It's been a little over a year since the Council of MLS rolled out the 1000watt created “Making the Market Work” branding campaign. Remember the initial energy? Social media channels were buzzing. New videos were proudly created, touting the value and the benefits of the local MLS to consumers (and professionals). Website home pages were blazoned with fresh new images promoting this powerful new messaging. New full-page ads run publicly. There was a genuine esprit de corps in the industry.

Always. Never. Every. Everyone. Everybody. All. Must. These are some of the most dangerous words in our vocabulary. For writers and speakers, as my nephew in Alabama would say, these words are as about as useful as a steering wheel on mule. That’s because these words are typically perceived to be an exaggeration.

It was exciting to be invited to interview to become part of the Forbes Real Estate Council last year. The biggest attraction for me was the opportunity to be published on Forbes.com. Forbes, for me, is the gold standard when it comes to business publishing.

Milestones. Every career has these extra special events. So what qualifies something for milestone status? I think it's when all you have to do is mention what you did and the immediate reaction from others is: "Wow." Lifelong Realtor Ben Caballero's career is filled with milestones. 

Allow me to share a professional rant. We have to stop listening to the lawyers on this one. Companies are habitually adding registration marks to their news releases. I confess. I have more than one client that requires them. But I have to stop, raise my hand and ask one question. Why?