Florida Motorcycle Dealers Association

By Rob Minton

It has taken me many years to fully understand and live the principle of the Slight Edge. To be honest, I am not sure if I can even communicate it properly! However, I am going to give it my best shot.

Let me start by saying that little things can make a big difference. The slight edge is the little things you do differently that provide you with enormous returns. Little differences in where you invest your first dollars can have an enormous impact on your wealth. By investing your first dollars into real estate, you can compound your wealth using house money. This same theory holds true in almost every other task you participate in.
Here is the principle in a nutshell:

If you consistently do a little more than others, you will consistently have more than others.

Just recently I was on a conference call with real estate professionals around the country. A Realtor from Chicago, said “Rob you are a very energetic guy.” Everyone laughed on the call, including myself. I am not sure if everyone realized that she just gave away the secret of my success.

On the surface, it might look like I am doing a lot today, but in reality I have been doing just a little bit more than everyone else for several years. When you compound this little bit more over time, it looks and feels like a lot. In fact, it is a lot.

To show you what I mean, let’s pretend for a minute that you are a competitor of mine. Let’s say you have your real estate license and you sell homes for a living. To be very blunt and honest, my goal is to dominate you. My strategy is to work harder than you every single day. These little daily differences will compound over time and allow me to prevail.

I can almost assure you that I will be up working each and every day before you. By the time you get to your office at 9 a.m., I will already have put in three hours of completely uninterrupted work. In addition, I will have worked out for at least an hour. The exercise will give me more energy and allow me to make better and faster decisions. Studies have proven over and over again the benefits of exercise on mental performance. Now everyone intuitively knows this, but they don’t consistently use it to their advantage.

By reading a few more books than you do, I will have the advantage of knowledge. Each and every week, I will know more and as a result do more than you. So while you’re out celebrating St. Patrick’s day, I am reading a book on wealth creation, leadership or marketing. You will be hung over in the morning, and I will be working. You see, for me, practicing the slight edge is fun. Knowing that I just got two more steps ahead of you puts a smile on my face.
As an investor, you can practice the principle of the slight edge by buying just one more home this year. You can read one extra book a month. You can get involved in a mastermind group with other successful investors. Or you could participate in a group investment into a larger property. You could get your real estate license and join one of our teams around the country. Or better yet, you can do all of the above.

At a recent seminar, Dan Kennedy spoke about a BIG difference between Renegade Millionaires and others. One major difference is that Renegade Millionaires do things simultaneously. Most people do things sequentially. Most investors want to buy a home and get it sold to a tenant/buyer before repeating the process again — sequential investment. Renegade Millionaires buy multiple homes at the same time — simultaneous investment. They practice and life the principle of the slight edge.

Understand that applying the principle in your life is not easy. It takes guts, courage and an incredibly strong worth ethic. But I can promise you that if you apply it exactly as I have suggested, you will grow your wealth by leaps and bounds. In fact, your wealth will compound at astonishing rates. Now if you don’t apply this principle, your wealth can ONLY grow sequentially. This isn’t bad, but simultaneous growth is a heck of a lot better!

In summary, I encourage you to read more, work more, do more, invest more, play more, network more and educate yourself more.

To get more information on the strategies I used to begin my real estate investing, call the real estate information center at 1-888-845-9670 and enter ID ?. Leave a message with your mailing address.

Minton is a CPA who left the world of public accounting to pursue a career in real estate. The president of The Home Selling Team, Inc., in Cleveland, Ohio, he has since been a successful broker, author and consultant. An investor in all types of properties himself, his Income for Life program of deals with single-family homes in desirable locations bought and sold with a proven rent-to-own method outlined at www.quitworksomeday.com.