then recreated it in May of 2015 as Blue Chariot, LLC - and I also did that wrong (related to short-term versus long-term hold entities). But I made it work until 2017 when I created Blue Chariot Properties, LLC.

And so now, my Rentals are owned either by Blue Chariot Properties, LLC or a sub-entity owned by this entity. And while I put a lot of time and effort in advance to create my Real Estate Business Brand and entity structure - I don't want you to get caught in the weeds of that. I did that because this was not my first or only business, and I knew where I was going - I knew what I was moving towards.

But for most, spending time on a business name, domain name, website, email address, phone number, business cards, and all that - are things that can be just as well done later as now. Because NOW is best spent looking for and acquiring your first or next Rental Property. And having a nice business card or killer website isn't going to get you any properties - at least not early on. For most, spending ANY time early on working on a business name, business cards or a website - will just be a rabbit hole you'll get pulled down and delay your getting a property. Later, I'll tell you what you SHOULD be doing instead.

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Now at some point you will want and need a business name, cards, website, and all... just not at the start. And when you do get to that point, there are many things to consider.

Now I just happen to own almost 500 Domain Names. Some are better than others, but many of them would be considered Premium Domains (lots of .COM's). Occasionally I sell a few, when someone offers a decent price - but for the most part, I just hold onto them for use when I or a client needs a great Domain Name for that killer website.

So when I was looking for a Domain Name for my Real Estate Brand, BlueChariot.com was already in my inventory. When I first came across this Domain Name years earlier, I loved it! But I had no idea what I'd use it for, but I knew that relatively short / unique Domains that are easy to spell and almost picture the logo when you say them - are worth grabbing when you can and just hold onto them.

I highly recommend that you do the same prior to naming your business. So while I don't suggest going through all the effort of creating your Business Brand before getting started actually acquiring properties. When you are ready to create your Business Brand - please - please - please, don't name your business first, and then go out and search for the Domain Name after. This is how you end up with a non .COM Domain Name that has INC, LLC, NC (or whatever State abbreviation matches where you live) - as part of your Domain Name, along with dashes and numbers. So PLEASE, don't commit the crime against your business of sticking it with a horrible Domain Name.

You get the ideal Domain Name BEFORE naming your business (even if you have to buy it from someone like me who collects great Domain Names; or obtain it from an auction site). Then once you've obtained that great Domain Name, you then name your Business to match - NOT THE OTHER WAY AROUND! Domain Name First - Business Name Second (to match).

You've gotta get the domain name first. Because you can always name your business something else, but how can you be sure the matching domain name will be available unless you get it FIRST. I can always tell when a person named their business BEFORE getting their domain name - because the domain name sucks.

Get your Domain Name first, and of course I recommend searching for that great Domain Name at ViUX.com (V-I-U-X.COM), which is my Website & Web Hosting Business that also sells Domain Names. In fact, this business is what got me into collecting great Domain Names.

You can go directly to: portal.viux.com or domains.viux.com - to start a search. Enter names and keywords and it'll return available Domain Names that match, as well as Premium Domains that can be purchased for an additional fee. This also pulls in Domains for sale or auction at NameJet.com. And you should also check Sedo.com (S-E-D-O.COM) and SnapNames.com - along with many other such sites where Premium Domains are for sale.

Whatever you do and wherever - get the Domain Name first. Because when you get to the point where it makes sense (after you've got one or more properties), then this will be the Domain Name of your Website and Email Addresses - that you'll be giving out ALL THE TIME. And you want it to be short, simple, easy to spell, easy to remember - and an absolute perfect match to your Business name and Brand.

And another reason why I want you to wait until you've got one or more properties before focusing on creating your business, is that you should protect this Business Brand, by also buying other TLD's that match. A TLD is a "Top Level Domain", of which .COM is the most popular and recognized. But don't just get .COM if its available - also consider getting .NET; .ORG; .BIZ; .INFO; and others. Yes, this increases your cost, but it also protects your business brand. Do you really want someone else able to buy the .NET version of your .COM. I own over 20 TLD's each to protect ViUX.com and BlueChariot.com. Cuz I didn't want somebody else going out there and registering ViUX.NET or BlueChariot.NET.

So you don't want to get your ideal domain name, and then leave the other TLD's open and unprotected to be obtained by someone else. And there are plenty of examples of where the .NET or .CO version of a domain name is in use by a business that is more well known than that of whomever is using the matching .COM - which means that .COM owner didn't protect their brand, and thereby allowed some other company come along with the same name.

So to recap... You don't need a business brand from day one. You don't need a business name, or business cards, or a website or any of that right from the start. Focus your time and effort instead on getting your first or next property.

