real estate courses: Love This Industry! - 07/19/17 06:06 AM
The fact that I love this industry still amazes me after all these years.  I have not practiced real estate since about 2006 when I left to enter into a full-time training/recruiting/teaching position that turned out to be a prerequisite to an early retirement that took Bob and me across the country in an RV ministry while continuing to teach for NAR and CTAR.
 
It took a few years to remember I love this industry and to remember why I love it.  Coming out of an early retirement and starting a new teaching career at 65 was not a difficult decision.  We … (1 comments)

real estate courses: Tomorrow Could Be Your Personal Freedom Day - 07/01/17 09:08 AM
Tomorrow is the 4th of July!  TEAM Hughes wishes you the most joyous and safest 4th of July ever!  Just think – tomorrow could be your personal Freedom Day.  Tomorrow could be your very own declaration of independence!  Why would you want to wait to break the chains that are binding you to a dead-end job or to a career that makes you feel you’re in a constant state of servitude?
 
Tomorrow could be your personal Freedom Day by taking that HUGE step toward the passion that’s been burning inside of you.  I recently read a quote by David Ramsey that said, … (2 comments)

real estate courses: Evening Classes are Necessary - 04/19/17 05:06 AM
I am a morning person and have been a morning person my entire life.  My body naturally wakes up about 5-5:30 each morning, and only through practically strapping me to the bed would I ever be able to stay in it until 7:00!  As the owners of TEAM Hughes Real Estate School, Bob and I recognize that we must always remain flexible to accommodate our students.  For some of those students, evening classes are necessary.  We have wrestled with presenting evening classes every year when we begin the task of scheduling, and sometimes it becomes a real challenge.
 
If you’ve spent any … (0 comments)

real estate courses: New Instructors, New Campuses - 03/03/17 01:19 PM
TEAM Hughes Real Estate School has been growing regularly since its inception in 2015.  We recently added new instructors, new campuses and new student activities.  We are humbled by this growth, and believe me, it has caused a great many growing pains.  We have had instructors come in and go out.  Teaching real estate classes is not for everyone, and unfortunately, it takes the long, arduous process of getting a license and teaching a class to find out that some of our instructors just weren’t cut out to teach real estate courses.
 
With new instructors, new campuses and new class activities there … (1 comments)

real estate courses: This is Monday - 02/27/17 02:43 AM
This is Monday, and although we just finished a weekend, Mondays sometimes are needed to regroup.  TEAM Hughes Real Estate School was still in session through the weekend, as we finished up our February One-Week Fast Track Class.  On Sunday our evening students joined with the Fast Track students to take their final exit exam.  We had 17 students test, and all of them passed.  Scores ranged from 97 to 72, and we couldn’t be prouder.
 
This is Monday, and although some of us may be dragging, I suspect there are 17 future real estate agents who are busy formulating their plan … (0 comments)

real estate courses: Let Us Help You Soar - 01/25/17 01:07 PM
I read a motto the other day, “The higher we lift our people, the higher our company will soar.”  That got me to thinking about TEAM Hughes Real Estate School and why we are becoming so popular among consumers who have made the decision to pursue a practice in real estate.  TEAM Hughes tends to lift our students to as a high a level as they can reach in the early days of their real estate career.  We mentally take each student by the shoulders, look them in the eye, and say, “Let us help you soar!”
 
So many real estate schools … (1 comments)

real estate courses: This is the Right Time! - 01/22/17 01:07 PM
People are always asking us whether or not they should get a real estate license.  This is the right time!  There is no time like the present.  We tell them they should not put off getting a license, and it’s not because our economy is cyclical.  It’s not because interest rates are still low.  It’s not even because the market is still hot.  This is the right time because it’s your time.
 
Putting off a goal is never a healthy thing to do.  Anyone who plans to get a real estate license has a goal.  For that reason, this is the right … (1 comments)

real estate courses: Blogging Can Be a Challenge - 01/10/17 03:59 AM
Blogging is therapeutic at times, especially when I am passionate about the subject matter I am addressing.  Sometimes, however, blogging can be a challenge.  I have blogged 240 times in the past two years or so.  My blogs are then posted to the TEAM Hughes website, to our Facebook page and also on ActiveRain.  I originally began blogging because our web developer explained that blogging would raise our standing on the internet.  Real estate blogging was essential for a real estate school to attract real estate students who wanted a real estate license.
 
A few times I have stressed because my creative … (3 comments)

real estate courses: Real Estate Courses Should Never Stop - 12/30/16 05:27 AM
Real estate agents must complete continuing education as mandated by their respective real estate commissions.  We at TEAM Hughes Real Estate School believe real estate courses should never stop and should not be used only to fulfill state requirements.
 
Whether you have had a real estate license many years or you are a new real estate agent, one of the most important tools of your real estate career is superior knowledge.  Your real estate courses should never stop.  You can hone your real estate skills regularly, and as your real estate skills become sharper, your value to the public becomes greater.
 
For those … (3 comments)

real estate courses: SOAR WITH THE EAGLES! - 12/28/16 10:04 AM
Now that 2016 is practically behind us, it’s time to think about the direction you want to go in your career.  You can either soar with the eagles or you can keep on groveling with the turkeys!
 
That sounds direct, but in this case, it needs to be.  The practice of real estate has many levels.  Just because you may not be a super-agent producing more money than ten agents put together, that doesn’t mean you are not successful.  Success is in the eye of the beholder, and sometimes it may not be about money.
 
