Monday, October 25, 2010

Monday Morning Coffee

Hello all,
For those of you who follow Facebook you might have seen where I posted the monthly market update video from MRIS. This is great stuff to either post or email out to your database. So here is how you do it.

Log in to MRIS
Go to Market Stats
The RBI website pops up
Click on Market Watch Videos
Click on MD Suburbs (or if you want to post other areas)
Let the video play all the way through
For Facebook copy the embedded link and then post on Facebook.
For a link in email copy the URL and put it in an email, see below.


Happy hour this Wednesday from 6-8 at Baileys, please RSVP to Carol if you have not already.

I am starting to put together what will be our first annual vender/tech fair for January. It will be held at the Black Rock Center, there will be presentations by some of our tech providers (MRIS…), an opportunity for our vendors to have a table, open to all agents not just our office and lunch will be served. I would very much welcome any input you might have for tech/vender that you would like to see there.

Enjoy the coffee,
Joe      

Monday Morning Coffee

INSPIRATION FOR TODAY:

"Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it.
Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it."
- Goethe

BE ALL THAT THEY CAN BE?
On an A&E Biography segment, Oprah Winfrey was being interviewed. She was asked whether she considered all the competing talk shows to be a threat to her own daytime show. She answered with a personal story about running in a marathon.
It seems Oprah had always had a dream of running in a marathon. She trained for two years to get ready, and she ran her marathon. Oprah explained that, to her, competition was like that marathon. As long as she was hitting her stride with her goal of winning in clear focus, there was no time to consider the competition. She added that just turning her head backward to see how close competing runners were to her position was enough to rob her of energy needed to win the race.
Oprah's view of the competition brought to mind the U.S. Army recruiting slogan: "Be all that you can be!" Note that it doesn't say, "Be all that THEY can be!" Even when your competition has a recognizable face, why would you want to be them? If you want to improve yourself, speed up your achievements, or earn more money, why not just better your own time? Comparing yourself to others is a waste of precious time and energy.
Realizing your dreams requires a roadmap. First, you decide on a destination - your dream. Next, you choose a route. For Oprah, that involved hiring a personal trainer, improving her aerobic capacity, and adding strength training to her daily regimen. It also helps to identify some stops or landmarks along the way to help you measure your progress. Finally, you apply all your energy to running the race - and achieving your dream.
Oprah's dream was to run a marathon. What's yours?

Monday, October 18, 2010

Monday Morning Coffee

Hello all,
Lisa was kind enough to take the kids away this weekend so I had time to myself relaxing, any inspirations over the weekend were truly self-serving… sorry nothing for you all. There is a meeting Wednesday for the Woman’s Council of Realtors and MRIS will be giving a presentation on upcoming changes(see attached). If you did not know our Samar is the VP of membership for the council and it would be great if we could support her. We have a Happy Hour scheduled for 10/27 from 6-8 at Bailey’s, we have all worked very hard this year and it will be a good time to celebrate our success.

Daylights saving time is in 3 weeks, you can get on design center and send something like this out to your clients… lots of cool stuff there.



Click Here


Enjoy the coffee,
Joe



 
INSPIRATION FOR TODAY:"Pursue the good ardently. But if your efforts fall short, accept the result and move on."

- Epictetus

WHO ARE YOU?

Who do you want to be? Which are the principles by which you want to live? Do honesty, perseverance, and wisdom define you? Are sincerity, generosity, and a caring attitude your trademark?

Having a vague idea of the benchmark traits you wish to exhibit is not enough. To be extraordinary, it is necessary to define yourself in specific terms. If you haven't adopted a precise set of principles, consider choosing from the list that follows: humility, diligence, moderation, silence, temperance, chastity, courage, resolution, justice, industry, faithfulness, order, tranquility, cleanliness, encouragement, frugality, generosity, sincerity, persistence, honesty, perseverance, or caring.

