All posts by Keith Thompson

Worst business practices

Career, Life

Two of the worst business practices you can commit are lying and not communicating. I have a friend in our business that is probably one of the most loved and the most hated person in our field of work. He is loved by the clients he communicates with and hated by the ones he disrespects by not communicating with them. Somewhere along the way he was taught or shown that the way to handle an unpleasant situation was just to ignore it. Even if the message is bad, it still needs to be delivered.

This past week I ran across a situation that made me chuckle. I am part owner in a vehicle restoration project that is quite complicated. We found a guy who owns the restoration company that specializes in this type vehicle. He flew to Atlanta to evaluate the vehicle and we had a conference call last Thursday where he priced everything out for the whole job. We said great, let’s do it. He then said well . . . let me get back to the office just to confirm my numbers and I will give you a proposal Monday. Monday came and went, Tuesday came and went and then we started calling, and texting. Nothing, Complete silence. Friday at 5pm the proposal comes in and it is twice the amount he stood there and told us it would be. He committed both business practices I am speaking about.

Some of the best leaders I have ever known have one characteristic in common. They treat other people the way they would want to be treated. Seems like I might have read that somewhere. Ha. Being the kind of person that a person like you would want to be a friend to, is maybe the first step.

In business, I try to be honest with clients and I always call them back even if the decision is difficult. I believe personally that people remember these simple acts and they can easily be the basis for choosing to work with you again in the future. If we all treated people the way we want to be treated, wouldn’t the world be a far better place? The Bible makes it clear that we will reap what we sow. It means that the way you treat others is the way others are going to treat you. Pretty simple, right? KT

Five loaves of bread and two small fish

Life

There is a story in the bible of where Jesus unexpectedly feeds five thousand people on a mountain in a very deserted area. The story is found in John 6: 1-14

Jesus had just performed many miracles and needed to get away from the crowd so he led his disciples to a quite area so they could recharge (that is a whole other lesson.) Jesus looked up and saw a great crowd (5,000) following him and he had compassion on them. They were not anywhere near a village or town and he knew the crowd would need food. He asked Philip in front of the twelve disciples “where do we buy bread for these people?’ Jesus was testing him to see what he would say. Sure enough, Philip said (I am paraphrasing) it’s impossible. Hearing this exchange Andrew said, “here is a boy with five barley loaves and two small fish.” I could write for the next 5 hours about the answers from the two disciples and what it meant. That’s not the point though. The point is that Andrew knew who Jesus was and that he could take the fragments of food and feed the thousands just like Jesus can take the fragments of our lives and do something special.

The story goes on to say that Jesus had the 5,000 men (plus more women) and sit down in the grass and from the five loaves and two fish he fed the multitude. It says in the scripture that the people were given as much food as they wanted and there were twelve baskets (one for each disciple) left over. I believe each disciple was given a basket of leftover food so they could hold a visual reminder of who Jesus really was.

I want to state the point of this passage again because it is inescapable. Andrew who was just one of the twelve standing there knew who Jesus was and that he could take the fragments of food and feed the thousands just like Jesus can take the fragments of our lives and do something special. If we will let him. Merry Christmas. KT

What season are you in?

Life

There are seasons of the year and there are also seasons in our lives.

I was talking with a couple last night that have one child in college and a high school senior that will be going to college next fall. We were talking about life and the changing seasons and I told them that sometimes I still think my wife and I are in that college season. Then I stop and realize that we simply have moved past that period in our lives and I told them I still have shirts hanging in my closet from 10-12 years ago. We were speaking of time seasons in our lives.

Today I was talking with a young man in his 30’s and was reflecting on that period in my own life. For us, it was a beautiful period when my daughters were young but it was also a very stressful financial period because I had invested in some restaurants that nearly took us down. It took me five years to get through that season and I am ever so grateful that it has passed.

You may be going through a relationship season, work season, financial season, health season, job season etc. The bible tells us that there is a time for every season. Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 (you should read this) speaks about this very subject. Verse 1 starts with “To everything there is a season and a time to every purpose under the heaven.”

I guess what I am saying is that you may be going through a tough season in your life or maybe a great season in your life and the point is that nothing stays the same. Hopefully you will go from good season to better season but if you are going through a tough season, remember that this too shall pass.

In the tough seasons, try to remember they will pass and do your best to learn what you can. If you are in a good season, make the decision to not take it for granted and choose to be there in those moments. KT

Joy is a choice

Life

At this time of year, I wanted to remind all the readers that Joy does not come as a response to circumstances, rather it is a choice.

This morning I was sitting at my office and as we all often do, we take for granted many of the simple things in life that should bring us joy but we have let the world crowd in and rob us of many of God’s simplest gifts. As I was sitting here thinking about this, I looked across the street where there is a new office building under construction. Today, it is 39 degrees and raining and there are 8 men laying sod in the cold and rain at this new office building. There is nothing wrong with any job that allows you to take care of your family and contribute to society, but I am also thankful for my line of work.

I guess what I am saying is what John Bradford said in the mid-sixteenth-century is still very relevant. He said, “there but for the grace of God, go I.” When I think about where I am really qualified to work, it always humbles me. With no formal education and a stuttering speech, I clearly was destined to be in a simpler line of work where I didn’t have to speak to the public. I believe God many times has a sense of humor especially when he led me of all people to be a salesman. I am probably the most lease qualified person in my field of work, yet God had a plan for me and my family.

I don’t know about you, but today, take a hard look at where you are in life and how you got there and focus in on the small joys you have where you are. There are probably many people who can say, “there but for the grace of God, go I.” Maybe, just maybe, this may help you choose to have joy everyday but especially in this season of the year and this season of your life. KT

Selling 101

Career

I have sold hotels for many years. Selling a commercial investment is not like selling personal and household items that can be duplicated at many stores or purchased on-line at amazon. I am talking about commercial investment sales. Over the past 27 years, I have seen innovations like email, internet, blogs, apps, text, tweets, likes and just about every imaginable way to communicate. The thing in investment sales that will never change is the human factor. Basically, people hire and work with people they like and trust. It is not based on the school you went to or how expensive your suit is. It is based on if they like you and trust you.

In a hotel sales organization and as with most companies, 20% of the people do 80% of the work and sales volume. For me the objective is to help teach the 80% how to better themselves and better their sales volume. Recently, I started asking older hotel brokers to think back to the very first hotel they listed and sold on their own. Then I ask them to explain the process they went through to make that sale. Invariably, the common denominator is that they met with the seller and buyer personally. Face to face. That is where the magic happens most often. Not always, but most often. There are brokers I know who are very successful without the face to face element but I would venture that 9 out of 10 brokers need face to face to consistently succeed.

So, what am I saying? It is that sometimes what is old is still new and what seem antiquated is still current. Being old school does not necessarily mean it is a bad school. It just means that sometimes the best way is really the old way. KT