Monthly Archives: February 2005

Testimonial Talents – Securing Sweet Somethings

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As Valentine’s Day approaches, you cherish the sweet little things your loved ones say to you… but do you keep a file of the nice things your satisfied clients say? You should. Word-of-mouth marketing is essential for real estate success, so why not help spread “the good word” yourself? If you think that you don’t have testimonials, you may not be looking in the right places. If you don’t have a file in your marketing folder called “testimonials,” chances are good that you are missing golden opportunities.

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Unsecured Networks Abound Especially in Real Estate Offices

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I’m not a hacker. I stay on top of technology as well as I can between all my other duties, but I don’t hack. I know “white hats” and “black hats” and I know there are legitimate hacking endeavors… but it’s not for me. I despise people who take joy in making work and causing headaches for others. It’s wrong. Period.

Now, with that said, I find it amazing how many wide-open networks are available all over the place. Just out of curiosity, I drove around the local town here, with my laptop open, searching for open networks. It took me less than ten minutes — even in this rural area to locate one that was completely open to surfing the net, downloading e-mails, viewing their network computers, shared files, printers, shared resources, etc.

And I must admit, from a couple hours of poking around, I discovered that real estate offices are probably one of the worst for this.

In one case, I could see the network, identify all the computers and even access the resources, files and printers in two of the computers. I couldn’t stand it, so I went into one of these local offices to tell them. I identified myself and asked who handled their computer services and networking. Not surprisingly, I was told a “friend” set them up.

When I told them that they were running “wide open” – I was told, “yeah, we know, but you can’t get past the main machine, you can’t get past our firewall.” I told them that, actually, I could – and that I not only had access to some of their files and their shared resources, but that I also had information about their network and the computers, including the names of the computers and how they were connected and that the computers were automatically assigned and that I was on their network at that moment.

He appeared suspicious … like I’d just handed him a crumpled up brown paper bag and said “Go ahead, open it, I dare you.– So I told him that I was doing a little survey and that real estate agencies, in particular, seemed to be at risk from wireless networks, and that I just thought he might want to know.

He thanked me, nodding and waited for me to leave. He never asked me how to secure it, he never asked me anything. So, I left.

I guess my point is, that there are so many people with laptops these days, and that some of them may also have malicious intent. If your network is wide open, close it.

It only takes a few moments to set an encryption key. And that makes it much more difficult to become a victim.

Now maybe you don’t care either, your files aren’t confidential and someone hacking into your systems and destroying your ability to use them properly is not a showstopper. Personally, for me, it would be. I run 128-bit encryption on mine. Call me paranoid.

A Rant on the State of the Union…

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Ok, my age is getting ready to show in NEON colors… but what’s up with kids today? In particular, young ladies (and I use that term incredibly loosely — pun intended). And as recently as yesterday, I thought that young men were the ones most out of control these days…

Is it because our society encourages makeup before puberty, heels and bras before middle school, and a vocabulary that begs for mouths to be washed out with soap?

Today, my seven-year-old daughter got off the bus and was glowing with news about what a wonderful day she had enjoyed.

Her Poppa and I had secretly ordered two valentines from a school fundraising project and they were both delivered to her today. She asked me to read them and told me they were in her backpack pocket.

I unzipped the pocket while the pack was still on her back and pulled out two Valentines, one from Wayne and one from me. She said there was another one in there, a red one, but the only thing I saw was a sheet of notebook paper with red writing in large, permanent marker. So, I opened it up.

I was NOT prepared for the “note” contained within. It was from two girls on the bus, and was being “transported” by my daughter to my sixteen-year-old son, because my son had missed the bus on his first full day of school in the new school system.

The words contained in that letter, and the implied and blatant offers would only be bleeped out by my content “nanny” on this blog – if I still have that flipped on — so I’ll spare you.

But in the course of about two paragraphs this large kindergarten-styled handwriting offered him certain oral feats, inquired whether or not he had drug habits (two mentioned by name) and called him “sexy” and asked if he was interested in…. well, you get the idea.

Now, having informed my son of this situation, I’m the enemy. I told him that I’ll be taking steps on it, because I will NOT have my 7-year old — who is just now able to read most words that she sees, incidentally — carrying such smut for anyone.

And, furthermore, I don’t want HIM getting these notes, much less have them transported by my daughter.

