President’s Message: Commitment – The Key to Success

By Ron Lloyd, President

"The Harder you work, the harder it is to surrender," Vince Lombardi

People don't really know whether they are committed to something until they face adversity. Struggles strengthen a person's resolve, adversity fosters hard work, and, the more you work at something, the less likely you are to give up on it. Committed people don't surrender easily.

Sometimes when we know of talented people who are highly successful, we may be temped to think that commitment is easier for them because of their talent. It seems as if it might be easier for first-rate athletes to practice, or for skilled artists to refine their craft, or for natural businesspeople to work at their business, but that isn't true. Commitment and talent are unconnected, unless you connect them.

Haven't you known highly talented people who have squandered their potential because they wouldn’t do anything? And, don’t you know people less talented than you who are more successful? That is often due, in part, to commitment.

We don't need more strength, more ability, or greater opportunity. What we need to do is use what we have. If we will commit ourselves to using the talent we have, then we will find that we have more talent and more to offer our team as a result of our commitment.

When it comes right down to it, commitment is always a matter of choice. Most people look back over the years and identify a time and place at which their lives changed significantly. Whether by accident or design, these are moments when, because of readiness within us and collaboration with events occurring around us, we are forced to seriously reappraise ourselves and the conditions under which we live and to make certain choices that will affect the rest of our lives.

Far too many people think that conditions determine choices. More often, choices determine conditions. When you choose commitment, you give yourself a chance for success!

Doing Things Differently in a Tough Economy – The RR Roofing Survey Program

By Liz Heiman Zagorodney

We all have to work harder than we did a few years ago. We not only have to do what we have always done, and do it well, we have to provide our clients more. We have to figure out how to help them do their job better by providing services that make their jobs easier, giving them more credibility with their clients, or getting them better prepared for emergencies. Ron figured out a way to do all three with the RR Roofing Survey Program.

The RR Roofing Survey Program was designed to meet the needs of property managers. We have introduced this free service to help property managers be proactive where in the past they have only been able to be reactive. We understand that in this economy, owners need to be prepared for potential problems before they happen. Money and credit are tight, and major repairs will require advanced planning. Our program is designed to give property managers tools to help property owners plan for those expenses.

Oh, and did I mention that it’s FREE?

Here’s how it works. The property managers provide us with a list of properties they want us to survey. Our team goes out and walks the roofs to determine the condition, takes pictures and provides a written or electronic report on each property. The report includes the type of material the roof is made of, any urgent problems, any potential problems and budgetary numbers for repairs or replacement. In addition to providing information to share with the property owners, it allows us to be responsive to property managers in an emergency. While there is no obligation to use RR Roofing, our familiarity with the property enables us to complete many repairs in one trip.

We believe that the survey program is win-win, providing property managers tools to do their job better, and RR Roofing tools to do our job better. We all have to work together if we are going to stay afloat.

Three Things We Must Do to Succeed

By Max Ker

1.  PROTECT OUR ATTITUDE

We absolutely must  do everything we can do to develop, protect, and nurture an enthusiastic  attitude. Now more than ever, our attitude will be the biggest determining  factor affecting our success this year. Think about all of the negative  people we will run into today, this week and this month. Are we going to infect them with our positive, can do attitude, or are we going to get  more and more negative with each encounter?? IT'S UP TO  US!!!

2.  SHARPEN OUR SALES SKILLS

Let's face it, there is no room for error in today's economy. Sloppy sales presentations, poorly qualified leads, and just plain lazy and bad habits  are going to make us miserable in our job this year.  We must  learn, practice and use effective sales techniques that will allow us to  identify buyers and then deliver effective presentations to close. The top 20% will do well because they already use effective skills and spend time getting better, but the bottom 80% are going to sink like a stone.

3. START LISTENING TO OUR  PROSPECTS

Now more than ever, it's  crucially important that we we learn how to connect with our prospects and  show them we really care about what they're going through and what their  needs are. 80% of our competition is just going to pitch and pitch and  pitch, and this is going to turn off the people they are trying to sell.  The top 20% are going to take the time to understand what their prospects  and clients are going through and try to find ways to help them, it all  begins with listening. People are going to buy from people they like, know  and trust, and the best way to build rapport is by asking questions and  actually listening to the answers.

