Coach Patti's Blog

Do You Know Where You're Going?

Coach Patti Kouri (Accelerated Performance Coaching) — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 16:08:05 -0600

Have you ever started a day thinking, "I have plenty of time today! I could catch up on my reading, or I could write a couple of blog articles, or I could call some of my previous clients, or I could…." Then the phone rings, you check email, and before you know it the day is gone. How many of those "coulds" did you actually accomplish? If you're like most people, that lack of structure – that lack of specific goals – led to very little accomplishment. Keep that up for a month or a year, and what will you have?

Now that we're into December, it's goal setting and business planning time. Do you know where you're going? The new year stretches out ahead with plenty of open days. This is your chance to make sure you do have a year of success in 2010.

I think one of the best definitions of "success" is by Earl Nightingale: "Success is the progressive realization of a worthwhile goal." There's that word again – "Goal."

Your goals need to be something worthwhile enough to keep your head in the game and allow you to jump over all the natural life/business hurdles that you'll face. These goals also need to be in alignment with your values, those things you are naturally drawn to – not the "shoulds" – and those things that resonate for you.

But any goal is just a wish without a plan. Deciding where you are going and planning how you can get there are key to building the strong foundation in your business that will in turn support you to reach those goals. Just like building a skyscraper, you don’t simply start piling steel and bricks together at street level.

First, you plan – you decide what you want, you create charts or drawings that will get you to your goal, and you figure out what steps to take along the way. Then, you build a deep foundation to support your building; the higher the building, the deeper and stronger the foundation. In business, too, building that strong foundation is essential because it allows you then to fully use your skills, talents, and resources.

How do you create a strong foundation for your real estate business?

Align your goals with your values.
Create plans of action where you implement raised standards and extend boundaries.
Create reserves of money, opportunity, time, energy by knowing and tracking numbers.
Eliminate psychic vampires (energy drainers, unresolved problems)

When you build that strong foundation, you will have more time, money, balance, and satisfaction. Then once you have the foundation, you can revisit your plan and make sure it still works. Remember, your plan is a living thing. If something you thought would work is not working, you'll need to re-strategize. You'll have that freedom to change direction because of your good foundation.

Remember what Earl Nightingale said about "…the progressive realization of a worthwhile goal." This means that a goal is something you work continuously toward until you accomplish it. You don't build a skyscraper or a successful business in a day. But you can do it in a year – this coming year - if you have specific goals and a plan to reach them.

Patti Kouri, Accelerated Performance Coaching
Helping You Through Self-Made Limitations!

Will you Take My Challenge and increase your income? Here's what one student said:

"In 2006 I left REMAX and went to Prudential in West Chester OH. I was in a slump and Bob Daniel handed me $100 and told me to sign up for some Real Estate Game that Patti Kouri was conducting. It was the best money spent. Last year (2008) I did 100 transactions. It all began with you, Ms. Patti. My thanks." - Pamela Bensen

Play The Real Estate Game®

What Happened When 17 Realtors Got Mean About Earning Green?

Coach Patti Kouri (Accelerated Performance Coaching) — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 11:09:41 -0500

This blog post serves one purpose.

To give you perpective of what happens when agents who
at any level of this business from anywhere in the country
get mean (not nasty) and serious about what it takes to
earn green!

Download it.

I've recorded 3 or 4 stories from agents, probably people
you know, and have done business with, or at least, you
know someone like this, who sunk to the bottom
of the business or risen from the depths to the top.

The stories you're about to hear, come from a group of
17 Realtors who over the last 30 days 'played' to win
the Real Estate Game.

They recognized they were either at the bottom, rising
to the top, or were stuck in between and took a step forward
to identify their limiting factors in their lives and
business...

...And attacked those problems (got mean) and became
more effecient with their time to earn more Green!

Download Your Free "Mean Green" Audio Here

These stories are unsolicated.
100% true.
Come from agent just like you.

Most importantly are from previous cynics and skeptics
that "this stuff" doesn't work and is not for me.

The "stuff" these 17 agents fought bitterly against are
likely the same issues that frustratingly hold you back
from the solutions to achieving your highest goals.

+ Staying focused on income producing activities
+ Treating your profession like a business
+ Setting up systems that support you
+ Filling the "pending pipeline" 30, 45, 60 days out
+ How to balance in a -normal- personal life
+ Add your own here!

As this challenging year draws to a close, can you
predict what your 2010 will bring? More of the same?
Or more slices of the Game?

Download Your Free "Mean Green" Audio Here

Take stock in your abilities. Peek over the shoulders of
agents who are successful. And right now listen to
some of those stories to gain a slice of their wisdom

Sincerely,

Coach Patti Kouri

PS: After listeng you'll probably want to know what
their little secret is... They played The Real Estate
Game for just 30 days.

Get A Spot On the Next Real Estate Game Here

A completely new proposal to save the real estate market. It's not as crazy as you might think!

Coach Patti Kouri (Accelerated Performance Coaching) — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 10:53:41 -0500

I just love this idea. What a great proposal Richard Weisser has come up with to save the real estate market. Tell me what you think. Coach Patti

www.coachpatti.com

www.TheRealEstateGame.com

Via Richard Weisser Coweta Fayette Real Estate ERA United Realty:

A lot of real estate agents are speaking as if the door on real estate sales will be slammed shut if the federal tax credit for first-time homebuyers is not extended. And while this opportunity to collect cash has had a very positive effect on sales in the lower price ranges, it really hasn't meant much to sellers with homes valued in excess of $200,000.

My preference is to let this credit just go away. The expiration of the credit could actually lead us back to a true fair market, where buyers buy because they need a house rather than just trying snag a great deal with future profit potential.

I would like to propose an alternative remedy to help sale in all price ranges. My proposal would really create interest in buyers that could really stimulate the market, and it is the only remedy that I have even seen proposed that would actually correct the mistakes of the past.

The solution I am proposing is to make all down payment monies for a personal residence up to and including a cash sale an income tax deduction. Not a refundable credit, just a deduction against income.

This also would encourage buyers with both cash and significant incomes to get back into the market. It would lead us back to the days when more down payment was better, and smaller mortgages would prevent the short position debacle that we are experiencing today.

The higher end market would see an extensive boost in sales, and prices would stabilize. And once again, homeowners will be encouraged to have equity in their homes to cushion them against negative market forces.

So what do you think? A dollar for dollar tax deduction for down payments on a house sounds like a good idea to me!
All content, including text, original art, photographs and images, is the exclusive property of Coweta Fayette Real Estate, Inc., and may not be used without the expressed written permission of Coweta Fayette Real Estate of ERA United Realty Newnan Georgia. All information is believed to be accurate but is not warranted, Copyright 2003-2009. Richard Weisser REOS, E-Pro. licensed Auctioneer. 770-827-6225.
Learn more about Coweta County and Fayette County Georgia Real Estate, and to search the entire Georgia MLS for free with no registration required visit CowetaFayetteRealEstate.com! Photos of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Get the latest GA Foreclosure List Updated Daily! We Do HUD bids in Georgia! 770-827-6225

"Win A Free Pass To The Real Estate Game"

Coach Patti Kouri (Accelerated Performance Coaching) — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 20:03:32 -0500

I've received a lot of great feedback from some really frustrated Realtors who want a way out of this mess. Seems the message in my newest report really opened some eyes.

After reading "7 Deadly Mistakes Stopping You From Getting What You Want From The Real Estate Business"... a lot of people got the picture and instantly knew they had to do something to fix their real estate careers. But for some, knowing what to do and "doing it" consistently and effectively is another story.

That's why I used the "proven real estate success formula" I developed from years of experience (and good advice from others) to create "The Real Estate Game."

People needed a vehicle to help them apply these "enhancements" on a daily basis. And practicing good habits OFTEN is the only way to break-free from a career of spinning your wheels, and start living a life of prosperity.

So today starts our ""Win A Free Pass To The Real Estate Game" Blog Comment Contest

And YOU could be one of three deserving Realtors to win a Free Pass to "The Real Estate Game."

The winner will attend morning teleconference sessions as a player of "The Game" to get grounded for their day. Just 30 minutes at the beginning of your day... can get you focused on what you have to do... so you can hit the ground running!

