I will tell you one other thing about many of my clients; most of them are exceeding their goals and many are having their best years yet.

I have clients in many different areas across the United States. I have clients in the Midwest, clients on the West Coast, and clients on the East Coast.

I work with agents that target many different price ranges and niches of clients.

I work with agents that are solo agents; I work with agents that have mega teams, agents that have been in the business less than two years and agents that have been in this business for over 30 years.

Most of my clients have been successful over the past year because they have really learned to do one thing extremely well. Work Expired Listings. Now three years ago, most of them where having success because they mastered working FSBO Listings, but they all really had the pulse of their markets and shifted their focus early and deliberately to Expired Listings.

On May 20, 2008 I did a TeleSeminar on working Expired Real Estate Leads. To listen to that TeleSeminar go to www.ExpiredRealEstateLeads.com

I will be sharing with you over the next few weeks what I shared with the participants of that TeleSeminar.

What I am NOT going to give you over the next several weeks is scripts and dialogs of what you need to memorize to say or what to send to potential listings. Most of you already have a "plan"� or "scripts"� or "�letters"� you picked up from a speaker or a book, or from your expired system or from the Top Producer Library. If you don't, you need something to start with. Go to Realtor.org and look up the article titled Prospecting Plan for Expireds. There is a copy of that article posted on the Tips Page at ExpiredRealEstateLeads.com.

What I AM going talk to you about over the next few weeks is how to take that plan from NAR, or one from another source, and adapt it to fit

· Your Market Area

· Your Style

· Your Individual Prospects

I am sure you enjoy the stories over the next few weeks of

• The City Agent
• The Suburban Agent
• The Rural Agent
  

Coach Cheri Alguire has coached hundreds of Real Estate Agents in many different market areas. To learn more about working with Expired Real Estate Listings visit www.ExpiredRealEstateLeads.com

www.ProRealEstateCoach.com

By Cheri Alguire

Why:

The real estate market is slower right now and more and more home sellers who want and need to sell are not doing so as quickly as in the past. This means there is a bigger pool of potential clients in the expired listings that pop up every day.

How:

The best place to find your Expired Listing Leads is through a program that will check your MLS System, double check them to make sure they have not been immediately re-listed, cross-reference them with the local tax records, find owners' names and contact information including telephone numbers, and then check those numbers against the Do Not Call List. Now, this can all be done by your administrative assistant, or by you, but that would be an extremely time consuming. It is best to use a service like the one at ExpiredRealEstateLeads.com

Who:

Your assistant can get the list - and apply a preset action plan - and even do the mailings to the Expired Listing, however, an experienced agent or team member that is experienced at calling leads and setting appointments must also be involved. Once the appointment is set, the agent do the listing presentation must be good converting that appointment to a signed listing contract. Chances are, you will be in competition for this listing and the potential client has already had their house listed for a period of time and they are clearer on what they want to see from their new agent.

Where:

The expired real estate listings you are going after will be in the Farm areas you work, in the areas and neighborhoods that are selling the quickest in the current market in your area, and in the price ranges that are currently selling the quickest in your current market conditions. It is imperative that you stay extremely updated with these ever changing market statistics in order to best direct your efforts.

When:

You need to contact expired listing leads immediately and continuously. This means your first contact should be the day the property comes up as expired. Many expired listing leads will want and need to get their house back on the market as soon as possible. It is also important to note that there will be a multitude of agents contacting this lead on the first day or two after it expires. For those leads that take time to make up their mind in who they will relist with, it will be important to have continued contact that lessens in frequency of contacts over the next days, weeks and sometimes even months ahead.

What:

A combination of phone calls, mailings, drop-bys and even emails when that information is available. Different people respond differently to different forms of contact and you are never sure which one will be the best method for this lead.

Remember, the goal of these contacts is to get the appointment and eventually the listing!

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Find out more about Cheri's Expired lead Program at www.ExpiredRealEstateLeads.com or www.CheriAlguire.com

While training for my half-marathon, I needed some knowledge of running fundamentals. In deciding to become a student of the game of running, I immediately headed to the nearest bookstore. Let me tell you, there are a LOT of books on running and I looked through every single one. In fact, I spent so much time at the bookstore browsing through running books; I got more than one weird look from the sales clerk!

