Gary Woltal's Blog

In professions like those associated with the Real Estate industry, one committed to service of the customer, we should all strive to be the best.

         DO YOU HAVE EIGHT SECONDS??

That's the standard to "qualify" to be the best. I'm talking bull riding pardner. The chute opens and out you go on "Texas Tornado" or "Wyoming Wonder" or "Big Boy". Hang on. Oh and by the way you can only hang on with "one" hand. Are you strapped in with the leather strap? Do you have your teeth clenched for the wild ride? The eight seconds? You must stay on the beast that long to be judged. If not, start over on another ride and by the way

         EAT DIRT

Much in our professional development requires eating plenty of dirt. Practice, fail. Practice again, make a mistake. More dirt. Practice again, embarass yourself, lose a client, get yelled at. This dirt is turning into a meal I think.

But you know what? The best Cowboys (or Cowgirls), the best Realtors, Stagers, Loan Officers, Inspectors, Appraisers, have eaten plenty of dirt and got past the eight seconds to be the best at what they do. They get back up. They want to have another ride. Another go at it.

How about you? Do you like eating dirt? It goes pretty good with being a champion!!

REALTORS get to listen a lot. They listen to buyer clients' stories, they get to listen to co-workers, they get to listen to partners like those in the Title, Appraisal, Loan, Staging, and Inspector fields. So you hear a lot. About everything.

There's a saying that behind every outward smiling face someone is carrying some pain or burden. Although we work our way individually through our own problems which Norman Vincent Peale said are totally natural if you are alive, it dawned on me that

CLOUDY DAYS ARE FOLLOWED BY SUNNY SKIES

A little case in point. One young lady in her twenties was telling of the story of her dreams to first get a job to support herself and then eventually move to England. She was having a bad week where a heavy dump truck plowed into the back of her car. Luckily she was ok but not the car. She's not found a job yet, had to move back in with the parents. The parents have no sympathy for her predicament, nor her brother, and no one even seemed to be concerned that she was in such a major accident. We can't always pick the best of people for our family members. But her story changed as she truly felt good about friends in her life that she could go to that supported her through this struggle to get where she wanted to go. She could see in her mind her way through this cloudy period toward a day when things would be brighter for her. It struck me what great faith she had in knowing life is not all black and white. That while sure you will have some people that act cold and uncaring toward you, there are others who will give the shirt off their back in times of distress.

So sit back on your beach chair and enjoy the cloudy skies. They are not ALL what life is about. Sunny skies may be only the next moment away.

Oh, and my own cloudy day, I can't respond to my emails today cause something crashed on my computer.  : ) 

In determining which home among competing homes to select for their next place to live, many buyers are heavily tilting towards preferences which enhance their lifestyle. They may be looking for higher end countertops, fancier pools with spas, art niches, upgraded landscaping, better appliances, energy efficient water heaters and air conditioners, even outdoor kitchens. When you see the eyes of a prospective buyer light up over these "goodies" it reminds us while we live in a home to try to keep it up to date and remodel it with some cutting edge amenities along the way.

Not only will it make us feel good about our current homes, but it adds to its investment value and it's edge in the marketplace when it comes time to sell. It's the nice touches that give you the edge.

In looking at buyer's remorse, a common phase in the real estate purchasing process where for a brief moment of time, the buyer has doubts about what they are doing, it made me think of that show Fear Factor. You know, that's the one where the contestants are constantly asked to perform more and more challenging frightening assignments to be the last one standing and win the grand prize.

In life there are many things that can frighten us and I must add rightfully so. But we are implored in life to fear not. Easier said than done.

Just think in the employment world how a boss can hold a performance standard or sales number over your head, OR ELSE, you're fired!! Kind of affects your family's security. What about in the self-employment world? Don't make enough money, you don't eat, feed the family, and make those mortgage payments.

So fear can be real and IS real. You have to work through it. Talk with others what you are going through and what I've found when it just gets overwhelming at times

                    LAUGH ABOUT IT

If you don't think laughing about it can help, then take a quick gander at the clip below. Laughter which is a universal feeling among all cultures as is a smile, serves to break the tension. It lets each of us know we are in this together. All at times feel the fear. But you'll get through it. Just hang on for the ride.

