Weekend Treat – The Worst Online Passwords, 80 Is the New 65, Time Spent Grooming by Men and Women and More!

Our weekend treat includes some interesting news and information, tips and quotes discovered along the way this week.  I thought you might enjoy them and maybe even learn something.  The possibilities are endless!!

·         A software security firm has isolated the 25 worst passwords to use online.  These include “123456”, “qwerty”, “letmein”, and the worst, “password”.  (ABCNews.com)

·         A British study found that men now spend 81 minutes a day on personal grooming, including shaving, washing, moisturizing and picking out clothes.  Women spend only 75 minutes a day on personal grooming. (The Week)

·         So much for relaxing in your sunset years, said Walter Hamilton in the Los Angeles Times.  Nearly three quarters of Americans say they expect to work into their retirement years, according to a new Wells Fargo poll of 1,500 middle-class Americans between the ages of 25 and 75.  A quarter of the respondents said they would need to work until age 80 to retire comfortably.  It appears that many Americans are “dangerously unprepared for retirement.”  On average, those polled had saved only 7 percent of their desired retirement goal and three in 10 people in their 60’s had saved less than $25,000. (Los Angeles Times)

·         “Gratitude is a quality similar to electricity:  It must be produced and discharged and used up in order to exist at all.” ~ William Faulkner (HuffingtonPost.com)

·         Of the top most innovative companies in the world from 2005 to 2010, 40 are from the United States, 27 are from Japan and 11 are from France, according to a new report from Thomson Reuters on patent activity.  (The Economist)

·          With college tuition soaring, few gifts will be more appreciated this holiday season – or down the road – than contributions to a 529 college savings plan, said Sandra Block in USA Today.  No other savings option “offers greater tax benefits.”  Your earnings on investments grow tax-free, withdrawals used for college expenses aren’t taxed and 34 states also offer state tax deductions.  What’s more, “anyone – parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles – can contribute to a child’s 529 account.”  If the beneficiary skips college or gets a scholarship, the account can be transferred to another child.  (USA Today)

·         “When your work speaks for itself, don’t interrupt.” ~ Henry J. Kaiser (Associated Press)

Remember to dwell in possibilities but be sure to have fun doing so!!
 

Cindy

How to Market a Product and a House

A recurrent “to be continued” theme is that gone are the days when you can just stick a “for sale” sign in the yard!  When a house goes on the market for sale, it is no longer the owner’s source of pride.  It has become a product for sale that needs to appeal to as many buyers as possible.

We came across an article recently that made the same point. 

“Like inventors and marketing professionals, home sellers are in love with their product (home). Many home sellers believe they have an excellent home (product) and that it is ready to market just the way it is. Unfortunately, this is rarely ever true.”

This article built upon the ideas in a basic product marketing approach and applied them to marketing a house.  This article presents a checklist template for how to market a house like you would market a product. 

For most of my Realtor partners and “to be continued” followers, this article (How to Market a Product) will be a refresher guide.  But there may be a nugget of an idea or an approach that is new and different.

Explore the possibilities of “How to Market a Product” at http://energizedseller.com/gralarticles/gralarticles/archive/2011/10/04/how-to-market-a-product.aspx .

 

Dwell in possibilities

Cindy

Thoughts and Reflections on Coexistence, Gratitude, and Thanksgiving

A few fun thoughts and a few reflections for your consideration and enjoyment.

·       Coexistence:  what the farmer does with the turkey - until Thanksgiving. ~ Mike Connolly

·         As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them. ~John Fitzgerald Kennedy

·         An optimist is a person who starts a new diet on Thanksgiving Day. ~Irv Kupcinet

·         Let us remember that, as much has been given us, much will be expected from us, and that true homage comes from the heart as well as from the lips, and shows itself in deeds. ~Theodore Roosevelt

·      Give thanks for unknown blessings already on their way. ~Native American Saying

·         He is a wise man who does not grieve for the things which he has not, but rejoices for those which he has."  ~ Epictetus

