Archive for the 'Opportunity' Category

Growing up I used to have many dreams where I was flying. In the dream it was easy. I would just jump and flap my arms a few times and instantly I was flying through the air. The cool thing was I could instantly fly over my house and down the street. I could go high or low and I could easily land on a rooftop or telephone pole.

I was like superman without all the fanfare. While these dreams were very cool and many times I would want to go back to sleep just to fly some more, I quickly realized that this was just pure fantasy when I woke up. As much as I wanted to fly, there was no current way to do it like I did in my dream.

In high school I had another dream. I wanted to be able to speak like Martin Luther King, or John F. Kennedy. I wanted to be able to motivate people like Zig Ziglar or Billy Graham. I had a whole bunch of words inside of me that I wanted to share with the world. Yet I was scared to death to get up in front of the audience.

In my dream public speaking was easy, but when I woke up, reality was a much different place. Through the years I just about gave up on the dream. Fortunately someone invited me to a Toastmasters group. In Toastmasters I was able to give my first scary speech in front of a group of supportive people. And you know what… I didn’t die!

In fact I actually did pretty good my first time out. I remembered most of my speech and I didn’t need my notes as much as I thought. The cool thing was, all those words that had been trapped inside of me for years had a way to finally come out. Within weeks I was doing additional speeches, each time with more passion and confidence. Toastmasters helped me take the fear out of public speaking.

While both of these dreams were pure fantasy at first, public speaking became a reality because it was a doable thing. Others had blazed a trail and all I had to do was follow. Someday we’ll all be able to fly. Someone will blaze a trail and come up with an invention that will free us all from gravity.

Maybe that person will be you?

But for now, personal flying is a fantasy. We can dream it but we can’t do it.

Are you pursuing dreams in your life that are realistic and doable… or are they just fantasies blowing in the wind?

As an example, I have many co-workers that play the lottery every week. They probably spend an average of 10 dollars a week or 40 dollars a month pursuing this fantasy. No one has ever won the lottery where I work, but people play just the same.

The interesting thing is, those same people could amass a fortune over the years by taking that same money and investing it in an investment account that compounds interest. The path is straight and the concept is proven, but many people do not follow it.

The choose fantasy over reality.

We have all seen the people that try out for American Idol that can’t sing. They have this misplaced notion that they have singing talent when they really don’t. It’s somewhat humorous but often just sad to watch them give it their all. Their singing fantasies just don’t come true.

I would love to be able to sing and participate in a TV show. But my natural talents don’t include singing. While I could spend many years with a speech coach trying to improve my singing voice, it would probably be better for me to pursue something that I’m naturally good at.

One of the best ways to find out what a person will be good at is to have them take a strengths test. The Gallup organization has put out an online test that will help you find out your top 5 strengths. It’s quick to take and the results can really help you see your areas of excellence.

The test is part of a book entitled Strengths Finder 2.0 written by Tom Rath. For under 20 dollars you get the test and a book full of helpful advice to take your individual talents to the next level. Researchers have found that you are much more likely to be successful focusing on your strengths rather than your weaknesses.

My five top strengths include, Ideation, Positivity, Learning, Futuristic, and Individualization. The materials in this book and on the accompanying web site have been very helpful in setting my sites on what is truly achievable in my life. Instead of just dreams and fantasies I now have a road map to reality.

Back in the late 90’s housing prices started to rise at a significant rate here in the United States. From California to Maine prices were going up at a steady clip. Housing had finally climbed out of a long recession and the future looked bright.

As we came into the new millennium, prices kept going, fueled this time by ever lower interest rates. Suddenly we were seeing home prices go through the roof. The previous year’s $200,000 dollar house was now over $300,000.

As prices rose, lenders were in a frenzy to keep up. Suddenly the average Joe wasn’t able to qualify anymore. Something had to happen to keep this incredible momentum going.

Lenders came out with all sorts of programs, from interest only loans to adjustable loans with a teaser introductory rate. The housing market continued its rapid climb. As the average price climbed over $400,000 in some of the hotter markets there was suddenly some additional problems getting people qualified.

Enter the interest only, subprime adjustable loan with a teaser introductory rate. This baby had it all! Almost anyone could qualify for this 1% introductory rate. In most cases this rate would last at least 6 months or a year… enough time for housing prices to rise again.

The lenders didn’t mind that most of their borrowers could not possibly qualify for this loan amount with a standard 30 year loan… hey prices were going up like a rocket. With the skyrocketing prices, if the customer couldn’t pay, they would just foreclose and make even more money.