Choose five that most closely match the person you would choose to be. Next define what each means to you, and how you can adopt them as your trademark traits. Finally, begin acting like the person you would be. Ben Franklin kept a small diary and rated his actions each day by placing a checkmark each time he violated one of his personal principles. Over time, as the checkmarks dwindled for one principle, he would move on to the next.

There's no need to discuss your quest for a principle-centered life with anyone. This is personal, very personal. It's also important to accept the fact that once you've adopted a credo, you won't do a perfect job of living up to it. When you find you've fallen short, "accept the result and move on."

Unless you're living the perfect life right now, and most of us aren't, give some thought to redefining yourself. Decide to be extraordinary and do whatever you must do - NOW!

Monday, October 11, 2010

Monday Morning Coffee

Hello all,
Last week I was at two different business functions mingling with people from our industry, the mortgage industry and other business owners. When you are at these things the common question is “How are things going” or “How is the office doing”. When we get these questions we tend to get into a rut with our answers and mine had become “We are doing ok, making a profit and keeping our heads above water”. My tone and answer must have seemed a bit meek and humble to a couple of my close companions because I got two different responses which opened my eyes. “You should not be embarrassed because you are successful” and the other was “You should not be ashamed that you are making a profit”. They were right, I imagine because I have seen so many agents and offices go so far south over the last five years I had developed a sense of guilt for all of our success. Just about everyone in the office is having a better year than last year, some will say this is the best year they have had in the last five years and a hand full will be proud enough to tell you this is the best year they have ever had in Real Estate. This is not something to be meek and humble about, we should never cross the line to “Cocky” but we should have our heads held high and our shoulders cocked. You deserve it and it will show your clients a sense of confidence which is a much needed commodity during these times. So if you are asked “How is business” your answers should be “ My business is up 30% from last year and things are going great” or “This is the best year I have had since 2005 and all of the hard work is really paying off” or “I can’t tell you how happy I am with everything, this is the best year I have ever had in Real Estate”. With my held high and my shoulders cocked I will answer the question about the office with “ I am so proud of my agents and everything they have accomplished, the office is really taking off and the future looks very very bright” and I won’t feel guilty about it.

Office meeting- Tomorrow 9:30 at the Black Rock Center.

Enjoy the coffee,
Joe







INSPIRATION FOR TODAY:"In the midst of our daily lives, we must find the juice to nourish our creative souls."

- Sark

TRAVELLING AT WARP SPEED?

Familiar with the speed of light? According to science books, light travels at a speed of 186,000 miles per second. That's been common knowledge for years. Now, however, scientists have discovered in experiments that light may travel many times faster. In fact, tests seem to show that light may travel so fast that it arrives BEFORE it even leaves its source.

Business now travels at the speed of the Internet. "Fast Company" magazine reports up-to-the-nanosecond business techniques. You're connected . . . we're connected . . . we're all moving at warp speed!

Whoa! Stop! Put on the brakes. If you're feeling overwhelmed at the breakneck speed of your business . . . and your life . . . take heart. There's a solution, but you must make space for it. Some call it checking out. Others call it meditation. Some describe it as needing "some space" or "quiet time." The name is not important, but the practice is.

Into each day, schedule a time when you can be alone for 15 - 30 minutes. Mornings may be best when the house is quiet. Close your eyes and practice thinking absolutely nothing. If images, worries, or business schedules keep popping into your mind, practice making them go away. Some picture a blank movie or TV screen. If an image pops onto the screen, mentally turn off the TV and watch the screen go blank.

Once you reach this quiet peaceful state, you will notice that your daily family concerns and business challenges begin to resolve themselves. You can attract everything you need into your life by simply spending some time each day with yourself. It may feel awkward at first - thinking about nothing - but you will soon realize the potential of this powerful resource within you.

Go to your Day Planner now. Write in a block of time for each day this week to spend with your alter ego. Now - keep your appointment!