New Horizons

It has been almost a year now, that I have broken necessary ties. At the time it was a hard pain staking decision, of which I dwell on and lost sleep over. I often wonder how someone at my age, and be so mature as to realize that business relationships end, and friendships can move forward. Change is inevitable, and in most cases necessary. It's business; not personal. I was sucker punched by a few hard blows when I realized that my view wasn't shared nor respected. Rather than to engage the drama, I simply stepped away and kept trudging though my decision so I could meet some personal and private long term goals I had set for myself. It seemed after about six months rocked on all was well, and friendships were intact, and everyone had just made a business decision. I quickly learned how wrong I was. Malice, and lies dripped from the lips of people I had so foolishly called my friends. I had moved on, but they had not, and tried to implicate me in some social media drama which I wanted no part of. I was infuriated. So I did what any sane person would have. I extracted them. Just like a festering cavity that had eaten at a poor tooth for far too long. I removed them quickly and quietly from my life, and asked them to do the same. I haven't spoken of or thought of them or the situation since, which had helped me as a person and professional. I guess I share this story so I can close this horrid chapter of 2013, and broaden my horizons for a bountiful 2014.  I have made the right decision and go into my New Year with all my aspirations and dreams laid out before me. Hope you all have a great New Year!

Toot your Horn

I am all for the occasional "Pat yourself on the back" but people there is a fine line of patting yourself on the back and beating yourself into the ground. Everyone does not need to know every single detail of every great thing, or good deed you do. A once in awhile blog should cover it, not a daily out pouring of how wonderful you are! I mean seriously blow your horn and not your load of crap. Post after nauseating post of self righteous ME-ISMS makes my stomach roll. I eventually start to doubt that you have time to conquer the world and do all those good deeds while you spend every minute of your spare time jotting down all the fantastic things you do and post it all over social media and the web. I do tons of great things, but let’s face it folks I am human and I make tons of mistakes too, but I don't pound meaningless babble out on a blog post expecting to be worshipped. Instead, I post anything funny, embarrassing, happy, sad, and conquests that cross my mind randomly, and non-consistently to make someone get a laugh, or maybe a revelation, but I don't ever go around fishing for compliments. In fact I would rather be viewed as an Honest Introvert than fashioning myself after some pseudo-celeb that does all these wonderful things (on social media anyways). SHUT UP. Show me, don't tell me. Less blog, more action. However you want to put it. Just remember the next time you make your post of vanity all over social media, even super heroes had some sense of discretion. :)

I am all for the anonymous PAY-IT-FORWARD, because deeds like that come back to you, no matter who the gift is received from. Random acts of kindness go much further in my book, and I don’t feel the need to document it on social media. How about that? I can do good deeds without trying to get in the public eye.

HACKED

It's been AWHILE! I have been PHOTO HACKED! Can you believe after almost a year and a kind request for removal of my photos from a company I no longer work for, I go on the web and behold my photos, still plastered all over the web, social media and places I never even knew possible! The audacity. I call it life hacked. Need I mention I never signed a single piece of paper authorizing said pictures to be published? What a nightmare. I am proud to say the majority is gone, but there are still some stragglers, and I would just think a Decent person would respect ones wishes to remove these items. No. Still there. I wonder how many other people have been photo hacked? What moves did you make to get the straggling remains of your photos removed, what were your feelings of finding yourself on the web, photos you never posted of yourself on the web? I feel photo hacked. My feelings are, if I didn't post my photos to the web, then it goes without saying that YOU shouldn't. CATFISH much people? I implore you, if you have not already Google your name/image and make sure the things out there on you are thing you chose to post, and not something someone posted of you out of SPITE.

Dirty Laundry

 

Yes they are among us. In my recent personal endeavors I have discovered a number of “member only” social media forums where people go to trash other people, or talk in private about other people with people like themselves. Call it what you will. I call it Dirty Laundry. I call it childish. If no one else is going to say something or post something about it, it might as well be me. Like me or leave me, I am what I am.

