How a Basketball Player Reminded Me Why I Love My Job

I love a good sports movie.  I like to see the underdog rise to the top and as the music begins to crescendo, we see the team shoot the winning basket, score the final touchdown, kick the goal to take the championship as fans rise in sheer joy at the remarkable story they have witnessed.  The best stories include struggle and determination.  A Mother, Coach or Father sacrificing to see the person they love and believe in make it to the top.  When Kevin Durant, star player with the Oklahoma City Thunder, delivered his acceptance speech when receiving the honor of NBA MVP, he described the challenges of his life and all that lead him to this day. The speech could be a script for a movie that I would pay money to see.

By the time he got to the 22nd minute of his speech, I was on my third tissue! The best message was yet to come...Kevin thanked his Mother and described one of his best memories as a child.  His Mother was a young single women raising two young boys.  She gave up her meals to make certain her children were fed. She worked to keep them off the street and instill a strong sense of family.  And, when they sat in the living room of their first apartment, empty because they had no furniture, that apartment made this young family feel as though they "made it".

I clipped this portion of the speech to share with you:

I want to thank Kevin Durant for reminding me what I love best about my work.  I love connecting people with home.  I was reminded power of this experience.  It is a old, tired saying and yet it means so much, Home is Where The Heart Is.  And on a day when I questioned the value of all that I have done and built in my career, Mr. Durant reminded me of my purpose.

Initially, I posted this on my Facebook wall thinking that others in our business may be having a difficult day like me, and would find their purpose renewed by reading his quote.  I was touched to see, in a matter of a few hours, 200 people clicking "like" as a personal affirmation that even an empty apartment can change someone's life and that we are honored to create exceptional communities for a living.  As the post was shared, 29 times and counting, it seems that everyone needed the sweet reminder that our work matters more than we will ever know.

Learn The Perfect Response When Someone Responds with "No"

I'm happy to share the next of my videos for CORT in their Sofa Secrets series, a video-based educational program for apartment industry professionals. This Sofa Secret is about using one word to help you close reluctant prospects...

What Type of Person Are You?

I recently had a chance to sit down with CORT to share in their Sofa Secrets series, a video-based educational program for apartment industry professionals. CORT asked industry leaders share inside tips to help you grow revenue... check out my first Sofa Secret on "Success."

What Ashton Kutcher and I Have in Common

This is a pretty bold title for a blog! Let's start by saying I love this guy. In my life I have had a few celeb crushes starting with Rob Lowe starring in St. Elmo's Fire and About Last Night.  The day after I saw Legends of the Fall I had to leave work at 10:30 am because I could not concentrate on writing a marketing plan and had Brad Pitt on the brain. Then came my encounter with John Stamos.....well that is another blog on my personal page.  And finally Ashton. I saw him in Just Married and loved his expressions.  I was hooked.  

Of all my celeb crushes, I have never felt like I was on their level until I heard Ashton accept his Teen Choice Award.  He proudly took this opportunity to reach out to the young audience with a message about life.  I was personally touched when he shared the same thoughts that I frequently talk about in my programs.  Not only did he connect with screaming 16 year old's, he connected with me too.

The first point of his speech is that his name is really Chris and he lived an important life before he took his middle name to become and actor.  Surprisingly, he learned about opportunity before he got his role on That 70's Show.  Ashton feels that opportunity looks a lot like work.  He had jobs where he mopped floors and washed dishes and he never felt that he had a job he was better than.  Ashton respected the opportunity and saw it as a stepping stone.  I found his next point to be very important for today's 20 something generation; never quit a job until you have your next one.  When you quit without your next job lined up, you just proved to the world that you thought you were better than the job you wanted to leave and did not respect the opportunity to work.  As an employer, I steer clear of people who make this choice and do not have a really really, and I mean really good reason. Click here:

For those of you who have heard me speak in the last few years, you may have heard me close my program with this words to live by "Be Here Now, Be Somewhere Else Later". This is the key to my success and I have been benefiting from this belief for over 20 years.  I meet ambitious people who want to do what I do and the best advice I can give them is to do what you do now extremely well.  If you are a housekeeper, be the master of clean.  If you are a Leasing Consultant, stop making excuses for why an apartment is not leasing and have the highest closing ratio in your company.

I have a dream board, goal sheets and big plans for my life but none of them will happen if I am not taking my current opportunities and knocking them out of the park. My first job in the apartment industry was to lease apartments.  In my first two weeks with my company, Trammell Crow, I went to a week long training class where I witnessed what corporate trainers do and I knew then, I wanted to be one.  But, to get there, I had to first show people that I could do the work that I would be training other people to do.  It was in that very class that I decided that I would not stop until I was the number one Leasing Consultant in the company.  I hit that goal within a year.  I was the Director of Training 4 years later.

I wondered where Ashton was going when the second point of his speech was about being sexy.  This is a guy who could rest on his looks for his sexy but he knows there is more to being attractive.  Ashton explains that being sexy is accomplished by being smart, thoughtful and generous. In our world we are caught up in what he labels crap; the stuff that people try to sell to you to make you feel less. I have always been attracted to the smart, thoughtful and generous guy.

Over the years, I have received some nice compliments about how I look.  I always brush that off because I think I am just an average person.  It is the comments and compliments about my intelligence that make me say "thank you".  I know my expertise, and how I give to others, have opened many more doors than my looks.

Ashton's last message is about building a life not just living one.  Again, I connected.  I have not taken the path well traveled, I have carved out the life I want.  I continue to build my life based on the belief that most people are no smarter than I am.  If they can do it, why can't I?