A Standing Ovation to Kestrel Bishop, our West Hawaii Today Ad Rep

By Liz Heiman Zagorodney

You may know Kestrel as your Ad Rep for West Hawaii Today. Maybe she is your Pilates instructor. Perhaps you have seen her shine in a local theatrical production, or you might have seen her on TV a few years back. If you haven’t met Kestrel Bishop, it’s time to remedy that. There are a few shining stars on this earth, and Kestrel is one of them. If you can’t tell, I am one of Kestrel’s biggest fans, on-stage or working, you can always count on Kestrel to deliver.

Kestrel was born and raised in a VERY small town in Colorado (6 people in her graduating class), which is probably why she is thriving in this metropolis we call Kona. She graduated from the University of Colorado in Boulder with a major in theatre and a minor in dance. After college, Kestrel moved to LA, where she studied acting with Shawn Nelson (actress, Sela Ward's coach). It must have paid off because she was on a couple episodes of Ally McBeal, Son of the Beach and in a Santana video.

Kestrel moved to Hawaii in 2003 and has graced our local stages ever since. Her acting roles included, shows called "Angels Among Us”, and a trapeze piece called "Angel with Dirty Feet." She was in "Last of the Red Hot Lovers" as Bobbi, was a witch in "Macbeth," and Cori in "Barefoot in the Park". She has participated as an actor and director in the Original Play Festival for 4 years. And her most recent role was Queen Gertrude in "Hamlet". On April 24th & 25th she performed, for the second time, the "Vagina Monologues" at the Aloha Theatre.

So how did she end up working at West Hawaii Today? Kestrel started working at WHT 5 years ago after a motorcycle accident of all things. She had been acting and teaching Pilates and decided it was time to get a “real” job. Fortunately for those of us who are her clients, despite having no experience when she started, she is really good at her job. Within a few months she was one of WHT’s top sales reps and now has about 100 clients. “My favorite thing about the job is getting to hear people speak passionately about their business, and to find out how and why they do what they do,” Kestrel explains “I love that my job requires me to be creative. I love the psychology of advertising and coming up with ideas that will impact an advertiser's audience.” So it was no surprise that when I asked Kestrel to think outside the box for RR Roofing, she did just that. Her ads were creative and delivered the image and message we were looking for. If you ask her why she really does it, she will tell you, “I love hearing about the responses people get from their ads.” RR is one of Kestrel’s success stories and she gets to hear from us about responses to the ad she created for us.

Kestrel Bishop
West Hawaii Today
808-930-8647
800-355-3911 ext. 08647
email: kbishop@westhawaiitoday.com

Higashihara Park – Rotary Leads the Charge

By Liz Heiman Zagorodney

Kona Rotary is involved in a lot of projects in Kona, and as a Rotarian I often find myself figuring out how I can help. When Cliff Kopp came to me about the restoration of Higashihara Playground, it was a project I knew we had to support. Many of you will remember the community project that created that playground in Keahuhou. Artists, craftsmen and parents came out and built it. It was a sight to see and a true testament of what the community can do when it pulls together.

I have spent many hours on that playground, with my now 13-year-old daughter. I pushed her on the swings, played hide-and-seek in the tower, helped her climb the octopus and watched her ride the whale. Those are treasured memories. But the truth is, I haven’t been to the park in about 5 years. And while I knew it needed work, I had no idea how bad it had gotten.

Like so many things in Hawaii, the weather has been hard on the park and the county hasn’t been able to keep up with the necessary maintenance. The end result is that much of the park has decayed beyond use. While the Lions Club has tried over the years to do some maintenance the job was just too big.

So, with the help of the Kona Rotary and the Lions club, and a large number of other business and community organizations, the county has a newly refurbished playground. Some of the old equipment has been replaced with new equipment that will last longer. The bathrooms have been repaired, and the wood structures restored and preserved. They added new picnic tables, a place to play chess, a place to play horseshoes, a sand box and much more.

When I asked Ron, also a Rotarian, to help, he was quick to respond with a resounding “Yes!”

“This is just the kind of community project we need to be involved in,” he said. So Ron agreed to put a new roof on the pavilion. Then someone decided there needed to be a second pavilion. RR Roofing put the roof on that as well.

The blessing took place on Tuesday, May 12th at Higashihara Park. Thanks to all who came by to bless the park with us inlcuding Mayor Billy Kenoi, Brenda Ford and Wally Lau. If you wish you had been able to help, but weren’t able to, Rotary would greatly appreciate donations to help cover the costs that were not included in the original budget. Checks can be sent Rotary of Kona, PO BOX 2445, Kailua Kona, HI 96745.

For more info on the park project go to http://www.bigislandchronicle.com/?p=2566#more-2566