This piece was originally published @ For Brokers By Brokers. Early in my working life I found myself in a mail-order sales role, working telephones as if my life depended upon it. Which in a way it did. Money is oxygen for a small business, and the ringing phones were the sound of money. One skill […]
The #1 path to consistent referrals from the same source(s) is to answer the phone the first time it rings, be in front of your computer to intake the application on that first call, and respond to every subsequent call or email instantly. Losing two hours to a morning coffee meeting? Losing two hours to […]
Struggle. Anything worth doing begins with struggle. Struggle to push back against the weight of the world, struggle that’s seemingly insurmountable. Until you realize that just like doing a push-up, you can press against the world and win. Ask yourself, is it your body moving when you do a push up? Or is your body […]
A filter for social media. A filter for all forms of communication and action. A filter for living life. Is it true? Is it positive? Is it useful? Living by these three tenets makes for a less-stressful social media experience for sure, but lately I’ve been trying to apply them to my conversations, my writings, […]
In this business, each file you complete is another brick in your wall. The first walls (years) form the foundation that you are building your business success on. With a strong foundation, it’s up to you how many levels you build upon it. What strengthens a wall? Many things, but a key is the mortar […]
I’ve a new friend, his name is Roy. I have a photo of Roy and me together both smiling like old friends just a few minutes after meeting, although Roy and I were not smiling at one another a few minutes earlier — it could have been a much unhappier moment at the point the […]
There are many grooves worn into my brain, yours too; the repetition of mundane tasks creates low-level grooves with low impact on our day-to-day well-being. However there are others types of grooves worn so deep that when trying to think or behave logically we either trip over them or worse, we fall right into them, […]
Each of us ultimately is just a pile of carbon. In grade 8 science class Mr. Lenton taught us that all living things are carbon based. He did so with a very memorable (albeit disturbing) story involving his neighbour’s annoying cat and a ‘stakeout’ with his pellet gun, ending with disposal of the remains at […]
Here is my own take on the serious business of napping. During any peak period of activity in our industry a Broker can experience intense 12-, 14-, and even 16-hour days back-to-back-to-back. A key survival skill is mastery of the power nap. Make no mistake, it is a skill. You have to learn how to […]
An excerpt from the book Be The Better Broker’ Volume 3 Appraisals: Know When to Hold ’Em “You’ve got to know when to hold ’em.” –Kenny Rogers What happens when your client asks for a copy of the appraisal? Short Version Do not release an appraisal report to a client — ever. Long Version Think twice about […]