Building Your Dreams One Step at a Time

Sow an action, Reap a habit.Sow a habit, Reap a character.Sow a character, Reap a destiny.

 

Be Optimistic

“Optimists convert stumbling blocks into stepping stones.” W. Howard Wight, Jr.

 

DINNER INVITATION

A girl asks her boyfriend to come over Friday night & have dinner with her parents. Since this is such a big event, the girl announces to her boyfriend that after dinner, she would like to go out & make love for the first time. Well, the boy is ecstatic, but he has never had sex before, so he takes a trip to the pharmacist to get some condoms.  He tells the pharmacist it’s his first time & the pharmacist helps the boy for about an hour. He tells the boy everything there is to know about condoms and sex.

At the register, the pharmacist asks the boy how many condoms he’d like to buy, a 3-pack, 10-pack,  or family pack.  The boy insists on the family pack because he thinks he will be rather busy, it being his first time & all.

That night, the boy shows up at the girl’s parents house & meets his girlfriend at the door. “Oh, I’m so excited for you to meet my parents, come on in!”
The boy goes inside & is taken to the dinner table where the girl’s parents are seated.  The boy quickly offers to say grace & bows his head. A minute passes, & the boy is still deep in prayer, with his head down. 10 minutes pass, & still no movement from the boy.

Finally, after 20 minutes with his head down, the girlfriend leans over & whispers to the boyfriend, “I had no idea you were this religious.”
The boy turns, & whispers back, “I had no idea your father was a pharmacist.”

Author Unknown

 

Are You Grown Up?

25 Signs You’ve Grown Up

1. Your house plants are alive, and you can’t smoke any of them.

2. Having sex in a twin bed is out of the question.

3. You keep more food than beer in the fridge.

4. 6:00 AM is when you get up, not when you go to bed.

5. You hear your favorite song on an elevator.

6. You watch the Weather Channel.

7. Your friends marry and divorce instead of hook up and break up.

8. You go from 130 days of vacation time to 14.

9. Jeans and a sweater no longer qualify as “dressed up.”

10. You’re the one calling the police because those damn kids next door won’t turn down the stereo.

11. Older relatives feel comfortable telling sex jokes around you.

12. You don’t know what time Taco Bell closes anymore.

13. Your car insurance goes down and your payments go up.

14. You feed your dog Science Diet instead of McDonalds leftovers.

15. Sleeping on the couch makes your back hurt.

16. You no longer take naps from noon to 6 PM.

17. Dinner and a movie is the whole date instead of the beginning of one.

18. Eating a basket of chicken wings at 3 AM would severely upset, rather than settle, your stomach.

19. You go to the drug store for ibuprofen and antacid, not condoms and pregnancy tests.

20. A $4.00 bottle of wine is no longer “pretty good stuff.”

21. You actually eat breakfast food at breakfast time.

22. “I just can’t drink the way I used to,” replaces, “I’m never going to drink that much again.”

23. 90% of the time you spend in front of a computer is for real work.

24. You no longer drink at home to save money before going to a bar.

25. You read this entire list looking desperately for one sign that this doesn’t apply to you.

Author Unknown

 

Grow Your Business and Increase Your Profits… Here’s 9 Ways

9 FREE WAYS TO GROW YOUR ORIGINATIONS AND PROFITS

Ron Vaimberg International, Ltd. Growing Your Profits

520 White Plains Road, Suite 500

Tarrytown, NY 10591

Phone: 866-824-6237

www.ronvaimberg.com

There are a number of methods that you can use to grow your originations and profits. Many of

these methods are already in use but they are never used as part of a marketing system so they

are not used consistently. When you begin using any strategy for marketing as part of a

system, then it becomes a positive source for the growth of your business.

Most loan officers and mortgage brokers have methods of marketing; however, most do not pay

close attention to the results and frequency of implementation. The key to remember is that

when something is part of a system, then it is repetitive therefore multiplying the effectiveness

and guaranteeing significantly better results.

The best way to use this guide is to make sure that you answer the questions that are part of

each concept. The goal of you answering the questions is simple. If you take the time to

answer the question, even if it is just in your head, you will take yourself to a higher level of

awareness of how you are working in your business.

MARKETING WEAPONS

1. Business Cards – Your business card should contain your picture. Your business card

must be distributed to everyone you meet. The goal of giving your card to everyone is

placing you in the subconscious mind of everyone you meet. Q: Do you give your card

to everyone you meet or just people that ask you about mortgage financing?

2. Ask For Referrals – Everyone you develop rapport with both inside and outside the

mortgage arena should know not only are you in the mortgage business, but that you

would appreciate them referring people to you if the chance arises. Q: How many

people know you are in the mortgage business versus knowing that you would

appreciate referrals?

3. Have a Clearly Defined Message – Make sure that everything you do has a message

about who you are and/or what you do. For example.. “Turning Renters into Buyers

Everyday”. Q: What is your message? (That you do mortgage financing or that you

are a specialist in something? Remember, you can specialize in more than one area)

4. Voice Mail Marketing – Make sure your voice mail has special marketing statements. It

is very important to place some type of reminder for the listener to ask you about

something specific about you or your products. An example of a voice mail marketing

system is at the end of your greeting, you ad the statement “Don’t forget to ask me

about….!” Q: How do I get people to ask me about my competitive advantage?

