Every once in a while I have the great pleasure of meeting with an agent who completely exudes integrity and with almost no effort at all starts to infect everyone around them with it. Even with a great deal of experience in business and in executive positions I find myself drawn to these people in a very tangible way. You see, it's not about how many years they're in the business and it's not about how many transactions they've done or have on the board this month, it's not about how well they can brag, puff up or otherwise exaggerate accomplishments to as to keep up the pretense that they are far superior to the people they are addressing. Integrity does not exist in "experience" but in "essence"; it's a core value stemming from our intrinsic sense of right and wrong and manifests itself in our behavior yet is noticeable via the eyes or the smile of the bearer.

Another critical and noticeable characteristic is authenticity. There's no fooling the masses when you're not operating with integrity. Those who are true to themselves and their customers who have been infected with; and infect others with integrity can smell a rat a mile away. So, what does it really mean to be infected with integrity and if you don't have it how can you get it.

Well, I'd need to write a book, not a blog to answer that in a manner that will do the subject justice but for the purpose of this blog I'd like to share some practical advice of what you can and/or should do to get this most desirable infection. Keep in mind that integrity doesn't just show up, it's not a pill you can take or an experience you can have at a motivational meeting and take home with you; it doesn't fit in a briefcase and it certainly doesn't come without practice and deliberate intent.

The good news is if you're reading this and you feel that you're integrity is not all it can be and you're not performing at your highest moral level, serving your clients like you know you should and can nor behaving both in public and/or private in a manner that brings you the admiration and respect of others that you can; if you work at it develop the characteristics that lead to rock solid integrity. In fact, some of the people I know who are highly respected and thought of as "integrity moguls" were not so in their younger years.

So, here are some observations I've had over the years from people who made a 180 degree turn and become highly respected agents/people/friends/parents and so on. Some of the below may be a little more blunt than I'd really like to present it however I'm know for getting to the point quickly and am only writing a blog, not a book!

•1. Change your input - If you're wasting time on less than honorable reading, TV shows, movies or other huge time wasters of bad or foolhardy information just cut it out of your input diet. You can't be a buffoon at night and a professional during the day if you're not expanding your horizons at every opportunity. Put into your head that which you'll be proud of when it comes out; if you're ashamed or embarrassed you need to change that input.

•2. And this is HUGE... You may need to change your friends. I know, I know; now I'm getting too personal but integrity is personal, it's one of our most personal innermost traits and either we work at it or we don't. The people you may be spending time with can destroy everything you put into building your integrity and/or the way others perceive you and your ethics and honesty. Think about it; how many times have to talked to someone about stupid things they've done and they immediately say "I was running with the wrong crowd" or "I got mixed up with the wrong crowd"? The people you hang around with rub off on you and so does their idea of what integrity is and the next thing you know you're them and not you any more.

•3. Find a mentor - If you don't have someone you want to emulate find one, if you don't know anyone after deep thought and consideration see number 2 above. I have mentors, a few of them; two in real estate, one in the church, one in the gym and each one of them brings some form of integrity to the table and upon the final analysis they have a lot to offer to anyone willing to be honest with them and willing to learn. Funny thing is that many of these people are not only willing to share with others, many of them are just waiting for the next person to latch on to them and learn what they have to offer. Find a mentor that has unshakable integrity and take very good mental notes of how they handle their day to day affairs, realtors, both big and small problems and challenges. It's quite the awesome sight to see someone with a highly developed level of integrity in action and it's even more awesome to begin to emulate them.

•4. Be willing to change and learn - If you're not willing to admit you need to improve your current level of integrity or you're not held in high esteem by those you respect you're going to be a terrible student and should get used to not accomplishing the goals you only go after with half efforts. Be honest with yourself, evaluate who you really are and be willing to ask for help and more importantly to receive that help and put it into practice.

As I said earlier; truly doing justice to this subject would take a book, not a blog. I'm inspired to write this today because I spent a few hours with one of these awesome people and even in our short meeting of a few hours it was so obvious why everyone who knows this person has nothing but praise and good things to say. I have a feeling that if this person had a need that many people would try to help simply because they would want the help in return if it was them; especially from this individual.

I would like to encourage you to take a good hard look at yourself and be honest about what you find. Know that with a little effort, a few small changes and a mentor you can become the person you so desperately want to be when it comes to integrity. It's never too late to make a positive change and to grow; you can do it and there are people willing to help. Ask!

Regular attendance at a mastermind group can play a very powerful role in your desire to increase your wealth and reach your goals; especially if you engage in the conversation.

The dynamics of a well run mastermind group can vary from topic to topic, some are didactic and other more conversational or participation required mastermind sessions. All of the dynamics can and do make for a very exciting, learning based mastermind meeting. Masterminds can also be theoretical in nature, discussion of current or legislative events, sharing of marketing ideas, best practices and any other significant item that an agent is using to obtain some results.