So now, I’m ruining his life and ensuring that he never fits in.

Is it horrid of me to hope that’s true — especially with girls like THOSE?

Google is a Fickle Finder: Marketing Websites, Keyword Phrases and the Search Engines

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Just last week, my blog was coming up on the first page of Google for, of all things, “mean things to say” as a search term… and even before I could determine if I was happy to be at number three on Google or merely alarmed to be “made famous” for that particular phrase… it was gone…Marketing on the web is always a challenge – ALWAYS. But the changes going on at the big boy search engines right now are making those of us who keep an eye on such things, nuts. NUTS I tell you! Continue reading →

Perhaps I finally have the freedom now to find my own "life balance"

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I’ve worked for such long hours for so many years now, I’m not sure I know how to “gear down”… and yet that time has come. I’ve preached to others for years, and although I believe it – I’m a terrible student of my own lessons. I guess those who can’t — really DO teach (although I’ve always balked at that concept).

I think the reason that I felt it was imperative to enjoy my work, to do only what I love most, is because I knew I’d have to continue working long hours for the rest of my life.

Why work 10-14 hours a day if you hate what you do? That’s a death sentence.

It hit me like the proverbial “ton of bricks” yesterday, that I no longer have to work the number of hours that I’ve always worked. Until yesterday it never really hit me that I worked so hard because I had to – I guess, I just twisted it around to “I want to, so I could keep moving forward.

I didn’t know all this until I actually HAD another option.

When Wayne and I married, he moved to the farm and the travel back and forth to his job in the “Big City” was required just as the gas prices started to climb.

We were trying to build the cabin in between his twelve hours or more away to commute two hours away for an eight-hour shift and then another two hours on the road back home, and my own unruly work schedule. He was getting him home around 2 a.m. He was exhausted, he was sleeping when I was working, and we seldom saw each other. I worked all the time and I was exhausted too.

We then made the decision that, financially, it was wise to release the job in the city. And, we wanted to see each other more. Wayne came home to work on getting the cabin weather-proofed and to make domestic progress on literally building our dreams. He spent just over four months working on the cabin along side my father daily, or nearly daily.

During that time, the financial pressures increased, as we needed more materials and supplies to build. It was becoming quite stressful for us both. So, Wayne started looking for a job locally. Here, in rural Kentucky, good jobs aren’t that plentiful.

Yesterday, Wayne enjoyed his first full day of work in a position that will provide him professional challenges, the opportunity for growth and a job that he believes he’s really going to enjoy. He will be able to cover health insurance for the family, and it’s a 15-minute commute from the farm.

Suddenly, stresses I have been carrying around began to melt away. He’s seemed to relax a bit, too. Things have come into crisper focus. And, I can take a day off without guilt. It’s been literally YEARS since I’ve taken a day (even a weekend) off without feeling guilty. Now I can.

Now I can set regular business hours. Now I can know that the bills will be paid even if I don’t work into the wee hours of the a.m., now sleep may not be so much of a personal enemy, now relaxing won’t seem so much like a guilty sin.

It’s liberating and a bit odd. And I realized that the last time I didn’t HAVE to work, was when Nicholas was a baby (he’s nearly 17 now). For ten months, I didn’t have to work. I was finishing my undergraduate thesis at that time, but I didn’t have a “JOB” — I did move twice and once was across three states, but no work, per se.

Before then, from age 18 until then, I was working one, two, even three jobs at a time, even while attending the University of Kentucky. Later, when we returned to Kentucky, after the boys’ father completed a military stint, when I was going to school at Centre College to complete my degree, I worked part time. Before I could finish my degree, I was supporting the two boys alone.

And I am in wonder when I consider how much easier life will be with this new change. Wayne has always been a partner, he’s helped me to define exactly what that term means for the first time in my life. But, to have two good,dependable incomes to support a single family… well, that’s all new to me.

There are so many plans we will be able to make, we will be able to eliminate lingering debt load and invest in our future. And, I’ll be able to work regular hours- beginning immediately.

The pressure is releasing, pressure I didn’t even know I had. It’s like being immersed in pure luxury. It’s being able to breathe deeply. It’s like heaven.

With good kids, my health, a wonderful life-partner, my business flourishing, and my love of my career – I thought life was good.

Suddenly, and quite unexpectedly, it just got a whole lot better.