Sessions of "The Game" are strictly limited to just 20 players. These players are all accountable to each other for an entire 30 days. This fact is responsible for the dozens and dozens of success stories I've received from Realtors who are loving life after playing "The Game."

Sessions of "The Real Estate Game" take place Monday through Friday in the morning. And these sessions go on for 4 weeks. During this time, the players "game" is really played AFTER the morning phone session. All day long, on weekends too.

Points are awarded for doing specific revenue-generating activities. So throughout your day, you can be racking up points for doing the "right things", and enjoying the benefits of more SELLABLE listings, more pending transactions, and MORE closed deals...

Bringing You The FULL Commission You Deserve!

The winner of each 30-Day session of "The Real Estate Game" wins a Free Pass to attend the next session. And you could be a winner this Sunday, and grab 1 of 3 Free Passes going out to our Blog Comment Contest winners.

Here's how to enter:

1) Leave a comment to this blog post below, answering this question... "How do you think winning a Free Pass to The Real Estate Game will help your career and improve your life?"

2) Leave your name and email address (won't be viewable in public) so we can contact you if you win.

Our "Win A Free Pass To The Real Estate Game" Blog Comment Contest has already started, and runs until Sunday August 30th at 12:01am Eastern time.

Look for an email from me later on Sunday where I'll announce the 3 winners. This choice will largely be based on the improvements they want to make to the way they do business... How they think their lives will improve by getting on the right track and being held accountable to their peers.

When I announce our winners, you'll get more details about "The Real Estate Game."... why it has the power to transform your career... and when we will be opening for enrollments to a limited amount of real estate agents and brokers who want more.

Talk to you soon.

Patti

Focus = Power = Results

Coach Patti Kouri (Accelerated Performance Coaching) — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 08:26:42 -0500

A recent lesson to getting Wealthy (not just rich) I learned from
master business & personal performance guru Tony Robbins is
FOCUS = POWER.

What you focus on is what you empower.

Do you want to make more money?
Do you want quicker selling listings?
Do you just simply want peace of mind?

You may not be aware of this, but everyday you're exposed to 9,
13, 17 and on some awful days 51 distractions that yank your
FOCUS away from getting what you deserve.

It's not your fault.

The same way no one gave your parents the instruction manual
on 'how to raise you', no one handed you the "operations guide"
to navigating your life.

http://TheRealEstateGame.com/report

Plain and simple.

If you FOCUS on what makes you feel Wealthy and Rich, it will
POWER you though the 9 to 51 distractions everyday that drain
your chances of you getting what you deserve.

Here's 3 Proven Steps to stopping that drain...

1) BOOK "YOU" TIME: Life is short. So it all starts with getting
clear on what you want. So right NOW, I mean right now, book
20-45 minutes of distraction free time for this evening or
weekend.

This is the 1st step to creating the space and time to getting
clear on the motivations behind what you do. You might be
shocked to learn that MONEY isn't what motivates you...

2) ASK YOURSELF WHY I AM DOING THIS: Now that you've
created 20-40 minutes of distraction free time, find a small
piece of paper and a pen and answer yourself these questions.

Why the heck am I working so hard?
What am I working for?
Have I generated the results I wanted?

There's an intrinsic part of you that knows exactly what you
want, when you want it, and knows how to get it.

The problem is that little guy/gal's voice is drowned out by
the demands of all the other noises pulling at your attention.

Now that you've got your inner voice's "demands" in writing,
become the mouth piece of it's success.

3) LEARN TO SAY NO: Why the heck in the world did your
intrinsic motivations become so drowned out in the 1st place?

You've allowed the demands of saying YES to the wrong things
monopolize your time and have you say NO to the right things.

After you repeat this exercise a few times over the course
of a few weeks, your ability to recognize the things you
should say NO too become clearer... much clearer.

If you've enjoyed this little exercise and are looking for more
ways to get more from your life and business, I just released
a new report you should definitely read!

http://TheRealEstateGame.com/report

It's called the "7 Deadly Mistakes Stopping You from Getting
What You Want from The Real Estate Business", that they
didn't teach you in reach estate school.

Regardless if you're new to the business or are a seasoned
veteran, if you face challenges in your career and personal
life this Special Report will help you start to melt away those
frustrations and anxiety points.

For instance Deadly Mistake #3, if you struggle with keeping
your Personal Life separate from you Professional Life, you'll
begin to see where you are failing to institute boundaries and
and say "NO" to those, which that keep you "comingling"
your time and distracting you from getting what you want.

http://TheRealEstateGame.com/report

With the abundance of time you can create to get the things
you really want, in this Special Report, Mistake by Mistake you
will help yourself get clear on getting more for you, your family,
and friends...

...to live the life you've always wanted!

To Your Success,
Patti Kouri

Is Anyone Else Struggling Like This?

Coach Patti Kouri (Accelerated Performance Coaching) — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 18:45:41 -0500

New Free Special Report For Real Estate Agents
and Brokers Who Want MORE...

From: Patti Kouri

So many real estate agents and brokers who I run into ask me the same questions. And have the same frustrated and puzzled look on their faces.

"Is everyone having the same problems I'm having in this bad real estate market?"

"Are earnings down for all realtors?"

"Is this ever going to get better?"

Well, let me assure you things will indeed get better. But not for everyone.

We may never see those "effortless" sales in such great numbers again, like you did in the early and mid 2000s. That means the real estate professionals who make an effort to get better at what they do... and eliminate their career-crippling bad habits... will be the individuals who will enjoy things getting MUCH better.

And those who choose to practice real estate like they've been doing it for the last 5...10... or even 20 years? They'll have a real tough time of it. So much so, that many will end up leaving the business all together.

That's really a shame. Especially since it doesn't have to be like that for them. And it doesn't have to be like that for you, either.

Which is why I'm releasing my new free Special Report to enable realtors who are struggling in this economy (or who just want more than they're getting now) to get their heads on straight...and WIN in this challenging real estate economy...

"7 Deadly Mistakes Stopping You From Getting What You Want From The Real Estate Business"

If you're not content with letting this economy kick you in the butt, and you're not alright with having to leave the business and get a "real job", you've GOT to download your Free copy now:

www.TheRealEstateGame.com/Report

Success in real estate? It all comes down to taking a good look at how you operate now, and the situation you find yourself in. Are you happy with your real estate career? Are you happy with the income you're making right now? Are you enjoying every day, whether you're working or playing?

Then it's about applying some simple shifts in thinking... so you head down the right "path to success"... and stay there!

Get your copy of "7 Deadly Mistakes Stopping You From Getting What You Want From The Real Estate Business" today, and make time to read it right away. (It's pretty short, and won't take much of your time at all.)

See, the faster you make these discoveries that could change the course of your career and your income, the faster you can start experiencing the results.

And when you do, I want to hear about it! Let me know about the "ah-ha" moments you had when reading the "7 Deadly Mistakes..." report. How do you think these strategies are going to affect your day-to-day activities? And your income?

Leave your comments in the "Comments" area below this blog post. I will be by to see what you have to say.

Once you request your copy of my special report, you'll be hearing about a "private" video presentation that goes even deeper into what you'll uncover in the report. This Free "private video" will only be available to my "7 Deadly Mistakes..." report readers. So...

Get Your Copy Here:
www.TheRealEstateGame.com/Report

Talk to you soon.

Patti Kouri

Fail Your Way to Success

Coach Patti Kouri (Accelerated Performance Coaching) — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 19:26:40 -0500

Is there anyone out there who likes to fail? I'm guessing there isn't, and yet some of the most successful people learn to fail their way to the top.

Think back to when you learned to ride a bicycle. With training wheels, it was easy and a good introduction, but you yearned to ride free. Then the training wheels came off…and things became more difficult! You were scared, but excited. You struggled to stay upright and endured the inevitable falls, bumps and bruises, and scrapes. You kept going. You looked forward to the time when you would succeed, when you would at last ride free on your own. So you kept at it and eventually mastered it. Once you were confident that you wouldn't fall, you started to add your own flair with one-handed and even no-handed riding. Wow, that felt powerful!