Let's face it; most realtors can use a little more results and by meeting weekly with top agents from your marketplace and from many other offices in the marketplace the ideas and creativity can begin to flow... Sometimes, in the most simple of conversations a profoundly creative idea can reveal itself and transform the business of many of the realtors attending.

Personally I've see simple mastermind meetings with no topic other than "let's talk about our business environment" turn into huge, fantastic driven discussions in which passions reveals itself and creativity takes over.

There's no reason a few top agents from a few top offices can't get together to meet weekly over some food and coffee in an effort to share ideas and best practices with their peers. However there are a few reason agents will not attend. First if they feel it's going to be a recruiting event for one or another office you can forget it; if they feel that this is just a way for you to pitch your listing to them likewise. If they feel their attendance will be a risk to them by being see with other agents from other offices you'll be done before you begin.

The mastermind session cannot be a recruiting event and the agents attending need to be made to feel safe or they will not come. The meetings must have integrity and they must be safe for agents from any office to attend and not have to worry about being placed in an environment other than a mastermind session to brainstorm some ideas that work to help grow each of their businesses. I could go on for hours about this but I am going to stop here.

My advice: find a good mastermind group or start one. If done correctly you'll build relationships, make some new friends, pick up some new techniques and strategies that may in fact change your business for the better.

For those of you who are KW people you know this major point in our belief system "seeking first to understand" and for those who read this who are not in KW I'm sure you know communication is not dispensable and the higher up the ladder you go the more critical good communication becomes.

In trying to understand myself better I look at my personality and have to have a fierce conversation with myself and analyze why this part of communicating - seeking first to understand - is so difficult. Questions for thought are "am I too forceful, am I too defensive, am I insecure about something, do I lack specific evidence", and so on. I need to find the root of why, when faced with conflict I would not seek first to understand the other person and put so much energy into defending my position which, while we talking about it must admit that in defending yourself you cause further conflict.

I don't know how you react to situations but I tend to try and slow down and respond instead of reacting; even though I do this I find myself listening to others less and while they speak thinking of what I'm going to say when permitted to speak. This is not constructive and doesn't help resolve the situation and prevents me from practicing active listening. If I'm strategizing my response how can I be actively listening to others and understanding them?

What I've learned over time and continue to learn as I grow in business and in my personal life is to deliberately and with intention, force myself to listen and ask open ended questions to find out the root of the matter. Typically when I do this the result is much more amicable for both parties and both parties tend to have a much better understanding of each other which, as you may have guessed, helps to ease tensions and prevents damage from happening to the relationship.

The majority of conflict comes from lack of understanding and/or misunderstanding. I can't count the times I've had conflict resolved a few days later and the response for either one or both parties sounded something like this: "ohhhh, I didn't know that's what you meant... that's what I meant"? Does this sound familiar to you like it does to me.

Over the past few weeks I've had to learn this lesson the hard way; or at least had quite the refresher course. I blog about it because for me it brings clarity to my thinking, invites my peers to comment and to help me while also reminding all of us to take a look at ourselves and see if we can't improve how we deal with communication and most importantly, to pose the question... Do we seek first to understand?

If you have any book suggestions, comments or know of a focus or counseling group (just kidding) I would appreciate your suggestions. I truly want to improve in this area and somehow I know I'm not the only one struggling in this area. If you are struggling with this take comfort in the fact that the majority of the public shares the exact same problem...

Port Charlotte / Sarasota / Turnover Cleaning Services

The family just moved out of the apartment unit leaving it a filthy mess. The unit must be cleaned and ready for rent.

Busy property managers need to ensure that vacant properties are presented to potential tenants in the best condition.

We realize every day an empty unit remains vacant you lose income, and that is a bad thing...

We will get your property ready to rent or lease. We will take care of everything inside. Once your property is rented or leased we will also provide scheduled major cleaning as needed to help maintain the value of your investment.

Turnover Cleaning Includes:

Kitchen – Clean inside/outside all kitchen cupboards, Clean inside/outside of oven, Clean inside/outside microwave, Wash inside/outside of dishwasher, clean inside/outside refrigerator, Clean all counter tops; Sweep and wash hard surface floors, damp wipe window ledges.

Bathrooms - Scrub and disinfect bathroom floors, Scrub and disinfect toilet, Clean and sanitize bath & showers, shower doors and tiles, Scrub bathroom sinks, wipe all counters, Clean mirrors..

Bedrooms – Vacuum and mop (if necessary), Clean mirrors, Remove cobwebs, Dust and wash window sills and ledges, Vacuum carpet edges, Clean inside cupboards and wardrobes.

Living room - Vacuum and mop (if necessary), Vacuum carpet edges, Clean mirrors, Clean and polish all surfaces, Remove cobwebs, Dust and wash window sills and window frames.

Hallway - Vacuum and mop (if necessary), Vacuum carpet edges, Clean mirrors, Remove cobwebs.

