I recently read an article in RISMedia that really sparked my interest.  The article entitled 5 Ways to Invest in the Key Asset of Your Business was a basic list of the ways that someone could re-invent themselves by investing time and effort into the one asset that all agents have - Themselves. 

The key principle to this article was the fact that, despite this uncertain market, there are people that appear to be striving to make their own abilities better and five ways to do so.  Below is the list that was in the article...and a good healthy dose of my own explanations as to why this is so important in this uncertain market.

IMAGE: You chose a career in real estate to be an independent business person.  So, do you carry yourself in a professional manner?  Do you "look the part"?  Do you have your business cards on you?  Are you showing that you are proud of whom you work for or what you do?  Whether you want to believe it or not, your image IS your first impression.  Make sure that the impression you are making is the on that you actually want to make.  There are some places where you can get away with blue jeans and a nice shirt.  There are other places where a suit is more appropriate.  Dress the part!  Maintain your personal image.  Get your hair cut or styled.  Ladies...get your nails done.  Guys...shave every day.  (Believe me, I realize that sucks...I'm a guy...I understand.  But, its 2 or 3 minutes...and it makes a ton of difference to those around you.)  I actually know of one agent that wears a tuxedo to all of his closings.  That is part of his image.  It is what sets him apart from the rest.

TRAINING: Aside from the mandatory requirements involved, you should try to find as many different options to better your ability as you can.  Take the time to sit down with your broker to discuss some in-house training options.  If you know of any free options for training, jump on it.  Any training you involve yourself in will only re-emphasize the skill set you already have developed.  So, it will not be wasted time or effort.  You never know, you may learn something.  (Also, anything that you can learn about social networking...that is a must!  Trust me on this...this is a skill that does require some time to master, but you will not regret it!)

NETWORKING: Making yourself known in the community by getting involved with community events is a great way of networking with some of the more influential people in your market.  Get involved with the community.  Start working with the Chamber of Commerce.  Go to PTA meetings.  Join Toastmasters.  Get involved in your local neighborhood activities.  Surrounding yourself with such innovative, like-minded people will help you with both your image and your over-all success.  Most people do business with people that they know on a social level.  So, networking like this is a key to success in a troubled market.

MENTORING: They say that the teacher will always learn something from the student.  Become a mentor for younger agents.  Help them be successful.  This will cause you to make sure that what you are doing is what you SHOULD be doing.  It will help you cross your ‘T's and dot your ‘I's, as it were.  Besides...there are times when you can actually team up and work together for the success of each.

YOU: Seems weird that I have to add this since this entire post is about you.  But, if you are not taking good care of yourself, you will not have the energy or the will to commit to the rest of this list.  Take care of your own body and mind.  Get sleep.  It is probably more important than anything else you can do for yourself.  Make sure you get some exercise.  (In this industry with showing property and running from one location to another, that usually isn't hard...but you should do 30 minutes of cardio every day.)  Eat right.  (Did you know that eating an apple will actually wake you up better than a cup of coffee??)  Bring fresh fruits with you on your appointments and eat them when you can.  Avoid the drive-thrus.  If you don't know where else to start in your investments in you...look in the mirror and start there.

If you would like information on how to get more clients, please contact Clint Miller at 800-977-7058.  Or, visit www.recr.com.  Or, follow Clint on Twitter at www.twitter.com/recr.

It amazes me on a daily basis how many agents that I deal with actually set themselves up for failure by making simple, yet deadly, mistakes in their business.  Some of these mistakes seem to be so simple to overcome.  Yet, time and time again, they repeat the same thing expecting a different result.  That is the definition of insanity. 

So, in the hopes that I can in some small way help YOU avoid making these mistakes, I wanted to summarize an article I found in BrokerAgentPro that lists 5 of the things agents do that hinder their own efforts...and ways to avoid getting caught in these commission killing traps.

Getting ‘Busy Work' confused with actual ‘Work' - Many agents across the country suffer from not having a consistent game plan for their daily activities.  There are several things that you should do daily.  These include: Lead generation; Contacting prospects that are potential clients; Work and sort out the motivations of existing clients; Negotiate contracts on pending deals; Present findings to your clients.  All 5 of those things MUST be done on a daily basis to maintain a consistent level of effort on all aspects of your business.  If you are not getting any one of these done, you are attempting to build a business on a weak foundation and you will fail. 

Not working a set schedule - Lack of motivation is the biggest cause of not working a set schedule.  "I don't feel like it today."  Guess what...no one *feels* like it.  But, they do it.  Successful agents work a set schedule every day whether they ‘feel like it' or not.  What do you do on days you don't feel like working?  See #1 above.