Now, go be amazing at work today and get your sexy on!

5 Questions You Should Never Ask in a Job Interview

Could these words be costing you your dream job?

By Catherine Conlan, Monster Contributing Writer

Hiring managers and HR pros will often close out a job interview by asking an applicant if he or she has any questions themselves. This is a great opportunity to find out more about the job and the company's expectations, but you can't forget that the interviewer hasn't stopped judging YOU. Here are 5 questions that can make a bad impression on your interviewer, scuttling your chances for getting the job.

1. "When will I be promoted?:This is one of the most common questions that applicants come up with, and it should be avoided, says Rebecca Woods, Vice President of Human Resources at Doherty Employer Services in Minneapolis. "It's inappropriate because it puts the cart before the horse."  Instead of asking when the promotion will occur, Woods says a better approach is to ask what you would need to do to get a promotion.

2. "What's the salary for this position?"Asking about salary and benefits in the first interview "always turns me off," says Norma Beasant, founder of Talento Human Resources Consulting and an HR consultant at the University of Minnesota. "I'm always disappointed when they ask this, especially in the first interview." Beasant says the first interview is more about selling yourself to the interviewer, and that questions about salary and benefits should really wait until a later interview.

3. "When can I expect a raise?"Talking about compensation can be difficult, but asking about raises is not the way to go about it, Woods says. So many companies have frozen salaries and raises that it makes more sense to ask about the process to follow or what can be done to work up to higher compensation level. Talking about "expecting" a raise, Woods says, "shows a person is out of touch with reality."

4. "What sort of flextime options do you have?"This kind of question can make it sound like you're interested in getting out of the office as much as possible. "When I hear this question, I'm wondering, are you interested in the job?" Beasant says. Many companies have many options for scheduling, but asking about it in the first interview is "not appropriate," Beasant says.

5. Any question that shows you haven't been listening. Woods said she interviewed an applicant for a position that was 60 miles from the person's home. Woods told the applicant that the company was flexible about many things, but it did not offer telecommuting. "At the end of the interview, she asked if she would be able to work from home," Woods says. "Was she even listening? So some 'bad questions' can be more situational to the interview itself."

With the economy the way it is, employers are much more choosy and picky, Beasant says. Knowing the questions to avoid in an interview can help you stand out -- in a good way.

Kate's Key to Managing Time

Track and Field: How to Stay on Track

I don't really like to run. It hurts and I get a little bored. But add some competition to the effort and I am engaged. This is the reason why I loved being on the track team but still loathed running. Being on a team meant I was competing as an individual and a team. My mission was to run faster and jump higher. To accomplish these goals, you have to have a strong sense of self discipline to stay on track and improve. Being a star at work is no different and now more than ever, we are expected to run faster and jump when duty calls. It's best to stay ahead of yourself so when you fall behind, you can quickly catch up. Here are a few tips to help you stay on track and win with your team:



What motivates you? Most people start off their day easing into their routine. This is the first step to getting off track. For example, you can look busy at your desk by looking at your computer screen but catching up on the overnight Facebook news feed is not going to get you to the finish line for your day. You sit down at the computer, and you swear you'll be productive. Next thing you know, it's three hours later. You've checked your email, updated your Facebook status, browsed the trending topics on Twitter, read your RSS feeds, looked up your favorite band on Wikipedia, vanity googled yourself, cyber-stalked your ex, looked at all your high-school crushes' Facebook photos, watered your plants on Farmville, and lost a week's pay playing online poker.

Tomorrow, I dare you to mix up your routine and start your day with a mind charging activity that will motivate you to dig in. Go directly to your to do list and do not pass through Facebook, Twitter, or junk mail! In fact, many overachievers spend the first hour of their day working on tasks that accomplish their goals THEN they check email. Think about how much you can get done in that first hour of the day if you were not thinking about the ten things that dropped in your lap. There will be time to get those items done but if you jump into them now, it just may consume your entire day and you never got to the work that truly helps you meet your goals.

I have expanded my world of speaking to include building apartment communities. Many of you know, this was always my dream. I had no idea how many meetings are needed to build a great apartment community. There are days when I am rolling from one meeting to the next and it is vitally important to make sure this time is productive and concise. This is why I believe in agendas. Today when someone says you have an agenda they may not be flattering you! But in my world, it means you are organized and prepared. Two essential actions needed to stay on track. I learned years ago, if you have a meeting with certain departments at the Sears headquarters, you would be meeting in a room with no chairs, just pub tables (sadly there is not a dirty martini in sight) to lean on and take notes. The idea was that you will be more productive if you are standing versus sitting. At Chrysler Technology Center meeting rooms have timers for the lights and the maximum time is 30 min. When time is up the lights go dim. This is your reminder to wrap it up. We have to meet or our businesses would fail because nothing changed, make those meetings powerful.

I like outlook because I can set up appointments with myself. When there is something I have been procrastinating about I set up a meeting with myself to get it done. It is a reminder that the work needs to be done but the appointment takes some pressure off of me knowing that I have scheduled time approaching.



There are many of us that have to put diversions in our path because we simply do not have the discipline to stay on track. Look for tools that will set you up for success. StayFocusd is a productivity extension for Google Chrome that helps you stay focused on work by restricting the amount of time you can spend on time-wasting websites. Once your allotted time has been used up, the sites you have blocked will be inaccessible for the rest of the day. We have parental controls for our kids, so it is okay to have professional controls for you!

Now, Run Forrest RUN!

