By Gino Blefari
This week my travels found me at home, starting the week with my typical Monday WIG calls. On Tuesday, I attended the Berkshire Hathaway Energy weekly executive team meeting and for the rest of the week, I planned for the upcoming HomeServices of America monthly CEO leadership meeting.
Of course, all week I was energized by Sunday night’s Super Bowl, when Tom Brady, in his first year as quarterback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, won his seventh Super Bowl championship.
This week my travels found me first in Atlanta, where I got to watch Super Bowl LIII with Chris Stuart, CEO of HSF Affiliates. After Atlanta and a victorious Patriots celebration, I flew to Northern California and finally, I reflect on my week from (somewhat) sunny Southern California, where I’m in alignment sessions, film shoots and meetings.
By Gino Blefari
This week my travels found me first in Lancaster, PA to meet with the Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Homesale Realty leadership team. Lancaster is one of the oldest inland towns in the United States, an area rich with history and urban charm.
From Pennsylvania, it was off to St. Petersburg, FL to attend Real Living Connection 2018. I was grateful to deliver a keynote presentation to the group on artificial intelligence and the importance of staying relevant. Bob McAdams, president of Real Living, and my good friend Allan Dalton, Real Living COO and former realtor.com CEO, are doing a fantastic job keeping the brand not only on top of industry trends but also ahead of the game.
By Gino Blefari
This week my travels find me first in Northern California and next in Phoenix, where I’m preparing for the upcoming Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices 2017 Sales Convention. Our theme for convention is “Unleashing Your Potential,” and the topic was very much on my mind as I watched the NFL Combine this week.
The event, this year held Feb. 28 – March 6, brings together more than 300 of the best college football players from across the nation to participate in the National Invitational Camp in Indiananapolis, IN. Top executives, coaching staffs, player personnel departments and medical personnel from all 32 NFL teams are in attendance and evaluate the players ahead of the upcoming NFL Draft. The NFL Combine is basically an intense, physical and mental grind, a four-day job interview for these hopeful athletes and a critical step in helping them achieve their dream of playing in the NFL.
By Gino Blefari
This week my travels found me first in Las Vegas to speak with HomeServices Lending CEO and president Maureen Sammon and her team at HomeServices Lending’s Elite Producer Event. Next, it was off to Tucson to speak with our Real Living Real Estate network members for the annual Real Living Connection conference.
At each event, I spoke about the importance of a positive mindset for effective leadership and the topic couldn’t be more top of mind than after this past Sunday’s historic Super Bowl LI game.
As all of you know, the Patriots won the Super Bowl in a stunning overtime victory, claiming the Vince Lombardi Trophy I wrote about last week. The game—which many claim was the greatest Super Bowl played—boiled down to tactical errors made by the Atlanta Falcons and decisive execution on the part of the New England Patriots and their on-the-field leader, Tom Brady, and off-the-field leader, Bill Belichick.
By Gino Blefari
This week my travels find me first in Irvine for a meeting with Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties CEO Mary Lee Blaylock and the California Properties team then off to Dallas to meet with Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices PenFed Realty Texas agent Russell Rhodes, leader of the Russell Rhodes team, PenFed Realty Texas Broker/president Rick Wylie and the entire PenFed Realty Texas team. After that I flew to Detroit and spoke with agents, managers and leadership at Real Living Kee Realty. For each meeting, I delivered several principles for success, specific ideas to follow in order to win.
It’s no surprise winning is on my mind because I just received a text from my good friend and former All-Pro wide receiver for the San Francisco 49ers as well as five-time Super Bowl champion, Dwight “The Catch” Clark, who’s on his way to Houston for Super Bowl Media Week appearances. Each summer, as soon as pre-season begins, teams have one Wildly Important Goal (WIG) in mind: Make it to the Super Bowl and then, win the Vince Lombardi Trophy. This trophy—a football resting atop a pedestal that measures 22 inches and 7 pounds of sterling silver glory—is only given to the team that has proven to be the very best in the world.
A word from Gino Blefari, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices …
This post is the first in our new “Talking Inspiration” blog series by Dwight Clark, former All-Pro wide receiver for the San Francisco 49ers. I was lucky enough to be a 49ers fan in the 1980s and watched my pal Dwight play for my favorite team. Dwight is a five-time Super Bowl champion—two as a player and three in management—but who knows if his great run would’ve ever happened if it wasn’t for that incredible Sunday in January of 1982 … that’s when “Too Tall” Jones and what seemed like the entire Dallas Cowboys defense was chasing quarterback Joe Montana and Dwight was trying to lose Cowboys’ defensive back Everson Walls running across the back of Candlestick Park’s end zone. What happened next has been since memorialized in sports history books forevermore: Dwight caught the winning touchdown pass thrown by Montana and the 49ers won the NFC Championship Game that year. Today, “The Catch” is known as the #7 most memorable play in the NFL and #1 for the 49ers. Dwight’s “Talking Inspiration” posts will provide ongoing perspectives about tackling challenges—in sports, business and life—and I hope you enjoy these pieces of wisdom from a great man, a true football legend and my friend. – Gino
By Dwight Clark
When I reflect on my career playing with the San Francisco 49ers, one word comes to mind: fortunate. And fortune, as I define it, is the place where preparation meets opportunity. If you think about your life’s most extraordinary feats—whether it’s winning Super Bowls or winning business—yes, there’s always some measure of luck involved but there’s also a whole lot of training, planning and hard work that has to happen long before luck arrives. Then, if you’re fully prepared at the exact moment luck finally does ring, you can pick up the phone and answer its call.
By Gino Blefari
This week my travels find me in Irvine, CA, where it seems as if the entire state is gearing up to host Super Bowl 50 on Sunday. And while my 49ers didn’t quite make it to the big game, it does take place right on my home turf, at Levi’s® Stadium in Santa Clara.
If you look at the Denver Broncos and Carolina Panthers, you’ll know Super Bowl 50 should be an interesting contest of the league’s two best defenses that pits prodigy quarterback Cam Newton of the Panthers against veteran quarterback, Peyton Manning of the Broncos. It’s also an intriguing matchup when you take into account the rumors circulating that this Super Bowl game might be Peyton’s last. In fact, browse any sports news website and you’ll be met with a hailstorm of headlines debating this very question. Will he or won’t he? Would a Broncos win on Sunday change everything?
By Gino Blefari
Leadership can spring from unexpected people in unexpected places. I was struck by this fact Sunday watching the Seahawks and Patriots in Super Bowl XLIX. This incredible game matched all the hype, with lead changes, hard-hitting and dramatic plays.
Both teams’ stars came out to play with quarterbacks Tom Brady (the game’s eventual MVP) and Russell Wilson orchestrating scoring drives involving key players; and the defenses flexing their might at important junctures.
This was pro football’s biggest stage in front of more than 70,000 screaming fans and the largest audience in American television history (114.4 million) – certainly no place for the meek.
By Sean Cawley
Early last week, I had the privilege of attending Super Bowl XLIX Media Day, an event that took place not far from my Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Arizona Properties office in Phoenix, AZ. What an amazing way to kick off the exciting days leading up to Super Bowl Sunday! Media outlets from all over the world were in attendance, and informed reporters were able to ask any question they wanted to team members from the Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots. I listened in on several of the interviews and noticed a common theme in many of the players’ answers when asked why they were playing for the Vince Lombardi Trophy.
REthink report 