·         Thanksgiving is America's national chow-down feast, the one occasion each year when gluttony becomes a patriotic duty.  ~Michael Dresser

·         A thankful heart is not only the greatest virtue, but the parent of all the other virtues. ~Cicero

·         To speak gratitude is courteous and pleasant, to enact gratitude is generous and noble, but to live gratitude is to touch Heaven. ~Johannes A. Gaertner

·         Blessed are those who can give without remembering and take without forgetting. ~ Author Unknown

·         Thanksgiving is an emotional holiday.  People travel thousands of miles to be with people they only see once a year.  And then discover once a year is way too often. ~Johnny Carson

Thanks for your partnership, support and kindness. 

Dwell in the possibilities of thanks and gratitude.

Cindy

Roadside Treasures and a Rattlesnake

Recently, Walt and I took a trip to Angel Fire, New Mexico for rest and relaxation.  We met our goal and spent a lot of time napping, reading and enjoying the beautiful surroundings.  This trip also had its share of adventures and good stories, one of which is today’s subjec

Driving back from Angel Fire, I noticed lots of tumbleweeds blowing across the road.  Being from the Texas Panhandle, I’ve been around tumbleweeds all my life and I have always found them interesting

Since I am always looking for “out of the box” materials to use in my work, I decided to brave the 50 mph winds and pick up a few.  While gathering tumbleweeds, we noticed the dried yucca plumes that dotted the roadside.  Their substantial wood stalks and pods would make great winter arrangements.  So, I was back out there picking the pods.

We had a few spare inches of room in our SUV as we drove away.  We found another patch of really pretty dried yucca pods and decided to stop for a few more.

As I exited the car, I heard a noise at my feet.  After a few seconds, I realized it was a rattlesnake – recoiling and ready to strike.  I ran up the road out of harm’s way and Walt picked me up.  We drove back and took the attached picture of the snake that continued to rattle and threaten. 

I was extremely lucky to avoid a dangerous snakebite as well as to gather great staging and decorating finds.  Once again, I found possibilities in unusual places.

Dwell in possibilities but watch out for the snakes!!

Cindy

Weekend Treat – Tulsa’s AARP Award, Cave Painting, Instant Karma, Six Tips for Faking It and More

Our weekend treat includes some interesting news and information, tips and quotes that I discovered along the way this week.  I thought you might enjoy them and maybe even learn something.  The possibilities are endless!!

·       Tulsa was selected by AARP as one of this year’s 10 Affordable Cities for Retirement.  “Tulsans delight in how their city surprises outsiders — it's a small-city jewel, with an impressive art deco district downtown, first-rate art museums and plentiful green spaces.”  Read more about why Tulsa was selected as well as what they liked about the other nine cities (such as Winchester, VA, Portland, ME, and Gainesville, GA) at http://www.aarp.org/home-garden/livable-communities/info-07-2011/affordable-cities.html

·        The road to success is dotted with many tempting parking spaces. (Will Rogers)

·         In any two days, human beings create as much information online as it took our species to create in 30,000 years between the dawn of cave painting and the year 2003.  In another 10 years, that same amount of information will be generated in less than one hour.  (Reuters.com)

·        Instant karma, after Victor Giesbrecht, 61, stopped on a Wisconsin highway to help a stranger, Sara Berg, change a tire. After he drove off, Giesbrecht suffered a heart attack; Berg then stopped her car, and saved his life by performing CPR. (The Week)

·        We often take for granted the very things that most deserve our gratitude. (Cynthia Ozick)

·        Forget a Name? Six Tips for Faking It – Gretchen Rubin has trouble remembering names.  “So I've developed some strategies for coping with the fact that I'm not able to pull up a person's name right away. Of course, you can always just say politely, "I'm sorry, I don't recall your name," but if you'd rather try to disguise your forgetfulness.”  To learn more about her tips, check out Gretchen’s article at http://www.huffingtonpost.com/gretchen-rubin/remembering-names-tricks_b_1097518.html?ref=healthy-living

Remember to dwell in possibilities but be sure to have fun doing so!!

Cindy