It's Time to Stop

I once spent a lot of time with someone who was wildly successful in his career. As a result, many things came to him in the form of opportunities, quality people and cool toys. Sadly, with all the gifts in his life, he was constantly in search of happiness. I watched him read countless books on the subject, talk to his peers, dig into movies about the subject and always think his life was missing something. Happiness was within his grasp yet he was doing everything wrong.

I often wondered how a smart man could be so clueless. And then I realized that he and many people, including myself, make the common mistake of taking action to accomplish something but this action is not getting them to their goal.

When you stop doing the wrong things, you make more room for the things that make you happy.

So, starting today, join me in making a personal commitment to quit and then eliminate counter productive behavior and open our time up for the right behavior. Personally, I have been practicing this concept over the last 24 months and I have never been so happy or fulfilled in my life. You CAN live the life you want and it can start today if you set yourself up for success. Here are some things to quit:

1. Quit procrastinating on your goals.

Some people dream of success while others wake up and work hard at it. Action and change are often resisted when they’re needed most. Get a hold of yourself and have discipline. Putting something off instantly makes it harder and scarier. What we don’t start today won’t be finished by tomorrow. And there’s nothing more stressful than the perpetual lingering of an unfinished task.

The secret to getting ahead is simply getting started. My secret to avoiding procrastination is to engage in the habit of clustering. When I have a project with a due date approaching I start to cluster my ideas, thoughts and resources on individual sheets of paper as they pop into my head. I drop them into the project folder. Now when it is time to work on the project I have a file full of first steps to roll with. Suddenly I am motivated because the mountain does not seem so high. This can also be done by typing emails to yourself on your smart phone. Put the name of the project in the subject line. Now when you are able to start the project you can simply do a search for those key words and all your thoughts will be sorted in your inbox.

2. Quit blaming others and making excuses.

Stop blaming others for what you have or don’t have, or for what you feel or don’t feel. When you blame others for what you’re going through, you deny responsibility and perpetuate the problem. Stop giving your power away and start taking responsibility for your life. Blaming is just another sorry excuse, and making excuses is the first step towards failure; you and only you are responsible for your life choices and decisions.

Picture two circles, one inside the other. The inside circle is all the things you have control of in your response and action. The outside circle you can influence but not change. Spend time on the inside circle where you can make a difference. Too many people live in the outside circle making excuses and not taking action by controlling their behavior.

3. Quit trying to avoid change.

If nothing ever changed we would still be using flip phones, or worse, the fax machine! Most of us are comfortable where we are even though the whole universe is constantly changing around us. Learning to accept this is vital to our happiness and general success. Because only when we change, do we grow, and begin to see a world we never knew was possible.

And don’t forget, however good or bad a situation is now, it will change. That’s the one thing you can count on. So embrace it, and realize that change happens for a reason. It won’t always be easy or obvious at first, but in the end it will be worth it. This is knowledge that was given to me in my high school years and it made all the difference in my attitude. My best friends' Mom said to me that this world I am struggling in will not last forever. She encouraged me to see beyond today and look forward to the changes in life. I later learned how I could control my destiny and this has been the source of my power.

4. Quit trying to control the uncontrollable.

If you try to control everything, and then worry about the things you can’t control, you are setting yourself up for a lifetime of frustration and misery.

Some forces are out of your control, but you can control how you react to things. Everyone’s life has positive and negative aspects – whether you’re happy or not depends greatly on which aspects you focus on. The best thing you can do is to let go of what you can’t control, and invest your energy in the things you can – like your attitude. If you are still fighting this concept, refer to item #2 and discover what circle you are living in.

5. Quit talking down to yourself.

Nothing will bring you down quicker than berating yourself. The mind is a superb instrument if used right, but when used incorrectly, it becomes very destructive. Be aware of your mental self-talk. We all talk silently to ourselves in our heads, but we aren’t always conscious of what we’re saying or how it’s affecting us.

As Henry Ford once stated, “Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t, you’re right.” One of the major causes of why we fail is due to self-doubt and negative self-talk. The way to overcome negative thoughts and destructive emotions is to develop opposing, positive emotions that are stronger and more powerful. Listen to your self-talk and replace negative thoughts with positive ones, over time you will change the trajectory of your life.

Many people do not realize how incredibly nervous I feel prior to walking on a stage. The nerves would be debilitating if I did not overcome it with positive self talk. I remind myself that I am good at this and today this audience deserves my best. Sometimes I get a standing ovation when I am completed and that is an amazing feeling. However, 100% of the time, I finish my speech knowing I gave it my very best.

6. Quit criticizing others.

The negativity you bleed out toward others will gradually cripple your own happiness. When you truly feel comfortable with your own imperfections, you won’t feel threatened or offended by the imperfections you see in other people.

So stop worrying about the flaws you see in everyone else, and focus on yourself. Let the constant growth and improvement in your own life keep you so busy that you have no time left to criticize others.

Personally, I am having trouble with this one. I currently have someone I work with in my consulting practice who has some serious problems remaining professional and courteous at all times. I know he can be so much better than what he is. To be successful, I have to stop trying to criticize him by pointing out his failures and shortcomings as he will not change. My dear friend Mark recently quoted Tommy Lee Jones to me when he said "you never ask a horse or an actor do something they cannot do." Wow, this is so true, thanks for the sharing the advice, Mark.

7. Quit running from your problems and fears.

Trust me, if everyone threw their problems in a pile for you to see, you would grab yours back. Tackle your problems and fears swiftly, don’t run away from them. The best solution is to face them head on no matter how powerful they may seem.

