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Interest In Others, The Keystone of Good Networking

Over and over in this life I've come to the conclusion that the best thing we can do for others if we want to help them and ourselves, is take a real interest in them.

Yesterday I was talking with my photographer friend Rachel.  We have been in touch over the last few months via email which is great, but yesterday she emailed me something that prompted me to call and I'm really glad I did.  I'll explain what I mean a bit more below.

Nothing can take the place of good ole fashioned live communication, let me tell you.  It can be a little awkward feeling at first, especially when there hasn't been much live discussion for months or even years.  When the reconnection occurs, though, I always find it interesting how happy the other person is, generally speaking, to hear from me.  It's heartening really, and I always silently kick myself for letting the "line" between us sag.

Rachel did our wedding pictures and we also worked together at Earthlink back in the day.  So we had some things to catch up on in terms of who is doing what and all that which came easily.  Once that kind of chit-chat is over, though,  I usually find the conversation will come to a pause and at that point  people will often say "well, good talking to you, stay in touch, etc., etc." and end off.

It had been a while, so I wanted to know more about what Rachel had been up to and where she saw herself heading.  As it turned out, she had just been reviewing that question herself. 

Panama Real Estate Value Holding

Link: English News Panama | Real estate market holding | Estate, Real, Market, Carlucci, Ocean.

The Panamanian real estate market appears to have escaped the debacles of the real estate sector in the United States, Spain, and England, along with the financial crisis brought about by high-risk mortgage lending in the U.S.

"The Panamanian real estate market remains competitive," said Iván Carlucci, former president of the Asociación de Corredores de Bienes Raíces. This is due in part to a cyclical situation that's helping the local market, he added. The favorable exchange rate for euros has attracted many European investors.

At the Salón Inmobiliario de Madrid, one of the world's main real estate conventions, which ends today, more than 30 companies are representing projects in Panama, which Carlucci suggested is a sign of the continuing strength of the market here.

If sales at the The Trump Ocean Club are any indicator, Carlucci might be right. As of March 31, 753 of 1,053 units had been sold for a sum of $322 million, according to a report from Bear Stearns, which structured the financing for the project. In its report, the investment bank also noted that Ocean Club sales appear to be unaffected by the problematic dynamics of the U.S. real estate market and economy.

Bear Stearns recently had to be rescued by federal government in the largest bailout of U.S. securities firm in history.

Americans remain the biggest group of people who have bought into the The Trump Ocean Club, but major interest in the project has shifted to buyers in Venezuela, Canada, Europe and Russia.

The importance of the Ocean Club, Carlucci said, is that it puts Panama on the world real estate map.

Virtual Asistants--Some Feedback

Been meaning to do a post on this virtual assistant phenomenon lately.  If you don't know what I mean, there are firms offshore (and individuals in the States) now that will let you have an assistant for 20 or 40 hours a week, let's say, at a very affordable rate.  They are committed to your business for the contracted period.

Typically these are MBA-quality people in the case of those in India.  They are adept at research, digesting information, preparing it for presentation (powerpoints, etc.) and that sort of work which would not require their physical presence.  If you consider it for a moment, this could be an awful lot of things which traditionally can get in the typical executives hair and distract them from income-producing activities, such as:

• Travel arrangements
• Copywriting
• Various creative services
• Legal work
• Administrative duties of almost any shape and size
• etc.

This is a growing profession and according to Wikipedia, has between 5,000-8,000 members (VAs) in the States.

A business partner and friend recently used an offshore VA for a month.  I was dying to know how it went since I had just read a book about VAs and it seemed very innovative as a way to get more done without having to take on a lot of salary.  Greg, my friend, said you can get a VA overseas for about $1,000 for 40 hours of work, if I'm not mistaken.

We caught up today and had a quick Skype chat where I asked him how it went. Here's what he had to say...

How Strong Are Your Customer Relationships?

The first person I spoke today on the phone was my friend Mike.  He's got a business selling a certain kind of automotive part to auto shops and the like.  He does very well for himself and I often like to hear what he's up to, but today was particularly interesting because he was under attack.   And let's face it, there's nothing quite as invigorating as a good fight!

Tracking Customers and Contacts

One of the most important things you can do is track your clients and/or contacts.  There are about as many programs out there today which supposedly help one to do this as there are people to track.  ACT!, Outlook, Goldmine, Salesforce.com. These are just a few.

One of my personal favorites, lately, is one called Highrise HQ, by a company called 37 Signals.

Warming up the engines again...

Been hard to get to the blogging lately, so much going on.  But stay tuned...more coming soon.  Just wanted to check in here, dear reader, and let you know I'm still alive and well!

How Marketers Can Profit from the U.S. Currency Collapse

"There's never been a better time to be an entrepreneur."

This is a blog I just stumbled upon and I'm loving it.  The author leans on historical ad copy and provides a commentary on why it was or wasn't successful at the time.  Often lines can be drawn to present ad copy and various correlated points can be made.  In any case it's good stuff for anyone who has a penchant for writing ads or headlines.

Link: Informarketingblog.com

Movie Review: 3:10 to Yuma

I was all prepared this evening to write a bit about opportunity--maybe even something inspirational.  Alas, I am finding, at this late hour, I'm not quite up to it. 

So, let me tell you about a movie Christine and I escaped to see last weekend, 3:10 to Yuma.

Western is one of my favorite genres, particularly when it it's a well-produced flick.  3:10 was no exception. 

Russell Crowe plays a bad-arse killer, Ben Wade, who only reaches for his gun a couple of times in the movie, but when he does, it almost leaves you breathless.  He's ruthlessly efficient with his pistol, aka: "The  Hand of God."  One of the questions you find yourself trying to answer is whether this dyed-in-the-wool  robber-assassin has any good left in him.  (I'll let you decide after you see it for yourself.)

Christian Bale plays the role of a family man who has to make some really tough choices.  The ranch upon which he bet the last of his meager savings is not faring well due to drought.  He has a pretty wife and two sons.  The eldest is not sure his father is wholly a man--and in fact he is not, having lost a part of his leg in military service, much of his self-esteem with it. 

Bale's and Crowe's two characters converge on each other as a matter of fateful circumstance and their lives become intertwined.   The one-legged, struggling rancher finds himself in the undesirable position of being the only man (eventually) left to bring this unstoppable killer to justice, by making sure he travels the 40 miles (according to Google Maps) from Bisbee, AZ  to Contention for the 3:10 train to Yuma.   While they are traveling by horse, they are slowed in their progress by plenty of adversity, not the least of which is Ben Wade's ability to eliminate those in his way with more than just a gun.

The result is a movie that pulls you in as you attempt to decode what these two men are  really all about and how is this crazy merger of personalities and circumstances going to end.  Is Ben Wade really pure evil or, in the end, basically good?  Why is Bale's character apparently so Hell bent upon a path that could only mean certain death for himself and his eldest son?

Lace it all with some good ole Western dialogue and six shootin' action and you've got a movie which left at least yours truly happy he rode into town and hit the theater. 

Making Virtual Teams Work

Interesting article.  Probably should have posted it to my Life and Technology blog, but it's kind of appropriate to opportunity and business development too. 

Link: The Future of Work Weblog.

Professor's Gratton's article reports on a research study she and her colleagues recently conducted to identify "best practices" that contribute to the productivity and performance of distributed teams. In brief, she offers eight specific guidelines:

1. Invest in an online resource where members can learn quickly about each other.