Another February means another KW Family Reunion and each year seems to outperform the year before. This year was no exception.
Over the 3 days there is a lot of information being shared and a lot of lessons being learned. There are great soundbites to takeaway from the event such as…
“You can’t have situational standards” – Cody Gibson
“The higher purpose of business is giving, sharing and caring” – Mo Anderson
People will walk away from the convention with pages and pages of notes that they will never look at again or do anything with. This is why I have taken very few notes at this event and instead listen for the few key lessons that will impact my next year. Here are my top 4 takeaways from Keller Williams Family Reunion ’19…
It’s all about the data!
Nothing matters more then data in the world we live in today. All of the power companies are fighting for the data and figuring the best ways to use your data to benefit you. From Amazon to Facebook to Netflix they track everything you do, everything you watch, everything you share, everything you purchase and they use this data to attempt to make your world easier and more specific to you. The real estate industry is no longer an exception and the big data has been gathered, is continued to be gathered and is finally being use to help the Keller Williams Realtor provide a better experience for the consumers.
Even the attendees at #KWFR2019 were being tracked for data through the event. Which breakout sessions did you attend? How long did you stay? Will it show up in your business growth in the near future? By tracking the attendees and watching for patterns in sessions this will assist Keller Williams in making future Family Reunion events even more focused and powerful for the Realtors that attend.
Technology’s Job is to Make Us More Human!
Now that we have that data what will be done with it? We will be able to provide a better user experience and we will be able to focus on the consumer at a higher level then ever! Many fear the term A.I. as they believe the movies and that Artificial Intelligence will be a group of robots and computers taking over the world. While some evil genius out there is looking to create the real Ultron (go see Avengers 2) the real purpose of the A.I. is to assist with simple tasks which free up your doctor, your teachers and yes even your Realtors to give better service then ever before. Lean in to the technology because it is never going to go away
It’s Still Only 1 Thing!
Gary Keller and Jay Papasan wrote a best seller and life changer when they wrote The ONE Thing and even 6 years later the book is still right! Get your focus and stay focused. Don’t come to a convention like this, or any powerful training, and change everything you are doing just because someone makes it sound wonderful. Keep your focus and work that focus to your best level. Remember the key that many miss in the book…It’s not just ONE thing, it’s ONE thing at a time!
The Thing That Matters Most is the WHO!
Keller Williams Family Reunion was given its name for a specific reason, the agents are family! They say that you can’t choose your family and in this case that can’t be any farther from the truth! WHO you surround yourself with matters. During this year’s event I got to spend lots of time with people that think, act and live bigger than I do so that I can stay challenged to grow. Conventions like this are the chance to finally meet people you hear about in person and create relationships that can change your life. Thank you Keller Williams for creating this opportunity most of all. Some of the best choices made during Keller Williams Family Reunion ’19 ended up being skipping a breakout session to have one on one time with the right people.
What Does It All Mean?
These top 4 lessons aren’t only lessons from a convention, these are life lesson to keep front of mind forever.
Where are you putting your data and what data are you collecting?
Are you letting technology help you be more human or are you getting lost in the technology?
Are you being focused or are you thinking that you can get everything done and forgetting that it is ONE Thing?
Who are you spending your time with? Who are you meeting? Who are you building a relationship with?
Lessons are always great looking in text…they are even more powerful when you live them!
See you at Keller Williams Family Reunion 2020 in Dallas TX!
You get together with your other family over the end of year holidays and Valentine’s Day is reserved for your Keller Williams Family as once again it is time for the Keller Williams Family Reunion
With
around 74 hours from start to finish at Family Reunion you must make the most
of the limited time you have. Make sure you get your unfair share of the
powerful learning, the world class networking and all of the available hands-on
training ahead. With the limited time this event needs a plan of attack and
that is what we are here to help you with.
Keep
reading as we share with you tips and strategies that work year after year to
make the event work for you!
For
those of you reading this that do not know me let me tell you who am I and why
I write this each year?
I
write this for YOU. I know that this event can be overwhelming even to the
experienced attendees. Use this guide to
make the most of your trip to New Orleans (or at least the Convention part of
it)
My name is Chad Hyams, and I have attended Keller Williams Family Reunion for A
LOT of years and in many different roles. I have attended as:
Agent
Team
Leader
Vendor
General
Manager
MAPS
Coach
Growth
and Productivity Director for the Southeast Region
Trainer
Breakout
Session Leader
Southeast
Regional Director of Expansion for the United Home Group
First
time, 10th time, agent, leader, none of that matters. What matters
is that you attend and that you attend with purpose and a plan!
Family Reunion Survival Guide!
First
let’s focus on getting to New Orleans. By plane, train, boat or car make sure
you have your plan in place and know who you are traveling with!
Do
you have your hotel room booked? Don’t stress too much because you won’t be
spending too much time in the room, so book one, share one, whatever works for
you.
***BONUS
Tip – Not attending? Make sure you are following
#KWFR and #KWFR2019 on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to share in the AHA’s.
If
you are attending remember to use the hashtag when posting about the event!