Fears, in particularly, stop you from taking chances and making decisions. They keep you confined to just the small space where you feel completely comfortable. But your life’s story is simply the culmination of many small, unique experiences, many of which require you to stretch your comfort zone. Be proud of your life story and remember your failures have everything to do with getting you to your successful self. They are the best learning opportunities you have. I have screwed up and failed many times. I have even been fired. As I look back over my adult years I would not remove that experience from my life story if I could. Letting your fears and worries control you is not ‘living,’ it’s merely existing.

Bottom line: Either you own your problems and fears, or they will ultimately own you and you are simply operating with excuses.

8. Quit living in another time and place.

Some people spend their entire lives trying to live in another time and place. They lament about what has been, what they could have done, or what might become. However, the past is gone, and the future doesn’t exist. No matter how much time we spend thinking and lamenting about either, it doesn’t change anything.

Our brightest future hinges on our ability to pay attention to what we’re doing right now, today.

We need to live more in the moment and be aware of reality. Living in the moment requires active, open, intentional awareness on the present. Don’t fantasize about being on vacation while at work, and don’t worry about the work piling up on your desk when you’re on vacation. Live for now. Notice the beauty unfolding around you. I lost my Father at a young age. I had the opportunity to visit him the week before he died but was worried about a pile of things that impacted my future. I made a decision I now regret because I did not live in the moment and reality that my Father was ill. I allowed my dream of the future to overshadow something incredibly important to me . Trust me, the future will always work itself out. Do what you need to do today.

9. Quit trying to be someone you’re not.

One of the greatest challenges in life is being yourself in a world that’s trying to make you like everyone else. Someone will always be prettier, someone will always be smarter, someone will always be younger, but they will never be you. Don’t change so people will like you. Be yourself and the right people will love you, and you’ll love yourself more too. I am a bit unconventional and don't always deliver what people expect. This used to trouble me until I discovered what I deliver is better!

10. Quit being ungrateful.

Not all the puzzle pieces of life will seem to fit together at first, but in time you’ll realize they do, perfectly. So thank the things that didn’t work out, because they just made room for the things that will. And thank the ones who walked away from you, because they just made room for someone better.

No matter how good or bad you have it, wake up each day thankful for your life. Someone somewhere else is desperately fighting for theirs. Instead of thinking about what you’re missing, try thinking about what you have that everyone else is missing.

I am rooting for you and feel honored when you share your celebrations of success with me. My relationships with you will be part of my legacy. Go get 'em tiger and know that I am on your team! If you need support and encouragement, email me anytime at kate@kategood.com and remember you rock!

Old Leads Are Cold Leads and My Olympic Experience

This is one of the hottest summers on record. I live in Phoenix, just ask me what 113 degrees feels like. Yuck! All over the country, our leasing teams are feeling the heat and it can be truly exhausting. By mid-July we are wearing down from this long hot summer yet we need to keep our leasing productivity HOT! The quickest way to get there is to touch something COLD, your Internet leads.

80% of potential sales are lost due to lack of follow-up. This is one of biggest mistakes people make in marketing. Do you want to know how you could increase web conversions and sales by as much as 400%? The secret lies in what you do after you generate a qualified lead. The steps you take next to build a relationship and help your prospect get what they want make all the difference. Most people are so focused on getting qualified leads that they neglect to put their web site marketing and Internet Listing Service follow-up systems in place to convert leads to sales. It’s so important that I’ll say it again;

…with better follow-up, you could increase web sales by 400%.

In just a few days the World’s attention will be on London for the start of the 2012 Summer Olympic Games. This is always an exciting time for me as I reminisce about the 1996 games in Atlanta. I tried out to be a placard bearer in the opening and closing ceremonies and got picked! The day of the opening ceremonies it was 111 degrees on the tarp that covered Turner Field. Our energy was draining but continued to be refueled by the excitement of meeting our teams and seeing Mohamed Ali light the torch.

I ushered the great country of Azerbaijan into the games proudly holding their county’s sign alongside the flag bearer. I call them a great country and it has nothing to do with their politics which I know very little about. What I know is about the athletes that represented their country in 1996. It was their first year competing as an independant country after breaking off from the “Unified Team” also known as Mother Russia. Azerbaijan’s uniforms were mismatched and used. Russia looked smashing in their red suits and hats. (Did you think I would get through this blog without a little fashion commentary?!?) It was clear they had little resources and training opportunities but they had a lot of ambition and a plan to win. At closing ceremonies we gathered again for a celebration in the stadium. It was truly exciting to see these inspiring athletes wearing medals they had won. They were singing and dancing with athletes from all over the world. As for me, I was just proud to be a part of the biggest moment in their life and wear a silver medal won by a hot wrestler named Namik!

Imagine you were training for the upcoming summer Olympics. You’re a runner and want to win gold this year. You get a new pair of shoes to help you in your medal quest. Then you map your workout plan. With your coach at your side you identify which exercises to do and when to do them. Each day until the coming Olympics you eagerly show up at the weight room and the track. What happens? Each week your strength and speed improve and you become a stronger competitor increasing your chances of winning a gold medal.

Now imagine a competitor who wants to win but after signing up for the team, didn’t show up for practice. Who do you think is going to win? The person who follows up on their commitment with a series of planned activities or the one who neglects these? Web site marketing is like training for the Olympics but with a whole lot more gold medals available! Start with a lead, regular follow up and you can win many more customers.

You could continue marketing the same way and get the same results, or you could discover the lead generation and follow-up activities that can increase your sales by 400% or more. Just as in training for the Olympics, what you do and when is critical. Use these 7 follow up ideas you to increase your sales.

