First of all, I want to thank this amazing community for being supportive and helping with my questions.
**Goal**: I want to value companies so that I can identify undervalued companies and make $$. I want to clearly state my goal so that I can get appropriate guidance (aka I'm not looking for a job in this sector).
**About me:** I'm 40 yr old tech exec (engineering background, no finance background). I believe if David Tepper, Buffett etc. can beat the market by finding undervalued opportunities, I can do that as well to a reasonable extent. I say this because especially being a small investor, I can invest in the right small caps (higher return) if I know how to value them. I am willing to put the hard work and need guidance on my approach.
**What have I done till now**: Read 3 books (one up on wall street, dhandho investor, little book that beats the market) and plan to read Beat the Street and the Investment Checklist. I watched a few YouTube videos and watching [Prof. Damodran's valuation course](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_FH89DCdGs&list=PLUkh9m2BorqnKWu0g5ZUps_CbQ-JGtbI9&index=8). While I find it difficult to understand everything in this course in the first watch, I plan to watch all 25 videos to familiarize myself with the big picture and rewatch the to understand whatever I didn't get in the first watch.
**Seeking inputs from the community on following:**
1. whether my approach is right for my goal
2. what should I do next (preferrable in order)
3. has anyone been through this journey (non finance person who studied valuation to make $$)? how long did it take you and did you beat the market? I'd love to learn from you