RawlsGroup.org

I’m going to go out on a limb here and declare that the sirens have sounded tonight, signaling a new beginning. The question of whether the worst of the market is behind us or yet to come may never have an answer. My personal opinion is that tonight’s determination of the next President of the United States is the first clear step to be taken in the direction of optimism in America. This optimism equates to confidence – the very ingredient necessary to move our country…and our industry forward. I suspect that tomorrow’s stock market will move forward with positive results; I suspect that every article written and every bit of news reported from here on out will have the new sound of hope bubbling up between every word. As an industry, we must take advantage of this hope and optimism by sharing every good word, every good statistic, every improvement in the DOW with anyone and everyone who will listen.

Whether you voted Democrat or Republican does not matter. Tomorrow the majority of America will wake up excited, enthusiastic and hopeful. For anyone to spend any time throwing water on the fire that was lit tonight would be foolish. Ride the wave of hope that will wake up with your clients tomorrow. Move your hesitant buyers off of the fence by painting a picture of the inevitable real estate comeback that is sure to follow the results of the election that was held today.

Nothing will happen that you don’t make happen. Barack Obama secured the presidency by knocking on doors. If that’s not beneath the president, then it shouldn’t be beneath you. Barack Obama took advantage of “the shift in the market” by sharpening his message, his value proposition…by consistently mastering the fundamentals of campaigning (prospecting). Shouldn’t you do the same?

Every day I read a message from a daily devotional titled “God Calling.” Yesterday’s message ended with, “Have a big Faith, and expect big things, and you will get big things.” Do not shrink away from what you want right now. Rather, commit yourself to the vision of your future more than ever. Ask bigger questions and get bigger answers.

“Think Big, Act Bold and Live Large.”

Barack Obama made history tonight. Let’s go make money tomorrow by helping people take advantage of the historic opportunities available in the real estate market today. After all, its not that “The end is near;” Rather, “The end is clear.” The bottom of our market, I think, just hit. Be among the first to believe this, not one of the last to hear.

Dear Agents…

As many of you know, I lost my grandmother last week. Mom’s death was the first significant loss for me in my 39 years. Giving a eulogy for her on Friday was one of the most difficult and rewarding things I’ve ever had to do. And in my personal reflections over the past week, I realize that the difference between sympathizing and empathizing is a powerful difference. From now on, when similar losses are endured by those I know and love, I will have a much more mature perspective and appreciation to offer simply because I have been there.

Being here in Austin this week for Mega Camp has been a huge part of my healing process. I’ve been with many of our Rawls Group team members and surrounded by nearly 6,000 of the best professionals that Keller Williams has to offer. I must tell you that my experience here leaves me as excited about my affiliation with this company as I was when we first started it 9 years ago in Atlanta.

For years, we have provided training to you that has emphasized “experiential learning” as the greatest and most impactful way to absorb, understand and grow. The leadership of KW continues to remind me why I love who we are as a company and what we mean to those who embrace our products, tools and events. Mega Camp has also reminded me that this company is a company that should be experienced firsthand so that you can truly empathize, rather than sympathize with all we have to offer our associates.

We have great team meetings and classes in our market centers, tremendous classes from KWRI master faculty here in Atlanta, cutting edge training available at the touch of a button on KW Connect, unequaled coaching through our MAPS coaching program, and great events in Austin and other cities, such as Mega Camp and Family Reunion…all of which are rarely experienced by the majority of our associates.

Have you ever been somewhere and seen something beautiful or amazing or funny or sad or revealing or entertaining and said, “I wish _______ could be here to see this!”? I know I have. It happens all the time for me. I wish Jean were with me to see something or I wish that Noble and Steel could experience something, but they can’t and I can only try to tell them about it as best I can.

And every time I come to something like Mega Camp, I sit and think about many of you who I know would be inspired by the messages and the messengers of Keller Williams. So I come home, as do your Team Leaders and some of your fellow agents, and I try to communicate the things that I believe to be the things I should share with you to breathe new life into your mindset and your business…secondhand. We also come back with hopes that we will inspire you and you will commit to being “here” next time and get what you need, firsthand.

I joined this company in hopes to experience it with you, not for you. All of us, myself included, can “plug in” at a higher level and get more out of this company every day. Consider this to be my personal invitation to join me in mastering and maximizing our experience with Keller Williams. The more we learn, the more we earn. Empathy has so much more value that sympathy.

We have a phenomenal new book called “SHIFT.” I believe that we are going to look back and see that this time in history may have been the tipping point for this company simply because we showed up with the right answers and the right efforts in one of the toughest real estate markets ever, and we created wealth and opportunity for all of our associates who experienced our value proposition.

Come into the market center. Learn something. Do something. And make something out of the opportunities that are abundant for the opportunists in our market. After all, what better investment is there than the investment in yourself?

With great appreciation…

Superstars…

2008 is proving to be a year of varied outcomes for our group. Some of you are having your best year ever, some of you are having your toughest year, and the rest of you are somewhere in between. In each category there are surprises.

Many of you on our team know me personally. However, there are lots of you who do not. Regardless, it’s important that you know one thing about me, if nothing else. “I care about you.”

When I decided to take the leap and open the first Keller Williams franchise in Georgia, it was due to a number of important factors:

1. I loved the amount of information that Gary Keller was generating for the sole benefit of the agents who belong to the company (Training).
2. I loved the fact that the Keller Williams model gave every agent the opportunity to have significant input into how the company is run, as well as the opportunity to share in the profits that are generated each month. (ALC and Profit Share)
3. I loved the fact that the above-mentioned components naturally create a behavior pattern that is not typical for our industry and, as such, could shatter the behavioral status quo for our industry with positivity, realism and concern for our fellow man. (Culture)
4. I also loved the fact that all of this could be created with a high commission split and value based CAP that would be gentle on lesser producers and more and more profitable for agents as they built their businesses (with our coaching, consulting and training).
5. Additionally, I loved the emphasis on the brand of the agents, rather than the brand of the company. And I believed that all of these components would allow me to put my gifts and passions in motion in an environment that would allow me to make a huge difference to anyone who chose to work with us.

I’ve always said that people come to Keller Williams for many different reasons. Some come for the commission split with a CAP; some come for profit share; some come for training; some come for the culture; and some come for all of it.

While the challenges of our current real estate market are difficult (different), I believe that most of the difficulty lies within us, individually. If the conditions of the market were the only factor determining outcomes, then everyone would be having the same results. The tough part about seeing someone else do well today is that it shines a spotlight on our own inadequate efforts to succeed.

This company, particularly The Rawls Family of Market Centers, has everything you need to arm yourself for a successful battle. We have phenomenal and dedicated leadership, we have amazing training, we have one-on-one coaching and accountability, and we have one of the largest, most productive and helpful cast of agents in the entire country (#79 to be precise!). If ever training were to mean something to you, NOW IS THE TIME.

If you want better results from your business, then you must do something different, unusual, uncomfortable. It’s not the market, it’s not your car, it’s not your clothes or your company or your church or your personal circumstances. It’s your personal choices of how you spend your time and who you spend your time on/with.

Like many others, 2008 could be your best year yet. You just have to decide for it to be a great year, and start behaving like someone having a great year would behave. In basketball, nobody gets a rebound with their feet on the floor.

I hope that you will look inside yourself and inside the vast amount of resources that we have in this company to make this year and every year a great year.

I am honored to be in business with you and I am exciting about succeeding in business with you. Thanks for being on my team.

If there is ever anything I can do to help you, call me. It’s why I love my job.