1. Act Immediately
Old leads are cold leads. Use automated email responses or voice messages to instantly acknowledge a prospect’s interest and give them the information they requested. If you plan to call them, let them know when you’ll call. If you’ve offered something free to entice them to respond, deliver it instantly.

2. Use Curiosity to Motivate
The most powerful motivator in marketing is human curiosity. Tempt your prospects with something they want and pique their interest to prompt them to visit your community or to call you to get the details. I feel it is important to have a contact from that asks questions that give you the clues you need to understand their hot buttons. When you use these hot buttons in your response, you will capture their attention.

3. Create A Sense of Urgency
People are prone to procrastinate, just ask me, I started writing this blog in June! We put off doing things even when we want and need something. Give them a reason to act immediately, such as a limited time offer.

4. Educate Your Prospects
Customers may not have an immediate perception of their need for what you provide. What makes you unique compared to the competition? This product differential must be front and center in your marketing. Use each contact to help them define a problem or concern and demonstrate that your product or service is the solution.

5. Build a Relationship
The stronger your relationship with your prospects, the more likely they’ll be to turn to you when they are ready to make a purchase. Do most men or women propose on their first dates? Of course not! And if they do it is my personal experience you should RUN! It takes time and repeated contact to establish the basis for a long lasting, mutually beneficial relationship.

6. Give Special Attention to Prospects that Demonstrate An Interest
Let’s say you sent out a special $100 discount email offer to your prospect list. Typically, 10-16% of your prospects will open the email, and a much smaller percentage will act on it immediately. Go back with an even stronger call to action to the people that opened your initial email. You’ll find that approximately 50% will open it and you’ll sell a lot more of your product and services.

7. Use Automated Systems to Follow-up
Set up your email auto responders to do your follow-up for you. Use each email contact to educate and motivate your prospects and tell them about your limited time offer. Remember that prospects are more likely to buy after six contacts, so use a series of six emails spread out over two weeks. However, this does not excuse the need for human contact. Reach out!

Want to earn gold with your business? Like Olympic athletes you need more than goals. You need a follow up strategy and system. Put these in place and you can capture the 80% of potential sales you’re missing.

8 Tips to Increase Rent for New and Renewed Leases

Originally Presented by Kate Good
8/25/2011

Our friends at Vaultware have been tracking rents and report that rents are increasing in each region of the country when compared to rates last year. It seems everyone is doing it! Are you raising rents? Don't let your apartment community get left behind and leave money on the table. Here are 8 tips to help you increase rents. (Click on this link for the Vaultware Rent Increase Study http://kategoodblog.blogspot.com/2011/09/vaultware-says-raise-rentseveryone-is.html)

1. Set yourself up for success. You can't pull a rent increase out of thin air because people are going to want to know why rent is increasing when it seems the country is still in an economic crisis. In this email you will see charts tracking rent increases across our country. The apartment industry is recovering faster than other sectors of the real estate industry. Be prepared for this conversation as there is certain to be pushback from the renter who, based on sluggish economy reports, is not expecting a rent increase. In fact, they may be looking for a concession!

2. Prepare your team for this question "Why are rents going up?". Have a response that everyone understands and is comfortable delivering. Educate your team as to why rents are increasing and prepare them for this conversation with residents. Remember, every member of your team should understand this strategy and what to say to a resident. Your service team spends more time with residents compared to us. Do they know why rents are increasing and how to discuss this with customers?

3. If you are nervous about raising rents, get over it. This is a business and although we love our customers and want to help them, we still have a fiduciary responsibility to make this apartment community profitable. Deliver your rent rates with confidence. I know there are customers you consider friends and you are aware of their personal plight. Pushing a rent increase may be difficult but you have to take your emotions out of this part of your job and meet the properties economic potenial.

4. Flat rate pricing makes it very difficult to increase rents. Get the highest rent you can by understanding what makes each individual apartment unique and valuable. Some are worth more than others to the renters and should be priced accordingly. In addition, when you have everyone paying the same price, everyone is going to expect the same deal upon renewal because let's face it, residents talk to their neighbors. This is a difficult pattern to break until you create price differential.

5. If you are hearing "no" find out why. Understand what the market is telling you. Make adjustments.

6. Monthly market studies are worthless. You have to study your market each week if not each day! This market intelligence will help you find your optimal rent rates. Check out Vaultware's market survey product and get instant alerts when your competition is adjusting rents. Now that will make you smarter!

7. Apartment All Star, Michael Benton, reminds us that competitors don't steal happy residents. Great point! Above everything, a good customer service program should be part of your rent increase strategy.

8. Invest in Yield Management software. Having a tool like this will help you maximize rents on a daily basis taking a lot of the work and emotion out of the process. YieldStar or Rainmaker will be on the job even when you need a day off! Look into this. This is a solid investment that pays for itself.

Would You Dip Into The Company Ink?

Before you think this article does not pertain to you, allow me to clarify that I am not writing about internal office dating. We will reserve that article for later! Today I am asking the question, how far would you go for your company? Would you consider allowing yourself to be permanently branded with your company's logo or icon in the form of a tattoo? I know, I know, you company does not allow for visible tattoo's right? Okay, let's stick to the concept and think about your loyalty to the company. How loyal are you?

Employees of Anytime Fitness, a workout chain based in Hastings, Minn., can get the company's purple running man logo permanently inked on their bodies by a tattoo artist who shows up at monthly training sessions. More than 350 employees have gotten permanent tattoos including CEO Chuck Runyon.