Rates for turnover cleaning depend on the size and condition of the rental property.

Port Charlotte / Sarasota / Turnover Cleaning Services

When I look at realtors who are very successful I see a few common traits and activities that never cease to amaze me and when I look at those struggling the same. What I'd like to do is define what I call success so you can better understand what and why I'm positioning this blog from this paradigm. As has been said for many years "if you want to know why John Smith buys what John Smith buys, you need to see the world through John Smith's eyes". So, for the next few sentences I want to loan you my eyes and see if you see what I see.

Success for me is simply working smart; that's it; the secret to success in two simple words. On the one hand I have realtors managing 70+ listings that never, ever get a day off, never get down time to recharge their personal batteries, no vacations because they can't afford them because they're splitting their income with too many assistants and huge marketing fees and web sites and print marketing and post cards and magnets and so on and so on. Their day never seems to end and it gets so bad for some that they begin to advertise themselves as the 24/7 realtor "call any time day or night and I'll come show you that property"... Well, I disagree with this business plan on so many levels I'd need to write a book about it, not blog about it. There's no efficiency to any one program, they're throwing spaghetti against the wall and whatever sticks they focus on. It's a dangerous, exhausting exercise in being in business for oneself.

The next person also has 70+ listings, works regular hours during the week, takes at least one full week day off every week and at least one full weekend day off every weekend; typically Sunday. They have one assistant who works 9 to 5 and the occasional after hour's phone call. Their life is in order, office is neat, bills are paid on time, short 4-7 day vacations with the family scattered about every two or three months plus at least one good long vacation in the summertime. This person never shows a home on a Sunday no matter how much money you're spending/investing and Saturday is by appointment only with qualified buyers only where he talks to the lender after receiving the prequalification sheet to verify the data and financials.

Similarities; salesperson 1 is a stressed out mess with a hundred things going at once trying every new gadget and gidgit and marketing ploy to bring in buyers and seller and working his tail off to do it. The second realtor has strategies and systems in place and basically follows their written program on a daily basis. Working the business by the numbers.

Oddity, they both make virtually the same dollars... Don't tell me to hold the farm here folks; yes, the one working less hours with less people and taking at least two full days a week off is making as much money as the system-free work -a-holic. And they both live in the same community and are in the same price range for listings. Another oddity of note is that the organized business building realtor does all this with one full time licensed assistant and has time to spare; the strategy system free realtor has two full time licensed assistants and a personal assistant that simply data punches and files documents and doesn't have time to stop for a gallon of milk on the way home.

Let me get straight to the point here and it's not just about organization; it's about being creative enough to make the complex simple and sticking with the simple. Far too often do realtors with real potential to perform better, to a higher standard and higher profitability level complicate their business so very much that it's virtually impossible to distinguish the income producing activity from the minutia. Everything looks so busy and it appears at first glance that everything will be fine with this method; until of course something happens and derails the idea through evidence that "busy does not equal profitability".

The highest earners keep exercising the same intense motivations with purpose however they don't let the complications filter down into their business. We all know what it's like to get bogged down, to feel like there's way too much to do why so even start? We've all been in the situation where life and business seems to complicate itself with no help from us whatsoever and believe me; it doesn't need any help and we both know this to be true.

When I consult with both styles of realtors I see virtually the same traits time and time again. The strategy systems oriented realtor is mission oriented and focused on a few time proven strategies. For instance, they time block to make calls, have a website or two that is well marketed and maintained with IDX of course, have a farm area they market to and implemented a listing and showing system that's efficient and effective. Finally, they are learning based, train themselves and their assistants regularly with coaching, sales meetings, books, blogs and other credible information. Sound simple? Well, it is and it takes far less effort than the other no systems realtor who... never time blocks to make calls because they're always running behind on returning voice mail messages because they manage 10 websites and 5 marketing programs, they farm 4 distinct neighborhoods simultaneously far too infrequently to bring top of mind awareness to any potential buyer or seller, have no systems in place for entering listings or providing showing services to buyers. They don't train themselves or their employees/assistants and view training/coaching as "more of the same old, same old".

It happens to be the "same old" strategies that work for real estate. Calls, contacts, marketing, top of mind awareness. We can achieve these with mass complication and tons of minutia and busy work or we can get efficient, keep it simple and highly purposeful and effective by having unwavering focus on your goal, writing down a plan, having a coach keep you on track and modify the plan every 90 days. Be accountable day by day and hold your assistants accountable day by day.

I could go on for pages and pages on this subject however I realize this is not the venue for that. I encourage you, if you're wrestling with time blocking, having no personal life to speak of, working far more hours than you'd like to, earning far less than you'd like to, not wealth building and/or simply losing profit as fast as you earn it to take a step back and get some help to streamline your business.

It's NEVER too late to improve your business, learn how to innovate, modify and implement strategies and systems to save time, energy and money. You can do this and you can succeed at it; so what's stopping you from taking that first step?