Nearing Halfway

Can you believe that the daily odometer has turned over to June? Incredible.

We have already traveled 5/6 of the first half of 2012 and 5/12 of the entire year. We aren't quite to halfway, but we can see the flag from here.

If we were playing football, basketball, soccer, lacrosse, or any other game with a halftime, we'd be getting ready to go into the locker room after a few more plays and get a rundown from the coach on what we have been doing right (if anything), what we need to improve on (hopefully not everything), and what we need to focus on immediately upon starting the second half.

As we get ready to aggressively take on the second-half, we'd look at strategies and objectives. Are they realistic or do they need to be adjusted? Did we misjudge the caliber of our opponent (the marketplace or specific competition) or all we playing rather well and just need to maintain and sustain what we are doing?

There's still a whole month to go before we get to halfway. Still, we are near the point of that midyear assessment.

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For more information about my sales training, consulting, and teaching programs visit my website at stevehoffacker.com. I also maintain a blog (Sales Quips) on the real estate network Active Rain. © 2012, Steve Hoffacker. All Rights Reserved.

Graduation Optimism

Coming fresh out of college, ready to apply all of that knowledge and those untested ideas, college graduates have an amazing amount of energy and enthusiasm that they bring with them to the workplace.

They have a great outlook as far as what they hope to accomplish and are looking for opportunities where they can get started. They have been preparing their entire lifetimes for this moment to enter the workforce and begin making their mark.

Such enthusiasm is genuine and fun to be around. They aren't ready to jump right in and run the company but their excitement is worth having.

In my podcast message today, "Graduation Optimism" I suggest we take advantage of this fresh enthusiasm.

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For more information about my sales training, consulting, and teaching programs visit my website at stevehoffacker.com. I also maintain a blog (Sales Quips) on the real estate network Active Rain. © 2012, Steve Hoffacker. All Rights Reserved.

Show Your Klout As You Post

As salespeople - especially those in real estate (new homes, resales, commercial, leasing, or remodeling) - online social networks help us to connect with each other, expand our influence, meet new people, and generate business.

Real estate salespeople generally are reluctant to embrace many of the social networks that are available. Time is a consideration, but should not deter you from have a participation plan.

You definitely should be on Active Rain, Facebook, Twitter, Linked In, and YouTube. All of these sites are free to have a strong, basic presence.

Then, you're ready for Klout which is a free site that takes into account your activity on these other sites plus ones like Google+, Tumblr, Blogger, Flickr, and FriendFeed and gives you a number between 0-100 to reflect your overall online stature and influence.

You quite likely have seen a small orange box with a white number in next to someone's name on Twitter or other sites. This is their Klout score. Klout even rates people who aren't members, so there is nothing to lose and everything to gain by signing up.

Klout lets you give a "+K" to others (one at a time and usually up to 10 a day - although it can be less or more) to recognize their areas of expertise, such as real estate, Realtor, their city, a hobby, coffee, blogging, social media, training, and more.

I love giving out +Ks. I invite you to join the fun and get in on the action.

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For more information about my sales training, consulting, and teaching programs visit my website at stevehoffacker.com. I also maintain a blog (Sales Quips) on the real estate network Active Rain. © 2012, Steve Hoffacker. All Rights Reserved.

Check Your Batteries

As we look forward to a little rest and relaxation over the summer months, it's a great time to recharge our batteries to regain our enthusiasm, excitement, drive, and focus.

How can we identify if our batteries are running down - and then do something about it?

We can't change our batteries like we do a flashlight, but we can recharge them. There are so many activities that will do this, but the primary strategy is to unplug for a little while and let the enthusiasm build back up.

In my podcast message today, "Check Your Batteries" I talk about ways to recharge ourselves over the summer and throughout the year.

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For more information about my sales training, consulting, and teaching programs visit my website at stevehoffacker.com. I also maintain a blog (Sales Quips) on the real estate network Active Rain. © 2012, Steve Hoffacker. All Rights Reserved.

A Welcome Sign - "Made in USA"

It's good to see more merchandise on shelves that sport the "Made in USA" label. We used to take a lot of pride in American made items and in being able to by mostly domestically-produced items. Then it became almost impossible. Now, it's slowly coming back.

Walmart is reintroducing more products that are made in America. This was Sam Walton's theme when Walmart began. It was posted on the outside of its stores. Then to remain competitive, Walmart changed to almost all made in China. Now several brands are bearing the “Made in USA” mark - the Mainstays brand of glassware, for instance.

