The other day I called this hotel owner that I have never met. I am not the sharpest knife in the drawer, but I do know my way around a hotel investment.

To this guy’s defense, he didn’t know me, but he was the most rude and obnoxious owner I believe I have ever talked to. It took all that was within me to not lay into him for acting like such a dingdong.

Galatians 6:7 says, be not deceived, God is not mocked, for whatever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.  That means how you act, how you treat others, how honest you are, how you live life, is a direct result of how you will be treated.

I get many sales calls in my business from new people in the industry. I always try to answer every email and return every call and be as helpful as I can to the new people in our industry. Why? I call it the Bob factor.

My very first week (May 1990) in the hotel business I decided to go down I-75 and talk to some hotel owners. What started out as an afternoon project, turned into me going to 137 hotels over a two-day period. The very first hotel I came to was the Days Inn in McDonough Georgia, (my hometown) and Bob Patel was the owner. He knew I was new and didn’t know anything, but he took a half hour to talk to me about his hotel and the industry and treated me with respect. That one first meeting gave me the confidence to go to the other 136 hotels. I won the ‘Rookie Of The Year’ award for the US that year and it all started with Bob. Every time I see him even now; I hug his neck.

I try to pass that kindness on to the salespeople who call on me. I firmly believe how you respond to others is how others will respond to you. As for the doofuss I talked to the other day. He will soon realize he needs to change how he treats others. No one is above or can escape what Galatians 6:7 says. KT