Unfortunately the bubble burst in 2005-2006 as interest rates started to climb and previous buyers were starting to have problems paying back their loans.

Home buyers had bought a payment, and now that payment was going through the roof. Unfortunately for the buyers, that house with the $2000/month payment was now a house with a $3000/month payment. That $500,000 dollar house didn’t look so good anymore and was almost impossible to sell.

The buyers market dried up quickly and home prices started a steady decline. This started a snowball effect that rippled through the stock market as the subprime lenders found themselves with a mass of defaulting loans. Stock prices on companies that had provided these loans dropped like a rock.

But the pain didn’t stop there. Local and state governments that were used to the property tax windfalls that these high home prices had produced, were now seeing their coffers beginning to empty. New homes weren’t selling and local school districts were not getting their developer fees.

The snowball continues to roll with state governors (such as Arnold Schwarzenegger) announcing 10% or higher cuts in the state budget for education and needed services.

It’s interesting that allowing such unrealistic loans caused so much pain. Should we ban such loans in the future or will they come back again as the economy improves? Will we continue to sacrifice long term stability for short term profit?

We saw what happened in the late 1990’s with the herd mentality and the IPO’s of one Internet company after the other driving up stock prices. This time around it was the herd driving housing prices through the roof.

An interesting book on the subject is The Wisdom of Crowds by James Surowiecki. The crowd mentality in this case surely comes into question, as buyers were led into an unforeseen situation where costs went up and equity prices came down.

Unfortunately many people will lose their homes and others will be out of jobs because of this phenomenon. It really brings up the question… should you follow the crowd?

Blogging is an interesting endeavor. You put a blog up, customize your template, and start writing about stuff. At first it is fun, and the ideas come quickly. But soon the realization hits that to be a blogger means posting on a regular basis.

I’ve seen so many blogs pop up and then slowly fade away as writing becomes a chore and the writers lose interest.

Set Godin has an interesting post today about Have To vs Get To. He was asked if blogging everyday is intimidating or a chore, he replied…

I view it as something I get to do. I spend most of my blogging time deciding what not to post.

The best work, at least for me, is the stuff you get to do. If you are really good at that, you’re lucky enough to have very little of the have to stuff left.

When blogging becomes a Have To pastime, it’s not to long until the posting stops, and the blog is one of the millions in a frozen state of attrition.

As I near my three year mark in this phenomenon of online journalism, I am thankful that like Seth, I get to blog today.

I had an experience earlier in the week, where my web host had a network problem all day. I couldn’t login and my blog was offline for hours. It’s funny how you take things for granted until they don’t work.

I am thankful to be back online and to be able to write again. There are so many things to explore, people to communicate with, and ideas to share.

Thanks for joining in this thing we call blogging!

It’s an interesting fact that when people want to buy something they follow the crowd. They line up to buy the latest gadget from Apple, buy the latest clothes at the Macy’s, and rush to buy a new home when the prices are skyrocketing.

In the last few months the stock market has dropped dramatically and there is talk of a recession in the air. The price of homes have dropped to levels not seen in four or five years. New cars and trucks have incredible incentives. Yet people aren’t buying.

Why aren’t homes that were priced over $500,000 a short while back not selling at $300,000? Surely this same home is much more of a value now and the resulting property taxes are much lower. Why is the new home sales office empty when there were people camped out at the same office just a few short years ago?

It is an interesting dichotomy that sometimes people buy when things are overpriced and turn away in droves when they are a bargain. Why were people willing to pay $200 a share for Apple stock just a few months ago and now are having trouble buying the same stock for $130?

If we take a step back from the hype and marketing frenzy, there are some incredible bargains to be had. And the good thing is they are many different products available if we are willing to look.

The secret is timing… Buy incredible products, services, or stocks when no one else wants them. Since most things go in cycles, what is down now may surely go back up. Just be sure to buy quality.

Here are some examples of great deals that are available on a regular basis.

