Play Ball!

It's Opening Day in Major League Baseball 2010

Teams, players and fans in 30 major league cities begin the day with fresh enthusiasm and hope that this indeed may be the "next year" they've been waiting for. It still remains a simple game they learned as children. You throw the ball, you catch the ball, you hit the ball.

What if the real estate community had an Opening Day? What if you looked upon today with a renewed spirit and excitement, ready to don your team's crisp uniform and take the field? What if you knew that today might be the first day in a magical season that was going to change the record books forever?

Spring Training may be done but the lessons learned there remain important. The "basics" never go out of style so tighten up your cleats, slap the palm of your mitt and pull on the ol' ball cap.

What are you waiting for? It's time for the home team to take the field. Batter up.

Let's "Play Ball!"

You've Gotta Love Some of the "Legends"

Have you ever received an email that you found interesting, shocking, scary or just too darn difficult to believe? Maybe the one about the man who's hiding under cars at the local mall slashing people's Achilles tendons? Or how about the one where there's the dying kid who hopes to get 10 million birthday cards for his birthday?

These are referred to as "Urban Legends" or "Urban Myths" and there are several websites where you can go to "verify" or debunk many of these emails that you get from friends (Usually with a lame disclaimer that "it's true because a friend of mine is an attorney and he checked it out")

Well, some of them are just too silly to even worry about checking out whether they are true or not and some you just don't care because the proverbial "buck stops here"and it gets deleted instead of forwarded to continue the "myth." And just every once in a while, you don't care whether it's true or not, you like it.

Here's one I recieved this week that has been verified by several de-bunking sites as false. It's supposedly a speech that was given by Microsoft's Bill Gates to a high school class about the 11 Things They Didn't Learn in High School.

Well I don't really care if Bill Gates never actually said these words but after reading them, perhaps you'll agree that these aren't bad words of advice for our next generation of adults to hear.

Rule 1: Life is not fair - get used to it!

Rule 2: The world won't care about your self-esteem. The world will expect you to accomplish something BEFORE you feel good about yourself.

Rule 3: You will NOT make $60,000 a year right out of high school. You won't be a vice-president with a car phone until you earn both.

Rule 4: If you think your teacher is tough, wait till you get a boss.

Rule 5: Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your Grandparents had a different word for burger flipping: they called it opportunity.

Rule 6: If you mess up, it's not your parents' fault, so don't whine about your mistakes, learn from them.

Rule 7: Before you were born, your parents weren't as boring as they are now. They got that way from paying your bills, cleaning your clothes and listening to you talk about how cool you thought you were. So before you save the rain forest from the parasites of your parent's generation, try delousing the closet in your own room.

Rule 8: Your school may have done away with winners and losers, but life HAS NOT. In some schools, they have abolished failing grades and they'll give you as MANY TIMES as you want to get the right answer. This doesn't bear the slightest resemblance to ANYTHING in real life.

Rule 9: Life is not divided into semesters. You don't get summers off and very few employers are interested in helping you FIND YOURSELF. Do that on your own time.

Rule 10: Television is NOT real life. In real life people actually have to leave the coffee shop and go to jobs.

Rule 11: Be nice to nerds. Chances are you'll end up working for one

Now if you agree with the things on this list, please forward it to twenty people within the next twenty minutes or else something horrible might happen to you and your computer.

Trust me...a friend of mine is a blogger and he told me it's true.

Now go out and do something "legendary" this weekend!

To Be a Pro, You've Got To Be Con...sistent

How consistent are you?

Have you ever visited a restaurant where you really enjoyed the experience (meal, service, ambiance, etc.) so much so that you told people about it and got excited thinking about the next time you'd return?

Have you ever pulled into the parking lot of that same restaurant, eager to see how they would blow you away again only to be disappointed that your expectations were too high and the food, service or ambiance wasn't as good as the last time?

For the customer it's usually not that big a deal because you'll eat out again soon and you can just pick some place new. The restaurant will suffer losing one customer but they can surely be replaced with another without even noticing the missing patron from the week before.

My guess is you're probably not in the restaurant business if you're reading this. You're in the real estate business so you know that in real estate, we don't get a chance to impress a customer or client again every week. It's more like every 3-7 years.

It's a simple question - how consistent are you?

Do you prospect for new business daily?

Do you follow up with every visitor to your Open Houses, leads from your Internet or social media presence, and caller on your voice mail?

Do you send thank you notes to people who refer you business?

Do you go out of your way to deliver "truly remarkable service" to everyone you meet?

How consistent are you?

Do you show up for work every day with a smile on your face and a spring in your step?

Do you attend training sessions, read educational blogs or share ideas with your peers who are better than you that can share wisdom and ideas?

Do you participate in community events and local charities because you know that in real estate - "you do well by doing good"?

How consistent are you?

I read a cool story over the weekend in the USA Today Sports section. It was buried on the last page, way down in the corner. It was about a gentleman named Terry Wallace, the track announcer at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Arkansas. Wallace, who is 65, recently called his 20,000th consecutive horse race at Oaklawn. He's called every race at the track since 1965.

I don't know much about horse racing or what there is to do in Hot Springs, Arkansas but I will bet you good money that people go to Oaklawn, not just for the horses or the gambling, but to hear Terry Wallace call a race. And I'll bet he called the 20,000th race with the same enthusiasm and vigor he did on his first back in '65.

