Get a Coach in Your Corner
A phone coach can help you get on the investing fast track

By Jordan Taylor

Ask any successful real estate investor to describe the biggest challenge he or she had to overcome when getting started, and chances are the answer will be: Gaining the knowledge and confidence to do those first few deals.

To help students get past that initial hurdle, Wealth Intelligence Academy® offers a ten-week personal phone coaching program. The program consists of ten 45-minute sessions, typically scheduled once a week. Students receive a manual and have a preliminary telephone meeting with their coach before the real work begins.

“We take the students by the hand and walk them through the process,” says Thomas X. Farmer, a real estate investment trainer and phone coach with Wealth Intelligence Academy. “We teach them what to do and after they've done it, we evaluate what happened, analyze what they did right and wrong, and help them figure out how to make the next deal even better.”

Certified Wealth Intelligence Academy phone coaches complete a comprehensive training program and bring a broad spectrum of experience and knowledge to the process. “Our job is to keep the students on track, to make sure they understand the strategies, and then motivate them to get out there and do it,” says Farmer. “At the end of each session, we give an assignment. Then when we start the next session, we review how the student did on the assignment before we move on to the next topic.”

Each session is carefully structured to build on the previous one. The complexity of the material advances with the student's knowledge and confidence levels. Coaches tailor the sessions to the student's particular skill level and circumstances. “We talk about specific deals and we make it real-life and relevant,” says Farmer. “For example, instead of using hypothetical examples to learn how to put together an offer, we use an actual property the student has found and is interested in. I find out if they're having any problems, and if they are, we work on those problems. It's very personal and customized.”

Coaching is effective both with brand new student investors as well as with more experienced investors who have taken advanced training courses. When people have a coach, they are focused and produce faster and easier. Coaches help their clients exceed their perceived limitations, do more than they could have done on their own, set and reach greater goals, and reinforce and sharpen their investing skills for maximum results.

“My students tell me that one of the biggest advantages of having a coach is having someone to take their fears away,” says Farmer. “I walk them through what they need to do, show them how it's going to work, and make sure they completely understand each step. Then once they take action, we review. What happened? What went well? What was a surprise? What can we do to make it better next time? In the ten weeks we work together, they learn that they can do this—and do it very successfully.”

Farmer says the best thing about being a coach is watching students evolve, build confidence, and get their investing careers started. “Every one of my students has the potential to be a world-class investor,” he says. “If world-class athletes have coaches, why shouldn't world-class investors? Recognizing what coaching can do for you gives you an edge over someone who tries to go it alone.”

Preparing for Your Coach

These tips will help you prepare for and gain the maximum benefit from your phone coach:

• Review all of the training materials you've received in advance, including audio and video sessions, manuals, and books.
• If you have the Real Estate Success System software, load it on your computer and get familiar with it.
• Set up an environment that will allow you to focus on your coaching session; ideally, it should be a quiet, comfortable place, at your computer and where you can take notes.
• Insist that your family respect your time with your phone coach; no interruptions unless the house is on fire.
• Have a positive attitude and believe that the program will work—because it does.