Mr. Delaney's Office

With a slowness in the real estate market year over year too many I hear in the industry look to outside circumstances to change when they could be doing so much more to change their inside.

Market forces will be what they will be but the cream of the crop in any industry will rise during adversity. If a plan can be devised during these tougher times it holds the opportunity to take your play to the next level.

                          TO ELEVATE YOUR GAME

Many call for a return to fundamentals in prospecting and lead generation along with constant contact with our network. How about learning new ways to interact with prospective clients by using more and more technology available over the Internet like video, widgets, advanced mapping tools, neighborhood market information, etc.? What about the old fashioned telephone call to past clients to see how they are doing?

There are an endless list of inexpensive continuing education classes from everything from RESPA and the new FHA programs to how to set up blogs, listings on Craigslist, and advanced Publisher tips and tricks.

Those that love what they do are constant learners and are invaluable to their clients.

Strive to always get better. Practice, practice, practice. You know you still have gobs of room for improvement.

Elevate Your Game!!!

Did you ever have one of those days where it ended where you were just exhausted? Couldn't figure out which way was up.

Had a woman Realtor tell me one time that in the middle of the negotation between a buyer and seller that is why the Realtor is there. They serve as a calming influence during emotional times. Her exact words were

     WE ARE LIKE A BIG ASPIRIN

Never thought of myself like that but experiencing various stressful times as we all do from time to time I like to fall back on that old cliche when people get riled up a bit and advise they take deep breath and perhaps in their mind

             TAKE A CHILL PILL

You want to transform a possible suckiness situation in life into looking something like this

I think this could be described as one of those take me away Calgon moments.

The point is negativity can creep into your day at any point and even build to a crescendo point. Watch for this and defuse it by NOT reacting negatively back at it. Step away from it if you have to. Not always an easy thing to do like with raising screaming kids all around you. But we all need to get a handle on negativity and build our personal and business lives to mostly have positive surroundings. Hang around upbeat friends, be part of a team that pull for each other. Laugh alot.

Negativity is draining and too much of it can affect our health adversely. Have you smiled at someone today or uplifted another's spirit? In the grand maze of karma of the universe your positive energy will come back to you multiplied. May you find your Calgon moments each day so you may enjoy life to the fullest.

As a REALTOR, our clients expect many answers. They want them accurate, they want them fast, and by the way you should know everything. Since discovering Google on the web, I don't know if you pull this trick off or not, but if you are unsure about the spelling of a word, misspell it into Google, and it will come back and say, Did you mean: with the corrected word or options of what it might have been. Very cool. With Google we now all know everything. NOT!!

I will tell you what I do know (the Realtor with all the answers part) doing so by way of an Arabian Horse story to illustrate it.

It is said that there was once a gentleman in the Middle East. His only possession that really amounted to anything for him, his wife and son, who lived in a little hovel, was a gorgeous Arabian mare. The mare was absolute perfection.

The neighbors always came by and said how lucky he was to have this one beautiful mare. He said he didn't know whether it was good or bad, he just knew he had this lovely mare.

Well, one night she broke out of the corral and when he got up the next morning, he discovered that she was gone. All the neighbors came by and said how terrible, how bad it was that the mare was gone. He said he didn't know whether it was good or bad, all he knew was that the mare was gone.

One morning about a week and a half later, she came back and had seven beautiful Arab stallions with her. She brought those in the corral with her. They were all smitten with her, so they went into the corral too. Now all the neighbors came by and said what wonderful luck he had. They said, "You have seven beautiful stallions along with your mare back." He said, "I don't know whether it's good or bad, all I know is I got the mare back and seven stallions with her.

So while they looked them over, the son decided to break the stallions so they could be ridden and they could sell them. One of the stallions threw him and broke his leg. So he was laid up with a broken leg. They didn't have those little pins they use now so you could get up and go. He was laid up with a splint.

