My Hair Will Not Stop Growing

I need a haircut. It happens about every 3 weeks. I wake up in the morning and as I brush my teeth in front of the vanity mirror I just can’t figure out when my hair got so long. It’s not so bad that that I look like a hobo or some 80’s hair band guitarist. But my hair’s too long. That happened to me this morning.

To make matters worse, I no longer have a barber. Without boring you with details, suffice it to say that I made the decision last month to find someone new. Today I need to find someone to cut my hair.

About a year ago I was going through a similar situation. I needed to add another good contractor to my maintenance staff. If you’ve ever dealt with contractors, you know what a daunting task that can be. After making the decision to hire, I put an ad on Craigslist and waited for the phone to ring. And it rang. I had about 150 phone calls and about twice as many emails. I scheduled 20 interviews and had 7 people show up. Of the seven I couldn’t imagine hiring anyone.

During the process I was discussing my frustration with one of my electricians. He recommended a friend of his who was searching for a job. Fast forward to today. Cliff, the electrician’s friend, has been a valued part of my property management company for the last 19 months.

So what’s an employee have to do with a haircut? Better yet, what’s all this have to do with you? We all have an abundance of resources sitting at our fingertips. Google’s great. But it’s no match for the abundance of firsthand experience that’s only a phone call or email away.

Ever since my hiring epiphany I look first at the experts around me. Our friends and colleagues have better, faster answers than any search engine or shot in the dark. As you build you investing career, keep that in mind. If you’re looking for a hard money loan, well you know where to go. Need an accountant, lawyer, Real Estate agent, painter, electrician, landscaper, architect, website developer, printer, or even a barber? Talk to the people you know and trust. At the end of the day, it’s who you know that will determine your success.

I’ve got to say goodbye for now. There’s a few phone calls I have to make. My hair’s not getting any shorter.

P.S. I didn’t forget about updating you on my phone call with Peter Conti. There’s some great stuff coming up that I’ll post next week.