Today is the first day of the rest of my business life. At the StagersLIST.com Expo in Orlando last week, I sat happily at the feet of some very wise and dynamic businesswomen, and it has already made a difference in how I view my business. For one thing, their energy, enthusiasm and commitment are contagious. It's simply difficult not to absorb some of that and come away with a greater determination to work hard and cleverly to make my business a success. For another, each talk held many helpful ideas and suggestions.

Terrylynn Fisher started us out by Demystifying the Realtor. From her, I learned to re-define real estate staging as collaboration, not a service. Her insight into the mindset and motivations of Realtors was priceless.

Next, Kym Hough gave us many nuts-and-bolts ideas for Running a Thriving Staging Business in a Down Economy. Hard work, planning, record-keeping, and multiple revenue streams, that's what I heard. It was a challenging and energizing talk full of valuable nuggets.

After lunch, Christine Rae gave us a thorough run-down of the current Trends in Your Market. I now have a better grasp of exactly what a trend is and what the top 3 things are that buyers want. (If you want to know what they are, you'll have to go to one of the other StagersLIST.com Expos that are being held around the country this year!)

Shell Brodnax finished up the talks with her talk on the Real Estate Staging Association. She is an encouraging speaker, full of practical advice, and very convincing about the importance of stagers joining together in a trade association to strengthen our industry.  If I hadn't already been a member, I would have run right home and joined! I'm also going to phase out my use of "home staging" in favor of "real estate staging."

It was a fantastic day! There are several other StagersLIST.com Expos ahead this year, and I highly recommend that you attend one. I found it an incredibly good use of my time, and am confident that I and my business will reap the benefits for a long time to come.