It’s the time of year when wallets start to creak, and it becomes a bit more painful for everyone to spend their hard-earned money. Purses don’t open as easily as they usually do, and bank account balances are generally under more scrutiny.   That’s right  ... the holidays are upon us!

This highly anticipated time of cheer, complete with lights, Santa and merriment, is here. But when decorating is considered a major expense, you have to get creative. You have to think outside of the box, and use this time of year to capitalize on your community’s desire to give back. It’s a chance to build awareness, to create atypical reasons for people to come visit your office, and most importantly… it’s your chance to do some good. Here are some ideas for providing residents with services they’ll especially love at holiday time!  You’ll want to start your programs the day after Thanksgiving—Black Friday—so start making your plans now!

Elf Storage

Offer storage rates on those vacant garages or unrented vacant apartments. Lease out bedrooms that can be individually locked (we all know we have tons of locks lying around) and used easily and conveniently by parents to wrap gifts away from prying little eyes and hide gifts from their children until Santa makes his delivery!  Make certain to get a signed release of liability, a one month storage lease, and charge enough to cover the cost of utilities before handing them the key.

You can offer other kinds of storage (in a secure area of the clubhouse for example) as Elf Storage, just make certain in all cases that the area is secure, a release of liability is signed, and that all items are clearly marked and tagged by the owner when checking the items and out of the storage area.

Sound like a lot of work? Do what we did! Simply contact you local self storeage (drop the "S" and you have Elf Storage!) and let them know what you want to do! They gave me the space and we decorated a vacant unit for a gift wrapping party, including holiday lights outside the unit, and held several "block party" type gatherings for our residents. We had a great turn-out and the storage facility actually received some rentals! The unit was used by our sister communities throughout the season so we shared the expense. The events were so successful that following year we took three units side by side and had multiple communities hold their wrapping events on the same night, and each community's management team took turns on responsibility. The staff time invested was decreased and our residents received full benefit.

Added tip: Buy several full reams of wrapping paper and save! I like the selection at Gift Wrap Gifts; and while you're there, don't forget to check out the clearance section for some amazing deals!

Make Room for the Christmas Tree

We all know living in an apartment can sometimes present space challenges, and especially during the holidays; so take a vacant apartment and offer to store a piece of furniture that needs to be moved out of the way to make room for a Christmas tree or a small holiday gathering of friends. Have the resident sign a liability waiver and personally check the item in and out.

Special Delivery

If you’re not already, begin accepting shipments of resident’s gifts from online retailers. But don’t stop there: offer to place the boxes in their apartments for them.  This is a great way to save them time during the holidays. The key is to make everything as easy as possible for the resident. Help with outgoing shipments, too, by allowing them to leave pre-postage-paid packages in the office for UPS/FedEx/USPS pickup; and make certain you stock up on the free shipping boxes that they offer.

Host Wrapping Parties

One or two nights a week, hold an event where everyone is invited to come to the model to wrap their gifts! Provide all the necessities at no charge:  paper, scissors, tape, bows, and gift tags.  Serve cookies, hot cocoa and cider. Since the event is all contained within a model, it’s both easy to find (and easy to introduce potential residents to the benefits of living in our community)! For $200 or less, you’ll generate a ton of goodwill! Don't have a model? Use a vacant apartment, or as seen in the photo below, a vacant garage!

Become a Donation Location

Keep in mind that  residents like to help others in need around the holiday season; and by using your community  as a drop-off site for charitable donations, you provide a valuable service while building awareness of your  community and its location, and demonstrating your commitment to caring and service to everyone in your neighborhood area.

You can become a drop-off site (or on a larger scale, donate a vacant apartment for use as a processing site where items are gathered from the larger area and prepared for distribution) for the United States Marine Corps’ Toys for Tots program, Salvation Army Angel Tree, and other organizations; and there are probably a variety of locally-based programs in your area—including food banks—that you can become involved in serving, as well. You may also consider hosting your own toy drive and opening your community as an “Open House” site that underprivileged families can visit to select toys for their children.  Why not host a mitten/hat/scarf drive? Or a canned food or winter coat drive? Become a “go to” destination that area families can visit and do something great for the community while they’re out on their annual drive to see the holiday lights!  There’s no more positive way to get attention for your community than to EARN IT by doing something good!

Holiday Parades

Most mid- to large-sized towns have an organized, well-attended holiday parade; and if your community does, use it to promote your community!  If you have a partnership with a moving company, turn a truck into a colorful, moving billboard; or use an open vehicle as “Santa’s Sleigh” with the  Big Guy himself and your staff throwing candy and small gifts to the crowd (branded with your logo and/or message, of course).

There are opportunities aplenty during this time of year, and only a little creative thinking is needed to help make your community or company a memorable part of the holiday experience for your residents and future residents.  It’s never too early to celebrate the spirit of giving, so Happy Holidays to you and your team from all of us at Team Multifamilypro!

Looking for more holiday ideas and low cost or money making opportunities for your community?  Join Tami on  November 10^th to get your holiday strategy completed!  (REGISTER HERE!)