But now you are an adult, a businessperson. Do you approach the development of new skills with the same eagerness? Do you jump at the chance to move forward applying new skills with excitement? Do you have the will to perform unsuccessfully until you master the challenge? Do you jump at the chance to try something new or to prove yourself in the face of unforeseen obstacles? If you are like most people, the answer is probably "No."

So what’s has changed since your bike learning days? For one thing, I’ll bet that you’ve become a lot more concerned about other people’s opinions. You probably often hesitate because of the possibility people will criticize and ridicule. Sure, it can be uncomfortable to try something new, perhaps even scary, but if you take your eye off the goal and instead focus your attention on how others may be viewing you, you are doing yourself a gigantic disservice.

If you are not getting the results you want or have been discouraged by failure, ask yourself these questions:

Do I have an unrealistic timetable?

Maybe you expect to skip steps and succeed on a grand scale immediately. Success is usually achieved by climbing one-step at a time. So, be patient with yourself and resist the temptation to compare your progress with that of others.

Am I truly committed?

Do you have a burning desire to achieve your goal? It’s essential that you be willing to do whatever it takes (within legal and ethical bounds, of course) and that you banish any thought of giving up before you accomplish

Do I have too many discouraging influences?

Unsuccessful results can be frustrating. That’s why we need to surround ourselves with people who support and believe in us.

Am I preparing to succeed?

Success in any endeavor requires thorough preparation. Are you taking steps to learn everything you can about accomplishing your goal? This means reading books, taking courses, networking with highly successful people in your field. It means finding a mentor or a coach to work with you. Successful people are always sharpening their skills.

Am I truly willing to fail?

Face it: you will fail. You will encounter defeat before you succeed. Look failure squarely in the face and see it as a natural part of the success process. Do not take it personally. It is not about you as a person being bad or good. Welcome failure as an unavoidable yet vital component in the quest to achieve your goals.

Failure is not final; quitting is. But continued attempts, with commitment and diligence, can lead to success.

No, you won't close every sale, and you won’t make money on every investment. Life is a series of wins and losses, even for the most successful. If you make it your business to learn from every defeat and stay focused on the goal, failure will eventually lead you to success.

Get out there and fail!

Patti Kouri, Accelerated Performance Coaching
Helping You Through Self-Made Limitations!

Will you Take My Challenge and increase your income? Here's what one student said:

Play The Real Estate Game®

Is Fear Getting In Your Way?

Coach Patti Kouri (Accelerated Performance Coaching) — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 10:32:01 -0500

Last time I talked about setting goals and seeing it through to reaching those goals. In theory, that all sounds good. But even with goals and good intentions, people don't always reach the goals that they really want. If you look behind the typical excuses – "I ran out of time." "I had a family emergency." "Things are tougher today than they used to be." – you may find that it's one issue that is really holding them back: Fear.

Fear can be a very powerful motivator if your life or the life of someone you care about is in danger. We've all heard about the mother who managed to lift a car off her trapped child. Fortunately, those kind of extreme situations rarely happen. But that doesn't mean that fear leaves us alone.

Quite the contrary. If we let it, fear will run our lives and keep us from getting what we want in life. In reality, the only thing that prevents us from succeeding is…ourselves! We are excellent at procrastinating, not asking for what we want or need or even knowing precisely what it is we want or need. We then find excuses for not creating the behavior, taking the appropriate actions, and taking the steps necessary to learn and move forward.

We're certainly not alone. Fear is something everyone has to deal with. The trick is knowing this and recognizing the common fears so that we can deal with them. Here are six common fears – how many of these affect you?

FEAR OF FAILURE. One of the main reasons people procrastinate is their fear of failure. They would rather do nothing than risk looking bad, making a mistake, or not completing what they start. Perfectionists are especially susceptible to this one.

FEAR OF SUCCESS. This fear is a little more subtle. We all want success, but to many people success means more stress, pressure, work, and responsibility. If that's your image of success, then it's no wonder you manage to not achieve it. To get past this, you need to be able to revise your image of success so it starts to look more like ongoing fulfillment, pleasure, and satisfaction.

FEAR OF REJECTION. For many people, this is the number one fear in their life. Most people with this fear don't have an inner experience of "being" or "OK-ness." They don't understand that it's not the rejection that matters; it is the understanding that there will always be differences and preferences in life between people and ideas. What does matter is how we learn from, deal with, and respond to the rejection in a healthy, positive manner.

FEAR OF THE UNKNOWN. We humans like to feel that we know our environment and what to expect from it. We can deal with almost any danger if we know about it. What we can't handle is the unknown. In fact, when faced with an unknown, we can imagine all sorts of horrible possibilities. In this situation, we are prone to staying with what we know – even if it is intolerable – rather than stepping off into the unknown. Why? Because most people would rather live with, and deal with, what they have and know now, then to take a risk with the unknown, believing that it could be worse!

FEAR OF CHANGE. This fear is the "sister" of the fear of the unknown. Most people talk about changing but few actually do change. There are a couple of reasons for this: First, very few people like to acknowledge that something is wrong or not working in their lives. Second, they don't like the feelings associated with the awkwardness or embarrassment of doing something new or different for the first time. They lack the patience and persistence necessary to endure and internalize the changes necessary to grow.

FEAR OF TAKING RISKS. This fear keeps too many of America's workforce in the same place, even though they wake up every morning hating their jobs, their workplaces, their bosses, their careers or professions. Their work environment may be negative and debilitating. Yet these people will not take a chance on themselves for fear of being judged a failure!

Someone recently asked me what I attribute people's success to. I answered in two words: "Learned experiences." Then they asked how does one get learned experiences? Again I said two words: "Make mistakes." When they asked how does one do this? I said just two words: "Take risks!"

Fear is something we live with every day. But HOW we live with it, and how we manage fear, determines how happy and fulfilled our lives will be.

Is fear getting in the way of your happier life?

Patti Kouri, Accelerated Performance Coaching Helping You Through Self-Made Limitations!

Will you Take My Challenge and increase your income? Here's what one student said:

Play The Real Estate Game®

What's Holding You Back?

Coach Patti Kouri (Accelerated Performance Coaching) — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 11:23:06 -0500

"If you have a goal in life that takes a lot of energy, that requires a lot of work, that incurs a great deal of interest and that is a challenge to you, you will always look forward to waking up to see what the new day brings." - Susan Polis Schultz

Not long ago I checked off one of my lifetime goals – to see a Space Shuttle launch. I'd dreamed about it for a long time. It took a lot of scrambling and rearranging of my schedule and my husband's for us to be able to make the trip for California to Florida. The launch was scrubbed…and then delayed again…and again! We rescheduled some more, grabbed the last two seats on a flight, and got there to see an extraordinary event from a front row seat.

What I couldn't understand was how some people who had the same chance we did, and who could have been there for the launch, bailed out after one or two scrubs. After all it took to get there, I wasn't about to give up without reaching that goal. Why did they?

I don't have an answer for those folks, but I do know that one answer might be that they didn't really have a goal. They sort of wanted to see the launch, and would have liked to if it worked out, but it wasn't a goal that they had set and worked toward with resolve.

What's the difference? Wanting something is just wishful thinking. Making it a goal gives you a roadmap to reaching it, and a way to measure how you're doing in your quest. Setting a goal gives you direction and an action plan.

Here is a six step process you can use today to produce greater results through goal-directed action:

Step one - Define the problem you want to solve. You can't reach a goal if you don't know what it is!
Step two - Make the goal large enough so that it is challenging without being impossible to attain. Effective goal targets fall between a stretch and a pipe dream.
Step three - Develop a goal that is measurable, has a time frame for completion, and then write it down. For example, "I will develop and implement five new systems that will increase my net margins by 2% by November 1^st, 2009."
Step four - Ask and answer these fundamental questions:
1. Why this goal?
2. Why now?
3. What is the cost if the goal is not met? What are the consequences to my business if I do not reach the goal?
4. What is the value if the goal is accomplished?
5. What resources do I need to reach this goal? Think in terms of both time and dollar costs.
6. After examining the potential benefits and costs, are you still committed to move forward with the goal? This is the time to reflect and be certain the cost involved in achieving the goal is worth the result. If so, move forward. If not, work on something else.
Step five - Define an action step and take it immediately. The action can be small but it will help move your goal from paper to action.
Step six - Create a measuring tool that contains the elements of constant review and resetting action steps based on actual progress. Be rigorous and tell yourself the truth about how you are advancing.