Runyon says the tattoo represents a significant commitment to the brand. Employees receive standard benefits like retirement plans and health insurance, but they also have flexible hours and an office culture that includes contests and giveaways among staff, a combination of perks that Runyon believes encourages employee loyalty.

Studies show that employer loyalty is not what it used to be. I remember a time when another company came to me with an offer I could not refuse. My salary would increase by $20,000 annually, and my bonus opportunity would double. They would grant me an extra weeks vacation and give me a hefty car allowance which would enable me to get the convertible ride I had been eyeing on the car lot. The only thing that was missing in the offer was the fact that it was not Trammell Crow. You see, I was loyal to my employer who had basically raised me to be a shining star within the Trammell Crow group and I was very appreciative for that opportunity. I did not take the offer to my Regional Manager and ask them to meet the offer. That would have been an insult to the investment they made in me and the risk they took in hiring a fresh 18 year old with no experience.

While I never went as far as to sport the company ink, I did feel that I had a loyalty that I struggle to find in the world today. I can now look back and see that I made the right decision. My history with Trammell Crow has paid out ten fold for me. And, I bought a cool convertible car anyway!

Spring Office Cleaning

How many of you have more responsibilities today than you did a year ago? A virtual show of hands proves the answer is everyone! While I can't do much about that, I can help you set yourself up for success when it comes to getting it all done. We're all busy, but if you commit to set aside one day to organize your work space and put some effective systems in place for keeping it organized, you will spend less time digging and more time accomplishing your goals.

Reduce Clutter
Small and infrequently used items such as paper clips should go in your desk drawer. The top of your desk should be for things you are working on that day. Nothing else. Otherwise you become distracted and fall off your schedule for accomplishing the day's priorities. Move bulky items such as inbox trays, file folders and printers onto bookshelves.

Do you have that pile of cords on your floor and or draping off your desk? This looks messy and in turn sends a message of disorganization to your customers and coworkers. Control your cords! You can buy a fairly inexpensive cord holder that will keep everything together and out of the way.

Paper is a Fashion Don't
Keep in mind that 80% of paper you file, is never looked at again. Today, technology is allowing us to create digital storage and by creating a good back up system, we are more comfortable going paperless in our leasing offices. Often times, digital storage is faster to access saving you time in your day for other things, like figuring out what to do with the fax machine you have not used in 5 months.

Every desk will inevitably still have some paper. Don't let it take over your desk. Keep hanging files with these four categories: action, project, reference, and cluster. The cluster file may be new for you. It is one of my favorite time management techniques. When you know you have a big project coming up like writing your marketing plan, keep a file that contains notes, ideas, resources and gems. Now, when you sit down to embark on the project you will have an amazing jump start on getting your project underway. Clustering is also a good cure for procrastination.

Now that you are on your way to a solid spring cleaning, maintain order by instituting this three fold approach to staying organized:
1. Daily - every night, clean up your desk. Organize papers, files and projects so when you come in tomorrow your desk is ready for immediate action.

2. Quarterly - take and hour or so to see what systems need re-engineering and organizing. If everything is not working the way you would like it to, stop wasting time with inefficiencies and make necessary adjustments.

3. Yearly - between December and February is the time when you should annually purge old papers and files from your work area. Do it in these slower months so that when leasing picks up in March you are working in tip top shape.

Long Days = Lot's of Leases

It always confuses me as to why we have leasing office hours while our residents are at work. They typically leave for work before 9am. Yet we don't arrive at work until 9am. And our hard working residents don't come home until after 6pm and many leasing offices close at 5:30. When do we think we are going to lease all those apartments?

It's no wonder Saturdays are so busy. Shopping for an apartment is not really how people want to spend their day off but we really don't give them a choice with our office hours limited to their work hours.

During the long days of summer, out smart your competition by staying open later. When I worked for a busy property in South Florida, my personal work schedule was 11am to 8pm. Do you think this had anything to do with why I was the Leasing Consultant with the highest closing ratio at the property? Of course it did. I was there when people wanted to lease.

No Matter Who Signs Your Paycheck, You Are Self Employed

While traveling this week I overheard a conversation where two people were discussing their disappointment that someone got promoted over one of the ladies in the conversation. They were clearly unhappy and found a number of reasons why their company had failed them. I overheard excuses such as the promoted person had an easier property to manage, the president wanted a man in the position and she had not received enough training. And so I started thinking.....

While we are employees and someone signs our paycheck, we are really in charge of our own career. If you want something, ask for it. If you are told you are not ready for the next step in your career, find out why and change it. There are few victims when it comes to business. However, there are a whole lot of lazy people.

On the day that I was promoted into the coveted position as Director of Training, I was told that I was probably too young for the job (ahhhh, to be 24 years old again) but that I had the skills and the talent. The president also expressed to me that the most important quality I had going for me was that I took charge of my career and planned out the steps I needed to get the job I wanted. He called that ambition. I agree. I was the youngest person out of a sea of 27 more tenured people than me that applied for that internal promotion. Ambition pays off!

What can you do today to prepare you for the next step in your career? Email me at kate@KateGood.com if I can ever help you with your career goals.

No Matter Who Signs Your Paycheck, You Are Self Employed

While traveling this week I overheard a conversation where two people were discussing their disappointment that someone got promoted over one of the ladies in the conversation. They were clearly unhappy and found a number of reasons why their company had failed them. I overheard excuses such as the promoted person had an easier property to manage, the president wanted a man in the position and she had not received enough training. And so I started thinking.....

