Live from Family Reunion

Well, this is my last post for this year, and with all the pandemonium surrounding getting back on Wednesday, and catching up with work yesterday, I had to wait until this morning to write it.

I have never attended an inspirational breakfast before, and I have to say I wasn’t sure what I was going to think.  But I’m glad I went.

The bottom line is, we work with some pretty exceptional people at Keller Williams, and I found my self asking the question: Does Keller Williams attract a high concentration of selfless people, or do the cultural tenents set out by Mo, Mark, Mary and Gary bring out the best in those that embrace them?

I guess the answer is somewhere in the middle.  I think the culture defined by KW is unique, and helps us all to understand there’s more to our job than just selling homes, and I think a unique group of people are attracted to that concept.

At the inspirational breakfast, we heard the stories of KW Agent, Scott Thornhill of Greensboro, NC.  I top producing agent in his MC, and a civic-minded citizen of his community.  Scott teaches in the MC, coaches his son’s soccer and basketball teams, and volunteers at this church, all while being legally blind.  I can see just fine, and some days I have a hard time getting out of bed.  It’s pretty humbling.

We also heard the story of Gilbert Tuhabonye.  Here is an excerpt from his web page:

While attending the Kibimba school, Gilbert began running competitively. Running barefoot, he won an 8K race while only a freshman. As a sophomore, he met a man who taught him how to change his running technique by getting his knees up and holding his arms correctly. The coach encouraged him to work hard and try for the Olympics. Gilbert became national champion in the 400 and 800 meters as an 11th grader. As a senior, Gilbert was already an extraordinary runner whose goal was to get a scholarship to an American school, get an education and return home to Burundi.

Fate had another plan for Gilbert.

On October 21, 1993, the centuries-old war between the Tutsi and Hutu tribes erupted in horrific reality one afternoon as Gilbert and his classmates were in school. The Hutu classmates at the Kibimba school, their parents, some teachers and other Hutu tribesmen, forced more than a hundred Tutsi children and teachers into a room where they beat and burned them to death. After nine hours of being buried by the corpses of his beloved friends, and himself on fire, Gilbert used the charred bone of one of his classmates to break through a window. He jumped free of the burning building and ran into the night, on charred feet, the sole survivor of one of the most horrible massacres in the long Tutsi-Hutu war. He ran from that horror into a new life.

Now, 12 years later and more than 8,000 miles from Burundi, Gilbert Tuhabonye is a celebrity in the world of running. He went on to graduate college at Abilene Christian University where, despite being covered with scar tissue from his extensive burns, he was a national champion runner. He is now, by all accounts, the most popular running coach in Austin, Texas where he lives with his wife Triphine and two daughters, Emma and Grace.

Pretty amazing guy … that’s all I have to say.  I would not have been able to do what he did, and I was honored to be at an event that would honor someone of his character and strength.

Finally, we heard the story of Jim Hoekenschnieder, and Agent at the Huntsville MC.  By Jim’s own admission, he was a person only focused on his business, and as he said,”I made sure I was my primary focus.”

Jim’s life at KW changed when he sold a home to a young family transplanting from Florida, Joe and Lori Hennessy, and their five year old son, Chris.  As he put it, “they were the perfect family and I quickly grew attached to them.”

The day after closing Jim stopped by to drop off a housewarming gift.  After knocking on the door for some time, five year old Chris answered the door and Jim his mother was “dead.”

Jim discovered Lori inside the house, laying face down, dead from a sudden aneurism.  When Jim asked Joe what he could do to help, Joe told him he just wanted to take Chris back to Florida.

The entire MC jumped into action and did everything they could to help Joe and Chris, and get the house resold.  When Jim called Joe to tell him they’d found a solution to the house, Joe, having been so touched by the generosity of people who barely knew him, informed Jim they were staying.

Pretty amazing stuff.  Mo honored the entire MC with a song from Ken Medema, and they deserved it.

The neatest part of the brunch for me personally, however, was the announcement of the winner of the Bob Carter Inspirational Award for this year.  It was neat because I personally knew Bob Carter, the man for whom the award is named, and I also knew the recipient, Martha Squires, a long time associate in the Austin SWMC.

Martha and John Squires were honored for being the people that created KW Cares, out of the love and support they got from the SWMC when Martha was hospitalized with cancer.  I’m ashamed to admit I didn’t know they were the creators of this program, that has now grown into an international charity that helps so many KW associates in need.

It was pretty amazing, and I was really proud to know the people I know.