There's an old saying: "Even if you're on the right track, you'll get run over if you're standing still." Goals keep you moving in the right direction – the direction you've chosen, the one that is right for you and your business.

Mine got me to the Space Shuttle launch. Where will your goals take you?

Patti Kouri, Accelerated Performance Coaching
Helping You Through Self-Made Limitations!

Will you Take My Challenge and increase your income? Here's what one student said:

Play The Real Estate Game®

Once In a Lifetime!

Coach Patti Kouri (Accelerated Performance Coaching) — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 13:12:48 -0500

It was one of those "things to see and do in our lifetime" goals – to see a Space Shuttle launch in person.

I am so glad we made the decision to go to Florida to see the launch of Endeavor. It was all at the very last minute – my husband, Matthew, and I had just three days to make air reservations (we got the last two seats and were even upgraded to first class!), we had to clear both of our schedules which were very full, and then had to reschedule air travel and re-clear our schedules again when the launch was scrubbed three times, and there was a day in between the third and fourth try. All our clients realized how important this was to us and supported and cooperated with our rescheduling. They were almost as excited as we were that we were actually going to realize this goal, and at the same time, they could see that we do walk our talk.

All in all, my husband and I agreed that we would realize the goal of seeing the Space Shuttle launch no matter what and no matter when it went off - and that was it.

The blast off was one of those moments that absolutely takes your breath away. We were invited to observe the blast from only 3.8 miles away, closer then anyone else could have gotten. It was in the area where the astronauts going up on other flights, and their families, were watching. It was so close we had very strict instructions on what to do if there was a failure at blast off, and on how to get to safety. Thank God, it was a perfect blast off.

We were honored to have been personally invited to be with the VIP group by my husband's cousin, Ray, who works with NASA. Not only were we included in the launch viewing, but the pre- and post-launch events as well.

I love NASA. The pride they show, the highest of standards and boundaries they maintain. They take such a stand for their vision and what that vision does for mankind. Nothing gets in the way of them realizing their vision; they focus on what it takes to get it done. NASA is a real community, too. They treat all of their employees and their families just like family. They never take a flight for granted, and they hold human life so high with extreme safety and care. Every time they have to scrub a launch, it costs somewhere around $1 million dollars. But if the conditions are not perfect, they didn't care - safety is still more important. They are so proud to be American and number one in space flight. They want to keep that position and are not willing to be number two, yet willing to work with other nations for the good for all. WOW! We should all run our business and our lives this way.

I also realized how many people just aborted their goal of watching the blast off and went home once the first try was scrubbed. Even more left on the second try, and and a whole lot more left after the third scrub. I asked myself, "How many people let go of their goal before the miracle of realizing it? What would their life and business be like if they just went that extra mile or extra 1%?"

Experiencing the NASA environment and seeing the Shuttle launch as a very powerful experience that I will never forget. It made me even more proud to be an American.

Safe flight and happy landings to the astronauts of Endeavor and all the fine people of NASA!

Patti Kouri, Accelerated Performance Coaching
Helping You Through Self-Made Limitations!

Will you Take My Challenge and increase your income? Here's what one student said:

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Now More Than Ever, Referrals = Business

Coach Patti Kouri (Accelerated Performance Coaching) — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 09:05:30 -0500

Back in the “old days,” when I was an agent at Jon Douglas Company, Jon Douglas would frequently talk about the importance of staying in touch with people. This was before computers took over our business, and Jack (as he’s known) would say, "You need to go through your Rolodex, card by card, and keep calling people so that everyone hears from you on a regular basis. When you reach the end, start over." He called these “warm calls.”

He was talking about creating referral business, and although the technology has changed, the facts have not. The main element of Jack’s message is that real estate is a people-to-people business, and the people you know – your friends, family and past clients – know other people who need real estate help or may need your help themselves.

But the subtext here is that just like you have to ask for the deal, you have to ask for the referrals. Don’t assume that your clients/friends/family will give you referrals just because they know you’re in the business. For one thing, they forget. For another, they may think you’re too busy, or you don’t handle properties of this type or in this location. Ask For The Referrals.

Technology is very seductive. Contact management software, elaborate websites, blogs, viral marketing, lead generators, and phones that are more sophisticated than we are all promise huge returns, massive business and fabulous success. Agents spend enormous amounts of money purchasing and developing these tools. But here’s the rub: the agents who are the most successful using technology are usually the same ones who are the most successful without technology.

Marketing brings people to the gate. But it’s you – the prepared, professional, savvy agent – who lets them in, creates the relationship, and escorts them through their transaction. If they arrive at the gate and you can’t deliver – you don’t have the skills, or you don’t answer their questions or their phone calls, or you don’t control your schedule (or your temper), or you don’t know the market – you won’t get the client, you won’t get the business and you won’t get referrals down the line.

Once somebody has been your client, you don’t need to blast them with weekly postcards or dozens of intrusive auto-generated e-mails, but you do need to remind them periodically that you’re still in the business, that you’re still interested in their well-being and that you still appreciate their referrals. The more personal this contact, the more likely it is to yield results, even in our techno-savvy world.

This is a true story: A friend of a friend sold real estate marketing materials to agents all over the country, so of course she knew hundreds, if not thousands, of real estate agents. When it came time to sell her own house, she selected a local agent who had been sending her mailers consistently. He represented her, the sale was successful and they had a very compatible interaction. The escrow closed and she never heard another word from him. Not a call. Not a mailer. A couple of years later, she ran into him at a conference and she asked him why he had dropped her like a hot rock. His answer: Oh, he just assumed that once they had done business together, she would always come back to him when she needed help. Guess what? This agent, by failing to “go through his Rolodex,” lost himself uncounted numbers of referrals and who knows how much income. Big mistake.

The market will continue to change, technology will continue to evolve and become obsolete, your approach will change, but referrals will remain a vital business-generating tool. Pick up the phone. Connect with people. Ask for referrals. Give great service. Repeat as often as possible.

Patti Kouri, Accelerated Performance Coaching Helping You Through Self-Made Limitations!

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Catching Up with Yourself

Coach Patti Kouri (Accelerated Performance Coaching) — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 14:38:11 -0500

It's time for that appointment you made with yourself – that time when you are going to look at how you did during the first half of the year, and figure out what you can do to make the second half better.

First, hold your calls and step away from the e-mail. This is protected time for you and your business. Next, pull out that file you created – the one with your financial information and a copy of your plan for the year – and start reviewing it. Compare how you did to your plan:

Are you on track in the important areas?
- Gross production
- Net proceeds
- Listings taken and buyers sold
- Where your business is coming from
- Advertising expenditures
What is working? What can you do to take more advantage of a trend?
What is not working as planned? Why is it not working? And most important, what can you do to get it back in line with your plan?
From where you are at the end of June, what will it take to be back on track by the end of September so that you can hit your goal for the year at the end of December? (Note: "A miracle" is not an answer! There is a real answer that will work for you. Find it.)
Where has your business come from this year? Is your marketing plan aligned so that you are spending money where your business is coming from?

Here's a great goal – meet your financial objectives for the year by the end of October. Then, you can relax if you want to, or go for a record year, or just get really picky about working with the perfect clients instead of the high maintenance kind!

Next: strategizing for the future. Regardless of how you've done so far, perhaps the most important action you can take from this business planning session is to look for trends.

Are the niches you are focusing on the ones with activity? Look at the MLS data to see what trends emerge. If you do geographical farming, review last year’s numbers vs. this year's.
What new areas are emerging? A young new home subdivision (3-5 years old) is a great place to establish a foothold as a guru before anyone else does.
It is now possible to have real estate in an IRA, and this could be a great opportunity to generate sales that weren’t going to happen otherwise by contacting your clients to share this opportunity with them.
With the low interest rates and refinancing frenzy, if prices do soften in some areas, we may see more repossessions. Building some alliances with lenders and banks now could yield new business in the coming months and years.

Wayne Gretsky said, "You'll always miss 100 percent of the shots you do not take." And "The fundamentals of the game are never going to change, but the things you're going to do, that changes."

