The problem many fledgling real estate investors face-and some with a little more experience-is self doubt about their ability to put together profitable deals, as well as having numerous questions about when certain techniques would be most appropriate.

These doubts and questions can easily be alleviated by knowledge, but a lot of real estate investors have trouble applying principles they may have read about, heard about, or seen in a short webinar. This is one of the primary areas a good, experienced mentor can help increase their base of knowledge and give them the motivation and the direction they need to reach their goals and fulfill their investing dreams.

First of all, mentors aren't all created the same. In order to be effective you have to have practical, relevant experience in the same kind of real estate investing as those you plan on teaching. A mentor can be one of the nation's foremost authorities on creative commercial real estate investing techniques, but much of that knowledge and experience is pointless if you're primarily interested in foreclosures, short sales, or rehabbing abandoned properties.

A good mentor will be concerned about your development as a real estate investor and will take the steps necessary to ensure that you are well-versed in multiple investing strategies. He or she will share with you accumulated knowledge and advice about how to better market yourself, and provide you with essential real estate investing tips and strategies that you can implement in your own career. By understanding a variety of ways of structuring investment deals, you will not only increase your knowledge, but you'll become comfortable crafting deals of your own.

In many cases, a mentor will work shoulder to shoulder with you in the field and explain to you why certain strategies may or may not be appropriate in a given situation. In addition, certain strategies can be altered or modified in a way that a less experienced real estate investor might not be aware of, or may not have even considered. When you've been around the block several dozen times, you learn things that a simple textbook just can't teach.

There's a special bond that develops between a mentor and their students. I've developed friendships with a number of my students, and am still in touch with a great many others on a regular basis. I get excited whenever I hear that one of my students has put together a profitable deal that might not have been possible had it not been for the time spent with me listening, learning, and asking questions.

If you want to really ramp up your real estate investing career, you owe it to yourself and your future to thoroughly investigate the idea of working with an experienced mentor to shine a light on the opportunity you have to build a strong investment portfolio and a bright future for you and your family.