Before
you pack for the trip to New Orleans take a moment and visit FamilyReunion.KW.com and
check out all of the breakout sessions in advance so you can get ready for the
event.
First things first.
The first thing we believe you should do is set aside some time before you get to N.O. and figure out where you want to be during the event. Do NOT wait until the night before or the morning of to plan your day.
What
is the ONE topic you want to really dive deeply into? Remember WHAT YOU FOCUS
ON EXPANDS so is it buyers, sellers, open houses, technology, time blocking, or
something else that you want to focus on? Find the 2 sessions you
want to attend in each time block that cover your area of focus. Why 2? Because
sometimes you will find a session full and need to have a backup in place.
Sometimes you will be sitting in a session and quickly figure out that you are
in the wrong session and be glad to have Plan B in place!
Since
the breakout session rooms will fill up you should be ready to pivot during the
event and by having 2 sessions selected you will remove the stress when a
change must be made.
***BONUS
Tip – To make the most of Keller Williams Family Reunion figure out
your ONE question in advance. What is it you really want to learn if you
could learn just one thing?
Now
ask at least 100 different people at the event your question. You never
know who you will end up asking. You will talk to MAPS Coaches, agents with
different levels of experience or different views from parts of the country.
You will ask Team Leaders, instructors and who knows you could find yourself
asking the president of the company, so be prepared.
Remember
to ask your question of AT LEAST 100 people! Want to know what
will happen? You will get 100 different answers. When you take the time
later to look at the answers you will figure out that really you only got 3 or
4 different answers. This will help you narrow your focus and actually apply
something instead of becoming overwhelmed with amazing ideas.
OK
now that we have talked about planning for the event, let’s get into the meat
of the actual event.
Make The Most Of Your Time at Family Reunion (because there isn’t a lot of it!)
Chaos
will happen. This is a guarantee so plan on it! With
an event this size, there is nothing to do other than be ready for it. There
will be people running left and right around the convention center and even
some just standing still completely lost. People will have conversations in the
strangest place, and it will always seem to be in your path.
This
will not be you if you take the time to prepare! For you, Keller Williams Family
Reunion should be a CONTROLLED CHAOS.
The
first lesson of the day is do NOT sleep in. Just because you are in a hotel
that doesn’t mean you are on a vacation. The early morning breakout sessions
are a great place to meet people before the day gets hectic.
If
you are an early you should be able to be awake and even set a breakfast
appointment each morning. You have to eat, they have to eat, so why not plan to
eat together. Take the time to develop a relationship and share ideas
from the day before.
If
you are a Starbucks person, or just someone that needs coffee before talking to
anyone in the morning, remember the lines will get long quickly!
***BONUS
Tip – do NOT spend all of your extra time with the people from your Market
Center. You can see them when you get home! Branch out as this is your chance
to meet and connect with new people. Who do you want to meet, talk with,
question?
If
you are not sure about getting a breakfast meeting set or who to set it with
then at least bring workout clothes because you never know whom you might get
to be running beside on a treadmill, or let me know and I will run with you one
morning.
The
one-on-one opportunity over a meal (or at the bar – more on that later) at KWFR
will be the best use of your time. Make the time to connect with people
while surrounded by thousands of family members that you don’t know. The
training at the event will pale in comparison to the relationships you
create.
***
FOLLOW UP Tip – Plan for these meetings in advance! Who is it that
you would love to get some time with a Family Reunion? Reach out to them NOW and
tell them that you would like to meet and schedule a meeting over
breakfast, lunch, dinner or drinks. Hurry because calendars are filling
already.
A
key to making it a great event is to be sure that you do not show up at Keller
Williams Family Reunion thinking you have the answer. Go with an open mind to
hear what others are sharing. It is too often that we hear people at the event
saying things like “that would never work in my town” and these are the ones
that should have saved the money and stayed home. If you walk out of a
session or conversation knowing The ONE Thing that you will implement then
the event will be a success.
Review
your notes often! In The ONE Thing Gary Keller and Jay Papasan remind us, if
you chase two rabbits, you will not catch either one. If you have 10
things you want to implement when you get home you won’t do anything. Rank your
AHA’s and lessons and go home to focus on #1. Once it is part of your world you
can pull your notes out and work on #2, and then repeat again and again.
Family Reunion Exhibit Hall
Probably
one of my favorite places at the event is the Exhibit Hall. This is when I get
to be a kid again and go TRICK OR TREATING! As soon as you get
to the exhibit hall (and do this as early in the event as possible) zip up
and down the aisles to each booth and grab whatever they are giving away
(anything from pens to magnets to candy) and of course make sure you grab their
information handouts. Just like on Halloween you always remember the house with
the big candy bar!
***BONUS
Tip – Even though the
vendors might not like hearing this (I didn’t when I was a vendor) on your
first pass through the hall do NOT bring your credit card. Do NOT let impulse
shopping make choices for you. You have lots of time to spend your money.