Every marketplace offers individual and unique opportunities. The agents that are aware and awake to shifting before others see the trends will have an edge! Will you be there?

Patti Kouri, Accelerated Performance Coaching
Helping You Through Self-Made Limitations!

Will you Take My Challenge and increase your income? Here's what one student said:

Play The Real Estate Game®

It's Mid-year…Are You Mid-way to Your Yearly Goals?

Coach Patti Kouri (Accelerated Performance Coaching) — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 19:57:18 -0500

I can hear you because I say it too; "Where did the year go? How did it get to be almost the end of June??"

But it IS mid-year, and time to focus on where we are and where we are going with the intention of closing that gap. No matter if you are on track or not, we still have six more months in 2009, and anything can happen. Let’s use this time to plan to win!

So much goes on each day that can distract us from what is really important. We all know this, but it still happens. We take our eye off the ball – our goal – because we're looking at something that popped up to distract us. But if you take eye off the ball, you can’t hit it.

Are you having trouble staying focused and on task during the summer months? If I asked, “What did you do last week that brought you closer to your goals for the year?” would you be satisfied with your answer? Were you busy, but didn’t accomplish what you wanted, because you were doing the wrong things? Or did you accomplish what you wanted? GREAT! What did you do to make that happen?

A break and current assessment can refocus you on the most important actions to take to end 2009 as a winner.

As the first half of the year is behind us it’s a good time to do a reality check with your business plan. Are you on target? Are you ahead? Are you behind? What will it take to catch up or stay on track?

Let’s take this time to see what is working and what isn’t working and to create a strategy for the second half of the game that will lead you to the win.

Right now, get your schedule out and block an appointment with yourself for a couple of hours within the next week. This check-in at mid-year, when done right, will be almost as extensive and as important as your yearly planning session. It will allow you to make course corrections and be more powerful in achieving your goals.

To get ready for this session with yourself, review the numbers from the first half of the year. If you’ll take the time to do an in depth view of this, you’ll discover information to make and keep you profitable.

The numbers you want to track are:

Your gross production
Your net proceeds
The number of listings taken
The number of buyers sold
Average list price and average sales price
Where each transaction came from
Where your advertising dollars were spent

Put all this in a file and have it ready for your appointment with yourself. Pull out a copy of your plan for the year and add it to the file.

Next time – we'll go through what you do in that appointment with yourself, your business, and your future!

Patti Kouri, Accelerated Performance Coaching
Helping You Through Self-Made Limitations!

Will you Take My Challenge and increase your income? Here's what one student said:

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A Different Kind of Bucket List

Coach Patti Kouri (Accelerated Performance Coaching) — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 16:10:56 -0500

We all know that there is no financial security in the real estate industry. We are independent contractors; we own our own businesses. There are no 401(k) plans or pensions, and there is no one who will look after us but us. So like many others today we are being more careful with spending.

That's a good thing, but it's not the way to build wealth. For that, you need a plan that goes beyond cooking at home instead of going out to eat. It doesn't have to be a fancy or difficult plan; all you need are three buckets. Using those three buckets (or pots or any other container you want to visualize) will help you build wealth and a future for yourself and your business.

The first bucket (no, not a real bucket!) is for your living expenses. You need 3 to 6 months of living expenses somewhere for emergencies. It can be cash in the bank or a line of credit, though if you are tapping that reserve you probably don't want to take on new debt if possible. Whatever form it is in, you need to have quick access in the event of an emergency.

Once Bucket #1 is full, only then can you start filling Bucket #2. This is your retirement bucket. This is where you are getting a good annual return on mutual funds, stocks, bonds, or real estate. You diversify your holdings so that you don't risk great losses in one market segment. When your are ready to fill the second bucket, you should be budgeting a percentage of your income to go directly into this.

How much? Start where you are and look ahead. If you are 40 years old now, you want to retire at 55, and you need $1.5 million to do that, they you can figure out how much you need to put in Bucket #2 every week or month to reach that goal. There are many places online that offer such retirement calculators. As long as you are putting that money away regularly, then you are on track with that bucket.

Now you can think about a third bucket. This is your high-risk bucket. If you have Bucket #1 full and you are on track with bucket number 2, then anything left over goes into the high-risk bucket. In that case, if you had $10,000 left over at the end of the year, maybe you take that trip to Vegas, or go buy those clothes, or my style is to put that money into a high-risk market. You might get into a business opportunity, a risky stock, or something else that has potential for a big return, but also carries a risk of loss. The only bucket you can touch for that kind of gamble is #3. You might invest in a high-risk venture that pays off and find you have filled Bucket #2 early. But you might also lose that investment. Either way, you still have Bucket #1 full and Bucket #2 on track.

No, I'm not an investment adviser or financial planner. But I believe common sense and responsible planning will take you far toward your goals. Just by following a simple plan like this you’ll start building wealth, you'll be monitoring your finances, and be in more control. And that leads to flexibility for your business, with money to put into marketing, which generates the leads, and turns leads into sales. You are building wealth, building a business that is worth something whether you pass it on to the next generation or sell it. You are building the future you want with peace, balance, and security.

Patti Kouri, Accelerated Performance Coaching
Helping You Through Self-Made Limitations!

Will you Take My Challenge and increase your income? Here's what one student said:

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Do Raindrops Keep Fallin' on Your Head?

Coach Patti Kouri (Accelerated Performance Coaching) — Fri, 22 May 2009 15:29:09 -0500

You've heard about "scarcity thinking," haven't you? And by now you know that what you believe and hold in your mind does influence what happens in your life. If you don't think you have enough (money, time, energy, etc.), then you probably are right. That can make you pull back from opportunities and afraid to take a chance even when there's a good possibility the outcome would be in your favor.

Then comes a time like now when business may have slowed down, money isn't flowing as easily as before, and that "rainy day" you were told to save for has arrived. Did you save? Or do you now find yourself in more debt than you planned and struggling to keep up? Are you even toying with the idea of filing for bankruptcy?

When the raindrops keep falling on your head, you need to get out of that debt that has you thinking in scarcity mode and holding you back. Before you go to an attorney there is a lot you can do for yourself that can help you avoid the destruction of your credit and the legal, financial, and emotional burden of bankruptcy.

Admit it. You have got to admit you are in debt. Don't just think to yourself, "Yeah, I know I'm in debt." Stand up. Say it out loud. "I'm way over my head in debt. I lost control of my money and owe so much to other people that my life is not my own any more. I am going to change this."
Total it. Now that you have admitted it, accepted the reality, and gone through the depression of where you are, now you need to sit down and total up everything you owe. You need to know the number, no matter how horrible it is. Is it $5,000? $50,000? What is the number?
Stop it. Stop doing what is getting you in debt. Stop the spending, don’t buy the car, don’t buy the clothes, don’t go on the vacation, stop what you are doing. You have to stop the bleeding completely and immediately.
Formulate it. Take your total debt - let’s pretend it is $20,000 – and list everything in order based on interest rate. Include all the credit cards, car loans, Mom and Dad, whatever. Now take the high interest items (often credit cards) and start throwing as much money as you can at those items first. Put off any you can; Mom and Dad will wait. Knock off high interest things first and then work down the list to the low interest last. In other words, make the minimum payments on the lower interest debts and pay as much as possible on the high interest stuff.
Budget it. To make this work you need to have at least a general budget so you know how much you can use to pay down debt. If you bring in $100,000 this year, and have $90,000 in regular expenses and taxes, then you have $10,000 that you can put towards debt. Not vacation, not a new TV, no big parties. You are on a money diet, and the debt comes first. And since you've done step 4, you know that $10,000 goes more toward the high interest debts first.
Control it. In some cases you need to call some creditors. If you talk to them, they will often wait and/or work with you on a payment schedule. Just pick up the phone and initiate the call, hard as that can be. Most creditors would prefer to know there's a problem and work with you – they don't want to turn it over to a collection agency either. Let people know the story. Say something like, "Listen, this is what I have each month to pay my debt, and I'm allocating $200 a month to you. It will be paid off by this date…" and make a commitment to a date you will pay them in full. And keep it.
Get after it. You have a plan. You have control. Now get back to work and work your way out of debt. Stick to your plan, make sure to keep the payment commitments you made, and control your spending as you do. The only way out of debt is to work your way out of debt.

