Have you ever walked into an office and felt that elegant confidence that is produced by a team of individuals who enjoy their occupation, excel at their tasks, and perhaps most importantly, thrive within an industrious and creative community? A rapport like this doesn’t happen on its own. While every individual in an office may nurture it, skillful and humane management is the key to the creation of strong community and high morale.

The hottest marketing term being thrown around today is "target marketing". People are making tons of money on this term. It is so ill defined, that no one can tell you exactly what it is. How big or how small it is. What the defining parameters are, how to measure it, or how to actually observe it. As business owners please don't fall into the trap of marketing professionals who tell you, "You are not targeting your market". Hell they can't even operationally define it. What's more, let them try to measure it.

When people ask about getting more traffic to their site, I usually ask, “What’s wrong with the people who are already on your site?” I say this because most of the time the answer to more leads is not more traffic —it’s better conversion.

Imagine, for a moment, a bucket with lots of holes in it. It doesn’t matter how much you pour into the bucket, it’s not going to hold water unless you patch the holes. Your website is the same as that bucket, only instead of leaking water, it is leaking cash. Without the right tools, it's hard to spot the holes so that you can fix them.

In today's competitive real estate market, it's important for sellers to put their best foot forward. Research shows that well-staged homes sell 50% faster than non-staged homes and for 3% to 10% more. Buyers are looking for the perfect home and staging helps make your home look ideal.

As a manager, when considering how to motivate others, understanding the internal nature of motivation is critical. Motivation, like attitude, cannot be worn on the outside like a raincoat- it has to come from within. As everything we accomplish is related to how we feel, our attitudes towards work, life and our goals are something we should be checking on the hour rather than by the year.

I have seen many real estate agents in this scenario. They leave one real estate company and join another firm or start their own company. When this happens, real estate agents go through the typical song and dance. They update marketing materials, Web site information, etc. Even if a real estate agent hits all the highpoints of their Web site (footer information, contact information, etc.) their old information can still permeate throughout the internet long after they are settled into their new surroundings.