Nice to see this trend. It means jobs for Americans and revenue for America.

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For more information about my sales training, consulting, and teaching programs visit my website at stevehoffacker.com. I also maintain a blog (Sales Quips) on the real estate network Active Rain. © 2012, Steve Hoffacker. All Rights Reserved.

Intensity Gets The Job Done

The Miami Heat came to play last night. They rebounded, defended, and played with overall intensity. Even when their shots or free throws didn't connect, they kept focused on the game. Solid takeaway lessons for all of us.

Once again, the 3rd quarter is where they made their statement.

The doldrums that plagued them while playing Indiana in Games 2 and 3 of the last round seem to be gone - at least for now.

There was a chance that Boston, coming off a hard fought series against Philly would be primed and ready to take command of the series. There was also a chance they could be tired. There was a chance that Miami could be rested. There was a chance they could be flat.

One more game in the win column. Seven more to go for the trophy.

 

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For more information about my sales training, consulting, and teaching programs visit my website at stevehoffacker.com. I also maintain a blog (Sales Quips) on the real estate network Active Rain. © 2012, Steve Hoffacker. All Rights Reserved.

Freedom Isn't Free

On this Memorial Day, we acknowledge the tremendous, selfless service that our men and women in uniform have give to the cause of freedom to defend what we enjoy in America.

The fact that we can own our businesses, sell a product for a profit, associate with whom we like, and so many other freedoms that we enjoy stem from the protection and defense that our armed forces provide.

We especially acknowledge the sacrifice that so many have made - not returning from the battlefield or leaving a part of themselves there. The is Memorial Day, and we remember.

In my podcast message today, "Freedom Isn't Free" we remember the cost of freedom.

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For more information about my sales training, consulting, and teaching programs visit my website at stevehoffacker.com. I also maintain a blog (Sales Quips) on the real estate network Active Rain. © 2012, Steve Hoffacker. All Rights Reserved.

We Honor Those Who Served

We remember, we honor, we won't forget!

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For more information about my sales training, consulting, and teaching programs visit my website at stevehoffacker.com. I also maintain a blog (Sales Quips) on the real estate network Active Rain. © 2012, Steve Hoffacker. All Rights Reserved.

So Close To A Victory

Whether you like auto racing or not, I thinks you'll have to agree that it's exciting. There was a time when people watched it for the spectacular crashes. Now, racing is quite a bit safer than it was. Accidents still happen, but drivers often walk away.

 

Today's Indy 500 remembreed and paid tribute to last year's winner Dan Weldon, who unfortunately did not survive his accident last fall in Las Vegas.

Still, this race was extremely competitive and hard contested. It  set a record of 35 lead changes - eclipsing a 52 year record from 1960 (29 was the old record).

When a late race crash brought out the yellow, no one pitted even though there had been some concern up until that point about having enough fuel to go the distance. No one would give up track position. It was that kind of race.

Then the final restart and more lead changes. Taking the white flag for the last lap, Franchitti was ahead, but Sato pulled along side heading into turn 1 and was prepared to take the lead and presumably the race. Then he crashed. The race was ended under yellow, and Franchitti won his 3rd Indy 500 title.

The question is this, what would we be willing to do? To make a sale? To submit a proposal? Would we be willing to crash and burn for a change to come out on top? Would it be a finish first or not finish at all moment?

Just asking.

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For more information about my sales training, consulting, and teaching programs visit my website at stevehoffacker.com. I also maintain a blog (Sales Quips) on the real estate network Active Rain. © 2012, Steve Hoffacker. All Rights Reserved.

An Edge Really Helps

Having a plan is important - probably no one will dispute this. Depending on how it is formulated, it can give us a competitive advantage that will allow us to come out on top and succeed.

 

Last Saturday at the NASCAR All-Star Race, Jimmie Johnson was able to determine what it would take to almost guarantee a victory and put together a plan. Then he and his team executed the plan to perfection. It was a textbook case on how to analyze what needed to be done, putting together a plan, and then working the plan.

In my podcast message today, "An Edge Really Helps" I talk about the importance of having a plan and how than make all the difference in achieving success.

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For more information about my sales training, consulting, and teaching programs visit my website at stevehoffacker.com. I also maintain a blog (Sales Quips) on the real estate network Active Rain. © 2012, Steve Hoffacker. All Rights Reserved.