"It's a numbers game" - Well, sort of.  But, no, not really.  Yes, you need to track your numbers.  Yes, those numbers are important.  But, in no way will those numbers lead you to making any money!  This is a PEOPLE game!  If you are not out helping people with or talking to people about real estate, you are doomed to fail.  Focus on what you have to offer - your talents and abilities to assist people in buying or selling a house. 

Lacking multiple lead streams - That's right.  If you do not have multiple streams of leads, you will fail.  If your only source of leads is making cold calls, asking for referrals from clients, calling expired listings, etc...You are limiting your ability to get new clients.  If you take a day off, you don't make ANY progress.  None.  What if you lose your phone for a day?  What if you lose your voice for a day?  No progress.  So, having several good lead generation sources is a must in order to keep bringing in new potential clients.  Just remember, not every lead will close.  But, every lead needs worked.  That's what you do!

"Its all about the Benjamins, baby!" - This philosophy will ultimately be your demise in real estate.  You should never put earning a commission above your ability to be of service to your client.  If you are not out there to help your clients, you will fail.  If you don't know how to help your clients, LEARN!  The ‘rules' have changed.  Make an effort to adapt to those changes and *help* your clients.  The money will follow. 

If you would like more information on increasing your inbound referrals, please contact Clint Miller of www.recr.com.  You can call at 800-977-7058 or follow me on Twitter at www.twitter.com/recr.

That's right!  Its that time of year again...the time when the stodgy bookworms over at the University of Oxford release the annual top 10 list of things that people say (or over-say) that just make you want to grate your ears off with a cheese-grater.  This year's annual list is no exception.

1 - At the end of the day
2 - Fairly unique
3 - I personally
4 - At this moment in time
5 - With all due respect
6 - Absolutely
7 - It's a nightmare
8 - Shouldn't of
9 - 24/7
10 - It's not rocket science

Now, the entire list will be published in a new book, Damp Squid, The English Language Laid Bare by Jeremy Butterfield.  But, this is by far the best part of the list. 

Since those pocket-protector wearing researchers at Oxford always forget to save space for us hard-core wordsmiths to add in our own unique phrases, I hereby open up the remainder of this blog as a way of getting some of those tidbits of ‘auditory fodder' out in the open.  Feel free to throw out your sour ear-candy, your audio awfulness, your used Q-tip of mental mucus.  We want to hear the things that we are saying that are making you want to scrub your ears out with a Brillo pad. 

So, post away!  I, for one, look forward to seeing them!

If you would like more information on www.recr.com and how we can help you make more money, please contact Clint Miller at 800-977-7058.  Or, follow me on Twitter at www.twitter.com/recr.

So, you want to make more money in real estate, huh?  Well…I’m fairly certain you aren’t the only one.  I think we all do.  And here are 5 ways to help:

• Do something NOW! – Too often, agents lull themselves into this false sense of reality that preparing to do something is the same thing as actually doing something.  Endless attempts at coming up with a plan, meetings, conference calls, strategic alliances with others in their market, etc are nothing more than a waste of energy, time, and brain matter unless you actually ACT ON THEM!  You must do something productive that will lead you to a commission…and you MUST DO IT NOW!  And, while you are doing that, have a reward in mind that you can get when you do get your reward from doing something.  Quit wasting your breath by saying that you are “doing what you love” or “following your passion”.  Let’s be honest for a second…does anyone really LOVE selling real estate?  I mean, honestly…Don’t you use the money you make from your job as the fuel for the fire of your true?  I know I do! I don’t love my job…In fact, there are days I hope my building gets hit with a thermo-nuclear weapon.  But, I REQUIRE my job to allow me to fulfill what I truly am passionate about…No one ever laid on their deathbed and said, “I just wish I could stay one more day at my desk at that job I loved so much…”
  
  
• Don’t convince yourself that this is a ‘numbers’ game!   Sure, lead generation is important and will always be a cornerstone of this business, but it’s not about the numbers.  It’s about the people.  You are in the ‘Helping People’ business.  That should always be the very first and most important aspect of your business.  Track the numbers…I’m not saying you can get away without doing that.  But, help your people first!
  
  
• Position yourself to reap future rewards!  I don’t have to tell you that markets across the country are in a massive state of upheaval.  Heck, you’re probably more of an expert on that than I am, to be sure.  Offices closing, people leaving the industry to get “a real job”, prices falling like a rock, foreclosures running rampant…All of this is creating OPPORTUNITY!  Now is the time to take advantage of those things.  Adjust your business model to accept changes in the market and position yourself to take the shot when the chance arrives.
  