While we are employees and someone signs our paycheck, we are really in charge of our own career. If you want something, ask for it. If you are told you are not ready for the next step in your career, find out why and change it. There are few victims when it comes to business. However, there are a whole lot of lazy people.

On the day that I was promoted into the coveted position as Director of Training, I was told that I was probably too young for the job (ahhhh, to be 24 years old again) but that I had the skills and the talent. The president also expressed to me that the most important quality I had going for me was that I took charge of my career and planned out the steps I needed to get the job I wanted. He called that ambition. I agree. I was the youngest person out of a sea of 27 more tenured people than me that applied for that internal promotion. Ambition pays off!

What can you do today to prepare you for the next step in your career? Email me at kate@KateGood.com if I can ever help you with your career goals.

Quick! Get out of your OWN way!

Sometimes we can be our own worst enemy. We reason our way out of things. We tell ourselves we can’t do something. We hold back from something we want because of fear. We have denied things we want saying to ourselves that we don’t deserve them. The list can go on and on and tomorrow we will add more self sabotaging behavior. I know because I often do this myself and I see this happening the in the lives of people closest to me.

Today, I want to encourage you to think about this and look at your actions and see if you are getting in your own way of having what you really want. When you actually see yourself doing this, it starts to feel a little silly and maybe you will reconsider.

I recognize that I have a tendency to want things to be perfect and set myself up for failure with such high expectations. People will disappoint me, I won’t be able to control everything in my life and there will be many times that I have to understand that while it may not be exactly the way I want it I really like what I experience.

The very best thing for us can often be standing right in front of us. It was always there, we just failed to recognize it really is what we want and what is best for us. Hold back no longer. Remove fear, insecurity, limitations and rules. Grab what you want and hold on. You deserve it. It is in your path for a reason so take it without expecting something more and take joy in what the universe has given to you. These are often the best opportunities. Fill each day with life and heart. There is no pleasure in the world comparable to the delight of being happy with what you have and knowing it is good enough for you.

When see self sabotaging behavior and thoughts, you have an opportunity to make a positive change for yourself. A good life is not lived by chance, but by choice. Choose to take bold steps in the direction of your dreams and don’t let anything or anyone hold you back. Don’t worry about what people will say! I have come to the realization that people don’t talk about me or think about me half as much as I think they are. They have lives too! The people closest to you want to see you succeed, not conform. They want you to be happy and will support your choices. Be not afraid to be the person you want to be. Ask yourself “if the life I’m living is the life that wants to live in me?”

Taking chances can be exhilarating. Step forward even if the opportunity is not perfect and make it what you want it to be. Nothing great in life was ever achieved without hard work. I admire the relationship of President and Mrs. Obama. Each one has been quoted to say that it does not come naturally and they make a concerted effort, everyday, to serve each other. They are not always perfect but they are better than most because each one try’s without reservation.

Geena Davis once said “If you risk nothing, then you risk everything.” Be brave and don’t let fear of rejection or failure be a reason why you never try. You must be fearful about what you are doing or it may not be the right thing for you. Fear is not bad when you are seeking something you love and want. Playing it safe will never deliver what gives you amazing joy and satisfaction. In fact without fear we might become complacent and lazy.

People always tell me that they could not do what I do as a professional speaker because they are afraid to be on stage. Guess what? Me too! Each time I turn on the microphone I have fear yet I also have the time of my life. I know this is truly where I am meant to be. How can fear and self satisfaction and joy all come from one experience? I often wonder if this is really the key to a well fulfilled life. I have learned that when I do not have fear, I am not ready to turn on the microphone. Turn that fear into positive energy to ignite the behavior necessary to succeed in any relationship, job, competition or opportunity.

When you look fear in the face and overcome it amazing things can happen for you. The most exciting experiences of your life will be your most recent memory that you will come to respect as the best that life has to offer you.

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you did not do. So jump on your ship and throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the wind in your sails and don’t accept life as merely having what you can live with. Grab a hold of the things you can’t live without and embrace them. Enjoy the adventure and send me a postcard.

This One Is Personal

In the past two days I have been contacted by people I never thought I would ever hear from again. How did they find me? Through the outreaching arms of Facebook. The first person is Anne Marie. She and I were best buddies after meeting for the first time when we were six. By the time we were moving on to the scary big building where our middle school was located Anne Marie and her family were forced to move to California. I was devastated. She was my very best friend in a class of just 14 children. Moving on to a class of 54 without her terrified me. We talked on the phone once or twice and wrote a few letters. And then, she disappeared until this weekend when I read a message she sent me through Facebook. She was not sure if she found the right person, I guess I might look a little different! I got a lump in my throat just thinking about my childhood friend. A few years ago she tried to find me by sending a letter to my parents address. It came at a very busy time and I failed to respond and I regret that. Facebook has given me another chance to connect with her!

The second person to find me is another person from school but she was a few years behind me. My memories of her have faded but I do remember her name, Hallie. Another Facebook connection! Hallie wrote me a lovely note saying that she always looked up to me, was sorry to hear about the passing of my Father and complimented my Mother who seems to have flowed from the fountain of youth. What a nice note! It made me think about school and that fact that someone looked up to me and thought I was "popular." This shocked me as I was never really happy in high school. Other kids put stinky trash in my locker, spread rumors about me that were not true and the hardest of all, planned a party the very same night my parents allowed me to have a birthday party. No one came to my party.

Hallie did not ever see my sadness or hurt. Instead she saw a upper classmen that was just trying to get through it all and hope that one day everything would be different.

