Suddenly another car screeches to a halt along side the road and the driver bounds out and into the midst of the chaos, shouting firm orders in a forceful manner so that people spring into action.  He points at you and says: "You. Get a flashlight and go down the road to ward off the oncoming traffic." You obey instantly.  He points to another person and shouts: "You. Go Immediately over to that farm house and call for an ambulance and the police."  To another person he shouts: "You. Get coats or blankets and cover up the injured people on the ground to keep them warm. Do not move them." To another person he shouts: "You. Get several others to help you push those cars further off on to the side of the road to avoid further collisions."  To the other onlookers he shouts: "The rest of you move away and get into the background." 

Then the man goes immediately to gather up the dazed survivors and render comfort and assistance.  Soon police and paramedics arrive to take charge of the situation. But the leader who preceded them has already done much to alleviate suffering and prevent further injury.

WHAT IS AN ACTION MODEL?

An action model is a sequence of interrelated actions designed to produce a target result. The story illustrates the application of a particular action model to use when you come upon the scene of a traffic accident. In this case, the model is relatively simple:

• Warn or stop oncoming traffic to prevent further collisions
• Get help (police, medical)
• Improve conditions for the injured
• Clear the area for additional safety.

When we examine an action model of this type, our reaction goes typically something like this: "Right. Anyone could and would do precisely these things under those conditions."  Actually, the opposite is true. In times of crisis, it is a rare person who can take an action model and apply it in a practical way to the situation at hand. That is why the stranger in our little story is a hero, because he intervened with leadership and power at a time when everyone else was confused and helpless. He applied a simple action model that produced the desired results immediately. In a way, he was like a professional acting among amateurs.

Professionals are trained to apply specific action models to particular situations. Consider these procedures and the chain of actions that must be followed with precision if good results are expected:

• brain surgery
• farming
• training show dogs
• building a house
• fishing

We could outline with precision the exact sequence of steps that must be followed in each of these and many other similar situations.  In fact, virtually any objective we can think of is governed by a particular action model or set of action models. It appears to be a universal truth that results flow from the application of such models.

The opposite is also true: when we go about targeting results without a clear action model in mind, our success is more a function of accident than design. In fact, much failure in life can be traced back to situations where an incomplete or faulty action chain has been followed.

SURPRISE: REAL ESTATE HAS AN ACTION MODEL, TOO

Now we can make our point. When it comes to action models, real estate investing is no exception. If it is to be done effectively, it must be done "professionally," i.e., through the application of a particular action model.

Once you have determined the type of real estate you wish to be involved with, the model is virtually always the same. Here are the steps:

This sequence of nine steps is relatively simple. The logic of it is manifest. It has organic integrity; that is, one step flows naturally into the next to form a completed chain of events.

So what's the big deal?

The big deal is that few people follow the chain with rigor and thoroughness. The temptation is to jump into the action model at whatever point seems congenial to one's personality--and to take off from there without regard to context.

SOME AMATEUR EXAMPLES

• Jim fancies himself a real "wheeler-dealer" with a silver tongue. He flourishes in the negotiating arena where he can go after the killer deal. But Jim doesn't like to gather prospects and zero in on those who are most likely to be flexible; he takes on every seller in sight.  Therefore, he almost always strikes out. Jim is an amateur who doesn't understand the action model.
• Janice goes down the action chain to the point where writing offers occurs. She is pretty thorough to that point but has a phobia about the written idiom. She doesn't go after the close and get the signature. Therefore, the chain is incomplete and she never gets the results she wants. Janice is an amateur who doesn't understand the action model.
• Fred spends his time spinning wheels with all kinds of contacts and properties. His hang up is creative financing. He can figure the bottom line but never how to get there. His deals lack that innovative, problem-solving core that enables people to jump over walls and around obstacles and put successful deals together. Fred is an amateur who doesn't understand the action model.
• Mary is a whiz with everything except getting out. She is poor at back-end management and tends to get into things without an exit plan in mind. Thus, when harvest time comes around, she comes up short and leaves big bucks on the table. Mary is an amateur who doesn't understand the action model.
• Harvey goes through the whole chain of events in the action model and does pretty well. But for some reason he always forgets how to augment the value of his properties before turning them--often small cosmetic improvements can pay big dividends--and therefore puts up with mediocre returns. He could almost double his results if his action model were complete. But Harvey is an amateur who doesn't understand the action model.

You say: "Well, stupid them!"

Okay. Let's see how smart you are. Without looking back at the action model outlined above, write down the exact sequence of actions that make up the investment real estate action model. We'll give you a clue: there are nine steps in this model.

How did you do? 100% correct? Great--you are well on your way to becoming a pro.  Did you miss some of the steps? Not to worry. Simple things can sometimes be a vexation. But let's give you a mnemonic device to fix this model firmly in your mind.

PUT ON YOUR THINKING CAP

Let's restate the action model in a slightly different way so that remembering its nine steps will be a "picnic" for you. It might seem a little silly, but suspend judgment for a moment and spell out the words "PICNIC CAP" as follows:

With this memory trick in mind, put on your "Picnic Cap" and try your hand at recreating the action model once more. See if it flows a little more smoothly this time:

It will not surprise you to learn that each one of these nine steps in the action model gives rise, in turn, to another action model consisting of a sequence of steps. That is, each step in our investment real estate action model has its own set of steps leading to a specific targeted result.

For example, if the targeted result in step one is to develop a set of prospects, how do you go about gathering prospects? There is a particular action sequence, or rather a set of action sequences, that will get you the results efficiently and professionally. This set of action sequences is explained in the next unit. In fact, each of the action steps can be broken down further into more detailed steps. There is truly an art and a science to this profession (just as you would expect).

Similarly each of the other eight steps in the action model gives rise to its own action model (of sub steps) that will be elucidated in the units that follow.  It is rather like a set of Chinese boxes, one fitting inside the other, in sequence, until the most fundamental building block is attained.

What you are to learn in this course is how to fit all of these Chinese boxes together into an organic whole that will get you the results you want.

WHAT KINDS OF PROPERTIES ARE IN YOUR "BIG PICTURE"?