I visited the new Dali museum in St. Petersburg the other day.  I couldn't tell if the man was brilliant, insane or some combination.  Dali's early work was fairly traditional keeping within the lines of the artistic community at the time. Later on, he cut loose on all inhibitions and let his imagination go free.  The museum guide provided numerous levels of interpretation of his art.  My inability to discern some of his artwork and its confusing effect on my brain suggests I need to expand my perception skills.

After the horrible aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, what did you notice?  No looting for one thing.  I can't imagine many other places on the planet where civility remains intact after such hardship.  Japanese are the ultimate in self sacrifice, polite and hard working.  What a trifecta.  Often when I think of Japan, I tend to go to the negative stereotype of their businessmen's huge egos rather than the country's great attributes.  I realized my perception radar needs some tweaking regarding this island country.

I used to think most Muslims were what you see on the news, angry and always protesting something.  After a recent trip to the Middle East, my perspective is now much different.  I realized Middle East countries have varying levels of hate of the West from not at all (Egypt and Oman) to a lot (Saudi Arabia and Yemen).  The rest of the Middle East is generally "moderate", notwithstanding.  We in the US have so much economic security that we can't relate to the region.  After smoking lots of hookah and getting an Omanian to drink Heinekens with me in the desert, my perception of the region and its people is now much more positive (it wasn't just the beer).

I used to think commercial appraisers weren't important to the vertical commercial real estate market, one of the largest sectors of wealth creation in the US.  We appraise values on the way up and on the way down in real estate cycles.  Sometimes it feels like we are on the sidelines watching the horse race but not getting to ride the horses.  My perception has changed over the years.  I now view commercial appraisers as integral professionals to the commercial real estate process. 

Credit policy and risk analysis can go hand in hand with prudent lending.  Appraisers are becoming more valued as the go-to-person for asset valuation and in some cases investor strategies.  As appraisers, we need to keep the professional bar high.  At the same time we should strive to make a good living...no a great living.  We should be on the high end of the $ food chain.  Right now it seems bankruptcy attorneys are the kings and queens of the billable hour. 

My perception of the appraisal business changed drastically a few years ago.  Now I am a pit bull when it comes to appraisal efficiency - from comp management, report writing and appraisal management (ordering, tracking, review and invoicing).  So I challenge you to re-evaluate your appraisal business from soup to nuts.  Do you produce the best appraisal in your market?  Do you charge the most for your services?  You should.  Do you invest time and money to continually improve your office systems and efficiencies?  Do you think your appraisers are 1099 free-spirited cats allowed to do whatever they want with no rules?  If you're the MAI or owner of the firm, set up rules with clear expectations.  You are the boss by the way.

If you think all of your perceptions are accurate all the time, you are correct.  Then again, you could be wrong.

If you  have an appraisal "best practice" you would like to share, please forward to Jeff.