There’s always something to howl about.

For Monday — An Eclectic Reading List

Andy Sernovitz knows how to generate word of mouth marketing. He’ll be speaking May 12th in Chicago at SOBCon 07.

His book is not only a must read, it may have the most impressive duo ever writing the foreword and afterword. Seth Godin wrote the foreword, with Guy Kawasaki writing the afterword.

He’ll be speaking at SOBCon 07. And if he’s good enough for Seth and Guy, he’s certainly good enough for me. πŸ™‚ Of course another speaker, Liz Strauss is one of the highest ranked bloggers in the world. Both of her blogs Liz Strauss dot Com and Successful Blog, each have huge followings. Though there are several other very impressive speakers, the trip is worth it just to hear those two speak. I urge you to at least take a look at the book, and the Strauss blogs to get a feel for how much you could learn through your attendance. Look for the BawldGuy, ’cause he’ll be there.

Jonathan Dalton wrote about an example of agents who don’t have a clue. His post offers empirical evidence of what pros like Jon must face on a regular basis. It’s maddening. I know because on my side of the street, investment property, we must deal with agents who read a couple chapters of some guru’s real estate investment book, then commence to bury their unsuspecting clients in criminally stupid deals. I bet after you read his post you could name several of your own examples.

For a neck wrenching change of pace, and a reminder your job as a real estate agent just isn’t all that difficult, go here and read what real day to day hard work is all about. The next time you’re out there plantin’ signs you’ll be whistling. Why? Because you wo’t be loading pigs on a truck using ‘Redneck engineering’ to get it done. It’ll give you some perspective for sure.

Athol Kay’s wife, Jen, is interviewed on Real Estate Wives (and husbands). She sets the record straight on the life of a dedicated blogger. After reading the interview it seems to me Athol made a very wise decision some years back.

For those of you with impeccable taste in computers, i.e. Mac users, you might, as I have, learn some pretty cool ways to do things you’ve always wondered about. mac OS X HINTS will surprise you with the depth and breadth of their hints. I’ve learned a ton in just the last few months.

And finally, I published a post this morning about the Flywheel Principle. Grandma taught it to me when I was just entering the business. Instead of a flywheel she used a stand of oak trees planted by a farmer needing both shade and a better view. Starting from just a small handful of acorns an entire row of the regally impressive trees now enhance the view and provide shade. It literally took years and years. He made use of the Flywheel Principle in order to ensure his success.