Before
you even head to New Orleans figure out what your budget is
for new services, software, marketing, and other items you might consider. When
you are back in your hotel room with no pressure take a moment and review all
of the materials. Stick to your budget and remember the lesson from MREA
to Lead With Revenue! Vendors will tell you that signing up
will return at least one transaction to pay for the services. Have the money
first!
With
the marketing materials you took, while in your room make notes on which
vendors you want to return and visit later. None of the vendors will run out of
what they are selling on the first day. The best times to meet with
vendors are early in the morning, or where there isn’t a breakout
session that you click with. Don’t forget to say hello to the companies you’re
already using!
Do you
need KW branded clothing? Leave room in your suitcase
Do you
want some great reading? Hit the KW bookstore
Do you
want to develop a relationship with a new preferred vendor? Find some time to
talk.
The
magic bullet is a lie and the challenge is that Realtors are all looking for
the newest magic bullet. If you listen to the experts speaking on panels and in
breakout sessions and you will find out that there are no magic
bullets. The message that they are all telling you is work, work, work.
Keep that in mind as you shop, shop, shop. Find things that work and generate
more business for you… those are the things to invest in on the exhibit
floor.
Group Sessions
You
do not want to miss the large sessions offered at Family Reunion. You will
notice that nothing competes with these on the
agenda. We are talking about:
Saturday
Book
Signing with Mo Anderson 11:30am-12:30pm
Gary
Keller’s Keynote Session 1:30pm-4: 30pm
Sunday
Vision
Speech 10:00am-12:00pm (PowerPoint
slides are usually available after the event so please stop using your iPad to
take photos)
During these large sessions, plan in advance where your group is going to meet.
This is the time to catch up with the people you came to the event with.
Otherwise, spend time with people you only see at national events!
When Sessions Are Out
Family
Reunion is a 24-hour a day opportunity so make the most of each of those hours! Just
because you are not in a breakout session doesn’t mean there isn’t a great
opportunity to learn. Some of the best ideas are shared in hotel lobbies,
certain bars and even poolside. Check out the different hotel lobbies and see
which one becomes “the” place to be.
Remember
that while you are out, anything that happens at #KWFR probably ends up
on Facebook before the night is over! Be smart and be safe.
Lunch Break
If
you don’t know what to do during the lunch break you haven’t been reading. Find
someone you don’t know to sit with or make sure you have arranged a lunch
meeting in advance.
***BONUS Tip – On
Monday during the lunch break I will be leading an “off the book”
mastermind session in room 255-257 Grab your boxed lunch and come join us!
Inspirational Morning
This
part of Family Reunion deserves its own section. There are too many agents that
decide to leave town the night before to save money. To those that leave,
you are missing one of the key things that makes Keller Williams the company it
is. During the morning of the last day, Mo Anderson shares with everyone
unbelievable true stories. You will hear tales of hardship, loss, and disaster
and all of it will end with someone overcoming a challenge in a way that makes
you want to change the world. Get there early as seats fill. Take this last
chance to share a special moment with someone you don’t know, as you will be
able to relive the stories with your traveling partners when you get back home.
***BONUS
Tip – If this is your first Inspirational Morning, bring Kleenex with you.
A Few More Tips
Social Media
Warn
your audience that you might be a little crazy with your Keller Williams
postings!
Use
the hashtag #KWFR. Share with each other, find each other and
share with those that were unable to join the event in person.
Business Cards
Remember,
it isn’t about how many cards can you hand out. That’s just a way to spend your
money. COLLECT cards from others you so control the conversation. Give cards to
people that you trade with, or just connect through KELLE
Challenge
yourself to meet and exchange cards with someone from every state so you can
create a referral network of your own
Be prepared!
Make
the most of this event by setting goals for Keller Williams
Family Reunion
What do
you want to learn about?
Who are
you hoping to meet and get a moment to talk with?
What do
you need to find out about in the exhibit hall and what should you avoid
spending money on?
74 Hours is Not a Lot of Time
Before
you know it all of these hours will have come and gone. What will you have to
show for it?
A
notebook full of stuff you never will look at again just so you could show
someone you took notes?
A headache
because you thought you would skip the early sessions and you could stay out
all night?
A stack
of business cards you collected that you will do nothing with? Or worse that
you will put in your database for no real reason?
OR will
you use your time to:
Develop
a referral network
Focus
on the ONE (ok maybe two) things that you WILL implement into your business
Meet
new people and learn why this isn’t just a convention, it is a FAMILY REUNION
Looking for me at #KWFR?
If
you are looking to find me at Keller Williams Family Reunion 2019 I will have 2
locations for you to join me (remember that rooms are subject to change)
I will be facilitating a panel as we talk about how to Creating Urgency With Buyers on Sunday at 1:30pm in Room 265-268
I will also be hosting an Off-The-Books Open Mastermind on Monday February 18th during the lunch break in Room 255-257…Grab your box lunch and come join us!
Please share this with ANYONE that should have this information!
If
you found this blog helpful, please share it with your Market Center, share it
on Facebook and Twitter, or email it on to other Keller Williams agents.
I
can’t wait to see you all at Keller Williams Family Reunion 2019 and hope you
will come find me to say hello! If not, I will see you online!