Rainy days are a fact of life. With planning, perseverance, and follow-through, you can survive the storm.

Patti Kouri, Accelerated Performance Coaching
Helping You Through Self-Made Limitations!

Will you Take My Challenge and increase your income? Here's what one student said:

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Work ON, Not IN Your Business

Coach Patti Kouri (Accelerated Performance Coaching) — Fri, 15 May 2009 19:20:55 -0500

Are you busy? Everyone’s busy! Ask anyone and they’ll tell you how busy they are. But how many people are seeing real results?

As a real estate agent, it is important to realize that you are not just a sales person - you are first and foremost an entrepreneur. That means you are a business owner with all sorts or responsibilities, and those duties can sometimes seem to overwhelm you. Most of all, you are a leader who has the vision that propels you, your team, and your business forward.

It’s easy to feel buried by the myriad activities that demand your attention each day. That's the time to remember and apply the 80/20 RULE: Spend 80% of your time, money, and effort on income-producing activities, and no more than 20% on income-servicing activities. What are "income-servicing activities"? You might remember I talked about this a couple of months ago. Be aware of the activities that steal your time, and focus on action.

How do you do this? How Put aside a block of time each week to work ON your business by focusing on your vision. Ask yourself:

Where are you in relation to where you need to be?
What needs to be done, and who is going to do it?
What changes are going on in your market?
Where do you need to tweak your plan?

Once you have identified what your goals for your business in the 60-90 days, take steps to accomplish your goals:

Set aside two hours, one day a week, to work ON your business.
Break your business down into the six most critical areas.
Decide what your goal is for each area in the next 60-90 days.
Evaluate on a scale of 1 to10 where you are in each area.
Create a plan to get to a 10 in each area, and give it a deadline.
Put the action steps of your plan in your schedule.
Delegate or outsource the activities that are taking your time away from reaching your goals.

Make working ON your business a regular, weekly habit, and you'll see that your business goals will become realities.

Patti Kouri, Accelerated Performance Coaching
Helping You Through Self-Made Limitations!

Will you Take My Challenge and increase your income? Here's what one student said:

Play The Real Estate Game®

Moments of Truth

Coach Patti Kouri (Accelerated Performance Coaching) — Wed, 06 May 2009 13:06:49 -0500

That moment of truth – that instant that you make a decision, you change direction, you see clearly, and you know where you are going. We all have them, and so do our clients. For clients, the moment of truth is that time when they:

Choose your services above others,
Choose to continue using your services after having worked with you, or
Choose to use your services again, and recommend you to their friends.

That sounds like getting to a moment of truth is a good thing, so how do you make it happen? Obviously, you can't impose a moment of truth on your prospects or clients, but you can create an environment in which those moments happen. For example, each of these could be a moment of truth:

When someone hears another person praise you and your work
When how you present yourself - your appearance, handshake, voice, smile, etc. – strikes a pleasant chord with another person
When a person is touched intellectually and emotionally by what you say
When a person recognizes you as a model of who or what they would like to become, personally or professionally
When a person knows that you care
When a person feels that they are safe with you
When a person trusts your professional credentials
When a person believes they will be challenged and get what they need from you, such as in a coaching situation where you can provide the specific help they need.
When a person looks forward to small gifts and thoughtful messages from you because you are an important part of their life
When a person knows that you will make it right for them if they have a complaint about a product or service
When a person recognizes that your fee is slightly above the industry standard, and believes that you are worth it
When a person is sure that their success and well-being are your priorities
When a person knows that you never stop growing professionally because you want to give your clients the best
When a person is able to reach you effortlessly, if you can't answer the phone in person, you have a secretary, voice mail, or cell phone, and you respond.
When a person can count on you to treat them as a unique individual with unique needs

I'm sure you see the single thread that runs through all of these…genuine caring. You care about the convenience and comfort of your clients, you care about your own ethical standing, you care about how your interact with people and the impression you create. Your style of doing business is focused outward, on others and their needs, because you know that when you make a difference in someone else's life, it circles around and adds to your life as well.

When you have that positive cycle working in your life, those moments of truth happen more often for you and for your clients.

Patti Kouri, Accelerated Performance Coaching
Helping You Through Self-Made Limitations!

Will you Take My Challenge and increase your income? Here's what one student said:

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When It Comes to Sales, What is Reality…Really?

Coach Patti Kouri (Accelerated Performance Coaching) — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 20:08:01 -0500

One answer might be that selling is all about saying the right things that will convince people to buy, whether it's a house, a car, or a carton of milk. Others might say that selling is about being in the right place at the right time to connect with people who are ready to buy. And some will add that selling means following tried and true methods of reaching people, knowing that a certain percentage of those contacts will turn into sales.

Anything wrong with all that? Not really, except that there's one very important point missing. In sales, and in life, what you think becomes your reality. Now expand that thought, and you'll see that at the same time, your seller's thoughts create their reality. I'm not saying that thoughts are reality, only that these accumulations of beliefs and attitudes about what reality is are what we need to recognize when working with people to complete any transaction.

Let's look at the players in a home sale: You (the sellers' agent), your sellers, the buyers, and the buyers' agent.

You understand that the real estate market has changed in the last couple of years. The houses on your seller's street used to sell for $600,000, but now they are in the $475,000 to $550,000 range. That's your reality about price.
Your sellers have lived in their house for many years. They bought it for $215,000 and saw the market value rise to over $600,000. Now that they are ready to sell, they expect to get at least $600,000 for it. That's their price reality.
The buyers have done their homework and know the going price range for this house. They admit it's nicer than most, but still don't think it's worth more than $525,000. Their reality.
The buyers' agent sold a similar house in the neighborhood for $540,000 a few months ago, so that is her reality.

Now…what's the "real" price of this house?

Clearly, if there is to be a meeting of all these minds, somehow they need to come together. If no one budges, there's no deal at all. But you have an advantage – you know that each party has a different "reality," and so you can recognize the basis of their differences.

If your thoughts and their thoughts are not in sync, you won't be seeing things the same way, and that's the root of problems. But knowing their points of view, you are in a position to influence them. You will have to expand your "reality" to recognize and include all the others. Then you have the complete picture and can bring those different realities into alignment. That's where the real selling starts.

You have about 80,000 thoughts a day, and many of them are negative. If you want to change your reality, change your thinking. You have a choice of how and what you think; think negative and you will create a negative environment, think positive and you create an environment of positive possibilities. From that positive position you become known as a person who makes deals come together in a way that everyone wins. That's a reality that everyone can appreciate.

Patti Kouri, Accelerated Performance Coaching
Helping You Through Self-Made Limitations!

Will you Take My Challenge and increase your income? Here's what one student said:

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Take the Big View

Coach Patti Kouri (Accelerated Performance Coaching) — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 13:51:38 -0500

There's a small frog at the bottom of a well. He looks up and sees a circle of sky. Because it's all he can see, he believes the sky is only as big as that small circle. Then it rains, the well fills, and floats him to the top. How big is the sky now for that frog?

When we think about it, we realize that our view of the sky – or of our market or our possibilities – is defined by how we think. We don't have to be in a deep well to know that there's more sky than we can see. But we do have to remember that, and think bigger!

What does this have to do with production for a real estate agent? Just about everything. If increasing your production is important to you, remember that you are the only one to decide if a real estate market is good or bad. Not your customers, not the economy, and not other agents; YOU decide how big your sky is. In fact, it really doesn't matter what cycle the real estate economy is in, because 15 or 20 good listing appointments a month will cure all of your production problems.

If you want to increase your production, first you need to know how you are doing. Track the number of hours you prospect daily for 90 days, and whom you call or get face to face with. While you are prospecting, check your energy and intensity - are you bringing that positive mindset and approach that will make your prospecting effective?

Then every week, take some time to sit back and look at your listings as if they were products on a store shelf. Consider whether they are the right "products" for your "store," and answer these three questions:

Should I be giving some of my listings back?
What emotional price am I paying for some of the listings that I have?
What will it cost to keep a listing for 6 months that will not sell?

Your answers to these questions will tell you where you are spending your time and effort well, and what you could change to do even better.

