Karma and The Truth

April 19, 2009

They say if you are going to have a blog you better have a good one. So far, this blog hasn’t been very good! I mostly have been using twitter. If you’d like you can follow me here.

Almost anybody can write anything about anybody online these days and unfortunately Quint Cobb has written something bad about me (Bill Lyons) .

I just wanted to ignore it but it is now starting to affect my business and my livelihood. I am losing business and everytime a client does a search on me it shows up! So what should I do? Should I tell the truth about who Quint Cobb really is or should I just create more positive energy?

I actually think it is quite funny and I never knew that I was only 5’6″! ha! Someone actually took the time to do a rebuttal on their and I really appreciate the kind words:

“This is a blatant LIE! Bill Lyons is a wonderful person to work for

After reading that load of crap I felt compelled to respond. That was the most ridiculous twisting of facts I have ever heard in my life. I worked for Bill for many years, and let me tell you that his employees’ success was always his number one goal. He gave people coming out of minimum wage jobs the opportunity to make $10,000; $20,000 even as much as $50,000 a month. He took his loan officers on trips to the Phoenician in Scottsdale and had weekend long Christmas parties in Palm Springs where he showered his employees with awards, praise, gratitude and encouragement for the year ahead. I doubt that the greedy person described above would spend all that money showing his employees his appreciation.

It was not Bill who was greedy, but his loan officers. Thinking they could do it better themselves, a group of money hungry, ungrateful liars betrayed and stole from Bill, and they were the ones to sneak out in the middle of the night. Unfortunately for them, they didn’t realize what they were leaving behind and I think that most of them are back parking cars while Bill continues to provide opportunity, even in this tough market.

Bill has always operated his business with the utmost integrity. That’s just his approach to business as well as to life. It’s who he is. Trust and honesty are two of his top values.

I happen to know that Bill and Judy Dunham are still friends. After he left American Mortgage Express to start LEI, he squared everything away with her and paid her every penny he owed her. I’m sure if you asked her, she would only have good things to say about him. In fact, if you ask around the mortgage and real estate industry, you will find that everyone has wonderful things to say about Bill. He is very highly respected by many of the top people in the industry.

Bill is a brilliant businessman and entrepreneur. He has an amazing energy that makes his company a fun place to work. He is extremely generous and if an employee, family member, friend, or anyone ever comes to him for help, he doesn’t even have to think twice before pulling out his check book or doing whatever it takes to help them out. The guy would literally give you the shirt off his back.

I am so grateful for my time at LEI and Bill is by far the most amazing person I have ever worked for. I can’t wait to see what he does next and I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that whatever it is, success will always find him. Surely, he will create great things.

Unfortunately, often times bitterness and jealousy follow greatness. This report was posted by a bitter ex employee who can only deal with his own failure and bad choices by maliciously attacking Bill with blatant fabrications. It is true that Bill received 150k from a friend and employee as an investment, however that person did not write that report. He and Bill are still friends and he is being paid back. That report was written by a liar posing to be someone he is not. But when you put out negative things, that is what you will eventually get back. I hope Bill stays focused and clear and doesn’t allow these people to get him down. You can’t believe everything you read, and this is definitely one of those times.”

Someone else, even wrote a nice blog post about my story. While I could care less about what people think, I do care what my clients think, and I do care about the truth. While both posts/replys were not 100% accurate the original attack was 99% lies. Since Quint has fraudulently told his clients about his past I have decided to include the truth:

I hope this doesn’t fuel the fire even more but the truth must be told.

If Quint ever wants to remove the lies he wrote then I will gladly remove this truthful rebuttal and dismiss my slander judgement against him.

I am sure a few small minded, ungrateful disgrunteled people will write a few more lies but that is the risk I take for the truth. There are also a lot of great people out there whos lives we were able to make a positive impact on – Who were able to learn, grow and have great memories and magic moments.

Yes, we built one of the largest mortgage companies in San Diego and the country by helping thousands of homeowners with their financing and offering opportunity to well over 250 employees.

Yes, we had challenges that every company does. We listened, we learned, and we acted with integrity. No apologies, and I know I am a stronger, better person because of them. Am I saying I am perfect? NO! Did I make mistakes? YES!

