This summer one of our trips is to the Rio Grande Valley of Texas for a family reunion and to catch up on some R&R with my husband while grandparents watch our toddler.

During one of our fun evenings on this trip was a night of Loteria (Mexican Bingo) at my Grandma’s House with aunts and cousins complete with cards that said El Boracho (the Drunk), El Cotorro (the Parrot), and El Nopal (The Cactus). During this exciting game of Bingo, we all waited to hear the names of the images on our 5 cent cards be called out. With three different cards in front of me with a good selection of different images, I felt confident I would win. And I did. I walked away with $5.50 after investing $1.00 into playing. Yet, my aunts began dropping out one by one as their pile of pennies and nickles began to dwindle until there were only a couple of us with enough cash to continue to play. As I played, I wondered if this is how some people live in real life. Waiting for their lucky card to be called out. Anxiously waiting to hear “Nuevo Trabajo!” (New Job!), “Erencia!”(Inheritance!), “Ganaste la Loteria!” (You Won the Lottery!).

As newbie investors we either have realized or experienced that you can’t sit around waiting for your lucky card to be drawn but you have to go out and create, nurture, and multiply that lucky card to become many that are constantly paying you even when you’re not thinking about them.

That’s what I reflected on when the party was moved over to my cousin’s house afterwards to play Monopoly. One relative began to purchase properties as soon as he began to land on them. Another kept saying the worst would happen and for the most part it did. She kept going to jail, paying rent, and owing income tax. She held on to her money tightly for fear that she would be kicked out of the game too soon for not having enough and she still ended up the first to go. My cousin whom purchased properties right away accumulated the majority of the cards available and put a Hotel on most of his properties. He was in the perfect position to bargain properties instead of cash when we landed on his properties and didn’t have enough for rent or cut us some slack. Mostly everybody at the table began to resent him for having such power but I admired his ability to know the game inside and out and maximize his cashflow by focusing on purchasing the cheapest properties and creating cashflow by putting hotels on them. I came out ok. I hadn’t played in such a long time and didn’t remember all the rules. I came in second after him for cashflow.

The game of Monopoloy is more reflectant of real life than the game of Bingo. If you play Monopoly to win then you should play life to win also. How do you approach life? Are you patient enough to grow your networth by investing your extra cash into real estate properties instead of spending it on frivilous items that you will later sell at a garage sale or donate to Goodwill? Are you thinking positive about your outcomes instead of saying everything will turn out bad- foretelling your own future? Are you studying the game board of life by watching how successful wealthy individuals do it – reading, educating yourself, learning as much as possible about being a real estate investor so that when you begin to play you can begin quickly and efficiently?
We ended up being kicked out my cousin’s house for staying up too late and not letting her sleep. She had to get up early the next morning to go to work. We tried to move the party over to a different cousin’s house but was told that they were also trying to go to bed for an early morning Monday start. So we cut it short and went home. I guess it’s hard for me to think about cutting any party short when I know one can work and play wherever they are at whatever times they choose. As a real estate investor, you work hard and play hard and there is no need to clock in on Mondays if you decide not to. BINGO!

Here's to Wealth, Education, and Freedom! - Flower De Raadt