And at the end of the day, settle back and do a little self-analysis. Ask:

What did I do right today?
Did I get off track, and if I did, where?
What do I need to focus on tomorrow?

From where I am, tomorrow's sky is big and broad and full of possibilities. What's your piece of the sky like today?

Patti Kouri, Accelerated Performance Coaching
Helping You Through Self-Made Limitations!

Will you Take My Challenge and increase your income? Here's what one student said:

Play The Real Estate Game®

The Winning Formula

Coach Patti Kouri (Accelerated Performance Coaching) — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 14:22:31 -0500

These days you can find a formula or "best way" for just about anything – the best words to use in a listing, the best kind of sign to put in the ground, the best way to save money at the grocery store, or the best barbecue sauce. You could get the idea that you don't have to think much at all, just follow a formula.

Which, of course, is not true at all. A formula is like a recipe – ingredients that you combine in different ways and different proportions to make exactly the right combination for you. Not only do you think, you get to create and see the results of your work.

So are formulas useless? Of course not. They give you a starting point and then you add your own combination of style, substance, and pizzazz to make your signature sauce or your own version of success.

All formulas start with constants – those things that you need to have in order to create your success. For barbecue sauce you might have molasses, ketchup, and cayenne as your constants, and other ingredients based on the flavor you are aiming at. There's your unique combination.

In real estate, the constants are attitude, strategy, and focus. These basics, plus your self-image, your specific plan, and consistent application, lead to sure success.

Start with the constants. Your attitude will determine whether the rest of it works or not, so your first task is to get rid of scarcity thinking and replace it with an attitude of abundance.

Next is strategy. It must be your strategy, not someone else's. As Vince Lombardi said, “In all my years of coaching, I have never been successful in using someone else’s plays.” Make the strategy uniquely yours and build it on networking, marketing, and prospecting.

And now the focus. Focus is what keeps all the parts working together and going in the direction you want. You are the driver of this vehicle – there's no autopilot or cruise control, so you have to pay attention.

What about the rest of the formula – the variables? Your self-image, your concept of yourself and how you fit in your world, needs to be expanding as you grow and your business grows. Don't waste time comparing yourself to others. Comparing drains energy; connect instead with your own strengths and gifts.

And your plan – that all-important piece that identifies the specifics about how you will put your strategy into action. You've heard it many times before: Plan your work and work your plan. It's that simple, and that powerful.

And the final ingredient – consistency. Without consistency and perseverance, you can plan for success forever and never have it. It's not difficult, just match your skills to your personality, apply them to your plan, and do it all the time. Simple as it sounds, consistency is one of the hardest parts for many people. If it's a challenge for you, get a coach to support you in focusing on your formula and creating consistency.

Each person's success formula will be different; adopting your own winning formula is crucial to your success. So here's the formula again:

Attitude of abundance + Expanding self-image + Strategy + Plan + Focus + Consistency = SUCCESS

What will you create with your success formula?

Patti Kouri, Accelerated Performance Coaching
Helping You Through Self-Made Limitations!

Will you Take My Challenge and increase your income? Here's what one student said:

- Pamela Bensen

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How Are You Doing So Far?

Coach Patti Kouri (Accelerated Performance Coaching) — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 20:38:26 -0500

Check the calendar; we're already three months in to the year. How are you doing with your plans and goals for 2009? If you made resolutions at the end of 2008, have you been able to keep them? If you’re like most people, those easier goals are probably either accomplished or in reach. The ones that were more like wishes, well, they probably haven't happened yet. In other words, you are quite normal!

But is that enough? If part of your plan for 2009 is to not just to survive but to actually thrive and grow your business, then take a few moments to do a quarterly checkup with these five questions.

Did you really leave 2008 behind, or did you hang on to the negatives that were swirling around the end of the year? That year is gone! Let it go and look ahead. Remember one of my favorite quotes from Henry Ford: "If you think you can do a thing, or think you can't do a thing, you're right." Think you can, and you will.
Do you start the day with a balanced, positive frame of mind? We don't do our best when we are very excited or very depressed, so work on staying on an even keel. Drastic ups and downs lead to poor decision-making, and that costs money.
Are you using your time effectively? We all get the same number of hours each day to work with. Spend most of your time on activities that produce income, and no more than 20% on activities that are income servicing.
Are you too fond of your own wonderfulness? Keep your ego in check. When the ego gets in your way, it's also getting in the way of increased sales and profits. People will tell you when you are wonderful – let the compliments come from others.
How long has it been since you changed anything about how you do business? Remain flexible and open to new ideas, new ways of doing things. If we have learned anything in the last couple of years in real estate, it is that the people who can adjust to changes quickly and effectively are the ones who grow their businesses in any market.

And a final question: Are you learning and having fun? The Real Estate Game players know that those are two very important parts of a successful business. Now is a good time to step back and take a good look at your business. There's still time to refocus and achieve those goals you saw so clearly just three months ago.

Let me know how you do?

Patti Kouri, Accelerated Performance Coaching
Helping You Through Self-Made Limitations!

Will you Take My Challenge and increase your income?
Play The Real Estate Game®

Invest in Action, Gain More Sales

Coach Patti Kouri (Accelerated Performance Coaching) — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 22:54:18 -0500

Have you noticed how much difference action makes? That's a broad statement, I know, so let's narrow it down to some examples we all can relate to.

Our economy is a roller-coaster ride these days, as we all know. The stock market is not the best barometer of how things are going because it is a very narrow part of the overall picture. But at the same time, it's quite visible. Have you noticed that when some specific, positive action occurs, that the stock market acts as if it had a double dose of caffeine? When housing starts are better than expected, the market goes up. Action/outcome.

Bring that back to your neighborhood. There are three houses for sale, and the local newspaper runs an article on how mortgage rates are at an all-time low and house sales are picking up. Those three houses have more showings and one of them sells. Action/outcome.

Narrow it down ever further. You start the week with a plan to make a certain number of prospecting calls, you set an appointment to meet with a mortgage broker you haven't worked with yet, and you schedule two networking events. At the end of the week, you've made the calls, have two listing appointments, and a plan to cooperate with the mortgage broker on a seminar for first time buyers to explain the new tax benefits. You've also had three showings on one of your listings and an open house on another that resulted in two offers. Action/outcome.

Here's an important difference for the entrepreneur-real estate agent to recognize: activity is not the same as action. It is the difference between working IN your business versus ON your business. When you work IN your business you can easily get into shuffling and sorting papers, surfing the Net, replying to each e-mail as it pops up, and reacting to each phone call as it comes in. This is classic non-income generating activity. This is working IN your business.

On the other hand, working ON your business leads to action which leads to results. Put aside a block of time each week to work ON your business by focusing on the vision, where are you in relation to where you need to be, what needs to be done, who is going to do it, what changes are going on in your market, where you need to tweak your plan, etc. Make an investment of time in your action plan; this is working ON your business. I don't have to look any further than my clients to see that this works. The ones who are starting with a positive mind set, and who are taking action, they are the ones who are reaping more sales.

If you are inclined toward non-income producing activities, hire an assistant or outsource those mundane tasks. A professional organizer can organize your files and office; a bookkeeper can handle your receipts, bills, and taxes. A business coach will help you implement efficient systems and processes to streamline your business.

Whatever it takes, and however you do it, get busy working ON your business. Invest in action, and gain more sales.

Patti Kouri, Accelerated Performance Coaching
Helping You Through Self-Made Limitations!

Will you Take My Challenge and increase your income?
Play The Real Estate Game®

Playing The Game Like Tiger

Coach Patti Kouri (Accelerated Performance Coaching) — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 21:01:48 -0500

Would you like to play your real estate game like Tiger Woods plays golf? Ask most real estate agents that and the answer you'll get is, "Of course!" But really, we can all play like Tiger, even if we don't win like he does.

If you're like me, it could take you three (or in many cases MORE!) shots to get down the fairway and onto the green. Not every shot goes where I want it to go, yet I keep swinging away, not always shaking off the bad shots or refocusing, and hitting again to get closer to my goal. Not always realizing that It is my score at the end of the round that counts, not how good or bad any individual shot was.