What I took away from this event, and from the rest of the events I attended at Family Reunion, is that we are fortunate to work together, and we’re a great group of people.  We are also a driven group, with a tremendous force of will, and a real desire to improve our business and our lives.

See you next year!

If you missed the Keynote Session this year, you really missed out.  This is my third Family Reunion, and I’ve attended the keynote speaker’s session every year.  KWRI always does a great job of getting one of the top coaching and motivational speakers in the country, but this year, I believe was the best I’ve seen.

To be honest, a lot of what makes a speaker resonate with any one person has to do a lot with personal style, and Seth Godin definitely has a presentation style I enjoy.  He is funny, a little irreverant, and he uses humor very effectively in illustrating his points.  That said, he has about as unique a set of concepts for improving your business success, as I’ve ever heard.

The main focus of his presentation was the his concept of “The Dip.”  Basically, his point is every business reaches a point, which he calls The Dip, in which they stop making progress in terms of business success, and fall into a period where they are just grinding away without making progress.

The difference between the businesses that become superstars, and those that don’t, is whether you can power through The Dip, or not.  What’s interesting about Seth’s theory, however, is how he suggests that people do this.

He points out that marketing is not nearly as effective as it used to be, because we are all inundated with so many branding campaigns, and clever slogans, and slick ads, that we have become totally desensitized to them.  Even if your product is a tiny bit better than everyone elses, you can still get lost in the shuffle, and that’s how businesses find themselves in The Dip.

So what do you about it?  His first premise is you don’t need talent to be a business superstar.  As he pointed out, Yo-Yo Ma needs talent to play the cello, but Richard Branson doesn’t need talent, he needs to be effective at indentifying and dominating his market.

His second premise is you need to be willing to quit.  What does he mean?  Stop doing the same things you are doing now, if they are not growing your business.  He said we all get a lot of help at being average, average is safe, but not very fulfilling.  If your business is stalled and your comfortable, you need to quit doing the things that got you to The Dip, and do something different.

Quitting creates urgency, and urgency creates change, and change gets you through The Dip.  As he pointed out in the Q&A with Dave Jenks and Jay Papasan, from the time we are kids, we are taught that perserverance is the way to success.  We are encouraged to continually try to do things, even when we are not good at them, or don’t enjoy them, so when we get into the business world, that’s we do.

The key is taking a look at your business, making sure it’s the business you want to be in, more effectively identifying a market niche, and becoming “hyperlocal.”  He said all superstars are “hyperlocal.”  They are ”the mayor of their own zipcode.”  The way to do this is to figure out who it is YOU sell best to, and reform your business to sell to those people.  He used the example of a realtor who sells best to recently divorced women.  If you specialize in that market, you can dominate that market, and the referral base takes care of itself, because recently divorced women talk to each other, and support each other.

But in order to indentify your market, and get past The Dip, you need to quit doing the things that got you to where you are.  It’s a deceptively simply concept, but it really resonated for me.  So many of us pick a business, and a way of doing business, because it’s what every one else does, and it’s safe.  I don’t know about you, but I’ve certainly always sought the security of what other people do.  The difference is being willing to stop doing what you don’t enjoy, and aren’t good at, and be willing to risk doing something different.

It’s what Gary Keller did.  He quit his “traditional” real estate company, and reopened it as something that made sense to him.

One thing definitely worth visiting while you’re here, is the Exhibitor area in Hall B3.  What is often overlooked at Family Reunion is quality and quantity of outside vendors, and KWRI products on display, and for sale in the Exhibitor Section.

I wandered around for over an hour yesterday, just reviewing the products and services available to attendees, and it was pretty surprising how many there were.  Everything from Paperless Solutions, a company that specializes in digitizing and managing files specifically for realtors, to the Goldwasser Institute, a new company headed by KW’s very own superstar Chad Goldwasser, that is now offering a whole suite coaching and motivational tools for agents and business leaders.

I also stopped by a number of the booths hosted by KWRI, including the new Luxury Homes Division, headed by Dee Shultz.  For those of you who haven’t been exposed to it yet, they’ve done a very professional job on the formation and launch.  The marketing pieces and new signage are elegant and understated.  They had some great examples for review, as well as a good one page explanation of the requirements for agent qualification.  You can visit the KW intranet and select “Resources”, then “Luxury Homes” for more information, or email luxuryhomes@kw.com for more info.  Go to www.luxuryhomemarketing.com to learn more about the Institute for Luxury Home Marketing (one of the requirments for membership in the Luxury Homes Division, is to take the ILHM Certification Course).