But when you do get to the point of being ready to create your business brand - don't commit the crime against your business of naming it first, and then going out and getting your domain name second. That really is a crime against your business when your domain name has dashes and numbers and INC or LLC or NC or anything else that makes it clear the .COM you really wanted to match the business name you choose was already taken.

Whenever possible (and there are a few instances where it's not) Get the domain name FIRST, and then name your business to match - not the other way around. And once you've gotten your ideal domain name - PROTECT IT! Buy the related TLD's and get a trademark.

Ok? And when you are at the point of creating your business, how should you handle the legal stuff? LegalZoom.com? Some other online source? A local attorney? I can say that at various times for different businesses I've gone each of these routes. But the most recent time, I paid a pretty hefty fee to a local attorney to draft all of my documents, but also got the electronic source files.

As result, now whenever I want to create a new business entity here in North Carolina, I've got all the doc's ready to go in WORD, that I know are perfect for this state and my situation, and it's just a matter of a quick search and replace specific to the new business name and details - along with an easy submission at the North Carolina Secretary of State website. And I can now create new business entities for myself quickly and for only the cost of the State filing.

But however you choose to handle it - once you do create a business entity, make sure to treat it LIKE A BUSINESS. Go out and get a bank account for the business. Get credit cards and accounts specific to the business. Keep your personal finances completely separate from the business. Get QuickBooks or some other accounting software and track all income and expenses for the business separately from your personal finances within this software.

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So what should you be doing for your eventual business instead of worrying about names?

Instead of focusing on business names, business cards, a website and such - let's implement some daily habits that will get you a property under contract - that then results in your first (or next) Rental Property with a great long-term tenant present.

Now - That's a more involved list of actions than I'll have time to do justice in this episode, so that will be covered in one of the coming shows... "Daily Actions to get your first (or next) Rental Property."

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Outro...

Disclaimer

I can't afford it. Money doesn't grow on trees. What do you think, I'm made of money? Money isn't everything. Money can't buy you happiness. Money can't buy you love. The rich get richer and the poor get poorer. Or if you're religious... Money is the root of all evil. And paraphrasing Jesus... "A rich man cannot enter the kingdom of God". Or on the other side... "Get rich or die trying!" - but not to confuse... That last one isn't from the Bible.

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Intro...

Welcome to Episode #33 - How Do You View Money? Do you have any? Or does it flee from you as quickly as it comes near?

I'm sure you've heard all of those sayings before that I lead with. You've likely said many of them yourself at some point. I know I did. Until I realized that thoughts and statements like those are poison traps - it poisons your mind when you think that way, about money. As poor and broke people think that way and they make statements like that. Rich people don't think this way - they don't speak like that, unless they're trying to make themselves seem relate-able to the poor and broke.

So this will be one of the shorter episodes, as I just want to quickly put some thoughts on your mind as to what holds most people back from obtaining real wealth in their lives - and its not other people.

Sure, there are many exceptions to that statement, but for the vast majority of us (despite Racism and Sexism and all the other aspects of discrimination, phobias, stereotypes and hostilities many of us encounter in life, and on a daily basis) - the number one obstacle we face lies between our own ears. Somewhere in our brain is us - and we are each our own biggest obstacle to overcome.

For instance, I know for a fact that I am my biggest obstacle. To give you an example, it really makes me mad every time I’m driving through my neighborhood, and I see a ‘For Sale’ sign out in front of one of my neighbors’ homes. I’m a realtor - do they know that? Probably not, because I’m too lazy to get off my butt and go knock on everyone’s door in the neighborhood and say “Hey, I’m a realtor. Do you know anyone who wants to buy or sell a home?”

I could be making tens of thousands of dollars a month more than I am making now If i would just get off my butt and go make the effort to go knock on some doors, hand out flyers, hand out a business card, give out a refrigerator magnet - anything to market the fact that I am a realtor to my neighbors.

I just don’t do it. I don’t want to do it. I dread the thought of having to do it. But if I did, I would be far more successful in my realty business than I am now. So, I am my own biggest obstacle. I know what I need to do. I’m fully capable of doing it, I just don’t want to, so I have to make myself go do it. Or, I can hire someone to do it for me, which is probably what I will end up doing. But, generally speaking, I know that doing it myself will be more effective, and I usually do things myself, at least initially, before hiring someone to do it, so I know what’s involved - how long it takes, and everything related to the task that I’m now outsourcing.

But my point is that there’s nobody stopping me from going out and getting that money. The money’s there. It’s ready to be claimed. All I have to do is go and get it. It’s a matter of whether or not I want to put in the effort to go get it. That’s the question. And even if one, or two, or maybe three, of the hundreds of doors that I could go knock on, resulted in a listing or a referral, that’s still thousands of dollars that are just sitting out there waiting for me to get it. It’s almost certain that I would If I just put in the effort. Even if I took the easy way out, and just send direct mailers, it would still have a certain level of success. It’s just a matter of doing it.

