Thursday, August 5, 2010

Are You Committed to Your Dreams?

Published by Alexis MacIntyre, Director of KWU
Provided By KW Blog

Are you committed to your dreams? I thought I was. Then I had a mindshift.

My husband and I had our first child, Violet, in December last year and I came back from maternity leave in March. Shortly after my return, I attended Leadership and Motivation with Master Faculty Trainer John Davis. In that class, you write down your dreams, without limitations, in order to translate them into goals. I started writing…”Be completely debt free…Travel to Italy…”

Then, things started to get intense. I began thinking about Violet and all the dreams I had for her. I had aspirations before about starting a family and our life together. But now she was here. She was a real person in my life – for whom I now have more emotion than four silly little letters in the word “love” could ever describe. And the dreams I starting writing for her and for her life were powerful. I had trouble holding back tears as I wrote—I was so deeply, emotionally invested.

I wrote down many dreams for Violet. I dream for her to grow up to be an intelligent, self-confident woman, who stands up for what she believes in, and always does the right thing—even when no one is looking. But I also recognized that some of our life worth living dreams would need to be funded. I want to create memories with her on family vacations, to send her to any college she wants to go to and to role model the importance of donating to causes we believe in.

I started thinking more strategically. I had to admit to myself that despite all the training our University provides on growing your profit share tree, there was a lot more I could personally do to really focus on growing my tree. I no longer needed to do it just for me and my husband anymore, I owed it to Violet. I’ve now recommitted myself this summer to growing my tree and becoming more purposeful about attracting talent to our wonderful company.

Through this summer’s profit share initiative, we’d like to help you grow your own tree. I’ll be sharing some of the whys and hows on this blog in the coming months. One of the best starting places is to recognize your own dreams. Dig deep and think without limits. Write them down. Share them. And find someone to hold you accountable. By the way, two of the best ways to do that are by attending (or starting) a Wealth-Building Workshop in your market center and signing up for the Fast Track Profit Share Coaching Program with MAPS and coach Brian Combs.

Are you 100% committed to your dreams and are you taking necessary action to build your own profit share tree? If not, what would it take to get you there? We’d love to hear about your journey.

Thursday, July 29, 2010

iPad Best Apps for Agents

Provided By Keller Williams Realty

In 2006 Patrick joined Keller Williams Realty as the CEO and Team Leader of the Sacramento Metro office, taking it from number three in market share to number one in a declining market.

Prior to working in real estate, Patrick worked extensively with early-stage and mid-stage corporate ventures, facilitating their growth from garage-based start-ups to enterprise-class service providers. His first venture raised over $4 million in investment capital and was eventually sold to Nokia. Patrick’s entrepreneurial skills and enthusiasm have been key factors in his real estate success.

Here, Patrick gives THISWEEK@kw his in thoughts on the new iPad and how agents can use the new tablet to transform their everyday business practices.

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As many of my close friends and colleagues know by now, I am a HUGE fan of the iPad!

When I first heard of the iPad, I was sure that it would be a monumental disappointment. As I began reading the blogs though … I got sucked in (like sitting on the sofa as my wife is watching The Bachelorette). After much deliberation I decided that the iPad would be a tremendous investment, if only for the “Buzz Factor.” With the amount of press that this device has received in recent months, how could it not be a conversation piece? I wouldn’t really have to do much on it; the mere fact of owning one would cause people to start a conversation with me! So, I bought one, and …

I was right!

No matter where I am people are asking “Is that the iPad?”, “I have never seen one up close!”, “Do you like it?”

Buzz Factor accomplished.

I knew this would be a great device to create a buzz, but how would it hold up to actual real world application for real estate? While some things (honestly) are still to come, I have compiled a quick list of must have apps to make your iPad really work for your real estate business. So here are the Top 10 Apps that I would recommend for the iPad:

1. Keynote – This is Apple’s version of PowerPoint. I love Keynote and this is the perfect app to “wow” your clients with a slick Buyer Consultation or Listing Presentation.

2. DocsToGo – This great app allows you to access and edit your documents that are stored on your iPad or on “The Cloud.” So whether you use Google Docs, SugarSync, DropBox or a different program, this app will access them all. Not only can you view them, but you can also email them on the spot!

3. SugarSync – This is one of my favorite apps!! This program will sync your document folders between multiple computers, your smart phone and your iPad. Simply amazing!

4. Evernote – Ever have those ideas while you are out and about and before you can get a chance to write it down, you have forgotten it? In comes Evernote! This app will allow you to type or record a voice note. If you use a smartphone with a camera, you can also create notes from photos. Again, this app syncs your notes online so they are accessible everywhere (phone, computer, iPad).

5. Hootsuite – While this app is still in iPhone-only flavor (iPhone apps do work on the iPad, they just don’t look as pretty), it allows you to manage multiple Facebook profiles, pages and Twitter accounts. My favorite feature is the ability to schedule posts and tweets for later! This makes it simple to strategically compose and schedule a series of posts in advance, saving you precious time when you’re on-the-go.