To soar with the eagles is all about … (1 comments)

real estate courses: Daphne, AL is Where an Extraordinary Opportunity Awaits! - 12/28/16 04:26 AM
TEAM Hughes Real Estate School operates its courses from several different locations, one of which is Daphne, Alabama.  Daphne, AL is where an extraordinary opportunity awaits those who want it.  TEAM Hughes is now offering a two-week Fast Track Real Estate Class to the Daphne, AL area, as well as Orange Beach, Fairhope, Mobile, and all of Baldwin County, AL. 
 
It’s tough getting the word out when you open a new location, and blogging about it should bring attention to readers, and hopefully, the word will spread.  TEAM Hughes is well known in the Pensacola, FL area because we offer a … (1 comments)

real estate courses: Your “One Thing” - 12/17/16 11:25 AM
Our Daphne, AL campus is in a Keller Williams office, and as my class was taking their final exam last week, I set up in the training room to grade them.  There was plenty of time to kill, so I began reading the different posters on the wall, and one caught my eye.  Gary Keller was asking, “What’s your one thing you can do such that by doing it everything else will be easier or unnecessary.”
 
I don’t know much about Keller Williams’ training and I certainly don’t know the context within which Gary Keller made this quote.  I do know, however, … (17 comments)

real estate courses: Reflection Can Be Good - 12/04/16 05:07 AM
Look back.  Did you do everything you set out to do?  Reflection can be good this time of year.  It shows us what we did right and it reminds us of the things we did wrong or should not have done in the first place.  Reflection can be good to sharpen our skills.  If we don’t look back at the past year, we won’t be able to look forward into the upcoming one.
 
Reflection can be good to help us pay attention.  Many of us write goals, have plans, and dream dreams.  Not all goals, plans and dreams come to fruition.  I … (2 comments)

real estate courses: Fishing - 11/12/16 05:55 AM
Today is Saturday and we just got back from fishing.  The weather was perfect, we took the boat and we settled in for the duration.  Fishing is a little of a science and a little of an art.  Fishing helps clear the mind and offers excitement, anticipation, fun and sometimes boredom.  Today was not boring.  Fishing today was great fun because we caught fish.
 
My Dad taught me that fishing requires patience.  Sometimes that patience isn’t easily found and is difficult to sustain.  Today wasn’t so bad in the patience department.  We were lucky enough to find an area where the fish … (2 comments)

real estate courses: The Modern Student - 10/30/16 06:27 AM
TEAM Hughes offers a one-week fast track real estate class in Florida and a two-week fast track real estate class in Alabama.  The modern student of today doesn’t always want to sit in a classroom four days a week or four nights a month or even have to attend class for a couple of months.  We looked at the modern student demographics and found some interesting information.  Google research suggests that demographics is not as important as consumer intent, and for a real estate school, we are trying to attract the person who intends to get a real estate license.  Another … (0 comments)

real estate courses: Please Do Not Do This! - 10/29/16 02:22 AM
Our school has been trying to find someone to handle our website.  We’ve been looking for a while, and although we are able to maintain most of it ourselves, there are changes that must be made periodically and class schedules that must be updated.  It seems to be a continual battle.  In our quest, we have emailed, texted and called numerous website developers, designers and gurus.  Only one person, who came through a personal referral, has gotten back to us.  Please do not do this in your own real estate business!
 
What has happened to the business culture in our country?  I … (0 comments)

real estate courses: Changing Seasons - 10/18/16 09:44 PM
Have you noticed it getting darker earlier?  That’s because in a couple days we’ll be changing seasons.  Goodbye summer, hello autumn.  If you live in Florida, you may not notice it so much during the day as we continue to enjoy warm weather.  We recently visited Illinois, and although the days were still pleasantly mild, evenings were chilly, which reminded us we’re changing seasons for sure.
 
As the days grow shorter, changing seasons also includes changing seasons in our careers.  Every career will have paradigm shifts as every life goes through their own shifts.  Change is good and changing seasons seems to … (2 comments)

real estate courses: Students Learn Differently - 10/11/16 10:04 PM
We’ve come to realize that all students learn differently.  Depending on their age and where they received their education, TEAM Hughes attempts to adjust its teaching techniques to meet each student’s needs.
 
Because students learn differently, it is important to us to reach each student on the level he or she can learn.  That is why we don’t just lecture to them.  It doesn’t make sense for students to pay to watch instructors work.  We want our students to take ownership of the class they are attending so that they can become part of the process toward their success. 
 
TEAM Hughes uses … (2 comments)

real estate courses: How Do You Take Time Off? - 10/08/16 10:38 PM
How do you take time off in the real estate industry?  I remember the days of practicing real estate, and sellers and buyers were always in my life.  Transactions were always pending, and I had two small children who needed some quality time with their single mother.  I managed to block time when life got way too hectic and family needed to take their turn.
Teaching real estate isn't that much different.  It's still a challenge to figure out how to take time off, but we manage to do it.  Right now we're in Illinois to be with our grandchildren and our … (2 comments)

real estate courses: Today’s Real Estate Market Seems Familiar to Me - 10/05/16 09:23 PM
When I first entered the practice of real estate, interest rates were double-digit, the City of Houston had more vacant commercial real estate than it had ever experienced, and buyers were under the assumption that agents working with them “represented” them.  We’ve certainly come a long way, Baby!
 
Today’s Real Estate market seems familiar to me in that it reminds me of a period shortly after the  1980’s.  Reagan, among others, worked to shore up the country’s economy, to reduce those double-digit interest rates, and to guide our country into more stable times.
 
No matter when the bubble may have personally affected you, … (2 comments)