The neighbors came by and said, "That's bad, your son has a broken leg." He said, "I don't know whether it's good or bad, I just know my son has a broken leg.

About this time the king sent his men through the area and took all able-bodied young men to send them off on one of his war ventures. The son couldn't go because he had a broken leg. The neighbor's sons all had to go. The neighbors came over and said how lucky the man was because his son didn't have to go because he had a broken leg. He said, "I don't know whether it's good or bad, I just know my son has a broken leg and didn't have to go with the Army.

So, the moral of the story is I KNOW I DON'T KNOW WHETHER AN OUTCOME WILL BE GOOD OR BAD, and I'm ok with that and you will never know for sure. It is a trusting of life that takes a little faith. A bad thing that has happened to you may be a good thing with a valuable lesson tucked inside. Maybe a tough experience will open a new door, make you sensitive to other people, or change you for the better. Allow it to unfold in its due course. Don't rely on Google for all your answers. TRUST LIFE.

With the marking of 4,000 deaths this week in the war in Iraq it made me think of commitment and service by many in our world. No greater love is given than to lay down one's life. We honor those who serve and also those many wounded as well.

In combat zones, you will hear soldiers, men and women, who go back for additional tours of duty to serve with their units. It isn't sometimes about the mission or the politics of the war, but rather about the unit.

There's an expression in combat patrols which says "I've got your back."

We should all be so lucky in life to have a military service person, a family member, a friend, a Realtor, any professional who has our back.

We know that they can be counted on in thick and thin times. We need not turn around to see that they are there "covering" for us. It is a matter of faith. When you find someone like this in your life (personal or business) make note of them. In the category of true friends, you have found a treasure.

There is a Nigerian proverb that says, "Hold on to a true friend with both hands." It is so true. They are examples of loyalty to you that is a fleeting rarity in today's modern world. I view it as perhaps a glimpse of a little "heaven on earth."

So to all those in the military and in life in general that have our backs, I salute you as my heroes.

I had a chance to take a look at TopProducer 8i, the latest version of the contact manager/organizer from the Richmond, British Columbia firm. My thoughts from a laymen's perspective.

The product is now released and not in Beta anymore. The company intends to do a slow rollout from 7i to 8i by June. You can get an earlier release of it if you call the Customer Service number and get on their list : 866-230-4789

While designed for Realtors I understand this contact manager like ACT! or Outlook could be used by insurance agents, Stagers, or anyone with a large sphere of influence that they want to organize emails, drip campaigns, calendars, and marketing materials around.

The two main pluses over 7i from users are it has no Java scripting issues (any browser will work) and there is a back button at the bottom of the screen to go back and forth. You also don't have to go between so many screens.

The centralized home page is uniform now with "landing" pages for things like calendar, contacts, listings, marketing letters-email-flyers, and email. Things are much simplified like little things like typing in a whole name rather than last, first, middle initial. Contact types are check boxes or user defined rather than scrolling through a list. The TopProducer Campus on the main web site has more training materials than in the past. The problems with mass emails to Yahoo or AOL addresses looking like spam also supposedly have been worked out with the servers at those companies.

With mobility, Windows Mobile is newly supported along with already Treos, and eventually the iPhone.

I'll let all the techies on the board talk about every bell and whistle difference but overall a sharper and more crisper 8i looks like a great upgrade if you are using 7i, and it is free to upgrade.

If we pay attention the field of real estate is a great classroom for learning many things about life. You are constantly learning things about people and situations as you interact with them. The lessons never end. Some agents learn the lessons quickly and don't make the same mistakes again. Others stay in an endless loop repeating the same situation over and over again. It's not WHAT happens to you. "IT" happens to all of us to paraphrase that first word. It is how you respond to situations that is the difference maker. Some take personal responsibility and move on. Others like to blame others or bad luck for their circumstances.

Whether life is good or bad for you at the moment, know that in an instant it can flip the other way. That is not the point. The point is what lesson is being provided to you on your very own unique path through life? And more important are you learning it?