Ultimately, I selected five books to begin my education on running a half-marathon. Out of those five, my favorite two were:

1. Absolute Beginner's Guide to Half-Marathon Training, written by Heather Hedrick, and
   

2. The Non-Runner's Marathon Trainer, written by David A. Whitsett.

Once I read these books, and the other three that I'd purchased, I also spent some time on the Internet. I took a lot of notes and, along with my trainer, eventually developed a training program I could stick to. Beyond that, the information I learned gave me the ability to see the finish line clearly. Before this, both the half-marathon and the actual running of it were nothing more than a fuzzy goal in my mind.

When you take the time to educate yourself, these fuzzy goals become clearer, make more sense, and you can finally begin to truly visualize yourself meeting them.

What I want you to do "“ RIGHT NOW "“ is make a list regarding your goals. I want you to answer these questions:

1. What is the category my goals fall in?

2. What information do I currently have on this category?

3. What else do I need to know?

4. Where can I go for this information? Think about the Internet, bookstores, libraries, coaches and/or trainers, and possible mentors that already have this information.

5. What do I hope to learn?

6. How will this make a difference in my meeting my goals?

As you answer these questions and seek the knowledge, you will gain power. Your goal will become more defined and you will be even more anxious to get started! Education is a strong motivator for success. Educate yourself first and success will follow!

Knowledge is power! Learning has never been easier. You can research practically anything on the Internet. Books have been written on virtually every subject known to man. Don't worry if you don't know how to do something "“ the information is out there to teach you.

Cheri Alguire is a real estate, business and life coach who partners with you to help you take your business and your life to the next level of success. For more information on Cheri Alguire's book 13 Lessons Learned in 13.1 Miles, visit www.13lessons.com For more information on Cheri Alguire can partner with you to take your real estate business to the next level, please visit http://www.CoachCheri.com

I can honestly say that "“ WHATEVER YOUR GOAL "“ learning the game, becoming a student of the game, will help you get you the results you want. Why? Because you will take the time to inform yourself of the path ahead, and by doing so, you will increase your chances of success by a very large margin.

Regardless of the event, the industry, or the focus of your goal "“ it is critical to learn about the game, the rules of the game, and the best way to meet the objective of the game. The only way to do this is to become a student of the game.

What does all this mean? Honestly, it's a lot simpler than it sounds! Delving in a little deeper, let's use an example of publishing a book along with an example of running. Say your goal is to publish a book you have written. You will want to follow these steps:

1. Learn About the Game: Determine the category your goal falls in. In the example of publishing, is your book fiction or non-fiction? In the example of running, are you interested mainly in getting fit or, do you need to know more about endurance for, say, a half-marathon?

Once you know the category your goal falls in, you will know where to begin gleaning information to educate yourself. If you have written a non-fiction book on Chinese Wedding Traditions, for example, learning about publishers that focus on fiction isn't going to help you much. Taking that a bit further, you will need to focus on the type of non-fiction book you are wanting to market.

Likewise, if you are mostly interested in endurance training, learning the ins and outs of strengthening your body for a half-marathon are most important on your list. While you could certainly receive worthwhile information by looking at fitness as a whole, you needed to focus more in order to truly "get it."�

Know your goal. Know the goal's industry. Know the category.

2. Learn the Rules of the Game. Okay, so you know the category your goal falls into. Now, it's time to learn the rules for that category. Again, using publishing as an example, you want to find the best publisher for your book on Chinese Wedding Traditions. Where do you start? What about the example of learning how to gain endurance for running a half-marathon? Where would you start?

Regardless of the industry, regardless of the category, there are people who have gone before you. Many of those people have written books, articles, created Web sites, and train or teach others how to be successful. These are the resources you want to tap! I recommend starting on the Internet because it's a free resource that can give you a ton of information very quickly.

After you've spent some time researching on the net, you may find books, audio-books, DVDs, or even organizations devoted to what you're trying to learn about. It's completely up to you how you choose to educate yourself at this point. You can join some of these organizations, hire a trainer or a coach, purchase a book or five, or any combination of the resources available to you that you want.

Educate yourself. Study the rules. Learn the rules.

3. Learn the best way to meet the Objective of the Game. You've spent some time educating yourself on the ins and outs of the industry and the category of your goal. You have a lot more information about this than you previously did "“ CONGRATULATIONS! Now, take this information and you apply it to your personal goal.

Back to our example of publishing a non-fiction book on Chinese Wedding Traditions, the research conducted should give a clear idea of the correct publishers that would be interested in this type of book. Along with this, the knowledge of how to approach these publishers should also have been learned. Now, you know the proper way to begin meeting your objective.

