Interesting, How Teams Work!

Teams are collective wholes.  There is no “I” in team.  At Park Plaza/Stapley Center Great American Title we’re a  living demonstration of a real squad!

WOW! July was a hectic month for us.  

In order to really understand the meaning behind my above statement you really need to understand what we prepared for. We prepared for vacations!

Park Plaza had two Escrow Officers on vacation July 9th through July 20th. Stapley had staff out from July 1st through July 10th and I was in Alaska July 2nd to July 17th. Beginning July 31st we have our second group leaving on vacation. Meaning, that for most of the month of August, we’re short staffed every day. That is our back story.  

Yes, we knew people were going to be away and we worked long and hard to keep our reputation of delivering on time, every time.

Interesting, as I recently read an article by:  Jonathan Farrington  the CEO of Top Sales Associates and Chairman of The Sales Corporation -  www.jonathanfarrington.com

Mr. Farrington said: “The principle of working together with your team should underpin how you operate. Managing people doesn't just mean acting as overseer, to see that they get their work done satisfactorily. It means involving people throughout the team in a creative role, to ensure that together you are all able to succeed.”  

So involving people in the whole process is how we get things done. We work together.  

However, it’s hard to prepare for the unexpected, and the unexpected is what happened on Monday. We had out of the blue illnesses and accidents!  As our doors opened one of our support staff simply needed to go home, she was too sick to stay. Really it was not a big deal after all. For the first time this month we were all here---

Then it happened. Another staff member needed to leave due to a medical emergency, and another associate had a scheduled doctor appointment. So we quickly went from a full staff to 80% capacity---now  we might be in trouble if you considered what we needed to balance.  

There were buyers, sellers, lenders, processors, underwriters, funders, closing departments, real estate agents, transaction coordinators, Real Estate Brokers…packages to get signed, files to send down for recording, correspondence to complete, parcels for delivery…the list goes on and on.

As I have said in the past, “our job  is to simply be the catcher - we are a combination of a psychiatrist, mind reader, attorney, and an inadvertent “Dear Abby”, a marriage counselor, messenger, graphologist, and peacemaker - we don’t make any of the decisions.”

So here’s what happened: we all simply accepted the day as a “wonderful learning opportunity”. Together we worked as one collective whole.  Kind of like the Carolyn-ism,  “This is what we do, not who we are”.  

Thank you, Lexi, Barbara, Bernadette, Carrie, Corina, Erika, Karen, Karla,  Jane, Marissa, Leslie, Marc, Monica,  and  MJ.  

You guys ROCK and you’re great to work with!!!

I'm Back ... and Ready!

Alaska was fun!

Something occurred to me when I sat down to write this Blog.  It seems that socially we get so caught up in the day to day process of earning a living we forget how/why/when to simply live.  It is interesting how taking an “adult time-out” has impacted my thinking.

Our family had a blast. Maybe you saw some of the pictures. 

My mother would talk about “grand adventures” and a grand adventure is what Alaska is. We began our two week adventure by removing and replacing the roof on our Palmer home.  

I actually got to rip off and throw stuff for an entire day. Ken told our son Cory, “Well at least they are throwing the mess toward the dumpster!”  I had never been on a roof before. It was cool! 

At the end of the first week, we celebrated in the joy of our eldest grandchild, Kaylee, getting married to Josh Hicks.  The day brought back memories.  The day of Kevin and Lisa’s (her Dad and Mom) wedding. And I then the day Ken and I were wed over 44 years ago.  It was obvious they love each other and are full of anticipation as they build a life together.  We are happy for both of them.

The second week of our break brought all new experiences--we started with a visit to the Matanuska Glacier.  Check it out! (2 hours inland from Palmer)

www.matanuska-glacier.com

Ken and I climbed over ice, found secret ice creeks, hidden caves and it occurred to me “I’m  keeping up”.  For you see in previous years I had to “pick and choose” what I participated in.  I simply couldn’t do everything.  However this year others needed to keep up with me!

Wednesday, after the glacier, we visited Alyeska Ski resort (2 hours south of Palmer) and I climbed to a high point to simply look over the edge.  The views are breathtaking.  Check out my Facebook page for the pictures.

Finally on Thursday of last week we visited Talkeetna, Alaska (2 hours north of Palmer).  Simply said, Talkeetna is a sleepy little drinking town with a tourist problem. 

The entire two weeks was relaxing, restful, full of adventures and best of all it was a ball!

But then again,  here’s my take away. I had fun, because I was prepared. 

2014 to 2015 was a year of change for me.  I worked out at the gym on a very regular basis, I have been  careful with my eating, my sleeping, even the material  I allow into my mind.  There have been life  shifts. I am focused.  I have placed people into my life to help hold me accountable. I have learned to use my time wisely, fully, actively. 

In August I will attend a leadership conference, and today I purpose to once again reevaluate my life goals, make changes, push forward and grow so the summer of 2016 in Alaska will be even better than this 2015.

Do you want to be a good leader?

Do you want to be a good leader and lead others? If so, you need to learn to lead yourself first!

Good leaders make others feel safe.  They lead by example, they create  great environments and people trust them - thus teams follow good leaders.

My desire is to grow and become known as a good leader.  

So, annually I ask myself tough questions:

• Do I treat others fairly?
• What do I need to change?
• Can I  actually change this?
• How will I change?
• When is my start date?