KWRI also has a number of booths in the Exhibitor Hall staffed by members of the IT staff, and agents stopped by all day to receive hands on guidance with EAgentC, KWLS, and a host of other KW offerings that they don’t normally have an opportunity to learn about in a face-to-face format with the staff that creates and administers them.

Top Producer had a full-scale training facility on the Exhibitor floor, with trainers providing basic and advanced training from open to close.  They had full seats pretty much every time I walked by.

It’s not, however, just the big vendors and KWRI that have a presence.  There were numerous smaller vendors with a wide range of innovative products and services, including gift ideas for clients, stress relieving products, stationary, computer equipment, printers, you name it … Lowe’s as a main sponsor of Family Reunion had a large booth, and are advertising some interesting marketing rebates they are offering to KW Agents and their clients.

The highlight of Day Three was definitely the annual National Awards Ceremony celebrating the top performing Regions, Agents, Market Centers, and MCA’s as well as those Family Members who find ways to give back to the communities in which they live and do business.

Without a doubt, this is a professional awards ceremony of national caliber, on par with any I’ve ever attended.  This year there were some great new touches including a true red carpet welcome, and swarming papparazi complete with flashing cameras (played by very convincing KWRI staff).  However the man that stole the show was man acting as the red carpet emcee, Todd Butzer.  If Todd ever decides to get out of real estate, he has a career as an entertainment anchor ahead of him.  He was absolutely flawless as he interviewed agents entering the awards ceremony, asking about their designer they were wearing, and their “upcoming clothing lines and/or album releases.”  It was witty, and very convincing.  His live interviews were projected onto the big screens as they were happening, and really lent to the atmosphere of the evening.  The pre-ceremony reception was also a very nice affair this year, well organized and informal enough that everyone had a chance to mingle and enjoy themselves before filing into the hall.

I sat with the Austin Agents from the Southwest, Northwest and Lake Travis Market Centers, who did their best to remind everyone why the statement “Keep Austin Weird” has merit.  They were hilarious both in terms of their energy level, and tremendous volume.  I would like to take a moment to congratulate the Southwest Market Center on reclaiming their title as the number one Market Center in the world in terms of agent profit share, and profitability.  Both the Austin Northwest and Austin Southwest Market Centers were also Quadruple Platinum in Production.

That said, there were a whole host of other Regions that really got into the spirit of the evening, with signs, noisemakers, flashing lights, weird hats, group cheers.  It’s the really a fun evening, and the energy is infectious.  I walked out of there ready to take on the world, as did everyone else.

I’d also like to congratulate Canada on being the number one Region.  This is a singular honor, and one I know a lot of people worked very hard to achieve.

I guess what I enjoyed best about the evening, however was the inclusive, feel-good nature of the ceremony.  Those that won were celebrated by everyone, and there was a real feeling of goodwill surrounding the evening.

If I had any criticism when it comes to Family Reunion, it would be this … there is so much in terms of quality, substantive training on core business skills for Agents, Mega Agents, Team Leaders, MCA’s and OP’s that you cannot avoid feeling like you’ve left something on the plate at the end of the day.  I guess that’s why you need to attend every year.  What you miss this year, you can catch next.

The theme of today, in terms of Family Reunion, was maximizing your opportunity for referrals from the folks you meet here at Reunion.  The First Time Attendees Session is a must, for the first time attendee, as a great deal of time is spent discussing the “hidden” opportunities to grow your referral business just through the simple act of meeting other KW family members from other parts of your state, and the country.

This sentiment was echoed repeatedly by Gary Keller and Dave Jenks in the opening general session.  Gary and Dave pointed out that on a national basis, only 5 percent of buyers and sellers end up using a realtor through a referral from another realtor.  Gary said, in his opinion, there is no better way to control and dominate the market than through realtor networking.  A strong statement from the leader of our company.  Definitely worth noting.

To give you an idea of the depth and breadth of what was available today to attendees, here are some of the subjects covered by the breakout sessions:  recruiting using MREA, Market Center productivity, using the AVA to recruit Mega Agents, best practices for OPs, 36:12:3 prospecting, 36:12:3 Agent-to-Agent referrals, Top Producer, 30-minute power listing presentation, improving lead generation, marketing to buyers and sellers of Luxury Homes, top strategies for internet lead generation and conversion, marketing with technology, top Team Leader recruiters, financing solutions, MCA leadership, creating urgency to buy … whew!