Passion is one of those words that many people love to use but very rarely do they actually demonstrate it themselves. It easily can be the reason for almost any person or organization’s success. Passion fuels everything good about a person or an organization, so why is it so hard to find people that are passionate about their jobs or the product or service they sell?

In most organizations, every leader can name a few of their great employees or bosses that have immense passion and will state 100% of the time they wish that all of their employees would have that same passion. The same can be said of employees who wish their leader had more passion. Although not everybody can be passionate about their job or their business because some people just do not follow their passion (rather they follow a paycheck), as a leader one should strive to have most employees passionate about what they do. This is not an easy concept, but most things that make people and organizations great are not easy – that is why they are great. There are a few things that individuals and leaders can do to make passion a mandatory part of their culture.

Do something you love

A person once said that you couldn’t really do what you want and will probably never get a job you love so just find one that pays well and try to learn to like it. This couldn’t be further from the truth. There are millions of ways to make a living in this world, so do something you love or love what you do. A person’s passion will create value for customers, resulting in revenue from a customer or organization. In some cases, a person may not be passionate about the actual product or service they sell, rather they are passionate about the task of selling, helping customers or having personal success.

Being passionate has very little to do with what a person does and everything to do with why a person does it. Every decision made in life (hiring decisions, buying decisions, career decisions, etc.) can be based on our emotions-. Every person and every leader should strive to find the passion in their jobs and careers. People work for money, but when a person has passion for their work, they will gain a lot more than just money.

Make passion a job requirement

Some could argue that passion and attitude are subjective and cannot be measured or fairly managed, which could be true in some cases. Most leaders can look at their team and easily identify the members that are passionate about their career and the organization, and in almost every case, those people are the most successful. The leader’s job is to help those without passion find it in their current role or help them find a role within the organization they can be passionate about.

If a leader wants their entire organization to be passionate about their job, they must make it mandatory. How serious should a leader be about making passion mandatory? Should a leader fire their top performer if they lack passion and don’t have a desire to be better regardless of their results? In most cases they won’t, but in time that top performer’s results may decline as the results catch up with their lack of passion.

Encourage passion

Passion is not an emotion that is taught, rather it is the result of a person doing the right job or having the right career. Leaders don’t necessarily have to mandate passion out of each person like being told to get to work on time, but they should recognize those individuals that lack the passion and strive to help them find it in their position. In today’s economy it is not always enough to do a good job or know your business. A person and organization must have the passion to pass on to others. Passion is the fuel for an organizations success no matter what industry, region or economy one is in.

Nathan Jamail, best selling author of “The Playbook Series,” is also a motivational speaker, entrepreneur and corporate coach. As a former executive for Fortune 500 companies, and owner of several small businesses, Nathan travels the country helping individuals and organizations achieve maximum success. A few of his clients include Fidelity, Nationwide Insurance, The Hartford Group, Cisco, Stryker Communications, and Army National Guard. To book Nathan, visit www.NathanJamail.com or contact 972-377-0030.

Marketing a “Green Community" or want to show your community supports the "Green Trend"? Try these simple ideas to involve your community.

1. Plant a garden or tree where the whole neighborhood can enjoy it.
2. Set up a recycling system for your community and or participate in your neighborhood recycling programs. Have your contacted your local waste management company to learn about their special offerings at various times of the year?
3. Organize a car pooling campaign in your neighborhood to cut down on air pollution.
4. Set up a seed or a plant exchange in your neighborhood.
5. Grow fresh flowers and deliver them to resident to brighten their day.
6. Pick up a trail during National Trail Day in June. Great exercise and a fabulous community involvement program.
7. Make bird feeders for public places.
8. Collect Old phone books in your neighborhood for recycling.
9. Adopt an acre of a park or a mile of roadside to keep clean.
10. Start a community "energy watchdog" to encourage your residents to shut off lights, radios, and TV's when not in use.
11. Help everyone in your community conserve water by offering tips and seminars.
12. Clean up trash along a river or in a park.
13. Create a habitat for wildlife within your neighborhood.
14. Create a campaign to encourage biking and walking.
15. Test the health of the water in your local lakes, rivers or streams.
16. Residents have places to be? Help them burn some energy on your bike check out program instead of taking their cars.
17. Participate in the Backyard Wildlife Habitat Program.
18. Start a butterfly garden in your neighborhood, at a community center, senior home or school.
19. Sponsor an environmental slogan contest in area school.
20. Build a bluebird trail.
21. Collect aluminum cans in your neighborhood and donate the money to a favorite charity.
22. Get together with residents and make conservation posters for the community center.
23. Encourage your residents to buy products made from recycled materials.
24. Conduct an energy audit within your community.
25. Monitor the indoor air quality of your office/clubhouse.
26. Adopt an acre of rainforest and create an entire marketing plan around it.
27. Plant a commemorative tree to honor the resident of the month.
28. Create a children's nature garden, labeling plants and trees and scheduling guided tours.
29. Replace trees that have died.
30. Hold a household toxic waste collection program for your residents and take to a proper disposal facility.
31. Adopt highways and clean up clutter.
32. Volunteer to separate recyclables.
33. Organize a hazardous waste collection.
34. Start a recycling center at  an area school.
35. Host a recycling fair.
36. Hold an invention contest with entries made out of recycled goods.
37. If you see a tree that's in trouble, try to save it. Pamper it, water it, or don't water it as the case may be. Find out what's wrong with it and how to make it better.
38. Encourage your community children to use a lunch box instead of throwaway bags and have them imprinted with your community name.
39. Practice the 3 R's in your community: Reduce, recycle, reuse.
40. Adopt a park with your residents and keep it clean.
41. Encourage your residents to take a backpack when they shop or reuse those little plastic sacks.
42. Clean up a beach or riverbed.
43. Start a compost pile and encourage your residents to use it!
44. Ask the schools in your area to use recycled paper.
45. Start an Community Environmental Club.
46. Hold a recycling contest.
47. Clear a new trail at a nature center or park.