The market crashed! We were unable to close $100million in loans because the lenders went out of business, we lost $2million and I reinvested ALL of my assets back into the company to the tune of $1million! I thought that was the “right thing to do.” So I ask anybody to look me in the eye and tell me that I didn’t do EVERYTHING in my power and that I didn’t sacrifice EVERYTHING and more! Would you have done the same or would you be on the beach sipping mai tais?

Does this sound familiar? This happened to many good people across the country.

There are others out there like Quint. ..

Let the past be the past! Let’s learn from it and move on! Are some people really that bored? We live in very different times now and it is time for everyone to help eachother and work together.

I hope that you can help me get some positive things about me to the top of the search engines so, if inclined, please leave a positive comment below.

I started/created LEI in order to offer opportunity, and make a positive change in others lives…and when the market crashed it became exactly the opposite of what I first intended – we saw peoples true colors. Scared people got scared, Evil people got evil (but still managed to be wolf in sheeps clothing), sociopaths became real, bad apples became rotten, good people became better people. It is my hope the good people will not let those times taint their overall experience but rather let it propel them onto their next successful endeavor.

I will eventually start something new and better. The right way – not relying on others (as we have recently done since then). It will be even more successful than before and we will not make the same mistakes. Everyone deserves to start over and sometimes in order to begin you must start over with nothing but your experience (not any accomplishments or lorals from the past.) I must get clear about my vision (razor sharp focus), eliminate all my baggage, and get 110% committed.

Yes, losing all of your life savings can take a toll on you – you can even become a negative/acidic person that you used to laugh at – not someone with limitless thinking and explosive energy!

In the meantime we are offering and coaching clients with their real estate and financial needs and still standing tall (not 5’6″) with integrity! We are a small group but we help others and make a living. When the timing is right we will do big things again and I hope to see you there! “Success is not final, failure is not fatal; it is the courage to continue that counts.” -Winston Churchill

Thank You for your support!

Bill Lyons

40 Inspiration Speeches in 2 Minutes

December 18, 2008

MTL announcement and NY AIG Press release

October 10, 2008

Here is an announcement from MTL insurance company addressing the current financial climate.

Press Release distributed by the New York Department of Insurance about the AIG situation mentions some very important points about the safety of the regulated insurance industry.  Unlike the esoteric unregulated banking industry, Insurance companies have been held to a higher standard of accounting principles by the government and their own constituents in the insurance industry.

Please keep in mind that every topic below can be a longer conversation if you wish

Concerns you should have about where your money is safe, liquid, growing (tax Free):

Where is it safer?  Bank?  Stocks & Mutual funds?  Bonds?  Buried in home equity?  IRA or 401K or any government sponsored plan? Insurance?

Bank: Safe, yes (up to $250K in some cases now) ; Liquid , yes  ;  growth very little and not tax fee

Stocks & Mutual Funds: Safe, no; Liquid, no;  growth lots of ups and downs over the years, not tax free,  maybe get average of 9% before taxes

Bonds: Safe (somewhat); Liquid , no; growth moderate and sometimes tax free

Buried in home equity: Safe, no; liquid, no; growth, no  (home may go back up in value but the actual equity has no growth while trapped in home on paper)

IRA or 401K or most government sponsored plans: safe, YES, it is creditor proof and protected in bankruptcy, but usually people chose mutual funds;  liquid, no; growth – most of it could be owed in taxes.

All of the above will be examples of your dollars only being used in one place for one thing at a time.   The way to move ahead is to have your dollar working for you in many ways at one time.  A system to do this; is what you have set up in your permanent whole life insurance policy.

Whole life Insurance placed with a Mutual type company (no stock holders): Safe, Yes; liquid, Yes ; growth, Yes and tax free

* Troubles in the Finacial market and what type of companies have a track record of surviving extreme pressures in the market.

Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Banks:  there are commercial banks (such as Lehman Brothers) and FHA programs that do the majority of their business with other corporations. There are also banks that do most of their business with individual people like you and me (the Bank of America type).

Many of the Banks that are in trouble are because they have too many investments in low quality mortgage backed securities that aren’t worth what they paid for them.

