Innovation, inspiration and enthusiasm were plentiful at the Illinois REALTORS® Winter Business Meetings Tuesday, from President Michael Gobber’s opening message to the “Rockin’ with RPAC Celebration/Auction.”
Inspiring Innovation in Leadership
In the opening session, Gobber shared his leadership vision for the year, identifying six leadership traits and explaining his plans for developing strong local association leaders. In an inspirational and humorous session, creative leadership expert Kyle Scheele showed members how to tap into the power of innovation and creativity to make better decisions, solve complex problems and enhance their leadership skills.
Legal Update
Topics included appraisals, allowable contacts by REALTORS®, independent contractor status, unauthorized practice of law avoidance and copyright permissions. Discussions were led by Legal Hotline Attorney Vicki Munson, General Counsel and Vice President of Legal Services Betsy Urbance and Legislative Attorney Matthew Rentschler.
Your Superpower to Lead with Influence and Impact
Leadership coach Lori Robertson revealed humorous, sympathetic and inspirational stories from her own life to demonstrate the power of strategic storytelling. Robertson said influence is about connecting with people, and storytelling is the key to an authentic connection. She shared three steps to developing your storytelling superpower: finding unique stories to share; choosing stories that match the situations; and using vulnerability and relatability to encourage others.
Separating the Hype from the Reality of Emerging Trends and Technologies
Tech expert Bill Lublin started with a basic explanation of cryptocurrency, citing the benefits and drawbacks of Bitcoin, how to buy it, store it, and use it in transactions. Lublin also spoke about the roles that augmented reality, virtual reality and metaverses will play in our everyday lives, and how their use will grow. He provided examples of companies that are already exploring ways to use these tech breakthroughs.
National Advocacy
NAR’s 2020 Vice President of Advocacy Christine E. Hansen recognized the major investors in attendance and told the story of how she first learned about the importance of RPAC to make sure REALTOR® voices are heard. She compared RPAC to business insurance and to protective coatings like Teflon. After noting that REALTORS® are more politically active than the general public, she urged members prepare and deliver elevator speeches to REALTOR colleagues about the value of RPAC. “Let’s inspire people to do more, to do better.”
RPIC Forum ‘RPAC: A look under the hood’
Attendees learned that Illinois REALTORS® earned a sixth consecutive President’s Cup for its RPAC support in 2022. RPAC Fundraising Manager Kim Buscher invited members to sign up for the Pacesetter program by March 15, and she encouraged members to participate in the March Mega Raffles. REALTORS® Political Involvement Working Group Chair Mark Massey and Vice Chair Michael Simpson encouraged members to keep up their support. Local Governmental Affairs Directors Neeley Erickson and Ron Deedrick urged members to get involved with the governmental affairs committees on the local level. RPAC Trustees Chair Michael D. Oldenettel and Manager State Government Affairs Jim Clayton reviewed the exemplary success rate our association experienced with supporting state legislative candidates during the June primary and the November general election.
‘Rockin’ with RPAC Celebration and Auction’
The day’s activities concluded with the popular annual RPAC fundraiser.
Check out photos from today’s events on Illinois REALTORS®’ Facebook page.