That’s day one of the breakout sessions, and not even a complete list.  Not to mention the trainers are KW leaders from across the country.  It’s a remarkable experience to be able to take a luxury homes marketing course from no less than Dee Shultz, or a Mega Agent recruiting class from John Davis, or an internet lead generation course from KWRI CTO, Dave Therien.  Imagine if you could sign up for software marketing courses with Bill Gates.

Another fascinating presentation from today was the Opening Session with Gary Keller and Dave Jenks I mentioned earlier.  The information contained in this discussion is, frankly, worth the price of admission.  The theme of this year’s opening session, was a careful and informed analysis of the national real estate market, and how we got to where we are today.  We’ve all read the litany of stories in the national media this year about the collapse of the real estate, but precious little time is spent on why, or where we’re going.

What I found most compelling about Gary’s presentation was the independence of his analysis.  While he and Dave presented forecasts by NAR, and other national economic forecasting entities, he didn’t shy away from disagreeing with their conclusions.

NAR for example is forecasting a 0.7% increase in national sales, and prices holding steady.  Gary cautioned against these cautiously optimistic numbers, as nothing more than NAR’s economists attempting to effect an outcome through positive thinking.  A careful look at broad economic indicators points to an economy that is generally slowing, and house prices in certain very populous parts of the country that have exceeded consumer’s ability to afford them.  As Gary and Dave pointed out basic economic laws, including the law of supply and demand, have not been repealed.

That’s not to say the theme of the discussion was doom and gloom for the real estate business, quite the opposite.  As Gary pointed out, he created Keller Williams in 1986-1987 in Austin Texas, in a market in which the total number of realtors went from 5,000 to less than 2,000, and the total value of residential real estate sold went from $1.5 billion to $700 million.  KW is a model that grew out of one of the worst local real estate recessions in modern history, and Gary’s message was this:  “You can excel in ANY market, as long as you understand the market, and the economic pressure points to your business.”

As Gary said later in the presentation, the correction we are going through now is simply creating opportunity down the road for those who stay in the business.

I thought it might also be interesting to give a little behind the scenes on the enormous amount of work that goes into creating a training and presentation environment that is truly without equal.  The main presentation hall is one of the most impressive audio-visual experiences I have ever seen, and it really adds to the general quality of the presentations.

I spoke with Henry Marshall, Executive Producer, and COO for Victoria’s Event Productions out of Las Vegas, Nevada.  Henry heads up the 120 folks it takes to create a presentation that rivals anything you will see anywhere.

Henry told me the main presentation hall includes the largest array of projection screens that have ever been put together for a corporate event, anywhere.  I’m inclined to believe him, as members of his crew, including Video Engineer, John Mims, have been on the production team for events including the Super Bowl this year.  The screens truly are breathtaking.  Three 20′ X 80′ screens form a projection space spanning 240 linear feet. 

The entire suite of production equipment arrived in 18 semi trucks, and included three miles of trussing.  Four camera stations capture the action on the stage, and convey it in crystal clarity to the thousands in the audience.  Creative Graphics & Design Manager Stephen Ceci, a principal in Conspire Design Media, gave me a tour of his mobile studio, where he was literally creating and editing graphics on the fly that were as professional and comprehensive as any you see, anywhere.  Truly amazing.

The day was capped off with Red Bash, which defies description.  It’s the big kick-off party for convention, and term “party” is an understatement.  Market Centers from all over the U.S. and Canada dressed in red, themed costumes descended on the convention center at 7:00pm.  We’re not a quiet bunch under normal circumstances, and when there’s a party to be had, the noise and general enthusiasm kicks up more than a notch.  It was truly an experience.  KW family members from all over the country performed musical numbers that ranged from the hilariously absurd, to the sublime.  There are some amazingly talented folks working in real estate.

The food and drink were top notch, and it was a great way to end the day.

Stay tuned for more.

My day began at 5:00am this morning, as I headed to the airport to catch my flight to Atlanta.  I was on an 8:35 flight with a big group from the Austin Southwest Market Center, including Team Leader, Eric Copper, Dee Shultz, Barry Cox, Julie Pedraza, Linda Ramsey … to name a few.  To say we were an energetic group, when compared with the normal travelers, is an understatement.  I’m not sure the folks at American Airlines were completely prepared for us.

We had a stop in Dallas where we picked up a whole contigent of Dallas agents, including former Team Leader and current Regional Director John Davis who stood at the gate and acted as official greeter for the entire plane as we boarded.  Again, I’m not sure the airline knew what hit them. 