AIG or American International Group is basically having their trouble because of Mortgage backed securities too.  AIG has a division that in a complicated way insures the investments in Mortgage backed securities and also owns a bunch of them as payment for their insurance to other banks that issued them.  We know the securities aren’t worth anything any more.  This is AIG’s problem now.  AIG does, on the other hand, have extremely healthy insurance companies that will be restructured or sold off to other companies.

Mutual Trust Life Insurance Company, like many other Life Insurance Companies has been doing good business for over 100 years.  Not many other industries can make the same statement.  MTL has been through the Recessions and the Great Depression along with the World Wars.  It makes sense to keep your money with the proven company/industry.

*   Some important points of Whole Life insurance:

Guaranteed Death Benefit. (But that is really not that important.) What should determine that is how much cash you want to stuff it with? Warren Buffett has the most life insurance on the planet. Once he maxed out the amount he could get on himself ; aka max human life value (MHLV) he started getting policies on everyone around him that he could establish an insurable interest on. He is the owner and beneficiary still just not the insured.

In the last 100yrs not more than a couple life insurance companies have failed yet 100s of banks have. He would rather put his money here than a bank backed by the FDIC (Except Wells Fargo of course)
-Guaranteed level premium for life of policy. (Perfect hedge against inflation)
-Guaranteed cash value base
-Judgment and creditor proof* (depending on the state you reside)
-Virtual will and trust by designating beneficiary.

-Virtual medical insurance (Accelerated Death Benefit; Meaning you can access DB now for major medical Expenses if needed)

-Virtual disability insurance (Pays for policy if you were to become disabled)
-Tax free growth and income

-Non-taxable dividends (return of premium)
-Velocity (liquidity, use and control) move the money by putting your dollars THROUGH the policy NOT TO it. (You literally can borrow the cash from it and it acts as if the money is still in there growing)
-Collateral (you can assign policy and use as collateral short term and long term)

Bottom-line one dollar can do 12 plus jobs by using the policy as a pass-through vehicle. Rule of thumb is you can front load it by 2.5 to 3x the annual premium. Anything above that the gov’t will turn into a modified endowment contract (MEC) and then it become taxable. The key is to stuff it right below the MEC threshold. It’s not going to get you 12 percent returns but it can be used as a safe, secure facility

Again take a look at the attached AIG Press Release from the NY State Insurance commission.  It outlines how secure and safe insurance companies really are…

September 29th 2008 Bailout

September 29, 2008

I am sure some astrologer will find some correlation between October 29th, 1929 and September 29th, 2008.

Although the DOW only dove 777 points -6.98% compared to the -12% in 1929 this is still horrifyingly close. NasDaq fell -9.14% and the S&P 500 fell -8.79% (so much for those that were selling the IULs)

Leadcritic has a good article that came out this morning on their blog however the best bailout article I have seen yet is on the Los Angeles Times website. Check out the graphic of the comparision with other federal programs:

Cool Must Have Schedules for the Local San Diegan

July 17, 2008

Summer Concerts

2008 Charger Schedule

2008 Del Mar Horse Racing

Robbins On Motivation In A Slump

July 17, 2008

The video reminds us all to see and seek the opportunity in these times.

If you have not yet done the “Firewalk” I recommend it as a way to deal with the emotion of FEAR!

Key Success Indicators

July 16, 2008

Two things that have made me a lot of money in the past is:

1. writing down AND

2. tracking

GOALS

I suggest using:

1. a large white board (at home or at your desk),

2. a small wallet size card and

3. if you really want to go the extra mile put something in the shower or on your frig.

I have seen some people do collogues out of magazines but I think you just need to imagine and focus in on would you want.

Your vision should be so clear you should be able to see yourself there in color, awake and while sleeping.

One thing I do know is that your focus must be razor sharp! 85% of your thoughts must be focused here and you can only allow yourself to indulge in 15% distraction.

In order to measure and manage your activities/indicators to stay on track toward your outcome I suggest:

1. another white board

OR

2. an excel spreadsheet

“What does not get measured does not get managed”

In addition to focusing in on the direct activities that get you paid also manage your state.

Are you in a peak state in order to achieve your outcome?

Are you focusing in on the basics?