Do you have a tip or idea to share?

Here's an excellent way to recruit associates. I did this to get potential leasing candidates, but it could be used for any position. It was a huge success!

One of the issues we determined needed immediate attention was
recruiting. My suggestion was to host a FREE SEMINAR on what it takes to be a leasing consultant. We decided to try the idea and target individuals in the retail and restaurant markets, because as a leasing person they would have better hours.... no more night shifts and better benefits and perks.

To prepare, we secured the use of a training room for a two-hour session. We placed an ad in the restaurant section of the newspaper on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. It was also placed in the retail section on Sunday. Seating was limited to 30 participants.

We created handouts using the Leasing Consultant Job Description Welcome Page. Candidates were paired up and used the sheet to gather information, so they could stand and introduce each other. (A great way to identify outgoing personalities!) We also distributed our Human Resource brochure, pens with the company job line number and email address, and blank job applications

We had attendees sign in with their names, phone numbers, and current job industries.

WOW!! What a success! We had over 40 people call and sign up. Twenty actually showed up. Out of the 20, 19.... yes 19, are good candidates! Eleven stayed and filled out an application. The Regional manager set up interviews for the next day.

We have even had several candidates stop by the area office to fill out an application because they could not make it to the seminar. A few have called and asked when will we offer the seminar again!

The following is a breakdown of where these candidates are from:

4 - no current job

2 - retired

1 - student

2 - convenient store

2 - restaurant

1 - federal government housing

1 - medical records clerk

1 - telemarketing

1 - retail

1 - receptionist jewelry shop

1 - real estate paralegal

1 - payroll/benefits

1 - field interviewer

1 - clerical

Contributed by Donna Olson,  when she was the SW Regional Education Director, Equity

1.   Don't use the word "take-over"—ever when changing apartment management companies! This implies a hostile environment and immediately puts existing employees on the defensive. Use instead "transition.”

2.   Keep in mind that the transition, regardless of how smoothly it goes, will initially be very stressful for the existing all on-site employees.  Treat them with respect and empathy.

While the reality is that some will not prove a match with your company, they are people—parents, spouses, Little League coaches, Sunday school teachers—just trying to make a living.  And they are probably scared to death. You can rest assured that your interaction is the main topic at their dinner table tonight!

Be sensitive, professional, and kind. And don't make any career promises.

3.   Don't go onsite without a Plan. No one appreciates strangers hanging out, watching them work. You can observe a LOT while doing something productive. Just make sure you aren't overtly staring while pretending to work or making a non-essential phone call. They have eyes and ears.

4.   All Transition Team members' activity must be carefully planned, coordinated, and prioritized before anyone calls or visits the site. Nothing is more frustrating for the onsite employees than a dozen "armies of one" who are convinced their own mission deserves all of the staff's attention.

5.   Keep in mind that conscientious employees will feel that the operation must go on while you're trying to accomplish your "transition" objectives. Don't take it personally if they get up to answer the phone while you're attempting to shed light on how to fill out a form.

6.   When trying to teach your company’s procedures and policies, keep in mind that you have to "sell" the reasons why what you practice makes sense. Show the benefit to them. No one over the age of four responds to "Because I said so."

7. Catch them doing something right. While it may be that your firm was brought in to help improve the operation, no one likes to be constantly criticized. And, unless you have a busload of trained employees outside ready to walk in and assume every position, you need (at least some of) these people. Constant criticism creates terrible morale.

8.   Learn quickly to perform your own area of expertise at that property. Whether it is leasing, doing unit turnovers, or handling a resident's concern, you will make much swifter progress if you can lead by example.

So if the phone rings, and you are trained to handle a leasing call—just do it. And do it well! Actions speak much louder than words. You are demonstrating your company’s philosophies and standards in whatever you do, and you will be amazed at how much more effectively what you do is imitated than what you say is obeyed.

9.   "If you touch it, you own it." Disaster occurs when someone pops in from the "outside," stirs up the operation, and disappears.  Establish continuity and ensure results through constant communication and follow-through.

10.  Keep objectives clear. "Baby steps" are usually okay, as long as there is consistent measurable progress. So always praise the heck out of each "baby step" that is accomplished, and continue to reinforce in a positive manner the benefit of why you do what you do.

Relax! And make it fun!