5. E-mail Marketing – This is very similar to voice mail marketing. Every e-mail you send

must have as part of your signature, a special offer or once again a question for the

recipients to inquire about once they speak with you. Q: What does your e-mail

signature look like?

6. Testimonials – It is a must for you to get testimonials from your clients and referral

sources. Every mail piece you send either electronically or through the postal service

should contain a customer quote. These quotes give customers sub-conscious

references to your services and the quality of them. Q: How many testimonials do you

have and are they from different types of sources so you can attach them to the

appropriate marketing piece?

7. Bulletin Boards – One of the best ways to attract first time buyers is to have a flyer

hanging above the real estate books that you often see on the way out of supermarkets.

Create a flyer that would get 1st time buyers interested to call you when they are picking

up the real estate publication. Q: What type of flyer would attract a first time buyer?

(Something related to low money needed is usually a great attraction strategy)

8. Community Involvement – Get involved with your community and increase your

exposure. Individuals that participate in community activities tend to be compelled to

want to help other members of the activity because of the common bond that is shared.

Q: What organization could you join that would surround you with the type of

people that either could use your services or refer you to people that could benefit

from your services while simultaneously giving something valuable back to your

community?

9. Accessibility – Make sure you are easily reachable. Make clear to your clients the best

way to reach you along with the best times to reach you. Add on your voice mail

message specific times that you will be returning phone calls so clients know when to

expect to hear back from you. Provide clients an emergency number to reach you,

however advise them that it is only to be used for emergencies and that you will always

return their messages that they leave on your voice mail. When you return clients

messages when you say you will, your credibility grows and so do the quality of your

referrals. Q: How much time do you need to answer your messages and when

would be the best time of the day to answer your messages and return client calls?

 

SO IMPORTANT I HAD TO POST IT AGAIN

The Common Denominator of Success
By Albert E.N. Gray

 

“The common denominator of success — the secret of success of every man who has ever been successful — lies in the fact that he formed the habit of doing things that failures don’t like to do.”

 

GET FIRED UP!!!Complements of www.motivational-inspirational-corner.com

  “Some men go through a forest and see no fire wood.”
English Proverb There are few things on earth more powerful than the fired-up individual possessing a burning desire to make something happen. All revved up and raring to go, having tapped into his or her own internal fire, this winner is ready to take on the world.

A person this excited and enthusiastic about life can rarely be stopped, let alone slowed down. Knowing what he or she wants and more than ready to go out there and get it, this super charged individual sees little reason to sit around waiting for something to happen. Instead, making things happen becomes the name of the game.

“One of the strongest characteristics of genius is the power of lighting its own fire.”
John W. Foster

If you have ever felt the unparalleled high that comes with being super charged from head to toe, you know full well that there are few feelings on earth that can compare. Filled to the brim with almost uncontrollable excitement, it’s virtually impossible to keep still.

As you feel the rush of energy take charge and take over every fiber of your being, you want to get out there and get rolling — and you want to get rolling right now! In fact, you not only want to get moving, you HAVE to get moving. It’s as if some wild, super powerful, virtually uncontainable burning drive to achieve has seized control and won’t let go.

“Man is so made that when anything fires his soul, impossibilities vanish.”
Jean De La Fontaine

In these magical moments, when you’re really cooking inside and out — and I mean smoking hot through and through — you feel absolutely invincibly. You just know that there is literally nothing you cannot do or accomplish at very moment. It’s an unbelievably uplifting feeling, knowing you have what it takes to get the job done. Have you been there? Have you felt these feelings before? Sure you have, we all have at one time or another. But every once in a while just doesn’t cut it, does it? Don’t you wish you could somehow harness this blazing, red-hot desire and then unleash it at a moment’s notice?

Keeping yourself fired up and fully charged with adrenaline pumping excitement can prove to be a daunting challenge, especially when you consider all of the distractions and disruptions you encounter daily. These outside influences have a tendency to siphon your energy and suck the get-up-and-go right out of you if you are not careful.

“The mind is not a vessel to be filled but a fire to be kindled.”
Plutarch

So how you go about getting pumped up — and even more importantly — keeping yourself fired up day after day? It all begins and ends by feeling the heat; the heat that never goes out, that heat that never stops burning. The burning cauldron of heat stored within your heart, mind and soul.

Inside each of us is a roaring inferno of desire, a white heat passion that can drive us to heights unimagined if only allowed to do so. This fire is fueled by a special something within each of us that we were born to do, a super special something that brings us a sense of happiness, excitement and fulfillment beyond compare. This ‘something’ is our purpose, our reason for living, being and doing; that something that makes us who we are. It’s there in each of us, a fire burning down below, deep down where it counts.