I always have found that you track things backwards

So for example if you were to want an outcome of $10,000/mo (which gets you financial freedom, debt free, new home, new car, more choices, trips with family, better school for kids etc etc)

If you were to say have an ave. gross sale of = $6,000 x 35% = $2,100/deal = 5 closings/mo

60% pullthrough = 8 submissions/mo

40% of APPS I send out come back = 20 APPS sent out/mo

It takes 60 hours of talk time/presentations/pitches per month to get 20 APPS sent out

In order to set up 40-50 presentations I need to make 2,000 dials/mo

Then you break it down from monthly to weekly to daily indicators so it looks something like this:

Month: $10K / 5deals / 8 subs / 20 APPS sent / 60 hrs / 2000 dials

Week: $2500 / 1deal / 2 subs / 5 APPS sent / 15 hrs / 500 dials

Day: $500 / ?deals / ? subs / 1 APP sent (or else I dont leave for the day) / 3 hrs / 100 dials

Foreign Investors buying Real Estate for Pennies

June 29, 2008

I wish I still had some Euros, Swiss Francs, Singapore Dollars, or even some New Zealand Dollars…not only would you benefit from the purchasing power of the currency but the down real estate market. The two combined guarantee at least 50 cents on the dollar (or maybe even free in some cases) and exponential future returns.

I think Robert Prechter has a currency fund.

Identity Theft Prevention Tips Passed on From an Attorney

June 24, 2008

1.  The next time you order checks have only your initials  (instead of first name) and last name put on them. If someone takes your checkbook, they will not know if you sign your checks with just your initials or your first name, but your bank will know how you sign your checks.

2.  Do not sign the back of your credit cards.  Instead, put  ’PHOTO ID REQUIRED.’

3.  When you are writing checks to pay on your credit card accounts, DO NOT put the complete account number on the ‘For’ line.  Instead, just put the last four numbers.  The credit card company knows the rest of the number, and anyone who might be handling your check as it passes through all the check-processing channels will not have access to it.

4.  Put your work phone # on your checks instead of your home phone.  If you have a PO Box, use that instead of your home address.  If you do not have a PO Box, use your work address.  Never have your SS# printed on your checks, (DUH!).  You can add it if it is necessary. However, if you have it printed, anyone can get it.

5.  Place the contents of your wallet on a photocopy machine. Do both sides of each license, credit card, etc.  You will know what you had in your wallet and all of the account numbers and phone numbers to call and cancel. Keep the photocopy in a safe place.  Also carry a photocopy of your passport when traveling either here or abroad. We have all heard horror stories about fraud that is committed on us in stealing a name, address, Social Security number, credit cards.

6.  When you check out of a hotel that uses cards for keys (and they all seem to do that now), do not turn the ‘keys’ in.  Take them with you and destroy them.  Those little cards have on them all of the information you gave the hotel, including address and credit card numbers and expiration dates.  Someone with a card reader, or employee of the hotel, can access all that information with no problem whatsoever.

Unfortunately, this attorney, had first hand knowledge because his wallet was stolen last month.  Within a week, the thieves ordered an expensive monthly cell phone package, applied for a VISA credit card, had a creditline approved to buy a Gateway computer and received a PIN number from DMV to change my driving record information online.

Here is some critical information to limit the damage in case this happens to you or someone you know:

1.  We have been told we should cancel our credit cards immediately. The key is having the toll free numbers and your card numbers handy so you know whom to call.  Keep those where you can find them.

2.  File a police report immediately in the jurisdiction where your credit cards were stolen.  This proves to credit providers you were diligent, and this is a first step toward an investigation.

3.  However, here is what is perhaps most Important of all.  Call the three national credit-reporting organizations immediately to place a fraud alert on your name and Social Security Number.

The alert means any company that checks your credit knows your information was stolen, and they have to contact you by phone to authorize new credit.

Now, here are the numbers you always need to contact about your wallet and contents being stolen:

           1.) Equifax: 1-800-525-6285 

           2.) Experian (formerly TRW): 1-888-397-3742

           3.) TransUnion: 1-800-680-7289 

           4.) Social Security Administration (fraud line): 1-800-269-0271

“PLAN B” OPTIONS FOR A CASH CRUNCH

June 23, 2008

Hi this is Bill Lyons with this months P4P Newsletter.

-Behavorial Finance

-The Value of Financial Literacy

-Risk Management

-HELOCS and the cash crunch

Read Newsletter


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