(cont) Once you’ve found a group to join it’s time to get to work. Not everyone you meet will be suitable for a good real estate investing apprenticeship. Some will be too busy, some will be poor teachers, some you just won’t get along with. It may take a few meetings, but gradually you should be able to narrow the field to a few select real estate investing mentors.

Once you have a few possible real estate investing mentors, work on developing your relationship with them. Let them know that you’re interested in what they’re doing. People generally like people who show an interest in them, so do exactly that. As you build friendships, one or two options for your real estate investing apprenticeship should rise to the top. These are the ones you want to approach with a simple proposal.

To present your proposal to your selected real estate investing mentors, ask them to lunch. There’s something about a nice lunch, paid for by someone else, that lightens the mood and makes a person conducive to agreement. We’ve all been there! At lunch, you’re simply going to ask them if they will take you under their wing for a while, and show you how they do what they do.