Always on the lookout for new perspectives, we are today welcoming our newest contributing author, Christine Wade.  As you might imagine, Christine comes to us from the real estate industry--with a twist.  A licensed agent with multiple certifications, Christine will write from the vantage point of a business owner in the industry of real estate virtual assistance.

"...is there an 'Olympic Spirit'? It's sports. It's an over commercialized event made up mainly of professional athletes competing in sports that people only care about every 4 years..."

I came across the response above to another person's post about Olympic Spirit. I just couldn't shut up...

After my response to the "secret agent" I received another email from her about a week later. Here's what it said:

I would like to share with you the fantastic afternoon I had this last Saturday. My wife and I had the privilege of being invited to the two hour Saddleback Civil Forum with Senator Barack Obama and Senator John McCain. This was the first time these two presidential hopefuls, and expected nominees for the Democratic and Republican Parties, shared a public stage. 

Rick Warren, author of “A Purpose Driven Life,” and pastor of our Church, Saddleback in Lake Forest, had organized for Obama and McCain to come and present their views on important issues. 

Recap of Beijing

Mark Spitz's 36-year old record of 7 gold medals at one Olympic event, across all Olympic sports, was shattered when 23-year-old swimming machine Michael Phelps grabbed his 8th gold in Beijing and 14 all-time gold medals. Who will ever forget his 0.01 of a second photo-finish with Serbian - Wow.

There are very few blueprints available to real estate agents who want to expand their business through the building of a team.  The people who have built teams have done so predominantly through trial and error.  My desire is to give you the initial steps of that blueprint to success.

Clear communication is vitally important, especially since most of us are extremely busy trying to balance some personal time while staying on top of all the changes, challenges and opportunities of this emerging market. The way we communicate our thoughts, ideas and solutions can make or break  meetings and relationships and can stifle the ability to successfully resolve issues and generate positive breakthroughs. What is your communication style, are you a magnet for people's attention or do they try to find a back door escape when they see you coming? Let's take a look, shall we.....

I remember it like it was yesterday: my first December in real estate.  I’d been working very hard and my business was finally starting to take off.  I had four closings scheduled for the month, and believe me, I needed the money.  After a lean six months in a new career, we were going to have a normal Christmas again, and I was thrilled.  Don’t get me wrong — I’m not materialistic and my family has cheerfully endured good times and bad, but let’s face it, more is better than less.

The "Empty Office" Syndrome

As a broker/owner or Branch Manager, how many times have you stopped what you are doing and looked around your office lately? Did you get a feeling something like an all night bowling alley manager feels at 3 a.m? "Where is everybody?" you ask.

With the proliferation of full-blown home offices, that is an all-too-common feeling today and it HAS affected agent productivity. Sure there are some agents who are disciplined enough to work from home, but the majority are not; So as managers, what do we do about it?

Technology is the prominent topic of conversation in almost every real estate office in the country today. Each company is working diligently to keep up with the next new development on the information super highway. Due to the incredible amount of information now available to the general public, the public’s perceived value of a real estate agent is changing dramatically. As a result, the value of the company the agent works with is also changing. For example, 10 years ago agents joined companies based on the great value of a multi-function high-speed fax machine and maximum exposure through the local newspaper classified section. Today, the average buyer or seller can see the complete inventory of homes for sale on the Internet from the comfort of his or her own home.