I know what you are thinking…how old fashioned is this person?  Well, to tell you the truth, it’s not me, it’s one of my agents Mary Lou Thompson.  Mary Lou believes we do ourselves and our children a disservice by allowing them to override all adult conversation and interaction.  Let me tell you why she believes this….

I just love the youth – their enthusiasm, their energy, their eagerness and their burning passion for life. 

It’s true that generations come and go and each one is unique – each reacting and changing what previous generations have done over time.   

And now it is time again. Baby Boomers are slowly making way for the next generation to assume leadership of the industry. Not that this is a one–day event, but rather a decade of transition. One that we are already part of. 

It is important to note that the impact of both Gen X and Gen Y outside real estate is already very significant – just think of MySpace, Dell Computers, eBay, Yahoo, Google, You Tube and Facebook – all legacy of that generations’ alumni. 

There are two key words that lead to success in life.  These words control the successful outcome of your business, marriage, and many other areas of life.  Although you may have incredible talent and skill in life, you will fail if you do not master these two words – and vice versa.  Even if you have only limited talent and skill, you will win if you live by them.  These two words determine your future.  They are attitude and expectation.             

On Friday, Real Estate Radio USA talked to Stefan Swanepoel about the changes shaping the real estate industry. Billed as probably the most informative interview they have done to date the 45 minute interview is a lively, fast-flowing exchange of ideas and commentary about the state of the market, agents in general, knowledge and recommendations for productivity, real estate trends and the future. You can listen to an archived version of the talk here.

New real estate wiki for real estate industry is launched. 

History of wikis in real estate
BiggerPockets (launched in 2006) claims to be the first real estate wiki but it unfortunately closed down in May 2007 due to lack of sufficient content.  Introduced shortly therafter, and still going strong, is InmanWiki (part of InmanNews, InmanTV and InmanBlog).  

Syndication is all the buzz but what really happens when you place your listing data on sites other than your local mls and your own corporate or broker websites? What are you giving them permission to do with your seller's listing data? Are they reconfiguring it? Manipulating it for sales of leads back to the agent population? Find out.

Click to talk, click to chat, click to get an instant connection with me.  Question is, are you really there?

We are moving at lightning speed deploying technologies that put us together with consumers with the click of a mouse. We can even send files, webpages and links from our cell phones directly to the consumers desktop while we are on the phone with them. It's not new technology but the rate at which it is being adopted is astounding.  Having the ability for consumers to contact you at the height of their interest is a very compelling opportunity and the affordability of these solutions make them perfect for this market.

This video was in my inbox this morning.  I think it really brings home what we need to be focusing on when interacting with and presenting to our clients and potential clients.  Here is the video  "I Am Not A Lead"

Every year the RealSure team surveys the residential industry, seeks out any changes, analyzes new business models, interview hundreds of industry leaders, researches and reads thousands of articles and send out tens of surveys. Well the survey is currently underway and your opinions and comments will help provide a more accurate assessment of certain paradigm shifts that are currently occurring in the real estate industry.

Click Here to participate.

RealSure, Inc., publishers of the Swanepoel TRENDS Report is offering a bonus 10% savings as a thank you for participating in the quick 6- 10 question survey, depending on whether you are a broker or an agent. This is over and above the currently available 20% pre-publication discount for early purchasers.

Today on Inman I read a great article from Marc Davison - here is the thought we should all keep with us during this correction:

Paraphrase - Let's not worry about those that really should not have been in this industry in the first place, or those that got into real estate or mortgage because it was a "get rich quick" scheme. Let us be concerned for those that were oversold the American Dream of homeownership by those that put their own interest above that of their client.

Thanks Marc ...