2014 Vs. 2013

Hello all,

 

"2014 Vs. 2013"

So far this year has a completely different feel from last year. In 2013 we had a decent start with an incredible Spring market, around mid March the floodgates really opened. Then in mid June interest rates went from 3.250% to 4.5% overnight and things came to a grinding halt over the summer. Things picked back up in October and we had a decent end to the year. This year things have started slower than expected, it is starting to pick up but we have not seen that big spring surge. It will be interesting to see how things unfold over the next 3-4 weeks. Did we start slow because of the weather and the spring surge arrives or is it going to be a little slower this year than predicted? If things hit hard in the next couple of weeks it could still be that huge year that was predicted. Nothing in the economic news suggest a steep change in the interest rates this year so at worst we will stay consistent for the rest of the year. My money is still on the big surge coming...

Enjoy the coffee,

Joe

INSPIRATION FOR TODAY:

 

"Great works are performed not by strength, but by perseverance." 

 

~ Samuel Johnson 

 

GIVE YOURSELF A BREAK! 

 

How many times have you heard it? "Don't work harder, work smarter." This modern cliche has almost become an annoyance - its meaning seems so obvious that we don't even pay attention to it anymore. But such simple sentiments often bear closer consideration, especially since they become cliched because of their inherent truth. 

 

You see, sometimes it really isn't how hard you try. Think back to high school: some students studied for hours for an exam and did poorly, while others studied a few notes and highlights for thirty minutes and got A's. Sometimes it just came down to smarts, but often it came down to how well prepared and organized the students were. Performing well on an exam or project doesn't necessarily reflect higher intelligence - it reflects ability to apply intelligence or strength efficiently. It's qualitative instead of quantitative. 

 

Expend great effort inefficiently and you may well end up farther behind than if you expend less effort in a more resourceful manner. The whole goal should be progress, not the total expense of your resources. It's those folks who can analyze and implement an approach that requires less effort who enjoy the greatest success. We all want to minimize our investment and maximize our returns, right? 

 

If you find yourself trying so hard and not getting anywhere, you're probably experiencing a deep feeling of discouragement. Help yourself out by looking at changes you can make to help you focus more on the solution to the task. Eliminate energy spent that isn't producing results. 

 

Apply a little effort on a consistent and targeted basis, and you'll achieve the progress you're seeking. Jacob Riis observed, "When nothing seems to help, I go and look at a stonecutter hammering away at his rock perhaps a hundred times without as much as a crack showing in it. Yet at the hundred and first blow it will split in two, and I know it was not that blow that did it, but all that had gone before."