So, who’s my obstacle? There’s no one out there stopping me from doing it. I am the obstacle. I, just like you, we are our own biggest obstacles to overcome.

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Maybe you've heard this quote... There are like 5 or 10 people who have been credited with this quote, but it goes...

"Watch your thoughts. They become words. Watch your words. They become deeds. Watch your deeds. They become habits. Watch your habits. They become character. And character is everything."

So the first thing highlighted here are your thoughts. And for the sake of this episode and the statement I lead with, I want to focus on what your thoughts are when it comes to MONEY. Are you on either of the extremes of "Money is the root of all evil" - so you feel the effort to obtain money makes you a bad person, as are those who have it? Or the other side "Get rich or die trying" - so you're willing to do anything for money.

Probably you're like most people, and while you may not think money itself is evil, you're likely harboring thoughts that many (or even most) who have a lot of it obtained it by less than ethical means - they had to (lie, cheat, steal, rob, misrepresent, mislead, abuse, extort) - or just got lucky. You may even look down on such people from a position of perceived ethical superiority - or envy them, wishing you could "strike it rich" like you think they did.

And in this process, you likely have accepted and even repeat many of the sayings like "more money, more problems". In your thoughts, you've place money in a place where having or pursuing it is a bad thing. Those thoughts becomes words like "I'd rather be happy than rich" - as if you can't be both. And words like these become deeds that will make it much harder for you to become rich or wealthy. Those anti-wealth deeds and actions will become en-grained poor or broke person habits that will insure you'll never become rich. Money will forever flee from you, if it comes near to you to begin with.

And why would money stay with you if you treat it poorly? If you kick a dog, do you expect that dog to repeatedly return to be kicked over and over again? Money is no different... If you mistreat it, it will leave you and likely not return. How you think about money will ultimately determine how you treat it and if you'll then be able to accumulate great amounts - called wealth. You certainly won't obtain a lot of something you treat and think poorly off. Consciously or otherwise, you will do the needful to make sure that you have little to none of what you don't value.

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So let me repeat the statements that I lead with...

- "I can't afford it."
- "Money doesn't grow on trees."
- "What do you think, I'm made of money?"
- "Money isn't everything."
- "Money can't buy you happiness."
- "Money can't buy you love."
- "The rich get richer and the poor get poorer."
- "Money is the root of all evil."
- "A rich man cannot enter the kingdom of God."
- "More money, more problems."
- "I'd rather be happy, than rich."

If you say these things (to yourself or out-load) - If you think this way about money... That is your biggest obstacle to ever being rich or obtaining wealth. Like I said, YOU are your biggest problem. There's nobody holding you back, but YOU - and your toughs, words, deeds (actions) and habits - when it comes to something we all claim to want more of, yet most of us do nothing serious or consistent to make that happen. And then we blame other people for our less than desired outcome.

For me, just saying these things out-loud create a feeling of dread within me, as thankfully I don't think like this about money. Because money is NOT the root of all evil. Mark Twain said "The LACK of money is the root of all evil."

Think about it... When people are doing things in line with that “Get rich or die trying” mentality, to get money, and harming people in doing bad and evil in the world, it’s not because they’ve got an abundance of money. They’re doing those things because they lack money, and they lack a mindset that tells them what else they could do in order to obtain that money. So, they’re willing to do anything, and it doesn’t matter if they have to go through you to get it. That is the root of evil.

And I know that that one and the paraphrased "A rich man cannot enter the kingdom of God." - from the Bible, are the ones that get most of you. They got me too for a LONG time, until I realized that many of the highly favored people spoken of in the Bible were REALLY RICH. Being rich wasn't the problem. It was how they got rich and what being rich brought out of them.

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So, no need to belabor this point. My purpose of this episode is to get you to consider your thoughts about money. How do you speak about money? What are your deeds and actions related to the handling of money? What are your money habits? Are you a person who attracts money and opportunity for money. Or when opportunity comes your way, do you kick it in the face as you would an attacking dog? While complaining about how you can't catch a break?

I don't let opportunity pass me by. In fact, I seek out opportunity. Next week, I'm flying to Ohio for 1 day just to be in the room with a person who has many more rental units than I do. I hope to learn from this person - maybe even partner with him on deals. Would you take time off from work, spend money on a plain ticket and pay for a hotel (I used points for both) - just to meet someone in person who is where you want to be, doing what you want to do?

Many would wonder why such a person would be willing to teach me anything - as I then potentially become his competitor. You may likely wonder why I have this Podcast telling what I'm doing, as you might then learn to become my competitor. The answer lies in how most successful people view money, the world, the universe, God. We have an abundance mentality.