What do Hallie and Anne Marie have in common? When Anne Marie left our little town, I had to learn to make new friends. When High School got tough, I had to employ those same skills once again. Today, I am happy and feel I have found success. My friends are amazing and my path in life is exciting. Why? Because since sixth grade I have been following the same strategy. It has helped me develop lifelong relationships, succeed in sports, earn opportunities that I dreamed about and crawl my way to the top of my field. Here is my personal strategy:

1. Mindset: Whatever is in my mind tends to become my reality. It is so important, especially in today's economy, to check in with myself on a daily basis. If my thoughts drive my actions then I must clear out the negative, self sabotaging things running through my head and replace them with visions of what I want for myself. I have chosen to break away from negative people in my life as I don't want to be brought down by a negative contagion.

2. Persistence: It would be easy to walk away from something that is just simply too hard, but then I might end up regretting the missed opportunity. The very best things in life are not easy. Our children, our spouses, our work. But when we work hard to make these opportunities successful, we do it because we are persistent in our focus and desire to make our life what we want it to be. I find that the more persistent I am the greater the reward.

3. Personal Development: I can never stop learning. Today, things are moving and changing quicker than a animal rushing across the street to avoid a speeding car. I used to think of my brain as a sponge that was trying to soak everything up. Now I need that sponge to be the "Bounty Quicker Picker Upper." Our ability to learn and react to changing times quicker than our competition is a powerful means of survival.

4. Passion: I find the things I am best at are the things I am passionate about. I dig in because I care. The same action works with people. When I have a passion for someone, I work hard to make that relationship successful. I never give up and I give them my best. I don't let my failures defeat me. Instead I use them as educational opportunities and try not to fail in the same way again.

5. Persuasion: Enthusiasm sways the wills of others into harmony with your own will. I find that when I get excited about something, others take an interest. As a professional speaker I have this opportunity each day I take the stage. I don't always feel what I am speaking about is earth shattering! But I know that my enthusiasm for the topic persuades others to listen and possibly do something different as a result of our time together.

Did you notice that 4 of the 5 items in my strategy start with the letter P? That is because when you Put the P's together, you can create something Pretty Powerful....an amazing life. For me, it is a well lived life in progress.

Falling Stars - Can they shine again?

Twinkle, twinkle super star how I wish there were more people as good as you are!

No matter what your market conditions, the common concern among property management professionals is that you really never know what you are going to get when you hire someone. Sure there is some credible testing out there, but even super stars can become falling stars. Roll up your sleeves. This is the tough part of the job. You are not alone when it comes to the uncomfortable task of addressing performance problems.

Even in the very best organizations, almost every manager will have to deal with at least one problem employee - uncooperative, emotionally unstable, chronically late, "just getting by" performance, etc. I hope falling stars represent only a small percent of your team. Yet just one falling star on your team can mean a great deal of your attention and time. Who suffers? Well for starters, the super stars. They need your attention to nurture their motivation. You will also suffer because you are not spending time on pressing issues. Eventually you will not be satisfied with the job you are doing, that is if you too are a superstar.

Sometimes when a team member consistently under performs, the manager assumes that he or she has failed as a coach and superstars hate to fail. Try this thought on for size - a good coach helps employees get to where they need to be by creating an environment for which their true talents and skills can shine. But ultimately, it's each employee's responsibility to decide whether to be a super star, a middle star, or a falling star. Truth is, you can influence that decision but you can't control it.

Falling stars can have a detrimental impact on your entire team. If you allow them to "skate by," you reinforce their commonly held belief that "the less I do, the less I'll be asked to do." And, since your team's work does not decrease, your top performers will be challenged with more work in order to pick up the slack. Not a good strategy! Coaching the falling stars - helping them improve, or replacing them with more productive people - represents the area with the greatest opportunity for enhancing the overall performance of your work group. But, most managers are not comfortable addressing employee performance problems. That's easily understood.

Performance issues are stressful, and many of us don't have the training and experience we need to deal with them. As stated earlier, because you're a top performer, you've probably had little experience with this type of coaching. Nevertheless, there still will be problems staring you square in the face.

Allow me to address the challenges you may be facing with the newest generation to enter our workforce, Generation Y. These fresh young faces have a whole different outlook on their work. Generation Y is often viewed as idealistic, with a high level of social consciousness. They’re frequently anti-establishment and are concerned about stress on the job. They are generally outspoken and make up the largest pool of young people in the job market today and tomorrow with a staggering 78 million in this generation! For them, promises of monetary rewards and overtime pay may not interest them as much as time off to attend a party, concert or just hang out with their friends.

Keep these facts in mind when coaching your Gen Y employee. They love to learn and be part of your team but will feel like an outsider if they are not encouraged to speak up and often. For them, the job is a means to great balance in their lives. Having an advanced level of tolerance for this need will create a better relationship. This generation yearns to be past of a company that is focused on building it together and having a higher purpose. They respond best to participative management and will value flex time. They want to work but don’t want work to be their life. If you have established a positive work climate, you have a decision to make with each problem. You can close your eyes, live with the situation, and accept the negative impact of your falling stars' lower performance. Or, you can conduct a performance improvement session in which the employee will either commit to your standards - or choose to ignore the problem and face the logical consequences. Of course, opting for the performance improvement session is your best decision. Take that path, and the rest of the decisions will be the employee's. And if the person chooses not to change, let him or her quit and seek employment elsewhere. Or, follow your corporate guidelines for formal discipline and possible discharge. Your entire team will benefit from the change.