So how is that any different from how Tiger Woods plays golf? Even he is capable of hitting a bad shot, and he does from time to time. But as soon as he hits the ball – good, bad, or indifferent – he reviews it in his head, makes the necessary corrections, and it is over. He moves on to putting the ball in the optimum position with his next shot. His intention is to get the ball in the hole in as few shots as possible. It is not to go over and over how he screwed up, or blame the wind, or complain about where the ball landed or the noise from the crowd. He doesn’t give up, He focuses on the goal and moves toward it with every shot.

He is always looking to be the best he can be with each shot. It is not just about the win, which is important of course, but it is about mastery of himself and the game. Then the win takes care of itself.

Even though in my opinion, Tiger is the greatest golfer, he doesn’t have a hole in one every round, or often, right? No – a hole in one is rare, even for Tiger. If he were a real estate agent, would he get the equivalent of a hole in one every time out? A listing on the first contact? Or a sale on the first showing? Those are rare, too.

He would do what the most successful real estate agents do: bring to bear his mental toughness and ability (natural or learned) on reaching success. He would work on taking the steps from tee to green, from contact to contract. The successful golfer or agent:

Chooses to get into the game
Steps up to the tee
Decides the best way to get to the goal
Decides the best tool to use based on his or her strength and talent
Takes action
Practices…a lot!

For every stroke in tournament play, Tiger Woods has probably hit 20 times more in practice or training; this could equal 14,000 golf balls hit from Monday through Friday. Drives from the tee, shots from the fairway, practice getting out of bunkers, hits from deep rough, and putts from inches to yards from the hole. If Tiger or you or I gave up golf after a bad tee shot, we would all miss 100% of the opportunities to get it into the hole and ultimately win the game.

You can tell, I know, that golf has become an important part of my leisure time, and that I'm seeing parallels between the game and the folks I work with in the Real Estate Game®. Both golf and selling real estate need special skills, and those skills take practice to develop and keep strong. Great golfers and great real estate professionals share one trait: they are always trying to be the best they can be. Whether it is a golf shot or a listing presentation, they are ready for the game, they have practiced, they know they can handle whatever quirky situation comes up. They do the best they can in that moment. Then analyze the results, adjust what they are doing if necessary, and then move on to the next opportunity. They have the strong mental attitude, “If it is to be it is up to me,” and, “If at first I do not succeed, try, try again.”

So here's my question and challenge for you: What part of your game do you need to work on? What sales skill do you need to practice to make your game strong? Schedule some time on your practice range today for a better, more successful season ahead. Remember that improvement doesn't happen over night, so you don't want to either over-expect in a day, or under-expect in a lifetime. Let's play the game like Tiger.

Patti Kouri, Accelerated Performance Coaching
Helping You Through Self-Made Limitations!

Will you Take My Challenge and increase your income?
Play The Real Estate Game®

It's Time to Be Paul (or Paula) Revere

Coach Patti Kouri (Accelerated Performance Coaching) — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 08:56:47 -0600

Someone will spread the word – shouldn't it be you? I'm talking about the new economic stimulus tax credit that is waiting like a plum ready to pick beginning March 26, 2009. It's ripe and ready to be enjoyed by first time homebuyers, but this plum is also good news for just about everyone in real estateFirst, what are the essentials of the stimulus package's credit? Here are the basics I've gathered from various news sources:

Up to $8,000 refundable tax credit if you buy (settle on) a home between March 26 and December 31, 2009.
You must be a first time homebuyer, BUT if you have not owned a home in the past three years, you qualify as that first time homebuyer.
You have to use the home you buy as your principal residence, not a second home or investment property.

Now for a few explanations:

"Refundable" means that the credit is deducted from whatever you owe on your Federal tax return for 2009 (the one you file in April, 2010.) If you owe less than $8,000, the difference is refunded. For example, if you owe Uncle Sam $6,200 before the credit, IRS will send you a refund check of $1,800 after applying that credit.
You don't have to file any special forms or papers now to get the credit – you'll do that when you file your tax return next year.
There is a limit on the amount of the credit if your Modified Adjusted Gross Income is more than $75,000 for single taxpayers or $150,000 for married couples. Above those limits there are some partial credits available. The tax forms for 2009 will probably explain what to do about the limits, but you should consider consulting a tax professional like a CPA or Enrolled Agent.
You do not have to repay the credit in the future unless you sell that house before you live in it for three years. In that case the full credit will be taken back at settlement.

The big question is, what does this mean for your business in real estate, and why should you be excited about it?

Suppose you know a young person or couple who want to buy a house but have been holding back. They are thinking, "We can't buy a home now, we'll have to wait." You can now say, "Maybe you can. Let's take a look at it now with an extra $8,000!"

I can tell you for sure that this makes a difference right in my own family. Three years ago my son sold his home and has been renting since. He thought he would just wait a few years before buying again, but this new tax credit has changed his perspective. With $8,000 credit, he's gone from thinking, "I can't," to "I can!"

Here's a great opportunity for you as the professional to remind people that all the elements are in place for them to take advantage of this credit. There is plenty of inventory, as we know. Mortgage money is cheap. And now the government will help you buy. Maybe the person you are talking with doesn't plan to buy a house, but what if they have a child or sibling in the market?

Whether you think the stimulus plan is good for the economy or not, it is here. Why not take full advantage of what it offers so that you can help your clients and your business? Talk it up. Get people thinking positively about possibilities. The only way you're going to change your economy is find the opportunities today and take then to the people who can use them.

Ready to ride? Go spread the word!

Patti Kouri, Accelerated Performance Coaching
Helping You Through Self-Made Limitations!

Will you Take My Challenge and increase your income?
Play The Real Estate Game®

The Power of the Sales Mind Set

Coach Patti Kouri (Accelerated Performance Coaching) — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 11:25:06 -0600

Have you ever watched a really good sales professional at work, and wondered how he or she did it? Your reaction might be, "I could never do that." But you would be wrong! The top sales people did not suddenly appear as adult professionals. They all started somewhere, they learned their trade, and they learned one vital lesson: sales success is based in your beliefs.

When someone has negative thoughts, their vision of the world comes true. But when someone has positive thoughts, that vision also comes true. How can that be? The world is the world, right?

Yes and no. I'm not about to tell you that you can change a rock into gold by thinking positive thoughts about that rock. But I am saying that much of your reality is created by what and how you think. The most important point is that what you think, and what attitude you bring to the world, are your choice. This is one of the most important things you will ever learn, and something I stress for those who participate in The Real Estate Game.

I've heard that we have about 80,000 thoughts a day. For some people, up to 90% of them are negative thoughts. You know what that sounds like in your head, don't you? "The market is bad." "People aren't buying these days." "Mortgages are just about impossible to find." I'm pretty sure that those statements will be true if you believe them and repeat them often enough!

Now what do you suppose would happen if you tried on a new mind set? "A market like this gives me a chance to innovate." "There are always people who will buy the house that's right for them; now I get to practice making those matches." "Mortgage brokers are a great source of information and can help me qualify buyers so they get approved." These are also true.

Think of a day when someone did something very nice and completely unexpected for you. How did you feel? Did the day seem brighter, was there a spring in your step? But really, the sky wasn't any different, was it? Your knees didn't suddenly become 10 years younger, did they? What changed was your attitude, your way of thinking, even if only for a short time. Now take that small illustration and magnify it. What if you could carry that feeling through a day or a week? People you met would see your positive approach to life, and would want to be near you, would want to work with you.

In selling, recognize that what you think is your reality and what your clients think is their reality. A successful salesperson remembers this and finds out what the client's reality is so that they can speak to that point of view. We must find out what our prospect's point of view is in order to influence them. Ask questions and then really listen. Look for answers that are spoken but also the ones that are between the lines, that are hidden in body language and facial expression, that are there in the tone of voice. You will learn what their reality looks like. With that knowledge you can speak to their wants and needs, and you can close the sale.

Now a bit of "homework" to help you get just a taste of the power of changing your beliefs. The next time someone asks the standard, "How are you?" don't respond with the usual, "Fine, thanks. How are you?" Let your response be, "I'm terrific! Isn't this a great day?"

Let me know how it goes.

Patti Kouri, Accelerated Performance Coaching
Helping You Through Self-Made Limitations!

Will you Take My Challenge and increase your income?
Play The Real Estate Game®