These are tough questions, however “experience has taught me, nothing changes when nothing changes, and small incremental changes over a long period of time has major impacts all around me.”

Many of you are familiar with my life statement, some of you may not be.  

Life has changed for me and it began in 2003.  In 2003 I thought life was perfect.  I had a good job, plenty of food, great friends, and  then the doctor talked to me.  It was pretty simply she said, “Carolyn you’re dying, at the rate your going, you’ll not be alive to see your grandchildren graduate from high school.”

Yes, my body was shutting down.  I couldn’t walk more than a  block without being out of breath.  My blood pressure was out of line, my cholesterol both good and bad were out of control and I was a diabetic.  Oh, and everything was somebody else’s fault.

For the first time in my life what the doctor said resonated with me! Change or die, my choice.

Last month, at my annual physical the doctor said, “Carolyn I am not sure what you’re doing, but keep it up, your blood tests are right where they need to be.”

There are no instant gardens.  We do reap what we sow.  However 12 years of work makes a difference.

If you want different results you must ask tough questions and learn to lead yourself---and only then can you lead others in helping them to make challenging changes.

Take some time and ask yourself the above questions---put together a long term plan, and implement steps that lead to change.

Changes Are Coming (TRID)

 If you are in the residential real estate industry here in the United States you are aware there are changes COMING.  There has been and still is a lot of discussion about the CFPB, Truth and Lending Act, RESPA  and TRID and when it will be enforced.

Here’s my take - once again we’re simply in a paradigm shift - our cheese is moving. This is not bad or good, it is simply different.

Just before I left for Alaska, I attended an Arizona Escrow Association Class on some of the CFPB changes.  Leslie Baines with First American Title Company was our instructor.  Leslie impressed me with a very concise statement regarding real estate agents.  

She said:  “Agents should advise the (buyer’s) lender of any additional charges the borrower may expect to incur i.e. broker administration fees and special assessments or capital improvements (HOA’s)   They should also confirm with the lender that they (the lender) have correct delivery information for the borrower.’ 

Real Estate Agents are vital to the real estate transaction.  You’re the fiduciary to the client (buyer or seller).  You’re educated in the process and your buyer and or seller respect that!

You matter!

Self education is huge for you-gaining new information is an integral part of your business.  At Great American Title we understand and we’re hosting a 3 hour CE credit class (Legal Issues), July 16^th with Amy Swaney, CMB designed to help agents get ready for some of the industry changes.

Amy is passionate for the real estate industry, in 2002 she was selected for the national MBA Future Leader’s program.  She has served as the President of the Arizona Mortgage Lender’s Association in 2006.  Amy is often asked to speak nationally to Real Estate, Title and Legal groups on topics from legislative and regulatory industry education to inspirational leadership guidance.

The class will be held in the Chandler Downtown Community Center, 125 E Commonwealth Ave, Chandler.

One of the new changes, "FREE" - is now a bad word. So yes, the class does cost $20, and you must preregister on line. Seating is limited.  However, there is a no cost covered parking lot, and as always there’s food. 

So do yourself a favor, register to hear Amy, earn the 3 hours of law credit and gain some valuable information about the upcoming CHANGES.

CLICK HERE FOR REGISTRATION AND PAYMENT 

North Again

WOW, it’s that time of year again. July 2^nd Ken and I are headed north to Alaska for our annual planning retreat.

Remember my favorite Alaskan song:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=JSt0NEESrUA

Don’t worry. I’m back on July 20^th and will be ready for another year of phenomenal growth - October 1^st will be here quickly and we all know there are big changes in store for the residential real estate industry.

An annual break has taught me a lot. I am proactively able to formulate business ideas and develop innovative plans and goals to reach our objectives. I simply think smarter and dream bigger. Taking a leadership break enables me to really look at our accomplishments and where we want to go/grow next.

Time has taught me to always follow a method and here’s one tool I use straight out of the Stephen Covey book, Seven Habits of Highly Effective People.

http://www.franklincovey.ca/FCCAWeb/mmedia/pdf/library/7_Habits_Profile.pdf

I spend time DREAMING big - where will we as a staff be over the next 6-12-24-36 months. What will five years from now look like?  What is the legacy I am leaving?

What are the BIG ROCKS?  Milestones, how are they measured?  Did last year work?  Who needs to grow, in what ways, what do we need to do in order to get there?

Who is going to hold me accountable?

Yes, this is an annual adventure for me.  It is relaxing, it’s challenging, it’s rewarding but most of all IT IS FUN!

So once again, it’s north to Alaska. 

We have a special treat this year. Our granddaughter, Kaylee and Josh are getting married.  There will be a new roof to install on the Palmer home (not sure any of you knew I can drive nails) and of course there will be fishing for Ken.  Ken thinks I can learn to fly fish. 

Ok, here’s what I already know. Our giving traditions at Park Plaza and Stapley will continue. There will be Thanksgiving Lunch in November and the adopt a family in December.  August is my annual Leadership Conference (if you’d like to attend, let me know - the cost is nominal and the experience is a once in a life time)

Are YOU ready? The staff is going to enjoy my time away, you need to enjoy it as well ‘cause when I get back we’re all going and growing again!

And Happy Fourth of July!