Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Online Newsletter for the Week Ending July 27, 2012

QUOTE:  “Sadness flies away on the wings of time.”  Jean de la Fontaine (French writer, 1621-1695)

YOUR  ST˜R  POWER, SCRIPTS FOR YOUR SUCCESS FROM HOWARD BRINTON:  www.StarPower.com.  Prospecting – Ask For Testimonials:  “Hi, I’m _____ with Keller Williams Realty Professionals.  (I have been researching the neighborhood.)  Have you given any thoughts to selling your house?  (Wait for answer).  Who do you know that might be thinking of buying or selling at this time?  May I ask you a favor?  Will you take my card (brochure, or whatever you have for a giveaway)?  If you ever have any questions about the neighborhood, or about property values, give me a call.  It was a pleasure meeting you.  (Gymbeaux Note:  If you are going door-to-door, make sure you take a door-hanger with you for the doors where no one is home; why waste the opportunity?) 

WISDOM FROM MICHAEL DUNN, author of What’s The BIG Secret:  (Gymbeaux Note:  This is just too easy; no kidding, on every page there is a lesson, this one covers two pages, bottom of 134 and top of page 135):  “We do not stop playing because we are old, we grow old because we stop playing.  There are only four secrets to staying young, being happy and achieving success.  (1) You have to laugh and (2) find humor every day.  (3) You’ve got to have a dream.  (Gymbeaux Note:  It helps to have a REALLY BIG DREAM!)  When you lose your dreams, you die.  We have so many people walking around who are dead and don’t even know it!  There is a huge difference between growing older and growing up.     If you are 19 years old and lie in bed for one full year and don’t do one productive thing you will turn 20 years old.  If I am 87 years old and stay in bed for a year and never do anything I will turn 88.  Anybody can grow older.  That doesn’t take any talent or ability.  The idea is to grow up by always finding the opportunity in change….(4) Have no regrets.  The elderly usually don’t have regrets for what we did, but rather for things we did not do.  The only people who fear death or those with regrets.”   

THE WORLD OF STEVEN WRIGHT:   My buddy got busted for counterfeiting. He was making pennies. They caught him because he was putting the heads and tails on the wrong sides. 

SPEAKING OF AMBIGUITY:    If a parsley farmer is sued, can they garnish his wages?     

A LESSON IN ADVERTISING:  Amazing computer work all for about 4 seconds of advertising.  There is a lesson here.  You don’t have to drum the product into the consumer’s mind; you just have to be unique and different to be memorable.  http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?feature=player_embedded&v=341rybZ42vA 


IT’S THE MISSION!  IT’S THE MISSION (OR NOT) by Jeffrey Gitomer.  I would never include this if I did not have a personal mission statement.  I have mentioned in a great many of the classes I have taught over the years but it would be my guess most people who do not have a personal mission statement quickly forgot mine because they apparently do not place a value on a personal mission statement.  How does mine measure up to what Gitomer suggests in this article?  Judge for yourself.  “To help other to do what they do to do it better!”  Then I use Joe Tye’s Direction-Deflection-Question (DDQ), “Is what I am about to say or do going to help someone else do what they do to do it better?”  If yes, say or do it; if no, don’t!  Can’t get any simpler than that!   http://www.gitomer.com/articles/ViewPublicArticle.html?key=ajcdMibak3MWH1SHQRNAdQ%3D%3D 

10 APS YOU’LL USE EVERYDAY from REALTOR® Magazine.  You should have received your magazine this week.  The 10 APS are listed on pages 132/133 and they are very interesting.  They are listed below, with the cost, check them out for yourself, especially GLYMPSE! 
  • WUNDERLIST, www.Wunderlist.com, FREE.  To Do Type AP
  • DocuSign Ink, www.docusign.com, FREE sign docs
  • OpenHome Pro, http://itunes.apple.com, $4.99, lets visitors sign in and receive auto thank you and listing updates
  • REALTOR.com, www.realtor.com, FREE, you should know about this already
  • Trulia for Agents, www.TruliaCom, FREE, manage incoming leads, etc
  • Expensify, www.expensify.com FREE, use camera on phone to photograph receipts and then it puts info into reports for tax purposes and it is FREE
  • Virtual Office MLS, www.hillsidesoftware.com FREE.  Access MLS on mobile phones
  • iAnnotate PDF, www.itunes.apple.com, $9.99 lets’ you edit, highlight, organize and send PDF files
  • GLYMPSE *****, www.glympse.com, FREE.  Tracks your location especially when working with a customer and you can share your location with others like the office.  It does it in real time.  Makes me wonder if you could put this on your children’s iphones to keep track of their whereabouts as well.
  • LogMein Ignition, https://secure.logmein.com $39.95 enables you to access your computer from your phone.
(Gymbeaux Note:  Little surprised that none of the above apps included a QR reader.  You can download a QR reader free of charge to your smart phone.  Go to your icon where you can purchase APPS and search for QR; you will find several to choose from.  Everyone encourages agents to create their own QR Codes.  What good would a QR Code be if you did not have a QR reader to link to it?  The answer, NOT GOOD AT ALL!) 

JUDGE RULES:  AGENT NOT LIABLE FOR BUYER’S INJURIES.
(Gymbeaux Note:  As you read this think about an owner, including a bank, who refused to maintain utilities through the closing date of a sale.  Seems like there could be some liability on the part of the owner/bank.)  A home buyer sued his real estate agent after he broke his ankle, wrist and elbow while previewing a home for sale. However, a judge last week ruled that the real estate agent was not liable for home buyer Michael Davies' injuries.)  
The case stems from a 2008 home showing. The Associated Press reports that Davies fell four feet in a dark garage when looking at a home that had no electricity. 
 
The court ruled that the agent, Sandra Johnson, and her brokerage, Greenridge Realty, did not contribute in any way to the "hazardous condition." The judge added that the agent had no responsibility to inspect the house to look for possible falls before taking the buyer into the home.   Source: "House Hunter Loses Lawsuit Over Very Painful Visit," The Associated Press (July 2012) 
 
PEOPLE MATH AND REVERSE SHOPLIFTING: By Joe Tye, who else?

Earlier this week I was on the phone with my friend Orrin Hudson.  Orrin is a chess master who uses the game as a metaphor to help young people make the right moves in life.  He also has an ability to weave words together into inspirational messages like no one I've ever seen (and I've seen a lot).  At one point he had me laughing so loud that half the crowd at the Spokane Airport was staring at me!
Orrin told me that math is also a useful metaphor for understanding human behavior.  He said there are four kinds of people: those who subtract, those who divide, those who add, and those who multiply.
The ones who subtract end up in jail.  The ones who divide end up in fights - or in politics.
The ones who add work to make their corner of the world a better place through their own efforts.  They contribute, they volunteer, they work hard on behalf of others.
He said it's the people who multiply who really change the world.  If you've seen the 3-minute video How to Start a Movement, people who multiply are like the "lone nut" described by Derek Sivers who, by having the courage to stand out and risk being ridiculed, attract the "first followers" who build momentum toward the tipping point for starting a movement.
Orrin also told me that he practices "reverse shoplifting" - he'll go into a store and leave behind something that he hopes someone else will pick up and find to be of value.  That is another beautiful metaphor for making a contribution in life.
Orrin will be one of the speakers at our Celebration of Values Conference next November 15-16 - watch for details in next week's Spark Plug.

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