  
• Avoid procrastination and ‘getting caught up in the little stuff’.  Every night before you go to bed, write down just a couple things that are important and need to get done the following day.  Don’t procrastinate on those things.  Get them done.  Simple rewards like that will free up the mind and reduce your over-all ‘workload’.  Also, do what actually matters first.  For example, if you are writing a blog and a customer walks in the door that says they want to view property, QUIT WRITING and show them a house!  Seems dumb to most of us that I have to say that…but that’s the simplest way that I can think of to make this point.  Just because you have a list of things you WANT to get done doesn’t mean you have to ignore important aspects of this job to do them.  As my mom always says, “Life is what happens while you are trying to plan your life.”  Smart woman.
  
  
• Make your business fit your life, not the other way around.  If you want to have a life outside of your career, then develop boundaries that will achieve this goal.  And, stick to them!  If you don’t, you will end up with no life.  And that is a sad existence for anyone.  Also, along the way you will be told all kinds of ‘street-sage wisdom’.  Do yourself a favor…Ignore it!  “Work smarter, not harder” is wonderful advice, in theory.  Great idea.  But, in this business in this economy in this market, you have to bust your hump every single day.  I’m not saying you shouldn’t work smarter.  I am saying you MUST work hard!  Figure out a way to combine the two, and you will succeed.

If you would like information on how www.recr.com can help you work smarter, please contact Clint Miller directly at 800-977-7058.  Or, follow me on Twitter at www.twitter.com/recr.

First and foremost, this post really has nothing at all to do with real estate...more about life in general.  So, I hope no one is offended by the fact that I'm thankful as all Hell about what I have and I'm not afraid to tell the entire world about it.  Negative people be warned. 

Secondly, you may learn more about me than you ever wanted to know by reading this.  Fair warning again.

See, I was just talking with several agent friends of mine on Twitter...and someone said something that really struck a cord with me.  We were discussing the difference between positive and negative people...and one of my friends said that some people simply focus on misery...and even went to so far as to say that seeing people being happy and focusing on good news is bragging.

Is being thankful for the good in your life bragging???  I surely don't think so!  And, quite frankly, I feel sorry for the people in the world that do feel that way.  I'm sorry if my being thankful for what I have makes you feel bad about what you think you don't have...Chances are, you really do have it.  You just refuse to see it.

When a hurdler lines up for his race, he focuses on the red tape at the end of the race...not on the hurdles.  The hurdles are simply things you have to overcome to get to the red tape at the end.  See, to me, being negative and thinking negatively about everything is a gigantic waste of time, effort, energy, and mental space (something I'm in short supply of anyway).  I have far too much going on in my life to spend a good portion of it focusing on things that do not help me move forward. 

Why in the world would anyone want to purposefully make themselves or anyone around them feel like crap?  Psychiatrists say that people with low self esteem tend to think of the world as being a ‘glass half empty' place mostly devoid of positivity and productivity.  And, in order to make themselves feel better about themselves or their situation, they feel this carnal need to take down those that appear to be above them Bashing their attitude, achievements, family, friends, even their lifestyle simply to make themselves feel better. 

Well...to all of you people that think that you're insults, your snide comments, your emotional tirades are having any affect upon my ability to be thankful, you are sorely mistaken.  And, to prove this to you, I have compiled the following list of things that I am thankful I have/lived through/been exposed to/seen/heard/felt.

I'm thankful that...

1. I was born into a poor family. We grew or shot our food, chopped our own wood for heat, and busted our humps for every dollar we needed to survive.  I was never handed anything, but I never went without.  The work ethic I have as a result of my up-brining is enviable to most and amazing to others.  To me, it's just the way it should be done.  My parents are well off now...as am I.  But, not for a lack of hard, hard work.
2. I graduated high school and college.  I was never a perfect student, but I'm only the second person in my direct family lineage to have done so...and I'm proud of it.  Education is important.  In fact, knowledge is the only thing that can combat ignorance.
3. I was married when I was only 22.  I married the first girl I had ever dated in college.  I'm telling you this to lead up to #4...
4. I sat by my wife's side for the next 3 years and watched her slowly succumb to the effects of a rhabdomyosarcoma inside her heart.  Yes, she had a cancer tumor in her heart.  2 open heart surgeries, 3 trips to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN, and enough chemo and radiation to kill a small village, and she never complained.  Not even once.  I became a man in that time.  And, Im a better man for having had the experience.  It has made me a better father, a better husband, and a better man.
5. I owned a bar at one time.  I recommend it to everyone that thinks they know how to handle a business.  Try it some time.  It is quite frankly the hardest thing I have ever done.
6. I overcame alcoholism.  While I had the bar, my wife died and I poured myself into a bottle.  I drank solidly for almost a year.  One day, I woke up and had a 24oz White Russi