One benefit of having 260 franchised offices across the United States is that, as CEO, I get to visit many of them. And in the course of doing so, I hear -- and overhear -- many ideas and comments from franchisees, their staff, and others. I record as much information as I can in hopes of sharing it with a wider audience. Here's some of what I've heard and overheard recently:

"Whether you think you can or you think you can't, you're right." Henry Ford said that. No, he's not a franchisee, or on staff at any of our franchise offices. He was an entrepreneur and automaker. But a franchisee reminded me that it was Henry who first told us that it's all up to us. If you say you can't sell houses, you're right. If you say you can, you're right. Can't rehab houses profitably? You're right. Can't buy houses deeper? You're right. . . . I learned this lesson the hard way years ago. A very successful New York businessman called and asked me to form franchisor masterminds. He had already formed a dozen masterminds that included business people from many different industries, and he was suggesting that the two of us collaborate exclusively in the franchise arena. He charged $10,000 per person to participate in one of his masterminds for a year. I told him that I could not sell a mastermind to a franchisor for $10,000 because the franchisors would not pay that much. He said, "If that's what you believe then you are right, and there's no sense continuing this conversation." He then hung up! Today, knowing what I know, I am certain I could sell masterminds to franchisors as well as franchisees for $10,000 per person annually. If I'd only known it back then!

Florida franchisee: "We should have listened to Ken D'Angelo when he told us to build an investor database. We thought we didn't need to because we couldn't hold onto anything we bought back then. But things have changed and now we're scrambling to find more investors."

There's nothing I can add to that, except: Let HVA help you build your database!

"If you want to sell houses, you need to attract buyers. If you want to attract buyers, you need inventory." Vickie DeClue, mother of Bob DeClue, St. Louis. She's one smart lady. Not a franchisee, officially, but very much a part of her son's business. More people should listen to Vickie -- probably including Bob!

"If you talk about the 'bad' market, you buy into the negativity. It's easy to believe the market is bad. Why do that?" Keith Imken, St. Louis franchisee. In spite of many trials and tribulations, Keith remains positive. You want to feel better? Call Keith and ask about some of the problems he's had in the recent past. And he's still climbing to the top of our franchise network.

Plea from a franchisee: "Please don't sell any more franchises to anyone who doesn't commit 100 percent of their time to the HomeVestors franchise. If they have a part-time job, or another job, or another business, can you make a rule not to sell them a franchise? We have a franchise in our market who bought one house out of 100 leads. We don't want any more franchises like that. We can't afford it."

Well, HVA can't afford it, either. And we don't purposely sell franchises to people who do not commit 100 percent of their time to their HomeVestors business. When they apply for the franchise, they claim that they will work it full-time, and we believe them. But . . . things happen.

Austin, TX, franchisee after getting a visit from HVA's Mike Blatney and Larry Louwagie from the Operations Department: "In our limited experience as an HVA franchise, one thing is abundantly clear -- getting good information and coaching is a critical component for . . . success. (You both) provided that in spades."

Holly Swogger, Memphis franchisee: "I want you to know that everyone in HVA's Finance Department is the greatest. Second Eyes, Sonja and Jennifer -- we can't do without them. They're the greatest people." I'll second that! Our Finance Department is extremely productive and I'm proud of the customer service that they provide. In spite of a real estate market that has been slow to get started this year, HVA's Finance Department continues to do business at a break-neck speed.

. . . CEO John Hayes is now writing The HVA Blog, available on the Main Page of the Franchisee Area of the Web site. Visit the blog today -- and feel free to add your own comments!