By following our hearts and doing that special something we dearly love to do rather than doing those things we feel we have to do, we can fire ourselves from the inside out. Instead of allowing your fire to be drained by outside influences, why not fan the flames already burning within by living your life with purpose, on purpose… your purpose? You’ll discover that staying fired up is easy once you feel the heat — and follow your heart.

The Bottom Line: When you feel the heat on the inside, you’ll stay fired up on the outside.

 

The Struggle… It’s a good thing sometimes.

Struggle

A man found a cocoon of a butterfly. He sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body through the little hole at the end.

Eventually, the butterfly stopped making progress. It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could and it could go no farther. The man decided to help the butterfly, so he took a pair of scissors and snipped off the remaining bit of the cocoon. The butterfly then emerged easily, but it had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings.

The man continued to watch the butterfly because he expected that, at any moment, the wings would enlarge and expand to be able to support the body, which would contract in time.

Neither happened! In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around with a swollen body and shriveled wings. It never was able to fly.

What the man in his kindness and haste did not understand was that the restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the butterfly to get through the tiny opening were nature’s way of forcing fluid from the body of the butterfly into its wings so that it would be ready for flight once it achieved its freedom from the cocoon.

Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our life. If nature allowed us to go through our life without any obstacles, it would cripple us. We would not be as strong as what we could have been. And we could never fly…

Author Unknown

 

Foreclosure Tips

If you are in foreclosure or about receive a notice of default (NOD) you should understand that the bank does not want to foreclose and take your home. As far as they are concerned, owning real estate is a liability that they do not wnat on their books. They become responsible for any other liens on title, paying taxes, maintaining the property, etc… which is why they hold auctions and often times sell the property at a loss. Once you understand and accept this it becomes obvious you are in a better position to negotiate then you might originally think.

The most common cause of foreclosure is failure to make payments. This can be for a number of reasons, which may or may not have a baring on your negotiations with the bank. Our point of conversation is the negotiations, not the events that have lead up to the foreclosure.

Here are some of the options you can get your lender to accept. When discussing your situation bring these to their attention and you may be able to strike a deal that will allow you to save your home. Before I continue, please understand that despite these options, most will affect your credit negatively, so refinancing may still be the course of action you decide to take. This will pull your home out of foreclosure the fastest and will settle the account quickly thereby improving your scores immediately.

If however, refinancing is not an option consider these:

Forbearance or Moratoriums – these partial or full payment waivers can provide you the necessary time to recover from whatever crises has caused the foreclosure. Keep in mind though, you will at some point in time need to make up the difference in payment which will cause extra money to be added to your regular payments once they resume.

Another option is a balloon payment for all the money accrued during the moratorium to be paid at the loan’s scheduled expiration date. This option will allow your current payments to continue without causing a burden of increased payment, but you will owe a significant amount of money at the end of the loan which will require you to save funds for this date, or sell your home for a higher price so you can afford to pay off the balloon amount.

Recasting… you can have the company recast the loan to lower the payments and stretch out the time period in which you must pay the full amount. This option however typically requires them to run a new title search to make sure their liem position is still secure. If you have other liens that could jeopardize their priority this option will not be available unless those liens are satisfied in full guaranteeing their first lien position.

If your situation is beyond negotiating, you may want to consider voluntary conveyance. Voluntary conveyance means you sign the property over to the bank without it going into foreclosure. Yes you lose your home, but you will save your credit, and move on with your life.

For more information, or you would like to discuss a particular situation feel free to comment.

 josh@approved-online.com

 

Networking, a Key Element in Professional Success… Complements of Credex

Networking, whether through business associations or other means, is the most prevalent and cost effective way for mortgage professionals to attract new and repeat sales. Networking and “word of mouth” advertising together are 7 times more likely to bring in business than all forms of traditional advertising and direct mail combined. How does it work? More importantly, how can you make it work for your business? Here are five tips to get you started. 1. Select a few key associations or organizations and participate actively. Go to meetings as often as possible and work on one or two committees. Your goal: to be the first person everyone remembers and suggests when others ask, “Do you know anyone who….” 2. Get to events early and plan to stay late. You can’t meet and talk to people while a meeting is in progress. Be sure you circulate, too. Spend 3–5 minutes with each person. If you spend too much time with any one person, you can’t meet others. You also prevent the person you’ve attached yourself to from circulating, and they may resent it. If walking away from a person or group makes you feel awkward, have a few exit strategies ready to use. “Excuse me, I really need another cup of coffee this morning” works well for early morning meetings. 3. Greet people you’ve met in the past. Ask how projects they are working on are going, mention news articles you’ve seen about them, and congratulate them on any recent successes they’ve had. Sales grow out of relationships, and this is a good way to establish relationships with key contacts and prospects. Be sincere, though. If you’re not, you’ll be written off as an opportunist. 4. Follow up on leads. This is the most important step in networking and the step most people avoid. All the leads in the world are worthless if you don’t follow up on them. Make that phone call or send the information you promised. Then, at the next meeting you attend, ask if your contact got what you sent. 5. Be generous about sharing business tips, referrals and leads. You’ll be remembered for your help, and may get business or referrals as a result later on. —You win in another way, too. Helping others become successful is as rewarding as being successful yourself.