What "pet" names do you find offensive? - 03/31/08 11:59 PM
When I was a younger guy, I used to work with a gal from somewhere down south. Her manner of speaking soon rubbed off on those who worked around her and had me referring to women I was friendly with as "Hon" ...(short for honey). I honestly never meant it as … (7 comments)
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Networking groups sometimes missing the mark...must be a better way! - 03/30/08 12:01 PM
Ever feel like you've been to one-too-many mixers, seminars and networking group recruiting breakfasts? Most give you that cheesy nametag to wear so that insincere social misfits can walk up to you, call you by name, and spend the next 20 minutes blathering on about their local store which, by the … (5 comments)
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Campaign buttons...I like the concept! - 03/30/08 12:53 AM
Remember when a campaign button was an effective tool? If you do, you are surely much older than I am. Still, I like the simplicity of them. Today, so much of our advertising is high-tech, internet related or somehow even more impersonal. Buttons seem to be more tangible and even more … (0 comments)
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Remembering those old wounds...Healing nicely thanks! - 03/29/08 12:12 PM
I remember my writings from last year. I was in a funk about business being slow. Several of the lenders, mortgage brokerages and escrow companies we had done considerable work with suddenly closed their doors forever. It seems that the shock of my new circumstance was difficult for me and I was … (4 comments)
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Running man brings new meaning to 10k - 03/28/08 03:47 PM
The running man? He's my logo and a metaphor for the craziness I experience when business is good. My best example?: My best day ever-(12) twelve sets of loan documents (across six counties) signed, sealed and delivered. I left for my first appointment that day at 4AM. My final appointment … (0 comments)
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An advertising suggestion that makes alot of sense (simplify....) - 03/25/08 06:32 PM
Recently, I asked for friends to review my website...(because yesterday I didn't know what a webmaster was...today I ARE ONE!!) A comment that came from my brother was about "Branding". He stated that he saw me shorten my business name to initials only in places throughout the site and that he … (5 comments)
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There is no magic pill for doing what is right... - 03/24/08 11:51 PM
As Notary Signing Agents, there is no magic pill that will protect us from the pitfalls of fraud in the mortgage industry. There are also no easy answers, no guarantees that we will not be approached by those less scrupulous characters in our society intent on doing fraud.
Our real protection (and … (8 comments)
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Why the "bad guys" continue to get away with things...FRAUD=BAD - 03/20/08 02:32 PM
I recently was approached by an unethical person who apparently wished to engage a Notary, ...any Notary, in an endeavor whereby the act of notarization itself made the document a fraud. He apparently knew that this was an illegal act, and was fishing for a sucker so that he could say to … (4 comments)
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Want advice? Don't bet on horses with long tails... - 03/19/08 07:29 PM
In my experience, having conducted over 5,000 signings, borrowers often have trepidation at the signing table. For the most part, mortgage brokers don't even know that the docs have finally come together from the lender and that escrow has sent me to sign their clients. After the surprise of my calling them to … (3 comments)
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"Just another day in paradise..." - 03/19/08 10:36 AM
I am drawn to catch phrases and use them daily in my life. I thought that it might be fun to share a few of the many I use and see if anyone else does this too!
"If you can't get out of it, you have to get into it"
"Keep your chin up"
"Fake it, 'til … (3 comments)
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Here I am...stuck in the middle with you.... - 03/18/08 07:03 PM
Here I am... stuck in the middle with you! (clowns to the left of me, jokers to the right...).