I don't think money in your pocket is money NOT in my pocket. You don't have to do badly for me to do good. Even if you're right here in Durham with me, I don't think you getting your first (or another) Rental Property is a loss for me. Congratulations! I'm happy for you! Because I'm still going to kill it in this business, and I'm happy you're along for the ride - and it gives me pleasure if I played any role in that.

And hey, now or at some point in the future, you might need a Realtor or Property Manager (and here I am, having helped you in the past). And if you are a decent person, as most people are - you'll feel the need to reciprocate what I did for you. Or one day you may be in a position to be a Private Lender on one of my deals, or you may send me a deal that you couldn't take down yourself or for which you need a partner.

You see how my view of money and opportunity doesn't require that I step on your neck (lie, cheat, steal or otherwise) on the way up the ladder of success. In fact, it benefits me to bring you along on the journey so that you're in a position to push or pull me up as well. If I leave you behind, well now I'm on my own - That's why I have this Podcast. I want your company on this journey to wealth and financial freedom through Rental Real Estate Investing.

So to that end, let's start working on how you view money. Because you can't associate with me if you have a negative view of money, wealth or those who are rich. And likewise, YOU also need to stop or limit your association with those who kick money in the face or otherwise have thoughts, words, deeds / actions and habits that make money flee.

You've likely heard... “You’re the average of the five people you spend the most time with,” a quote attributed most often to motivational speaker Jim Rohn. And there’s the variant “show me your friends and I’ll show you your future.”

So just like I mentioned in last week's episode, you might need to block or limit some people from having too much access and influence in your life. You also need to association with people who think differently than those negative influences. Because I'd actually expand that quote to more than just 5 people. You're influenced by far more than just the 5 people you call friends or spend the most time with. Thankfully, you're also influenced by people you may never even have met in person. You're being influenced by just listening to Podcasts like this one.

Hopefully, I'm a positive influence for the better. You're also influenced when you read a book; watch a movie; by the TV shows you watch and the music that you listen to. So not just those with whom you associate directly and the people in your life, but all the information and media that you allow to enter your eyes, ears, and take hold in your mind - if you want it to or not. So limit your negative influences to the greatest degree possible. And a negative influence when it comes to obtaining wealth is ANYTHING that gives you a negative thought towards money, wealth, being rich or those who are.

Because how much more of a blessing do you think you'll be to those deserving people in your life now (or those who are yet to come into your sphere influence) - if you were the same great person you are now, but also RICH!?

Becoming rich won't make you a jerk, unless you're already a jerk now - in which case you'll become a bigger jerk. You won't suddenly become an asshole, unless you're that now. Being rich won't make you something that you're not already. What it will do is bring to the forefront your true character - in larger form.

That's why the quote I read earlier ends the way it does... "Watch your thoughts. They become words. Watch your words. They become deeds. Watch your deeds. They become habits. Watch your habits. They become character. And character is everything."

If you're a decent and good person now, becoming rich will make you a great person - because now you'll have the means to be a blessing to others. You'll also be an example and a guide to those you know and love as to how they can do the same - and you can bring them along for the ride.

So get started on the journey by continuing what you're doing here - and get started on reading some books that will set these principles in your mind - and make those negative thoughts and sayings a thing of the past. Something you'll laugh about and feel sorry for the next person you hear saying those things.

To do so, checkout the Books page at: andlandlord.com/books - for titles like: "Secrets of the Millionaire Mind"; "Think & Grow Rich"; the "Richest Man In Babylon". There's another that I'm reading now and will get added to the page soon called "Wealth Can't Wait".

I've spoken of these books many times in other episodes of the Podcast, so if you've not already, get a subscription to Audible.com - and start listening to these books. Listen on your way to and from work. Get some Bluetooth earbuds and listen to these anywhere you find yourself waiting for anything. And as you listen to each, send me an email at podcast@bluechariot.com or podcast@andlandlord.com (they both go to the same place) - and let me know what you took away from the book.

Reading these books, and "Rich Dad Poor Dad" literally changed my life, as they put clear and concise words to thoughts that I already had - but honestly felt confused and even guilty about expressing. Telling certain people how I wanted to be rich made me feel like I was doing something wrong. Like I was wrong for wanting this supposedly evil think called money and wealth. Freed from this doubt, negative money thoughts and guilt - suddenly money started to flow my way. Because my new thoughts on money changed my words, which changed my deeds and actions to those which attract money, which became my habit. Now its just who I am (my Character) to attract money and opportunity.

Something great is going to happen for me tomorrow. If not tomorrow, then next week. Certainly next month. This is why I know that my 2020 is going to be amazing. Because I'm going to MAKE IT amazing by doing the things as needed NOW to make that happen. So let me get off my butt and get ready to go knock on some doors, and make some phone calls, and send some direct mail pieces - because there's money out there that doesn't YET know how to find me!
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Outro...

Disclaimer