Why Isn’t He Posting? ‘Cuz He’s Wasting His Time On Continuing Education — That’s Why!

Posted @ 9:52 pm - Filed under 1031 Exchanges, Check This Out, Purposeful Planning, RE Investment Practice, Sez Me

Thanks to Robin Taylor Roth, Senior Director, eLearning at CENTURY 21 Canada, for the topic of tonight’s post. I’d been whining ’bout it, and she offered it as a post topic when I asked for some suggestions. Thanks again, Robin.

Every four years, like clockwork. And no, I’m not talkin’ ’bout presidential elections. I’m referring to the 45 hours of continuing education required of California real estate licensees every four years. I’d call it a pain in the rear, butt that’s far too kind. It’s almost literally coma inducing.

For instance, did you know that an agent should be honest and forthright with those for whom they’ve created an agency relationship? Ya think?!

Part of today’s bigger problem stems from things like continuing education. Continuing? Education? Last week I hit my 39th anniversary — licensed since October 15th, 1969. With rare exception, what the state is making me go through now, I had to know in order to pass my first exam. Do you realize how long ago that was? For Heaven’s sake, Nixon was in his first year in office.

I’m gonna finish the 45 required hours in around 15 hours max. Literally, an eighth grader could read the material, and pass the final exam for me. Ask any licensee if I’m exaggerating. They’ll start laughin’. The sad part is, you, the client/consumer is supposed to feel safer ‘cuz I’m ‘keepin’ up’ with my ‘education’. If it wasn’t so pathetic, it’d be funny.

Every year I go out and pay to stay abreast with whatever I deem necessary. Do you think CA appreciates my efforts? Apparently not, since they won’t give me credit for anything I’ve ever learned. Know who gets to offer courses that count? Those who’ve figured out what lame info the state wants me to know.

Yeah, I realize I’m rantin’ here. But let’s get serious for a moment. Ask yourself — who benefits from a $69.95 course that literally teaches a 39 year veteran almost the same things he had to learn four decades earlier? You? No. Him? Hardly.

Something at some point hasta change. I know what I know today ‘cuz I’ve literally spent over $100,000 for my real estate investment education. That’s a rough average of over $2,000 a year. Then there’s the mentoring from which I benefitted immensely. The experience? How do ya put a value on that?

I’ve taught analysis, tax deferred exchanges, and constructing operating statements just to name three. There’s been several more. Not one student ever got credit for hour number one from any of it.

I learned from some of the truly great masters of real estate investment practice. Sometimes paid for it on credit, back in the day when the cash was scarce. Never received an hour of credit then either. I take that back. One seminar, back in the ’70’s somehow snuck through, and offered three hours of credit. Woo hoo!!

Posts will continue as usual by Monday. I’ll be wasting my time and my clients’ time learning about what a listing is, and that loans have things called origination fees. Lord help us all.

Still have time for a fix though. Send a carrier pigeon my way, or just contact me through the blog here. We’ll end up chattin’ about your story, and figure out a Purposeful Plan to get you safely to your very own Point B — Retirement. Have a good one. (I’ll be studying.)

This entry was posted on Thursday, October 23rd, 2008 at 9:52 pm and is filed under 1031 Exchanges, Check This Out, Purposeful Planning, RE Investment Practice, Sez Me. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.