In the goal of running a half-marathon, you should learn about running in particular. How you need to train and what to do each step of the way, such as the best way to increase your endurance, stretching exercises for before and after you run, and additional tips that will help you plan your attack. All of this knowledge will allow you to better plan so you will be ready to run a half-marathon when the time comes.

Research the rules. Understand the rules. Plan your attack.

4. Becoming a Student of the Game. By following the above three steps, you can become a student of any game! This is the best way to achieve the goal in front of you, regardless of what your goal is.

You absolutely need to acclimate yourself as much as possible. This will allow you to SUCCEED, which is the point of making a goal, isn't it?

When you take the time to educate yourself and plan accordingly, even the seemingly most difficult objectives become easier to manage.

ü Learn About YOUR Game.

ü Learn the Rules of YOUR Game.

ü Meet YOUR objective.

People all over the world are learning new things every day. Education is an important facet in life, in all professions, and in almost every single thing we do.

When you were a child, you had to learn to tie your shoes. When you were a teenager, you had to learn how to drive. When you entered college and/or the workforce, you had to learn the rules of your surroundings. Our entire lives are made up of "learning the game"� and of being a "student of the game."� Meeting your goals are no different!

By Cheri Alguire

Running is like business. You can do it by yourself. You can do it with a group. You can do it anywhere. Other than a good pair of running shoes or possible a telephone, you don't need any special equipment. With these facts in mind, I figured learning to run or running a business wouldn't be that difficult. After all, running is one of the most popular forms of fitness and there are so many small businesses out there. It couldn't be that difficult with so many people involved in the sport, right?

Wrong! When I decided to get out there and just do it, I found it far more difficult than I'd anticipated. Who knew running (the sport or running a business) would be so hard? I realized, quickly, that I'd not only underestimated the sport itself, but my own ability to acclimate by just doing it.

You may find yourself in a similar situation, depending on what your overall goals are. It's not fun feeling like we're in over our head and goals are ripe for this. What do you do if this happens to you? Basically, you have three choices:

1. Give up. Wow, this is so much harder than I thought! I was completely deluding myself into believing this is something I could do. No way can I accomplish this goal at this time in my life, so I'm going to set it aside and focus on something I feel more comfortable with.

2. Blindly forge ahead. Okay, so this is harder than I thought, but that's alright. This is my goal and I'm determined to reach it, so I'll just forge ahead. Eventually, everything will sink in and I'll be more comfortable and everything will be fine.

3. Learn the game. Maybe you're feeling a little discouraged, but you're not ready to give up. You're also not ready to forge ahead without more information. So you decide to learn the game, inform yourself, and then plan your strategy.

What are you learning to "run?"� You might not be learning to run long distance, but you might be learning to run your business in slower economic times. Or you may be learning to run your Real Estate Business in a Real Estate market that is so very different than when you first learned it.

What are you going to do? Give up? Blindly forge ahead? Or learn the game? The choice is yours to make.

----------------------

By Cheri Alguire

With the average days on market up in many markets across the county, more and more Expired Listings are showing up on a daily basis. Expired listings are a great lead source, but only if you have a plan to work locate, follow up with, list at an appropriate price and then market properly so that it will attract buyer leads and then sell.

You can find Expired Listing on your local MLS system, or you can use a program like that one outlined at www.ExpiredRealEstateLeads.com that will do much of this initial research.

Then what? We will be talking about that in the weeks to come. Below you will find some information from NAR. What do you think about this plan? How would you modify it to fit with your market? Your style? Send me your comments and we will review that next week.

Prospecting Plan for Expireds

www.realtor.org

Use this plan as a basis for prospecting for expireds. Add other successful strategies you have tried as you learn more about what is most effective in your market.

Locate Expireds
You should spend 30 minutes each morning, as early as possible, printing out a list of expired listings from the MLS.

• Focus on expired properties in your market area or that you feel have a strong market appeal because of price or features.
• Keep track of how long properties that you consider particularly salable have been on the market. If you learn that a listing is about to expire, offer a referral fee to the listing salesperson to let you negotiate a new listing with the seller prior to expiration. This gives you the inside track.

What other lead sources for expireds have you found helpful?

Develop a Tracking System
You often will need several weeks of contact before you can convert an expired to a listing. Once they've had a bad experience with another real estate practitioner, expireds may not be immediately receptive to a real estate practitioner. You will need to demonstrate to them why you're different than their prior salesperson.

