The most important day you can spend this year is the day you spend reviewing the year.  Too often we forget to review our past experiences.  To be truly successful, we have to invest what we have learned into our future.  By making this wise investment we increase the speed that we travel to achieve greater success.
 
My friend, Jim Rohn, says you are either going to lead a life that is an example or a life that says warning.  The difference between those two diametrically opposed lives is the time …

From an early age, every child learns the Golden Rule: Treat others the way you want to be treated. Customer service pros replace the Golden Rule with the Platinum Rule: Treat others the way they wish to be treated. 
The Platinum Rule was coined by speaker/trainer Tony Alessandra, who explains that a salesperson’s job is not to treat and serve clients as you want to be treated but as they want to be treated.  
The only way to know how a person wants to be treated is to ask and observe. Different …

This post is in response to a great post by Mary Supinger regarding short sales and credit ramifications.  I felt inclined to follow up with a post that may help agents and brokers reduce their risk in these types of transactions.  Many of my agents recently attended a risk management credit course on short sales, foreclosures and refinancing which has now scared them to death regarding the representation of a seller who is in a position for a possible short sale.  The issue isn

I saw Bill’s recent post about having interviewed Tom Hayman recently during an iSucceed teleseminar. (Which, by the way, is worth reiterating that iSucceed has opened up their web site to free subscriptions for the rest of the year.)

One of the key characteristics that successful people have is a winning mindset. They have learned over time to program their mind for success. That’s what gives them the edge in competitive situations. This mindset allows them to hit the winning shot at the buzzer, sink the crucial putt on the 18th hole to win the tournament, or get the listing signed . . . even when they are up against the best Agents in town. The question is why do some people have it and others don’t? How can you ensure that you acquire the winning mindset?

There have been so many mergers, acquisitions and office closings that people are being shuffled from one location to another.  Some larger brokerages have widdled their 20 offices down to 4 and some managers have been totally displaced and are now working for another company.  The challenge isn’t if these people know how to manage, recruit or support agents…the challenge is, do they all share the same goals and vision for the offices they are in?  How do you evaluate and find out if, when all your staff goes to bed, they are all seeing the same picture of growth and success?  One way to find out is to have a “Vision Meeting” with your team.

We are all faced with call reluctance at one time or another in our sales careers. We all know that we need to prospect and make calls daily to generate new business. However, knowing and doing can be two entirely different things. The fear of calling can be a career ender for many sales people.

In setting prospecting goals, focus on three core areas: the number of contacts you should make each day and week, the number of leads you should develop, and the number of personal appointments you should set. Start with easily attainable numbers, so you can build up your energy, intensity, focus, and discipline slowly and steadily. You wouldn’t decide to run a marathon without working your daily and weekly mileage up over time, and the same premise applies when establishing and meeting your prospecting goals.

Washington state’s HB2791 goes into effect tomorrow, June 12, 2008.  (Sucky disclaimer:  I’m not a lawyer… no legal advice here… consult yours…yadda, yadda…)

What’s the deal?  Basically, Washington state has come out with new legislation intended to protect homeowners from scammers.  Unfortunately, it apparently also has some unintended consequences for agents.  Specifically, as they pertain to areas in which agents — and, unbeknownst to them in some cases, even an agent’s buyer client — can become legally classified as a DHC — Distressed Home Consultant.  Presently, there are no waivers for real estate agent/professionals as in other states where similar legislation may exist.

Read a few of my recent responses to a couple of commenters and you’ll notice I’ve been a little off tone lately.

In one comment, Bob rants about “lazy agents.”

>>LAZY AGENTS!!!!! …When real estate was booming, they were making tremendous commissions with very little work as homes were selling in just days. Now they have to work for their money and all they do is complain…”<<

In another, William wonders why agents couldn’t take a tip from wall street.