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No Time

Inspirations for Manufactured Housing Professionals, Uncategorized / By

Two workers worked in adjacent toll booths in the state of New York. One lamented her fate, feeling herself ‘stuck in a dead end job.’ Every day, she complained and protested, with a radio playing music in the background as she collected tolls and handed out receipts. The second worker spent the day listening to audio recordings every day. 8 years went by. The second worker’s wise investment of time and listening yielded a college degree, a positive can do spirit and a great new career. The first worker kept lamenting her fate, trapped in the same toll booth day after day, ‘stuck in a dead end job…’

…the above is based on a true story.

Buffalo NY toll booths, jacobenos2010-06-06_1906
How are you using your time? Buffalo NY toll booths, photo courtesy of jacobenos

It is amazing how busy we can become. It is also interesting how we can miss opportunities that are right there in front of us. We can get ensnared in our patterns of thought and activity. People many not realize the opportunities because we all have blind spots. For that reason, it is common to hear the statement “I have no time for ______” and we have all heard or used something to fill in that blank. “No Time” becomes the excuse.

At the very fine Wisconsin Housing Alliance (WHA) seminar held 11 days ago, Tim Connor shared the fact that the ‘average’ person spends 30,000 hours during the course of their adult life commuting, running errands and generally in driving mode. That seemed like a high number at first. But after a quick check, it certainly seems very plausible. Drive time alone represents ‘some time’ available for educational or inspirational listening. Imagine a person who used their drive time for listening to positive and useful information has the time needed for earning 8 college degrees!

So we all have plenty of time indeed! We simply have to look for it.

With the advent of MP3 players, IPods or the ability to burn CDs from internet downloads; a wise professional can effectively use that 30,000 hours of drive time. By listening to good information, you have the opportunity for building your skills or learning items you can share with your team. Let’s see, on the one hand…listen to the radio, or on the other hand, learn more to earn more.

Hmmm…kind of a no-brainer.

Are you already listening to financial or other news in your car, or while exercising or walking? Then you should also listen to Factory-Built Housing Industry News at Noon! Through a simple registration, you can now download feature articles each month from our online industry trade journal, PLUS you can download Factory Built Housing Industry News at Noon with Erin Patla. Or you can listen online from your home or office.

http://www.mhmarketingsalesmanagement.com/news-at-noon

Industry News @ noon graphic by Tony Kovach, photo courtesy of thisparticulargreg1
Erin Patla and Factory Built Housing Industry News @ noon Ipod graphic by Tony Kovach, photo courtesy of thisparticulargreg1

is our first of what will be Industry business news daily via download or online here at www.MHMarketingSalesManagement.com/podcasts/.

One loyal reader of MHMSM.com has already emailed in to say, ‘This (the podcasts) are a great service. I can listen to industry news and a feature article every day as I’m getting ready for work.’ (lightly edited).

Starting as a young man in sales, and on through my management career in this industry, listening to audio recordings while driving was and is a great way to learn new ideas, to stay refreshed on concepts or to get and stay motivated.

One business owner some weeks back explained in an email how he creates rewards and ‘a quiz’ for this team, to encourage them to learn and improve from the information they find here at www.MHMSM.com. Imagine having so many top professionals in our Industry available for reading OR now listening via podcasts!

30,000 hours of available time. How are you and your team members using them? You and your business are either growing or shrinking, there is no in between. You and your team are either getting better or getting rusty. There is no better way to knock the rust off the mental wheels than by challenging yourself and your team with good, positive information!

Besides, as another reader turned listener here put it, podcaster Erin Patla’s “…voice is simply delightful.” When my wife says that Erin’s voice is great, that is an important insight indeed.

Now you can read Industry news, or listen to podcasts of top Factory Built Housing Industry News at Noon, or do both!

The Industry is slowly turning an important corner. You can see it in reports and feel it. When would you like to start selling more homes? When would you like to start filling vacancies? Or doing better marketing? When would you like to have a team member improve their management skills? Doesn’t using drive time wisely make good sense? Does now sound like a good time to start these career building habits?

MHMSM.com News at noon Graphic by Tony Kovach, photo from tonythemis
MHMSM.com News at noon Graphic by Tony Kovach, photo from tonythemis

Sign up now.

Start your first download or start listening online at your home or office today. Actions speak louder than words. Think about those two toll booth workers…and think about the pros who will be listening as well as reading Industry news and views you can use. Will it be you, or your competitor that does the listening, learning, knowing and growing? Who will be stuck in the same rut? Why not take advantage of the opportunity for building a brighter future! Listen and learn!

Signing up for our podcasts may be quick and easy, but it is the best action you can take to making some of those 30,000 hours of drive time or other ‘down time’ pay of for you and your team. Some people make excuses. Other people take the steps to make good things happen.  Sign up and start listening. Enough said.##

The Meramec Ex. Once is not Enough

Inspirations for Manufactured Housing Professionals, Uncategorized / By

Are you an owner, manager, executive or front line in the manufactured housing or factory built home industry? If so, this is important for you and/or your team’s growth, development or improvement.

