A Dream Come True – All You Must Do Is Believe In YOU…

“Murph, brother! It is so good to see you. Thanks for hooking up with me today!” words from my buddy Jason, that changed the course of both our lives, as we sat down for lunch one afternoon in 2006. Jason and I went way back to riding bikes and chasing girls in 6th grade. I lived in Burnsville and he lived in Apple Valley. We both went to Valley Middle school. Jason was a skater and trouble maker. I was a jock and always looking to push my boundaries. I think this was why we liked each other so much. Our friendship lasted all but one or two years as my athletics took up more and more time —  I found myself only hanging out with those whom I played sports. While Jason took a different path… But, I will never forget the times we had. Many years passed —  then I saw Jason at my 10 year high school reunion. I didn’t expect what I saw. I had heard stories about Jason and his struggles to make ends meet just out of high school. But, when I saw him at our 10 year reunion he was wearing a well manicured suite, black shoes that looked like a marine polished them, white shirt with not a single wrinkle, clean —  short — sharp hair cut (I always remembered him with long hair) and he looked lean and healthy. I couldn’t help but walk up to him as I needed to know his story. Come to
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My Dream Come True

Hands sweating, doubt creeping into my thoughts and a feeling of euphoria  coming over me. Really, am I really going to make my dream of real estate investing come true within 1 year of graduating college, months after getting a real estate license and weeks after drafting a business plan? Sitting at the table with Jack talking about investing in Arizona was one of the most euphoric moments of my life. It was the first time I felt like anything was possible. Don’t get me wrong, I had some great moments in my athletic life, personal life and with my family… But, this feeling was different. I dreamed about becoming a real estate investor, I planned for it and now I had a chance to make it a reality.  “Hey Jack, so now that you have convinced me you’re serious about investing in Arizona real estate, how are we actually going to make it happen?” I asked.  Jack responded, “First off, you are going to tell me the plan in more detail. How will we find property, how much cash will be needed, how does Derek fit into the equation, etc….” After walking him through the mechanics of how I saw this working, Jack responded with, “Murph, you are not messing around. You have really thought this plan through.” “Hell yeah Unc, I don’t mess around when I’m motivated and passionate about something. Plus, if I was actually going to make it happen I had better have a plan or
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Wisdom Finds You In Mysterious Ways

My Uncle Jack, You gotta meet this guy…..  He taught me life lessons I will never forget. When I worked with him from 2002-2003, not realizing it, he was changing his nephew’s life by creating values in a young man who was just starting to find his way. Or did he mean to do it all along?  Working on my computer in my parents basement, fresh out of real estate licensing school with a real estate license and no clue what to do next… When, out of nowhere comes Uncle Jack.  The younger brother of Jeanne, my mom, Jack was known as a wild child. He never missed a chance to test waters and see how far he could push before something big happened.  On Thursday August 15th, 2002 Jack showed up to my parents house, I had not seen him in 5 or 6 years since I was away playing junior hockey and at college. He “quietly” started working on replacing a sliding glass door in my parents basement. I was sitting at a card table with a laptop computer deciphering where to begin my quest towards making a living selling real estate. Not knowing Jack like I do today… He was quiet, letting me do my work, until 25 minutes later when he couldn’t help himself, “So, Tim how the hell are ya?”  now if you know anything about Uncle Jack, which some of you do, you know once he gets started he may never stop. So, one
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The Book That Changed My Life

It all began when in college at The University Of Wisconsin Eau Claire renting a little apartment above water street.  Renting from a company called “Student Area Housing” who owned what seemed to be the entire student rental market in Eau Claire. My curiosity kept the conversation going… Hmm. Real Estate, Rental Properties… I wonder how all that works? Busting my hump, coding business programs for hours and sometimes 24 hours straight to hit deadlines,  on a mission to get my Management Information Systems (MIS) degree.  I did everything to position myself for success upon graduation. Every summer, for 4 years, I had an internship at a local company. These were all IT internships which taught me a lot about life in IT, computer programming, systems management and most of all teaching myself how to learn. However, the biggest lesson learned was realizing I was not your typical IT guy. Being an athlete, outspoken at times and a people person — these traits, I realized, were not the typical qualities found in IT veterans whom I worked for. During these summer internships I felt like the ugly duckling… During my senior year in College having 15 interviews for job offerings, every time the person would say, “That was great Tim… Thanks for coming today, we will be in touch if we think you’re a good  fit.” or “Tim you have worked hard and set yourself up well with those internships..” But, every time I left the interview I questioned working
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