The July issue of Toastmaster’s magazine published an article entitled Bringing out the Best in People.  The author stated that a Book by the same title was written by the late Alan Loy McGinnis – a family therapist, corporate consultant, writer and public speaker.  The author outlined 12 rules from the book that I found to be sage advice for anyone.  The advice is not only for “a leader”, but for anyone that steps into a lead position.  We all step into this position at times when we volunteer to lead a project or lead a discussion or even lead our children.

Following are the 12 rules with my thoughts included from my own experiences:

• Expect the best from the people you lead.  In my experience, I have found that people will live up to your expectations.  A little praise goes a long way.
• Make a thorough study of the other person’s needs.  Take the time to find out what each person on your teams’ strengths and weaknesses are.  Each person on a team has something of value to offer.  Showing genuine interest in others will yield tremendous results.
• Establish high standards for excellent.  Expect your team to achieve to accomplish lofty goals.
• Create an environment where failure is not fatal.  Everyone makes mistakes.  Creating an environment where people are not afraid to attempt a new venture will foster and produce many new ideas.
• If they are going anywhere near where you want to go, climb on other people’s bandwagons.  Sometimes, it works best to let others lead and be the supportive cheerleader, mentor or champion for their success.
• Use Models to Encourage Success.  Don’t just talk the talk – walk the talk.
• Recognize and applaud achievement.  Outwardly praise and applaud achievement.
• Enjoy a mixture of positive and negative reinforcement.  Let people know what they are doing right and set boundaries when necessary.
• Appeal sparingly to the competitive urge.  Most of us have a healthy dose of competitiveness running through our veins by design.  Don’t let the dark side of competition creep into the Team environment.
• Place a premium on collaboration.  Much more can be accomplished by working together and drawing on each other’s strengths.
• Build into the group an allowance for storms.  It’s inevitable, plans get delayed or cancelled or challenged.  Work through the problem and proceed with Plan B, or Plan C if necessary.
• Take steps to keep you own motivation high.  Keep a positive attitude.

MurrietaMobileNotary

It is unfortunate in this Real Estate Market slump notary fees have been lowered, there is less work and an oversupply of notaries.  And, if all of those things do not make the notary profession more challenging, there is a new breed of signing companies that have reared their ugly head.

 I am not referring to the professional and reliable companies that I have dealt with for some time.  They are not slow pay, or hand holders.  They are worse than that.  I am referring to the companies that are obviously in business to rip notaries off.  They call notaries to take an assignment and have no intention of ever paying them.

They call you at the last minute and quiz you on all of your credentials.  They are real cordial as they reel you in.   They ask how long have you been an agent, can you complete reverse mortgages, are you familiar with the Countrywide loans and on and on and on.  In the back of your mind, you think to yourself should I trust them? 

You take the signing against your better judgment and low and behold 30 days roll by and you have not received your fee.  You place phonecalls to their office - no answer.  You email them - no response. 

We as notaries earn the least amount of money in the entire loan process.  We are expected to comply with a list of 100 + instructions, but yet we are not paid as promised by these companies.

Henceforth I am implementing new rules for myself.

1. I am no longer accepting closings from companies that I do not know.  They must be a regular client or a referral from another notary.
2. I am going to verify their credentials on NotaryRotary or Mobile Notary Network.
3. If no information is available from those sources, I will check the BBB database.
4. If I cannot locate any information, the signing company must pay via paypal or place my name on the HUD statement.
5. I am no longer going to allow their emergency to become my emergency.  If I am in my car and I cannot verify the company's reputation - I will not accept the assignment.

Notaries have availability to a plethora of information and support on the notary boards.  Let's use this information to protect ourselves from these predatory signing companies.

Murrieta Mobile Notary

When I obtained my notary commission close to four years ago, I diligently followed the advice of my mentors and advisors.  I bought a computer with a fancy, new laser printer, notary supplies and a cellphone with lots of minutes to burn.  I signed up with a 100 signing companies and I joined several popular notary web boards such as NotaryRotary, GoMobileNotary and Notary Depot.   Soon my phone was constantly ringing and I was making money - yahoo!  Eventually, the mortgage industry hit a slump, and my phone was not ringing as often.

I thought to myself - what should I do?   Perhaps, I should return to the part-time work industry.  I thought - no, I don't want to go there.  Then suddenly it dawned on me - I need to go back to the basics.  And, go back to the basics is what I did.  I created a new website, and new business cards.  I signed up with a 100 new companies that included title companies.  I called former clients to make sure I was still in their database.  Low and behold - the phone is ringing again. 

Now, I realize that part of the reason my phone quit ringing as often was due to my own complacency.    So, what I've learned is to stick with the basics and don't stop marketing yourself.  In turn, my advice to my audience is - Market, Market, and Market.

 The Doc Xpert

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