I've been trying to maintain an upbeat, positive attitude during what we all know is a difficult downturn and period of readjustment and challenge for the lending/housing/mortgage business. I often encourage folks to keep … (3 comments)
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Let's do lunch!! Sure, if we only had the time... - 03/17/08 05:16 PM
In many conversations, I've both heard and said the phrase "Let's do lunch sometime..." When I stop to think about it, only rarely has this "gesture" become a reality. Then, I get to pondering just why that is? For the most part, people do eat lunch. I think that lunch-breaks are shorter, … (5 comments)
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What kind of non-traditional advertising do you do? - 03/16/08 12:26 AM
I recently began a new signage campaign. I've delivered Krispy Kremes to Escrow Officers, sent postcards to mortgage brokers and business carded every client, attorney, real estate agent and bank employee I've met in the last five years. I have done doorhangers, launched a website and participated in every legal type of … (11 comments)
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I'd like to thank the academy...er, uh...nevermind! Thanks honey! - 03/14/08 07:30 PM
I've always marvelled at the various award shows, competition shows and the like where tearful acceptance speeches and other blather passes for a thank you. Some Hollywood types, trying to squeeze it all in remind me of that old bumper sticker that also tried to be all things to all people: … (5 comments)
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I'm NOT your doormat!!...David slams Goliath - 03/13/08 03:05 PM
Yesterday, I witnessed what I surely thought would become a fistfight while returning some documents to a nearby office complex. It seems one of the "middle-managers" from one of the offices there had stepped outside to have words with one of his subordinates. As I pulled in, I saw the manager waving his … (3 comments)
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Parking is FUN...Mobile Notaries will get this one... - 03/12/08 11:02 AM
Arriving after dark to conduct a signing isn't always fun... In an area I know well, it is usually not a problem. But sometimes, after finding the correct address, I can look up and down the street to find no empty spaces for what seems like a half a mile. Once, while … (3 comments)
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Keep pressing anyways!! - 03/12/08 02:06 AM
We've all been grinding to find new business...and then, grinding some more!
Maintaining that positive outlook means persevering when nothing good is happening...or so it seems.
It means exploring your options when they are few, smiling when you feel like everything but, and finding that ray of hope-when all hope is lost...(I seem … (8 comments)
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Did your notary interpret something for you?? Oopsy!! That's a NO-NO!! - 03/11/08 01:20 AM
While a Notary Signing Agent may have all that is needed to get you through your signing and be able to provide you with alot of "general" information as to your documents, he or she shouldn't be advising you. Unless of course your NSA is also an attorney or a licensed … (0 comments)
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Don't let the "Naysayers" wipe you out!!...the sky is NOT falling!! - 03/10/08 02:30 PM
For a year or more, the "doom and gloom" crowd has been running around telling everyone that "the sky is falling". Nobody denies there is an adjustment occuring in most markets and there has been a great deal of pain asociated with it. Still, those in pain should have seen the … (3 comments)
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Continuing the marketing effort by thinking outside the box... - 03/09/08 03:25 PM
Posters, banners, bootleg signs and blogging... because...
...sometimes, word-of-mouth just isn't enough! Sometimes, you have to go above and beyond to insure you're doing enough. Even then, you are not always sure...
I update my training, list my services and attributes in as many places as I can comfortably afford, and focus on friendly customer … (2 comments)
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Directional/Human Signage...is it an effective tool? - 03/08/08 04:54 PM
I've seen this tactic used for new construction and the sale of Model Homes... Since the practice began to be so popular, I began to wonder if it would work for me...?
I finally decided to go out on a limb last week and ordered the signs... Can any of you provide feedback on … (5 comments)
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I got the $3.69 a gallon blues.... here in the "O.C." - 03/07/08 03:18 PM
As a Mobile Notary, with over half a million miles driven in the last five years (most of it in circles), I just wanted to say that the predictions of $4/gallon by mid-summer is making me a little cranky!
I sincerely hope that the changes surrounding jumbo loan amounts produce a … (18 comments)
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Why do I believe that good things will happen?...because I choose to do so!! - 03/06/08 01:01 PM
What is it about human nature that makes us see the glass as half empty? It seems it is always easier to dwell upon the impending doom than to maintain an upbeat positive attitude. Even though in my own personal life and in my career path, my own overall happiness and wellness … (10 comments)
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Steer clear of fraud...and regret - 03/03/08 01:52 AM
If you choose to ask a notary to back-date or otherwise "color outside the lines" you may be engaging in a no-no yourself. While many RE professionals spend weeks, even months getting a deal together and servicing their clients so-as to cross every "t" and dot every "i", it never fails … (1 comments)
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