After an uneventful plane ride we touched down in beautiful Atlanta.  The airport was crawling with Keller Williams folks, it was a sea of red!

Atlanta has a great light rail system called Marta, and the Austin contigent boarded the train for a brief 15 minute ride to the hotel/convention center, with our baggage in tow. 

The Georgia World Conference Center sits directly across the street from the Omni/CNN Center.  It is a truly impressive facility.  The place was packedwith KW folks, as I entered to find registration.  KW agents, Market Center owners, OP’s, it seemed like the entire KW family has descended on Atlanta. 

What’s amazing is how so many people seemed to all know each other.  Everywhere I turned, people from all across the nation were greeting each other like old friends and renewing bonds that cross state lines, and even international borders.

Since everyone was just arriving, the excitement was palpable.  Everywhere I turned KWRI staff were circulating, pointing people towards registration, and answering questions.  I was impressed by the seemingly effortless way in which we were directed down the escalators towards registration.  With literally thousands of KW Family Members streaming into the conference center, and into the main exhibit hall for registration, one would expect pandemonium, but I never once saw a line, or had difficulty finding someone to answer a question or point me in the right direction.

In less than 10 minutes, I was through registration, (including picking up my badge and materials), and on my way to sit in on the “kick off” Regional Directors meeting.  The KWRI event staff are to be commended for a job well done.

Certainly the highlight of the first day was the Regional Directors meeting.  Being in the room with so many people who shape the direction of this company, was a moving experience.  For me the most humbling part of the meeting was listening to this group of achievers talk, not about their own personal success, but about how they could best select the next wave of leaders for Keller Williams. 

KWRI is launching a series of new initiatives designed specifically to help identify and recruit new leaders from the ranks of KW agents.  Mark Willis and Mary Tennant touched on the fact that this tightening national market is the an exciting time for KW, because it’s the best time to truly guage the quality of leadership candidates.  As Mark said, ” I haven’t been this excited about the future for Keller Williams in a long time.”

In a national market rocked by a series of downturns this year, Mark Willis presented some statistics that are truly exciting for KW across the nation.  While the rest of the industry has experienced dramatic downturns in market share and agent count, KW continues it’s growth.  in 2007, KW was the only major real estate network to experience positive agent growth.  Over the past two years, KW’s national market share has grown by 36%, while every other major network has lost market share.

Perhaps the most stirring portion of the RD meeting was when Mo Anderson stood up to give the closing statements for the meeting.  Citing the story of the 10 lepers who were healed, Mo talked about the sometimes thankless nature of leadership.  She used the parable of the lepers to illustrate the point that difficult situations sometimes isolate members of a community, but it’s the unifying nature of our culture that allows us to come together and nurture each other, even when the market seems “broken.”  In the end, she said, it’s the KW Culture, and our caring and compassion for each other that defines us, and makes KW great.

 It was truly stirring, and set an exciting tone for the rest of the week. 

After a great dinner at Ecco with a big group of Austin agents, it’s time for bed.  Tune in tomorrow for more.

TOP STORY: Maximize Family Reunion 2008Three simple ways to make the most of your experience

1. Read The Dip

Keller Williams Realty will welcome Seth Godin, author of nine worldwide best sellers, including his latest book, The Dip, to Family Reunion 2008.

 Click here to buy a copy of the book.

 Click here to buy a copy of the abridged audio book.

2. Don’t miss a minute of Family Reunion education standing in line

New hassle-free ordering in the KWU Bookstore

Keller Williams University is launching more than 10 new Agent Field Guides at Family Reunion 2008, and the first of a new series of Keller Williams Realty Guide Books, Your First Home will be released.

To avoid long lines at the KWU bookstore, stop by the Exhibit Hall, fill out an order form
(as shown here), drop it in one of the drop boxes located throughout the bookstore,
and then head off to class.

3. Prepare your bids for KW Cares

KW Cares Auction heats up with new items

New items just added…

• A free registration to Luxury Homes Marketing Specialist Training with Laurie Moore-Moore’s Institute of Luxury Home Marketing
• Costa Rica Getaway
• Gibson Epiphone Guitar
• WI4C2TS Quilt
• Weekend Getaway on Mobile Bay with Kay Evans and Bob Kilinski
•  Click here to see a list of all the items up for bid so far.

If you are not yet registered, we are still offering our lowest Family Reunion

registration fee of only $499!

 Register Today.

 And contact the Keller Williams Housing Bureau to book your hotel.

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