Terry Wallace is consistent.

How consistent are you?

How Now, Island Cow?

“Vacation used to be a luxury, however, in today's world, it has become a necessity.”



Have you ever felt that way some days? Now I love my job and the impact I get to have on other people, but there are just some days where the vacation you have coming up can't arrive soon enough. Am I right?



Then, when it finally arrives, it seems to go by quicker than you realized. One day you're traipsing through the airport looking at the sad souls waiting in line to pass through security to leave thinking "Suckers! Have fun back at the office!" and the next moment, you're being looked at by someone who just arrived looking at you thinking the same darn thing.



I just spent the last week in South Florida (Key West and Sanibel Island) and it was a blast. We relaxed, enjoyed the beach, the pool and many of the two cities finest restaurants. Today's post is about our last meal on Sanibel Island.


As many of you who travel with family know, choosing the right places to eat is sometimes a struggle. It seems like you'll have plenty of time to hit everyone's favorite spot when you arrive but as the days start to dwindle, the number of restaurants to want to eat at outnumber the meals you actually have left to eat. It is a lot of pressure to make sure you have an enjoyable meal that last night away. Luckily for me, we made the right choice.


The Island Cow was the site of our last family dinner before heading back to the hotel for the "final night's pack." This fun family restaurant is located on Sanibel's main drag through town - Periwinkle Drive and is a very popular place for the locals as well as the tourists. It has a huge menu, a colorful decor, comfortable seating arrangement and the two things that will bring people back - GREAT FOOD and GREAT SERVICE!


The "GREAT FOOD" part really shouldn't be too hard when you're a vacation destination food establishment. People are tired, hungry and thirsty from a day in the sun. Make me something that tastes better than the stale Cheeze-Its and potato chips I scarfed down at the beach and I will gladly pay for it.

Although I didn't meet the owner Brian, I am comfortable in saying that Brian and his team at The Island Cow aren't just aiming for "acceptable food," they want to make it memorable for everyone who decides to give The Island Cow a visit.


The menu is one of the largest on the island and features everything from shrimp & grits to red beans & rice with smoked sausage and all of the fresh seafood you would expect in Florida. After enjoying a appetizer of Frickles (a heap'n helping of fried pickles) with my cold draft "beer of the day" (a most enjoyable Sam Adams Noble Pils in a large frosted mug) it was time to tackle a wonderful piece of blackened swordfish. Not only was my fish a generously large portion, it was expertly prepared. For those of you who enjoy blackened fish, you know that's not always the case.

I was so impressed by the flavor and quality of my meal, I asked our server Kyle (more about him in a minute) to take me back to the kitchen when I was done. I had to let the "kitchen crew" know that they satisfied their restaurant's website tag line - "Come in as our guest, leave as our friends!" Let me tell you...if you guys make food taste like that every time, we're definitely friends. I also know the guys in the back don't hear enough of the good comments that they may deserve for a job well done so I was glad that Kyle allowed me to stick my head back there to give them their "props" in person.

Now as many of my readers of The Realtor's Toolbox know, I am a huge supporter of places where I get "truly remarkable service." I can confidently add The Island Cow and their wonderful server Kyle to my list of places that have earned that honor. In fact, I want to give Kyle my first official CARP Award

C is for putting the customer's needs first

A is for having a great attitude about what you do

R is for respect

P is for the pride in your job, your company and your product.


Kyle, who once lived in Cincinnati, Ohio but has spent much of the last twenty years in South Florida shared with us why he enjoys his job at The Island Cow so much. "I get to be myself" was the first thing Kyle said and he went on to say he "always tries to make sure people are having a good time and enjoying themselves."


When you're on vacation or even a local resident out for a relaxing meal, that's what it's all about.


So to my new friends Kyle, the hard working crew in the kitchen, Brian the owner and all the staff and servers at The Island Cow, thanks for the "udderly great food and service."

Until next time...Build Relationships...Solve Problems...Have Fun...and


don't forget the sunblock!

What Does Your "Out of Office" Message Say About You?

Isn't it great to get away from the office every now and then? I'm not talking about leaving on Friday afternoon only to return on Monday morning. I'm talking about getting away for enough time that you need to consider changing your voice mail and your email auto-reply.

Are you the kind of person who doesn't ever want people to think you leave the office so you never change your message?

Maybe you are so habitually focused on keeping your contacts up-to-date with you happenings that you update your voice mail every morning.

Or are you like me? When I get away for a few days of rest and relaxation I want my "out-of-office" email to reflect my light-hearted, vacation attitude. Much like my catchphrase slogan uttered at the end of my voice mail messages ("...and remember...Nobody Knows Homes Like a Carpenter!") usually gets my caller chuckling as they leave a message, I want my out of office email to leave a smile on someones face.

Below is my current message you'll receive if you email me.

Greetings! I will be out of the office beginning March 16th and returning on the 26th. I may have access to email but I will also have access to an ocean view, a beach chair and a cooler of adult beverages so please don't expect a quick reply.

If your email is of an urgent nature, please contact my assistant - Jaimie Shaffer

Until I return, please remember what Jimmy Buffett once said - "It's those changes in latitudes, changes in attitudes, nothing remains quite the same. With all of our running and all of our cunning, if we couldn't laugh, we would all go insane"

So what does your email "out of office" reply say about you? Are you all business all the time or can the people who interact with you see a little of your personality when they're not even with you?