“Success is neither magical nor mysterious. Success is the natural consequence of consistently applying the basic fundamentals.” Jim Rohn

“Success is where preparation and opportunity meet.” Bobby Unser

In most areas of our life, we don’t do something once and expect it to work forever. We don’t eat once, sleep once, put fuel in your vehicle once, try to walk or talk once. We must do most things of value or necessity repeatedly.

To master something, we must constantly be monitoring our performance and/or that of our team, and then be willing to adjust actions to enhance our performance.

Repetition is a key to learning, communications and marketing. From business to sports to living or loving, doing the basics well and often demands attention.

You may be the top performing person in your role at your firm. If so, that’s wonderful. But how about in comparison to a competitor’s firm? To that new, rising star over there? Are you routinely advancing your skills and that of your team to stay ahead of the game?

One reason for sharing the critical importance Silver Bullet Challenge is precisely the points noted in the quotations in this post. When you learn and routinely apply the fundamentals, when you routinely prepare for improvement by reading, studying and applying what you learn, success or enhanced success becomes more likely; with persistence, success even becomes a given.

The importance of repetition was struck home for me on the drive across Missouri on the way to and from The Great Southwest Home Show in Tulsa, OK at the QuikTrip Center in Expo Square. On I44, you can’t help but notice the signs for Meramec Caverns. Billboards dot the landscape once or more a mile for dozens of miles in either direction of the exit for Meramec Caverns. A novice might ask, why do they have so many signs? Isn’t putting that sign up once enough?

No, it isn’t.

The Meramec Example tells us you must repeat a message many, many times if you are to get a successful outcome. The same is true in any endeavor. The first time you try to prepare a certain recipe, the outcome is not likely to be as good as the 10th or the 50th time you do the same recipe.

A key to the recipe for success is learning. Another key is repetition. Don’t just ask your team to read something once and expect them to get it. Don’t just read something important once yourself and expect to get it. Repeating and honing your skills in “The Basics” or fundamentals are keys to success.

Weight Reps by jesset23
Proper Repetition is a key to Success in any endevor. Photo by jesset23

We’ve all heard and believe that “Knowledge is Power!” if you want the power to succeed in manufactured housing and factory home building, come to where the experts share their wisdom here at www.MHMSM.com If you want to succeed, don’t just read once, repeat often!

“Success doesn’t come to you… you go to it.” Marva Collins

Come to or enhance your manufactured housing success. Read the tips of top pros. Repeat often. Come to www.MHMarketingSalesManagement.com a.k.a. www.MHMSM.com – if you want success for your team, organization or yourself badly enough – you’ll be glad you do this daily.##

Posted by L. A. ‘Tony’ Kovach – www.MHMSM.com editor

It’s About Time

Inspirations for Manufactured Housing Professionals, Uncategorized / By

Tick-Tock. Tick-Tock. The clock of time stops for no one. Tick-Tock. Tick-Tock.

It’s about Time. How will you use your time? The next 60 seconds? The next hour?  The next day, week, month or year? Tick-Tock. Tick-Tock.

Its_About time_tourist_on_earth_2010-03-14_1336
It's About Time - graphic by Tony Kovach, photo courtesy of tourist on earth

The woman in the photo is about to give birth.  She is in labor.  She is in pain.  The man holds the Clock of Time with a look that says so much.  Anticipation, concern, joy…much more.  The image gives one a Sense of Urgency.   It reminds us to Act swiftly with Good Purpose.

Our MH INdustry is in labor too.  As with any labor of new birth, we are in pain, as perhaps many industry readers and their enterprises are today.  There is a Sense of Urgency.  A new birth is both a crisis and an opportunity for a new start, a new life!

We could, of course, delay what must be done.  We could just let this new life die.   We could use some Excuses.  We could be react with fear. We could overlook the power that could readily change our image and our professional world. Out of some misguided fear or the paralysis of over analysis, we could wait too long, and the new birth that could be will instead be a death.  So with it, could die what could well be our bright new future.

Or we could embrace this new birth.  We could embrace the changes that have brought you here in the first place.  It is precisely new methods, new out-reaches and new approaches that have caused you to be here.  Think about it!

It’s about Time.  It’s about a new beginning.  While we’ve watched our industry shipments fall, did you realize that our market share for factory-built housing out of all new housing starts has risen? It has! HUD Code and modular have risen from about 5% market share some 3 years ago to about 20% market share today.

The best of the old, combined with the best of the new.  They can position us for a new birth that can lead factory built housing into the brightest possible future!

It’s about Time.  Time is the measure of Change.  It’s about time to embrace that change, and let this new life, this promising new future take hold of us.  The tools and the resources for that change – for the best of the old and the best of the new – are all found on these pages…

Its_About time_tourist_on_earth_2010-03-14_1336
It's About Time graphic by Tony Kovach, photo courtesy of tourist on earth

This woman can’t go back. She can only choose to move ahead.

It’s About Time.#

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– submitted by Tony Kovach, editor, www.MHMarketingSalesManagement.com, writer of the Masthead Blog and http://www.linkedin.com/in/latonykovach

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