REAL Exclusive Magazine

From the Publisher Ed Bertha

A new year. A fresh start.

Entering 2009 REAL Magazine expands in its never ending pursuit of All Things Real Estate. This month welcomes the introduction of Exceptional Properties and a doubling of our direct mail consumer distribution. REAL’s plans for the year are exciting as we continue to amplify our voice in the local real estate market.

In closing 2008 a keynote speech I gave at one of our networking events came to mind. Entering the new year its motivational message helps us appreciate what we have, get grounded in reality and focused on the journey ahead. I’ll share it with you:

“Your attitude determines your altitude. It’s how you react to what happens around you that determines where you will end up. When you think of problems you’ll only attract more problems. When you think of solutions you will create opportunities. Let me close this train of thought with Steve Jobs and his 12 rules of success.

Before I begin a little background on Steve. His success is legendary. However, do you know he was put up for adoption at an early age, dropped out of college after 6 months, slept on friends floors and returned Coke bottles for a nickel to buy food before starting Apple Computer ultimately leading to Pixar Animation Studios?

Steve’s 12 rules are:

* Do what you love to do, find your true passion

* Be different, think different

* Do your best, success generates success

* Make a SWOT analysis and don’t hesitate to throw out the bad

* Be entrepreneurial, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition

* Start small, think big

* Strive to become a leader, be the first and make it a standard

* Focus on the outcome, be a yardstick of quality

* Ask for feedback, each instance will tell you at least one useful thing

* Innovate, it distinguishes a leader from a follower

* Learn from failures, admit them quickly and move on

* Learn continually, there’s always one more thing to learn

That’s a powerful message from someone who could have just folded. There’s never enough time to do everything, but there is always enough time to do the most important thing. The question you need to ask yourself is what is the most valuable use of my time right now? That’s the key to productivity in today’s market. You can make it happen if you believe in yourself.

I do.”

Opportunity abounds. Seize it and make 2009 a year to remember.