Very soon I will have my 35th birthday.  Tonight I was on the phone talking to my Mom and Dad and they asked me what I would like for my birthday… (Flashback to being 12 again!).  I really couldn’t think of anything that I wanted or even needed.  If anything I have always been the person that if their birthday just came and went with nothing more than i decent meal I would be completely happy.

That’s when I stumbled across mycharitywater.org.  This has to be the coolest idea!  You can give up your (insert special occasion here) to raise money that will provide for clean drinking water to people in developing nations.

So this year I am giving up my birthday in the hopes that we can raise $5,000 that will give clean water to 250 people!  So if you would have given me a gift for my birthday, please donate to help us reach our goal.  It is also my hope that me giving up my birthday would be the catalyst for others that would not normally give me a birthday gift (or maybe don’t even know me) to donate to help this goal become a reality.

After all, we live in an amazing country that provides so much opportunity that other nations couldn’t even fathom.  Even in our current economy we have so much to be grateful for.  Take a moment to visit this site and learn more about this amazing cause.

http://mycharitywater.org/Patrick

I sincerely hope that you will make a donation.  After all… it is my Birthday.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

I have been using google voice for over a year and I am just now really digging into it. That is… Seriously considering using it as my main phone #. Here are a few reasons why:

1. Voice mail transcription – Google Voice will transcribe my voice mails to text and email and text them to me (transcription is not the best, however it is better than nothing when you are in a meeting and cannot check your voice mail right away)
2. One number for all of your phones! – this is the greatest feature. I give out one number and it can ring on any number that I specify (work, cell, home, etc) without having to give everyone each number.
3. Call Transferring – say you are in the middle of a call on your work phone and realize that you need to hop in the car to your next appointment… with simply pressing a button Google Voice will ring all of your other phones, you pick up and the call is transferred to your cell and you carry on the conversation as you hit the road.
4. Personalized voice mail greetings – imagine your spouse calls and hears “Hey honey, sorry I missed your call. I will call you back as soon as I can. I love you!” Google voice recognizes the caller ID and you can make a personalized voice mail for each contact. Imagine how special each client would feel with a personal voice mail just for them!
5. Google Voice Widget!!! – You can add a “Call Me” widget to your website. So when people visit your site, with the click of a mouse can contact you directly. Also, you can create a custom voice mail just for this widget! “Thank you for calling me on PatrickWWoods.com, sorry I missed your call….”

Here is an overview video on the awesome beauty that is Google Voice!

Click here to view the embedded video.

I wanted to give you another little boost to kick off your week!

“Practice isn’t the thing you do once you’re good. It’s the thing that makes you good.”
- Malcolm Gladwell (Outliers)

I am a HUGE Lance Armstrong fan! For all that he has accomplished including and after beating cancer… This guy is committed to the end result. I used the Malcolm Gladwell quote above because his book Outliers is amazing and it discusses why some succeed while others do not. Time on task.

So as you are working through your week, focus on the activities that will generate the best results and know that success doesn’t happen in a day, it happens day by day.

Click the video below to watch!

As always, your TEAM here at KW is here to help you accomplish your goals in any way we can!

Make this an AMAZING week!

P

Click here to view the embedded video.

You can see it in action here:

http://preview.kw.com/kw/

Click here to view the embedded video.

Now let’s make 2010 even more exciting together!

Check out what Gary had to say about getting focused on the things that matter most to your business:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Here are some additional highlights:

• Think BIG, start small. In order to achieve your goals, get to the essence of your professional craft and perfect it.
• Leads. Listings.Leverage. Until you get those right, everything else is a distraction.
• Agents are not in the business of real estate but in the business of lead generation.
• The key to success in this market requires you to ramp up your lead generation so that you take in 30 – 40 percent more listings!
  The models haven’t changed in the shift – only the tactics that you take to maintain those models to reach your goals.

Gary Keller, the author of “The Millionaire Real Estate Agent,” and co-author Jay Papasan, discuss how the Lead Generation Model applies to the market of 2009.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Gary Keller and Jay Papasan, the authors of “The Millionaire Real Estate Agent” discuss how the Economic Model applies to the market of 2009

Click here to view the embedded video.

Gary Keller and Jay Papasan, the authors of “The Millionaire Real Estate Agent” discuss how the Budget Model applies to the market of 2009.  This is based on the results of Gary personally reviewing the P&L’s of over 100 of our Top Associates.

Click here to view the embedded video.