Dining Out-How to Plan the Perfect Evening
Dining out should be an experience. Whether a romantic date, a night out with friends, or some much needed alone time, there is one thing any dining experience should have in common. Good food.
How many of us choose to go out on a Friday night to unwind after a long week at the office? While we may not consider choosing a restaurant to be an important decision, a poor choice can easily ruin what could have otherwise been a relaxing and enjoyable event.
How then, can we plan a nice evening without putting in too much effort or frequenting the same establishments over and over in order to “play it safe”?
Ian Renner of Florida is a real estate investor with a back ground in civil engineering who frequently travels for work. Renner enjoys working out the details of contracts and proposed projects with clients and work associates over casual lunches and nice dinners with a few glasses of wine. To those Renner meets with, he always seems to have a knack for choosing the right restaurants, even when he’s new to the area.
How does someone like Renner know where to take his clients each time? It’s simple! With a little research, you too can make the right decision every time!
Don’t be afraid to speak with the locals! When checking in to your hotel, ask the concierge for his recommendation. This way you can get a legitimate recommendation from someone that speaks with travelers often. You may also want to speak with taxi drivers, airport workers or even random people you may pass by in a store.
Another great option, especially for a variety of reviews and specific menu recommendations would be a restaurant review website. Sites such as, zagat.com, tripadvisor.com, and yelp.com are great for in-depth reviews from real restaurant patrons.
If you’re looking to impress clients, or a date, or even just enjoy a night out on the town without a hitch, make sure to take a few minutes to plan ahead. The time spent will be worth the effort!
Importance of Making Time for Family-How to Create Lasting Memories
With busy schedules and looming deadlines, it is often easy to lose sight of the true motivation for success. For many, creating a comfortable life to enjoy with family and friends is the reason they are dedicated to their jobs, but they often lack the time to invest in the life they have created.
Ian Renner of Florida knows all about leading a busy life. Holding a Ph.D. in civil engineering, Renner built a highly successful career for himself with no intention of slowing down. Devoting his time to projects in underdeveloped countries such as Honduras, Renner realized his dream of helping others through his work.
As time passed, Renner married and had two children. With a desire to care for his family and spend quality time at home, Renner began his career as a real estate investor. In 1999, Renner purchased several rental properties, beginning a highly rewarding career in real estate that also afforded him more time to spend with loved ones.
He has a few helpful tips for anyone that was once in his position, looking to free up time for family while building his or her success.
1. Never give up on your dream. We all have them. If you are happy in what you do, the time you spend away from work won’t be spent “de-stressing” and trying to getaway.
2. Live in the moment. Be present in every aspect of your life. You don't have to spend hours with your children each day to create a loving relationship. Provide your full attention to your children and make the most of the time you have.
3. Create a long lasting, sustainable tradition. Something as simple as leaving the office a little early on Fridays to pick up your child and get a special treat will leave a lasting impression.
4. Make time for your spouse. Having a loving, intentional relationship with your spouse will make the time spent with family more enjoyable for everyone.
Never forget to enjoy the moment! If you want more quality time with you family, start by making the most of the time you already have.
Ian Renner Florida - Thinking Ahead
Ian Renner of Florida says “People may have a need for extra savings and income for retirement, or they may be looking for new ways to put their kids through college. And I can just talk and talk and talk off the top of my head, no notes or anything, and be quite certain that what I am saying is completely accurate." In his experience, he says that people who are in the 35-to-65 age group tend to be more serious about real estate as a means of generating income. "I've been doing this for a long time now, and I know what I'm doing. The people who are a little older, who have a little more real-world experience, tend to be a lot more prepared and a lot more motivated," Ian says. Ian is a real estate adviser with many years of experience. Ian says, “It's just that I'm at the point now where I could just about write a book on the subject. What older people have in common is that need to try something different. For such people, a good starting point can be as simple as renting out a room in their home.”
Ian Renner Florida says that he is sometimes called on to share his expertise with new real estate investors. And then there are those who want to take it to an even higher level, something more like what Ian has done for years, and buy a property, find tenants for it, and get the rewards of a long-term investment. Sometimes I forget how much I know, until I start talking to those who are just starting out. And he says that he sometimes surprises himself with the quality of his advice.
Ian Renner Florida - Make the Right Choice
Ian spent nearly ten years working as a civil engineer, during which time he designed several bridges and roads, and worked on a team that was designing a new airport in Iowa. A high point for Ian was his involvement in an NGO called No Frontiers, which wanted to bring a series of civil engineering projects to developing countries. He designed and personally built a solar energy project in a small village in Honduras, bringing it a clean and reliable energy source for the first time ever. Ian switched careers in 2001, and today is a successful real estate investor in Orlando, Florida.
