WELCOME...to our new motivating moment. I hope you enjoy the thoughts and ideas included.

My personal goal is to keep you informed of critical and not so critical news. This newsletter is filled with good ideas for increasing your sales opportunities.

I hope you will take the time to share any future topics you have an interest in.

Joe Stiles

Time after time, we see news stories of dramatic and personal situations and ask ourselves how we might make that situation better

It happens to me as I am sure it does to each of you. "What action do we take when we see or learn of these situations" is the real question. Being one of 4 million in the local metro area, my contribution may be small in comparison to others who are better known or more financially able to help the local charities in a bigger manner.

The greatest gift we have is...our time. How we use it reflects directly on our priorities and commitments. I actively serve my church, first, and then my community through leadership roles in local organizations. I gladly give back to local community through my professional background experience and knowledge that I share freely.

I often question myself about volunteering to help others learn the English language or the local animal shelter, etc.

One of my neighbors, now retired, volunteers some of his time repairing equipment and other goods at a local charity's resale shop and they think the world of him and often call him "Mr. Fixit." On other days, my neighbor volunteers at the local VA Hospital, which touches my heart being a veteran myself.

I attempt to share my (mortgage) industry knowledge in the form of short and informative corporate Lunch & Learn programs on credit scores, stolen IDs-prevention and cures. I also offer some fun and motivational programs on getting referrals and mastering your elevator speech.

NOW that you are sufficiently motivated, go forth and help others! 1Peter 4:10 & Prov. 11:25

Join the Business Over Breakfast meeting of the Houston West Chamber of Commerce (www.hwcoc.org) on Wednesday, November 15th at the Memorial Hermann-Memorial City Hospital. The breakfast meeting serves coffee and a full breakfast beginning at 07:15AM.

In her presentation, Lois will tell the story of her artistic talents and how she personally survived a sexual assault and how that led to a career as a police sketch artist.

Lois has been featured on countless TV shows, magazines and local newspapers AND is recognized in the Guinness Book of Records for the hightest number of captured perps (aka the bad guys).

This is a truly remarkable story and I hope each will enjoy the presentation. Lois is a very talented person and her story is very motivating.

TO RSVP, GO TO WWW.HWCOC.ORG

If you, like most modern-day business people, we often suffer from a high level of stress!!!! No big surprise here - right?

What action do you take to help relieve the stress - I would be interested in hearing from you about your stress relief efforts and be specific when you respond because we want to share your good ideas with others - with or without your name.

From the September 14, 2006 edition of Parade, Frederic Luskin lists the following five steps to cut stress in just minutes of your efforts:

BREATHE DEEPLY - when under stress your body needs extra oxygen and our normal breathing is typically very shallow. By taking the time to purposely breathe deeply, we are breaking the mental cycle of our stress and supplying our body with the extra oxygen

CONSIDER THE GOOD ASPECTS OF YOUR LIFE - the number of incoming calls from home buyers, agents, vendors, etc. once stressed me to full tilt. My inward and emotional reactions were "how can I possibly give each person the devoted attention they deserve?" All of a sudden and over a little prayerful deliberation, I came to the realization that without the phone ringing, I would be out of business. Now...I count my blessings that the phone rings as often as it does...morning or evening or week-ends.

SLOW IT DOWN - how many times have you emotionally reacted to the Houston traffic. In my life, I cannot begin to count the times. I often tell my wife that the mayor should have constructed a "Joe Lane" just for me (fortunately she chuckles each time). In some instances, I watched driver weave in and out of traffic trying to get to their destination earlier and it seems we arrive about 1-2 minutes apart if I only slow down a little and keep the steady pace.

CHANGE THE EMOTIONAL TAPE - using the traffic example above, I have caught myself saying how bad the situation is. If I can re-program my emotional state of mind to something other than "This is terrible" and reflect more on the "I can handle this" then my stress will be lighter

LET GO OF THE SMALL STUFF - and it all is small stuff. OK...you are in a Houston traffic jam on (say) Katy Freeway not moving a foot. What can you change about the circumstance? Not one thing, so just let go of the small stuff.

I picked this book up from a "bargain" table at a local book store and instantly enjoyed the pearls of wisdom.

Learning etiquette generally comes from our parents. Here are some recaps...just in case we (and I) need a refresher course:

• Some men like to slap hands or bumb fists when they meet but the simple old-fashioned handshake is still the cowboy way
• One sign of good manner is being able to put up with bad ones
• The only good reason to leave a party without thanking the host is if you were not ever invited
• Gossiping is never good etiquette

Now...go out and share your refresher course with others.

When you need a mortgage banker that works as hard as you do, let me introduce you to MORTGAGE FINANCING WITH...STILE

Are you looking for new new business development opportunities? Be sure to ask me about the Lunch & Learn Program and how it benefit you, directly.

• www.joestiles.com

• Soaring with the Eagles vs. Pecking with the Chickens
• Referring a Referral
• Your 30 Seconds of Fame - Mastering Your Elevator Speech

JOE STILES has over 20 years mortgage experience and lives in West Houston with his wife, Linda, a dynamic professional speaker and communications trainer (www.lindastiles.com). Joe earned a BBA degree in Marketing from the University of Houston/Downtown, where he was awarded membership in the Phi Kappa Phi and Beta Gamma Sigma honor societies. Joe is also a graduate of the School of Mortgage Banking at Northwestern University. Joe remains active in the Houston community through Second Baptist Church and numerous civic organizations.

Joe frequently speaks at many Houston-area organizations and at local firms on Credit Scores, stolen IDs - Prevention & Cure and several other funny and motivating topics.

Network Funding is a Houston, TX based mortgage banking firm that has 160 branches in 32 states.