The Seller's Guide to the Buyer's EyeWritten by Elaine VonCannon
Continued from page 1 Interior Painting Paint your house in neutral colors: sand, magnolia, cream. Rooms look best with a yellow tinged base paint because this coloring reflects light and makes room seem larger. Avoid black ceilings, stenciling on walls, or painting your home in white so it resembles a hospital maternity ward. If there has been a previous leak in roof paint over water stains on ceiling. Fill in any nail holes in walls. Flooring and Windows Bold patterned or bold colored rugs should be removed. It’s best to keep floor coloring neutral for to appeal to many tastes. If there is cracked ceramic tile, or vinyl floors are scratched or damaged, replace flooring. Rugs must be freshly shampooed to remove any odors, and carpet holes and stains should be repaired and removed. Windows need to be cleaned and repaired so buyers can look outside unencumbered. If blinds are missing slats replace them or remove window coverings altogether. Bathrooms/Kitchen In kitchen, you may want to put a fresh coat of paint on painted cabinets, or if they are wood-- oil them. Check countertops for burn marks or stains, cut marks, etc. and replace them if it is necessary. In bathroom, make sure there is no visible mold. If there is, then bleach, caulk, or re-grout tubs, sinks and toilets. Details All clutter should be boxed up and stored. Do not place it in garage. Obtain a storage unit or Pod. Make certain closet doors open and close easily. Don’t forget to replace doorknobs, hinges, brackets, or other missing or broken items. This may sound like a great deal of work in preparing a home for market. This attention to small details will help your home sell quickly for a higher price. In some areas of country, you’ll even receive multiple offers for your home. Home buyers are not only ones who look at these details. Appraisers also tend to assign a higher value to property which is in good condition. If a property needs attention an appraisers price or buyer’s offer will reflect it. Obtain highest price for a home by investing some time, thought, energy and resources into details and you will be rewarded handsomely.

Elaine VonCannon is a REALTOR with RE/Max Capital in Williamsburg, Virginia, and she manages investment property as part of her business. Elaine is also an Accredited Buyer's Representative as well as a Senior Real Estate Specialist. She has helped numerous clients invest in and make money on property in Southeastern Virginia.
| | Dealing with Difficult PeopleWritten by Michael Beck
Continued from page 1
The Other Person Think about this for a minute… No one sets out to do a poor job. Everyone starts out intending to do a good job. They have a positive attitude and high aspirations. Nevertheless, sometimes things change. They become complacent, lose interest, and experience a drop in attitude. Why is that? Has that ever happened to you? I believe it’s happened to each of us at some times during our career(s). If you reflect back to that time, you’ll find one of two reasons for this shift. One reason is that work you were doing really didn’t interest you. One of great revelations in life is that just because you’re good at something doesn’t mean you enjoy it. Think about implications of this. It means that even if we’re really good at work we do, we may actually find it unenjoyable. Do you think that situation would affect someone’s attitude? You bet. Work would become unfulfilling. The other reason we might have become complacent, lost interest, and experienced a drop in attitude is that we became disillusioned with someone or something. Perhaps our boss or our company did something which lacked integrity or perhaps what we thought was true turned out not to be. In situations where integrity is an issue is there a way to make things better? Not in near term. Maybe never. In situations where reality of situation is a different one than was first imagined, is there a way to make things better? Maybe. Option 4 holds answer. Your Team It never fails. A manager tolerates a difficult person for an extended time, hoping they’ll “come around” and hoping to avoid a confrontation. Then finally something happens – some event or challenge - and they feel they have no choice but to confront them which, by that point, leads to a termination. And then manager is surprised at number of team members who come forth and comment on what a drag on team that person had been. They’ll speak up about their poor attitude or poor work ethic. And they’ll often add, “I don’t know why you kept them so long!” Don’t be fooled into thinking this difficult person was only affecting you. Your people are aware of most of things going on around them, just like you are. When you don’t address a difficult person - when you decide to tolerate them - your whole team is affected. In addition, ask yourself this: What does it say about you as a leader and what does it say about your integrity? If you say you value a certain set of traits and then allow opposite to exist, what does it say about you? Tolerating a difficult person doesn’t work in long run. 4) Work to Understand Their Motivation Option 4 - The key to success. This option is about being a leader and being an effective communicator. It’s about being compassionate and strong at same time. It’s about being good for someone rather than being good to them. It’s about understanding rather than telling. This solution is about taking time to understand other person’s motivation for acting way they do. If you’re effective at this, you’ll be able to either help them change their perspective on things or help them to move on to something that better suits them. This solution is about helping people grow and maximize their talents. How do you come to understand motivation for their actions and attitude? Just ask. Ask why they act way they do. Usually they’ll be more than happy to tell you. If their answer seems odd or incorrect, you need to keep asking questions to get at heart of issue so you can either shift their perspective or help them move on. Once you’re at core issue you have ability to make a difference in their life. It’s amazing what can come out of a sincere desire to help. How would you have felt if, at those times when you felt complacent with a poor attitude, someone took time to listen to you and offer some other perspectives? How would your life be different today if someone helped you see yourself and/or your life differently? As a leader, you have ability to make a difference in someone’s life.

Written by Michael Beck, President of Exceptional Leadership, Inc. a firm which develops high-performance leaders through leadership enhancement and executive coaching. Michael can be reached at 877-977-8956 or mbeck@XLeaders.com , and you can learn more about the company and these ideas at www.XLeaders.com Permission to reprint with full attribution. © 2004 Exceptional Leadership, Inc.
|