So after giving it a lot of thought, and honestly assessing his skills and interests, he enrolled at the University of Florida and began to study engineering. "And as it turned out, the work came to me rather easily," he recalls. in 1990. Ian says that when he was younger and trying to decide on a career, the only thing that he knew for sure was that he didn't want to have a job that felt like actual work. And the funny thing is that as I get further into the program, the work kept getting easier – not because engineering is easy, because it isn't.
"And when I realized that, I knew that I had made the right decision. But because I was so engrossed by it that it just absorbed me, and it never really felt like work. It wasn't so much a matter of applying myself, as it was like when you pick up a really interesting book and start reading it, and don't want to put it down." Ian Renner Florida earned a Bachelor's degree in engineering and went on to the graduate program at Florida, where he received his Ph.D.
Ian Renner of Florida - Staying Humble
Ian Renner of Florida says that the thing that initially attracted him to investing in real estate was that the potential for profit was so great. And so when some of his business associates approached him about becoming a partner in buying an apartment building in his native Orlando, Florida, he did a little research and decided to go ahead and do it.
But something that he always kept in the back of his mind was the possibility that he would lose his investment, because even though he was a novice investor, he understood that like any investment, there was a degree of risk involved. He trusted his partners, because he had known them for many years and considered them honest. And so he went ahead with the investment, but at the same time went to his local bookstore and bought a few books about real estate investing, and gave himself a crash course in the subject.
That first investment went well, and Ian Renner of Florida was able to buy out his partners within a few years. By then he had a much better idea of what he was doing, and was able to reinvest his profits into additional properties, eventually expanding into nearby Miami and Tampa. Within a few years he had reached a point where he had accumulated enough income-producing property to provide him with a comfortable standard of living, regardless of current economic conditions.
Ian Renner of Florida believes that one of the reasons for his success is that he has stayed humble. "I've been lucky. I have always done my homework and don't make rash investments, but still, I've been lucky because I have never had any serious problems with any of my properties. Too many investors start to think they are invulnerable, that they have some sixth sense that keeps them away from bad investments. Big mistake."
Ian Renner of Florida - Problem Solvers
Ian Renner of Florida is a graduate of the University of Florida. He studied engineering as an undergraduate and went on to the University's graduate program, where he earned his Ph.D. in civil engineering in 1990.
While he is now a fulltime real estate investor, Ian Renner of Florida remains an advocate of engineering, and civil engineering in particular. "Engineers are problem solvers," he declares. "And civil engineering is just about the oldest of the different engineering disciplines. It deals with the environment and making improvements on it – from as far back as the first time someone raised a roof over his or her head, or laid a big log across a creek to get across it. They improved their environment and solved a problem. And to me, that is the essence of civil engineering."
As a Ph.D. candidate Ian Renner of Florida was required to conduct original and independent research on an engineering topic. He created a workable solar power facility. And this led him to No Frontiers, an NGO that then and now was active in developing countries. "We had a partnership with a village in Honduras," he recalls. "We made an assessment trip down there, me and a team of four or five others. We scoped out the place and determined that they would, indeed, greatly benefit from a solar power project, of about the same size and scope of the project I did for my Ph.D."
Ian Renner of Florida recalls that No Frontiers operated on the principle that no one should live in what they called "energy poverty" – that is, without access to a reliable energy source. "Yet billions of people do, most of them in the Southern Hemisphere and in developing countries," he says. "And I had the skills to do something about it, at least in one village." He has his team returned a year after their assessment trip and built the photovoltaic system with the help of the villagers, who learned how to maintain it. "And now they have a reliable energy source. And that's a pretty good feeling."
Ian Renner of Florida- A Learning Experience
Ian Renner of Florida says that what he likes best about investing in real estate is that it does not take a huge amount of time and effort to make a lot of money. Much of his income is derived from the rental properties he owns in Orlando, Florida, where he makes his home, and in two other cities.
He has been investing in real estate since 1999, when he bought into an apartment building with several partners. "It was a learning experience," Ian Renner of Florida recalls. "I was smart enough to educate myself about the process before I put any money into it. But with hindsight, I see now that I could have done better."
Even so, Ian Renner of Florida was able to buy out his partners and become sole owner of that Orlando apartment building within a few years. Today he owns a string of properties in Orlando and several other Florida cities. "I'd made a few other investments at that point – some stock that I still have," he recalls. "I thought that was the best way to make money. I mean, that's what we're all taught, right? But I see now that real estate is a better investment, at least for me." The problem with the stock market, he explains, is that he had to rely on his stocks to increase in value. With his real estate investments, which he says he intends to hang on to, he as a steady cash flow that he can count on and is always going to be there.
Ian Renner of Florida is married and the father of two children.
