S.E.C. Real Estate Observer

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Editor’s Note: This article is from a collection of articles given to the Society last year by Yvonne’s son, Ron Nasch.

The moderator’s role is unique in as much as a moderator has a multitude of duties to perform. He is an analyst and is assessing the situation, defining the problem, restating the problem, brainstorming, and applying creativity.

1. He is the master of ceremonies and has to keep the group under control.
2. He has to keep them attentive while at the same time maintaining their interest in the package being presented.
3. Probing the problem being presented by injecting questions that will bring out interesting answers. (The probe is a question that requires more than a one word answer. It is introduced with either what, when, where, how, or why.)
4. To do that a moderator must not shy away from being constructively critical but without intimidating the person presenting the package.
5. However it’s the moderator’s duty to bring to light all the facts good or bad, and help not only the group to understand them, but also help the person presenting to evaluate them objectively from various or different points of view.
6. Making sure that the group understands the problem while awakening their creativity and inspiring solutions.
7. At the same time the moderator has to encourage creativity and keep the communication and brainstorming going to obtain offers.

In our previous discussion of the moderator’s role we have mentioned as one of the duties the application of creativity by the moderator and of his skill in getting the individual members to apply it. I have to stress the word CREATIVE because without its application we cannot complete many transactions, but with it we have the key to the magic world of success.

You may well ask what makes creativity so omnipotent in this field, and what does it have to do with the facts and figures that you need to market or exchange one property for another. The reason is simple, properties are inanimate and exchanging is done between people. Human beings with needs and emotions are not just switching properties, but are exchanging a set of circumstances for another. To accomplish their goals, all elements have to fit and many problems have to be solved. The creative person can do this because he or she is more flexible, and more open-minded. Rather than taking an obvious explanation, the creative individual is always questioning and probing for a deeper understanding, or seeking a better way to solve problems. They have curiosity, self discipline, and an unquenchable desire for accomplishment.

The complexity of a transaction becomes a challenge to be conquered and their enthusiasm keeps them from being discouraged. Creativity involves new ideas, new approaches, and new contributions to existing knowledge. Problems may be solved by the process of creative thinking. The solution is not always apparent, and that’s what creativity and problem solving is all about, but it’s the ability to visualize one where others don’t.

The definition of problem solving and creativity is: The self-directed activity in which an individual uses information to develop answers to problems, to generate new problems, and to transfer the process itself by creating a unique new system.

To develop one’s creativity one must learn to do a lot of thinking. Creative thinking is undirected thought. One must channel it to obtain the critical thinking and use the combination of both to obtain what I call effective thinking. It is only this kind of thinking which will produce not only the idea, but also the know how to implement it and the ability to carry it through successfully. To avoid the pitfall of following the wrong track, we must thoroughly understand the problem and to do that we must probe and use all our communication skills with maximum efficiency.

We must learn to use a higher degree of our mental abilities. Statistics show that the average person uses less than fifteen to twenty percent of his mental ability in his entire lifetime.