Are You Ready for Some Football?

I am a big believer in people setting a schedule and then following it. Plan ahead and then prepare for the next thing on that schedule each day, week and month. One of my favorite days each year is when my friend and former classmate at The University of Florida Pete Blank from Birmingham, Alabama, sends me the newest College Football Helmet Schedule. (Pete writes a great blog on leadership in case you're interested)

Now that the 2010 college football season is finally upon us, you need to get your College Football Helmet Schedule.

It resides on your computer's desktop (or wherever you might want to store it) and has all of the Division I college teams schedules, by team and by conference. Ever need to know who Akron plays? Click on the MAC tab and you'll know they battle Gardner Webb on September 11th. Unsure whether TCU is at home or on the road against Colorado State? Just visit the WAC tab and you'll know the Horned Frogs go to Ft. Collins for that game.

If you're like me and you need your college football fix at your fingertips, email me at sean.carpenter@cboki.com and I'll send you the excel schedule so you can start following your 'home' teams immediately.

Enjoy the season! Good luck to your alma mater or favorite team.

Are Your Peers Putting Pressure on Traditional Marketing?

At last week's Coldwell Banker Summer Technology Summit, keynote presenter Stefan Swanepoel discussed many of the top trends in real estate today. As one would expect, he spent a significant amount of time talking about the impact of social networking and the new opportunities people have to build vast relationships with more people than they ever knew they really "knew" through the use of networks like Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter among others.

Here's a brief video from the event where Swanepoel discusses the impact that social media (and the social marketing aspect it has created) has had on the "old fashioned" way of marketing to and through consumers. He also talks about how a relationship on Facebook (peer to peer) can now deliver more of the trust and credibility that the traditional media used to provide.




Are you just amassing friends, followers and contacts on these sites or are you leveraging the massive power of these sites to "build relationships, solve problems and have more fun"?

Monday Morning Match - A Powerful Combination

Monday Morning Match is a short post - maybe a quote, inspirational story or idea - intended to spark some motivation inside of each of you so your week gets off to a fantastic start on Monday morning.









"Positive thinking is how you think about a problem. Enthusiasm is how you feel about a problem. The two together determine what you do about a problem."

~ Norman Vincent Peale

Make it a great week of building relationships, solving problems and having fun!

Monday Morning Match - Facing Your Fears

Monday Morning Match is a short post - maybe a quote, inspirational story or idea - intended to spark some motivation inside of each of you so your week gets off to a fantastic start on Monday morning.

This week, I challenge you to identify what it is you are afraid of this week.

Is there something in your business life? Prospecting for new business? Seeking that price reduction on the listing that will never sell at it's current price? Starting to rebuild that bridge that was burned between you and past clients of years gone by because you stopped communicating? Maybe it's taking the plunge into social networking, starting a blog or going mobile?

Is there something with your physical health that is holding you back from success?

How's your family life?

Are you avoiding an honest look at your financial situation?

Satisfied with your spiritual efforts?

"The hero and the coward both feel exactly the same fear, only the hero confronts his fear and converts it into fire"

~ Cus D'Amato, boxing manager

Monday Morning Match - Two Kinds of People

Monday Morning Match is a short post - maybe a quote, inspirational story or idea - intended to spark some motivation inside of each of you so your week gets off to a fantastic start on Monday morning.

"My grandfather once told me that there were two kinds of people: those who do the work and those who take the credit. He told me to try and be in the first group; there was much less competition."

~ Indira Gandhi

Start out your week by deciding which kind of person you'll be. Come Friday evening, I hope you're satisfied with your choice.

Have a great week. Remember to build relationships, solve problems and have fun!