Which of the following leadership qualities do you think is most important in a president?

• Character — 816 votes, 43.38%
• Vision — 715 votes, 37.89%
• Experience — 169 votes, 9.02%
• Backbone — 144 votes, 7.68%
• Empathy — 39 votes, 2.03%

Source: Smartbrief

What do you think?

Leadership qualities, property management

I have been fortunate enough to be involved in a Social Web Site, Trilibes.com launched and led by Seth Godin, who is coining a name for Social Networks as Tribes. It was by invitation only, and has been an interesting and learning experience at watching and participating at how easy and how hard it can be to direct and lead a Social Site. It is in conjunction with a book and it’s commencing that Seth is doing, appropriately named Tribes. There is certainly lots of banter going about surrounding new media, social media, web 2.0 and social sites. There is myspace, facebook, flickr, YouTube and many more that all have a component of social connection. With the book launch in only Seth Godin fashion, he will take the mystery out of at least some of what and how social sites can flourish and again reinvent himself as well as position himself as an expert on the topic of social network sites. I am glad I am involved with the project and have learned a lot.

The way people purchase things today is changing before our eyes. Over the last three years Urbane Apartments has ceased traditional marketing efforts in exchange for a myspace site, a facebook site, YouTube and flickr sites and maximum exposure on our local Craigslist. We also use twitter regularly. We recently started a Social Network site on Ning.com, the UrbaneLobby.com. Like many other Social Network sites we have run into some snags, stalled membership, and lack of participation. We have regrouped and made directional corrections and believe we have an effective revised plan to give our residents enough reason and enough value to make regular visits, beyond just paying rent on line and placing a service request on line. Our Goal; To provide our residents with an experience and value with a high enough return to create enough Customer Evangelists within our core resident base that they self rent our apartments. We are working hard to lead our resident Influencers within our core resident base, and have transitioned most of our marketing budget inward, to further focus on our existing residents. Only good things have happened from this move. Resident retention has significantly improved, and we have created a forum and a field for the Influencers to participate. Along the path we hope to become Social Media experts based on our experience as to what works for multifamily and what doesn’t. We are learning as we go, but are seeing stellar results.

You too should try out some of these new paths. Become familiar with them, use them. They work, and they will work for you too. The central theme of all Social Media is creating community, which has always been what property management has been about.

A 2002 Gallup Poll indicated that just 1/4 of American workers are engaged in what they do. The poll goes on to site some reasons why and the implications for what it means to productivity and innovation.

That being said, I am curious to hear what the group has to say about the topic. [Click here to comment]

Technorati Tags: employee engagement, apartment marketing, mike brewer

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Leaders in the apartment business are faced with countless decisions on a daily basis. Everyone of them are important in some way shape of form to the direction of the organization.

We talked about the 10-10-10 principle a couple of posts ago and the role it plays in decision making. Another principle I think is important is not taking or making the claim that you know the right way to do things. In our business many times there is no exact right way to do things. The last thing anyone wants to hear is a page out of your autobiography. They don’t want to hear how you did it when you were a leasing consultant, how you did it when you were a assistant manager or how you did it when you were a manager.

Rather, what they want to know is how much you care about them as individuals first and professionals second.

My time in this industry has taught me that I don’t know even the half of it and everyday I learn something new.

Think about that the next time you are tempted to tell anyone the right way to do something.

Technorati Tags: leadership, apartment leadership, mike brewer

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Here is a good thought/principle for the the day. Think about this next time you make a decision in your property management business.

There is a rule out there that suggests that you spend some time thinking through the consequence of your everyday decision making. In other words before making a decision consider the impact it will have 10 minutes, 10 months and 10 years down the road.

Technorati Tags: property management, apartment management, leadership, mike brewer

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Jim Rohn once quipped, "We can have more than we’ve got because we can become more than we are."

I contend the apartment business is just the place to do it.

We do have to get out of the mentality that we deserve more money and more recognition and get on board with the idea that business is there to serve as a place for your personal and professional development. Both of which no one can really place a price.

If you are in sales you are being taught everyday, through your experiences with customers, how to be a better presenter, influencer, articulator and closer. What kind of price can you place on that? What kind of value add does that give you in your personal and professional life? All that and companies pay you north of $10 to learn it. Not only that most companies pay you commission on top of your hourly wage to learn it. Not only that the better you get at those things the more the company pays you to push your learning.

I often cringe when I hear employees say I deserve more recognition, more money and more and more and more. That is not to suggest that those who really are at the top of their game consistently don’t deserve more. They do. My motivation to give is couched more in the character improvement of person and not the person with the best "give me more" speech.

You get more when you become more.

Technorati Tags: Jim Rohn, apartment leadership, mike brewer

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Have you heard the new John Mayer song; Say?

I love the message in this song or the least the message in the way I interpret it for myself.

In essence, say it now so that you don’t regret it later. Right, wrong or indifferent if its on your heart or on your mind, it needs to be said. Pick the moment and invest the energies to say what you need to say.

Now I am a big believer in preserving one’s dignity. Honor your audience but say what you need to say.

Do you have something you need to say today? Say it now. Do it with a heart wide open.

Technorati Tags: say, apartment marketing, property management, mike brewer

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