Your tracking system should include:

• Name, address, and phone number of expired
• Information on the property from the MLS, including previous list price, and, if possible, days on the market.
• Date that the listing expired and previous salesperson.
• Date, time, medium of every contact, and response with an expired, in chronological order"”for example, phone call at 9 a.m. on 9/14, offered free comparable market analysis. If you do mailings or e-mails to expireds, be sure to include those contacts in your tracking system.

By Cheri Alguire

Are you sick of all of the bad publicity you hear on the news about the Real Estate Industry?

Are you sitting on a bunch of listings yet not had a sale in months?

Are buyers running you all over the place and then too afraid to put in an offer?

Wondering if this industry is worth sticking it out for any longer?

If you answered yes to any of the above questions, then it may be time to make some lemonade.

• Yes, there has been more bad publicity about the bad real estate market than we can even keep up with.

• Yes, days on market are higher than they have been in a very long time in many markets across the country.

• Yes, buyers take more work and listings take more work and even after more work, many times nothing comes from it.

• Yes, there are a lot of lemons!

We all know what we are supposed to do when life (or the real estate market) gives us lemons. But do you want to make lemonade? Are you willing to stick it out? Are you willing to go through the messy process of making lemonade? It is not as easy buying that premade lemonade. It is not as convenient, it takes a lot longer, and it can be sticky. The first thing you need to do is to decide that yes, you are going to take these lemons and make lemonade. It can't be a half-hearted attempt, that won't do! If you don't want to make your own lemonade, don't really care for lemonade and aren't willing to go through the process and work, then it might be time to find another way to make a living.

Harsh? You bet! I will not sugar coat this or say that it will be easy.

Can it be done? You bet! And it can be wonderful.

The first thing you need to do, in order to make lemonade, is to commit!

Once you have decided to make lemonade, there are many recipes to making the sweet beverage. To make it in this kind of a market, there are many recipes an agent can follow.

Not sure where to start? Why not start with one of these ingredients:

• Expired Listings
• First Time Home Buyers
• Investors
• Short Sale Listings
• Builders
• Bank Owned Properties

Remember, there are many other ingredients that are common in today's market:

• More agents are getting out or not even entering which means less competition
• Sellers are not putting pressure on you to discount commissions
• Interest rates are low
• Both buyers and seller realize how valuable your services are in this type of a market and value you as a professional

So, are you going to make lemonade? Or are you considering something else until the market turns around? Or both?

In order to celebrate this market, I am offering a very limited Group Coaching Program: Real Estate Lemonade Making. Sign up to listen to the free preview call on Wednesday, March 5^th at 10:00 am PT/1 pm ET at http://www.prorealestatecoach.com/pages/contact-us.htm

Cheri Alguire has personal coached hundreds of Real Estate Professionals in all types of markets. She has been active in the Real Estate Industry since 1988 and has personally coached Top Producers, Rookie Agents, Owners, Brokers and Managers. Find out more at ­­­­www.ProRealEstateCoach.com

We have all heard the word "Accountability" used around goal setting, but why? Is it really that big of a deal? Can't we just do it on our own?

Think back to all the goals you've ever made - from the simple ones to the large ones. Which goals were achieved and which weren't? Make a list of at least ten goals you can think of, writing "MET" or "NOT MET" next to each one. This visual exercise may help you understand at least one of the reasons why the NOT MET goals were - well, not met.

My guess is your MET goals were accomplished with the help of at least one other person. A friend, spouse, parent, or colleague who was in on your goal, perhaps because it was a goal they shared with you, or perhaps only because they were interested in you and how you were handling it. Regardless, every time you bring another person into a goal, you have a better chance at realizing that goal.

Without accountability, most people are likely to forget why it was so important to them, quit progressing toward it, or simply decide it's not worth the hassle. However, with accountability - meaning you know exactly what you want, when you want it, and there is at least ONE other person who has the same knowledge - guess what, you will more than likely continue toward the finish line.

While humans are really good at admitting defeat to themselves, they are far less able to admit defeat to another person. It's actually (in most cases) easier for them to keep working toward their goal just so they DON'T have to admit they "gave up" to another person.