1. Cars: Why buy a new car when you can buy a quality used one a year old for an average savings of $5000? You still have the manufacturers warranty to fix any problems you may have and no one will really know the difference once it is in your driveway.
2. Homes: Home prices go in cycles. Just look back in history and you’ll see home prices complete a cycle in about 6-7 years. Buy at the bottom of the cycle and you’ll save tens of thousands of dollars.
3. Stocks: Stock prices go up and down at the whim of Mr. Market. The secret… Buy great companies at bargain prices. An interesting book on the subject is Rule #1 Investing by Phil Town. Phil will show you how to figure the “sticker price” of a company and then plan a strategy to buy it when it’s 50% off.
4. Outlet Malls: They have all the designer clothes that were super expensive just a few months ago at amazing prices. Shop here on holiday weekends and you may save even more. If you get on the mailing lists of the popular stores, you’ll routinely receive coupons in the mail for even better savings.
5. Celebrate Christmas on New Year’s: Can you imagine how much money you would save if you celebrated Christmas a week late? You can buy all the Holiday items at 50-70 percent off the day after Christmas including the tree. You’ll also save enormous amounts of money buying gifts in the after Christmas sales. Hey… you probably get New Year’s off anyway.

These are just some ideas to help you save a lot of money. And we shouldn’t forget the best shopping day of the year, Black Friday (The Friday after thanksgiving) where stores give things away under their cost just to get you in the doors (You will have to stand in line though).

I would love to hear of bargains that you have found!

I woke up this morning and realized something… it’s a new year and I still have problems. In fact most of the problems I have now I had last year.

Problems bug me.

Problems cause stress and keep me up at night.

Problems usually don’t go away by themselves.

So what can I do about my problems?

1. I can complain and gripe about them
2. I can forget about them (can I really?)
3. I can put them off to tomorrow
4. I can do something about them

Since the first three things in the list just make problems worse, I decided this morning to do something about them.

Here is a simple outline I came up with to tackle the problem(s)

1. Make a complete written list of them
2. Create an action item next to each one
3. Write down a name next to each one of someone who can help with the problem or keep me accountable to solve the problem
4. Put an expected completion date next to each one

It’s funny how writing them down takes their power away. They don’t seem so bad once they are in a list… especially when I have an action step and a name of someone who can help.

Oh… and I did one other thing… I crossed out the word problems at the top of the list and wrote in the space next to it opportunities.

Seth would be proud of me!

In a previous post I talked about my adventures of shopping on Black Friday. This year I had an enjoyable time and I did most of my shopping early Friday morning. I found a short line at Office Depot at 5am and spent about an hour in line. Not bad to save hundreds of dollars on a computer system. From there it was down the street to Staples to pick up some technology gifts and then off to the outlet mall for clothes shopping. Almost all of my shopping done in four hours.

The interesting and almost unbelievable thing this year was the line at our local Best Buy store. People had started to line up on Wednesday, two days before the sale. By Thanksgiving night there was a whole tent city in front of the store. I could not believe my eyes when I drove by at 9 in the evening. There were at least 20 tents or canvas awnings setup and people sprawled on the sidewalk in beach chairs and sleeping bags.

Maybe I’m missing something but the deals were not that great. You could save about $300 on a low-end Sony laptop, or get a flat panel TV for $899. There were deals like this at all the stores. I can’t imagine camping out for days for any of the deals in their ad. My time is much more valuable than that.

As I was standing in the short line at Office depot, I struck up a conversation with some of the people in line behind me. We wondered aloud why people would camp out for days for just so-so deals at Best Buy. What we came up with is a great business opportunity for some budding travel entrepreneurs.

Here is how it would work… Two days before the sale…

Offer free RV parking in the Best Buy parking lot.
Offer to stand in line while the RV’s are getting setup
Offer local catered meals delivered from local Pizza Restaurants
Offer Starbucks delivery service
Provide custom awnings for sun relief
Provide custom beach chairs with the latest wireless technology
Provide a party atmosphere with great music into the night.
Offer portable bathroom facilities.
Offer to sell the purchased items on E-Bay for a small commission.

This whole package could be sold for Best Buy’s all over the country. It wouldn’t take much time to get things setup and coordinated and if you had multiple customers you could make a tidy profit.

You could run a simple ad in the travel magazines such as…

Discover Beautiful Downtown Seattle
Camp at the Best Buy Store Downtown.
Three days -two nights.
Full accommodations, including high tech comfort chair, wireless internet, fully loaded video iPod, sun awning, as well as three fully catered meals including the best pizza in town and Famous Starbuck’s coffee. Come enjoy free RV parking and some of the most friendly folks in town. Party late at night. To top it off, you’ll save big on the latest technology!
Make your reservations today… only $295

This deal is just waiting to be setup… Success Begins at Best Buy