Back in the 1980s, if you were going to go on a diet, popular magazines would suggest that you “think thin.” The magazine articles were reluctant to explain what that meant, but people were aware that they were supposed to do it. Adopt the psychology of the thin, whatever that was supposed to be. It follows that, if you want to make money, you would be able to accomplish that by adopting the psychology of the rich, right? As a matter of fact, this is true. In particular, you should internalize the mindset of the accomplished property investor.

Successful property investors are opportunists. They always have their antennae up and ready. They place themselves in the way of information. They “live the life” of the property investor, so to speak. Because of all this, they notice things that others do not.

Ken McElroy, author of The ABCs of Real Estate Investing, part of the Rich Dad book series, says it is all about seeing patterns. If you check out enough properties, study enough areas, talk to enough people, McElroy said, you will start to see these patterns. Then certain things will start to happen. You may start to feel luckier. And, McElroy says, it may be luck, however it is a sort of luck that comes from being prepared.

Don't forget: fortune favors the prepared mind. Opportunity is all around us, but if we don't stay alert, it will be as though it doesn't exist. The alert mind recognizes opportunity.

Ken McElroy stresses over and over again that being successful in real estate is a process. It isn't just something that occurs instantaneously. It's something that you do each and every day. Eventually things begin to happen for you.

A successful property investor focuses on doing a little at a time, on learning this or that thing, or closing this particular deal. It's a “walk before you can crawl” process.

For instance, McElroy says that if you've found a potentially profitable deal, you will be able to get funding for it as others will inevitably want their own share of the eventual profits. This isn't necessarily about skillful negotiation, McElroy said. Of course, those skills can net you an even more advantageous deal on occasion, however you don't need to worry about whether or not you can hold your own when negotiating. Focus on searching for good deals.