Accountability works for the following reasons:

• Shared Intention - When you share your intention with others, it becomes more real to you, which raises the stakes.
• Responsibility - By confiding in another person, you're claiming responsibility to the goal you want to pursue. This creates a more focused outlook as you pursue your goal.
• Ownership - Own your goals by bringing another person or persons into the loop. When you take control by placing ownership on your goal - success is far easier reached.
• Commitment - Simply by communicating your plan with others forces you, like little else does, to commit. You know they'll be asking about your progress, checking in to see how things are going, and they'll be very interested in the entire process. You almost have no choice but to commit at this stage!

So who can help you keep accountable to your goals so you can move them from the UNMET to the MET category? Do you need an accountability partner? Do you really own your goals by bringing another person into the loop? Who is that person going to be? Just make sure it is someone who will really stretch you, and won't hold you back to their level. It can be a friend, colleague or professional coach. Whoever it is, make sure they will REALLY hold you accountability to setting and moving those goals to the "MET" category!
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Small Business Coach Cheri Alguire partners with Working Moms, Small Business Owner Moms, and Real Estate Moms to hold them accountable to creating and following the plan that will take their businesses and their lives to the next level. Find out more at www.CoachCheri.com and www.RealEstateMoms.com

The following article was in Rismedia this morning. I agree with all five points (especially number 5.) What do you think?

5 Secrets for Industry Success

RISMEDIA, Feb. 1, 2008-Many Realtors® often forget that they really have two jobs - the first is to do what they get paid for (and do it better than others they are competing against). The other is to manage their career path and do what is required to ensure their upward mobility isn't dependent on others who may or may not be working in their best interest.

Below luxe real estate guru Robert Jenson, founder and CEO of The Jenson Group of RE/MAX CENTRAL - offers 5 tips to help aspiring real estate professionals better foster their career success:

1) Have a Plan

Create a Strategic Business and Marketing Plan for the whole year, starting now. Successful corporations have such plans, so why shouldn't you? In this industry, the old adage rings all too true: "fail to plan, plan to fail."� Indeed, plan out your activities and strategies by days, weeks and months. Where will your leads come from? How will your service dazzle customers into referring you all their friends? Come up with a detailed plan, and go over it with your broker affiliate and others in the business.

2) Work the Plan

You can have a precise road map to a treasure chest, but with no gas in the tank, you're not going to make it. Do you have an accountability partner - someone that you exchange goals and objectives with on a regular basis to help keep each other on track? This person might be another agent, your spouse, or a friend or family member - someone who will hold your feet to the fire if you fall short. This can be a fun way to help get you that extra bit of motivation.

3) Dress the Part

One's "presence"� plays a big part in one's success - or lack thereof. In a nutshell, presence is a combination of how we look, how we carry ourselves and our communication skills. Carry yourself with best posture and wear attire that imparts your success - or that which you desire.

4) Role Play

Condition yourself on how to react - or not react - to stressful situations. Have someone role play with you in these dreaded scenarios so that you're not at a loss for words, and that you choose the right words: "We want to cut your commission!,"� "We're interviewing other agents,"� "The other agent said they'd give us some of their commission, ok?"� Role playing scripts & dialogues on a regular basis will keep you calm, cool and collected when the heat is on.

5) Hire a Coach

Ready to take your career to the next level? The career coaching business is booming, and with good reason. Objective advice about how you conduct business, and how your business endeavors affect your "whole life balance,"� can do wonders. Tactical advice will help you overcome hurdles that lie between you and the proverbial pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. Take your time and speak to other agents who have used various programs before you commit. It's sure to be a great investment in your future.

by Cheri Alguire

By Cheri Alguire

1. What do you want? Be specific.
2. Is the goal stated in positive terms?
3. What are the logical and chronological steps you'll need to take in order to achieve this goal?
4. Is the goal within your control?
5. What stops you from having this goal right this instant?
6. What kind of person (behavior, attitude, etc.) do you need to be to attain this goal?
7. How will you handle potential obstacles?
8. Is the outcome harmful to anyone?
   

• WHO - Who is involved in the goal?
• WHAT - What results do you want?
• WHERE - Where is this goal in your life? Is it a career goal? Where in your career does it fall? For example, if your goal is to increase awareness of your business, it falls within the marketing aspect of your career.
• WHEN - What is your time frame for this goal? When do you want to see the results?
• WHICH - Which steps are needed to achieve the results you want? Are there obstacles? Name them.
• WHY - What are your reasons for accomplishing this goal? Be specific.

Are your goals for 2008 SMART goals? If not, it may be time to rework them.