6. Analytics HD – This app syncs to your Google Analytics account and let’s you track your site’s traffic while on-the-go. See if a new blog post or tweet is driving traffic to your real estate site. After all, without the data how do you improve your results? Google Analytics is FREE too! Imagine showing your clients the traffic on their listing page real time from your iPad!

7. Beejive IM for iPad – This is the best Instant Message/Chat client around! You can log in to pretty much any chat client available with this one application. It also has push notifications, so if someone wants to IM you while you are on the go … They can … and you won’t miss it!

8. iAnnotate PDF - This app allows you to actually sign a PDF file, and it doesn’t just drop the signature “on top” of the pdf, it actually adds it into the pdf! Amazing! Now you can sign documents on the iPad! And for those of you that can’t handle signing with your finger… check this out: Pogo Sketch

9. NewsRack RSS – As the world becomes more easily accessible, it becomes increasingly more difficult to sift through everything to find the news and stories that I want to see. Thanks to RSS feeds (Really Simple Syndication) we can now only listen to what we care about! I use NewsRack RSS because it syncs to my Google Reader account, so no matter where I read my feeds, it will be up to date on all my devices!

10. LogMeIn Ignition – Ok, this is the pricey one! And I debated long and hard before I bought it. Wouldn’t you know that the day I did it came in handy. This app allows you to access any computer remotely. So if you are out and about and there is that one thing you need off of your office computer, this app can be a life saver.

So there you have it, my must-have apps for real estate. As the iPad matures I can say with complete confidence that I will be coming out with another list with even better apps. For now, this list should keep your clients impressed and your business on the cutting edge of today’s hottest technology.

Enjoy!

Tuesday, July 27, 2010

The Perfect Time is Now!

Provided By Keller Williams Realty

Are you waiting for the perfect time to get purposeful about profit share? Why not get started today?

Kick-starting your profit-share journey doesn't have to be complicated.

Just ask. A question as simple as "Would you like a copy of The Millionaire Real Estate Agent?" is enough to initiate a conversation. It's easy to introduce a great agent to everything that Keller Williams Realty has to offer them!

Check out this video and be sure attend the Grow Your Profit Share Tree class in your market center and visit Dianna Kokoszka for Power Hour as she shares profit share tree-building tips throughout July!

Friday, July 23, 2010

Are you ready to unleash your power?


?????Question?????

Do you need to be energized?
Are you stuck in rut?
Are you doing good in your career but you want to do even more?
Do you want to impliment systems in your business but you don't know how?
Have you ever wanted to be in the presence of greatness?

If you answered yes to any of those, Mega Camp is the answer. Some of the best of the best in the business are there and I learn so much from them. At no point in my career have I said, "No, I don't want to know how you sold 136 homes last year." I always want to learn at every stage from those that have been there before me. This is what Mega Camp is all about.

Mega Camp 2010: Unleash Your Power – KW MAPS Coaching



Gary Keller brings you “The BEST”

At Mega Agent Camp While the agenda is still being finalized, we’re thrilled to share some just-released information about Mega Camp 2010! Gary’s goal is to create a highly instructive and visual program featuring the best in the business sharing (and SHOWING) you the systems they are using to generate massive success.

Check out a sneak peak of just a few of the interviews and panels on the Mega Agent Camp lineup* thus far!

■The BEST Internet site
■The BEST Craigslist Approach
■The BEST Social Media Approach
■The BEST Farming
■The BEST Open Houses
■The BEST FSBO/Expireds Approach
■The BEST Referral Approach
■The BEST Seminar Approach
■The BEST Pre-list Package
■The BEST Leverage
■The BEST Organization Approach
■The BEST Approach for Working with Buyers
■The BEST Short Sales Approach
■The BEST Wealth Building Through Profit Share

Are you in the Pursuit of Happiness?
Chris Gardner speaks at Mega Leadership Camp

Will Smith’s inspiring performance in the 2006 movie The Pursuit of Happiness tells the story of Chris Gardner, a single father struggling to provide for his five-year-old son. Drawing upon every resource he can muster, he lands an unpaid internship at a prestigious stock brokerage firm. In the meantime, he finds himself evicted from his apartment and sleeping with his son in shelters or on the streets – leveraging the trust his son has placed in him as motivation to land a lucrative job, eventually launching his own investment firm.


Now among North America’s most moving speakers, Chris Gardner will address Mega Leadership attendees on Tuesday, Sept. 14!




Mega Camp is not just for KW associates. Every year, we have thousands that attend from other companies. Call me today to find out how you can be a part of this AWESOME event!

It's time to take control of your career and UNLEASH YOUR POWER!


Amber Boyd
972-772-7000
amberboyd@kw.com