A couple of the forums that come to mind are back-ended chat rooms with member invite only to get in and socialize about other people. Another recent one that comes to mind is Whisper app. Where you can go on and write whatever you want to anonymously, and without repercussion. WOW. Really? Long gone are the days when if you had a problem with someone you tried to talk about it with them. You tried to find a common ground for sake of business and human decency. Now if you don’t like something about someone you can just join this forums, and tell the world about how you don’t like that person etc. Cyber Bully much? How about slander? Ring a bell? It is like high school on-line. I guess I am just old school, but it never once occurred to me, that if I was dealing with someone I did not like, that I would smile to their face just to beat a path home, and caps lock them to death in private forums. I generally tried to rationalize with the person agree to disagree, and try to keep a peaceful common denominator in mind, and just not hang out with them in my spare time. After all, maybe YOU aren’t someone else’s cup of tea either. I mean who would I be to go on and talk about someone else, when I am sure people call me opinionated and blunt, which by the way is a fact. I guess my whole point is this.

When you have a bad day, go home, have a drink, talk it out with your spouse, and let him/her vent back, then get up off your duff, and go for a walk! Take your kids for a walk or to disc golf or throw them a baseball, and forget about the things that irritate you most, because you just might be the topic of conversation in someone else’s house. Don’t fall into the trap of dirty laundry. Because my friends, if they talk about people with you, then they will talk about you. Dirty Laundry. Don’t be a victim, stand out from the crowd. Go left when everyone else is going right.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h0xr31XbSOU This video says it all...lol

 

The Window

So, this one is about me. You are going to laugh, and I am going to shake my head silently at myself for even daring to share this story, but hey... when we clock out and leave our work place we are people too.

I had had a long day. It was a Texas summer and we were in the middle of what we call "Turn" or student turnover. From May until late August, is when we get all of our leasing traffic here in Aggieland. I had fourteen appointments earlier in the day, in the hot Texas summer. I had one couple I had been working with come into to last minute right as I was wrapping it up. My clients wanted to see a two story home to rent while her husband was here working on his Master's. I immediately left and met them at the property, only to find out the lockbox had drawn its last breath. Not wanting to disappoint my clients I contacted the management company that had the property and explained to them what was going on. They referred me to the maintenance lockbox on the back door that had a combo code. "That is our only key, just put it back when you are done or we will be locked out", the receptionist explained. It should have been a foreboding. I opened the lock box, and unlocked the back door, and walked through the house and opened the front door for my clients. We toured the entire home, and I laid the key on the kitchen counter, and pulled out necessary forms. I came up short on one, so I ran out to the car to retrieve it. I headed back into the home stepping over stuff the maintenance team had left out to get the home in ready condition. I handed everything to my clients. It was about 7:00 p.m. by then and they wanted to take the forms with them to fill out and I was going to meet back up with them after they had dinner. My client asked for an extra form for her records. They were following me out the front door, and I told them just to leave the house open, and I would close up, as I handed them an extra paper. Then my client said, "Oh I just locked up for you." I tried to keep a calm face and thanked him for locking the only key to the home inside the home. I wasn't mad, but the wheels were turning on who I could call to get in the home. I walked them to their car and waved goodbye. The minute they were out of eye shot, I sprinted back to the house, and pressed my face against the front window. Right there on the kitchen counter were my keys, my cell phone, and the only key to the house. Locked tightly up inside. Crap! I had no idea what to do. I didn’t even have a phone to call someone to get in the house! I did what any sleep deprived leasing agent would do. I began running around the house like a crazy woman trying to open windows. Surely maintenance men had left just one tiny little window open! Well they didn't. I sat down on the nice covered patio a moment trying to think of something. Then I spotted a ladder leaned against the house that the maintenance man left out. I propped the ladder up and began going up and down the ladder looking for an open window. I found one. The little narrow window above the kitchen sink. I rolled my eyes. Of Course. I looked around and then went for it. I shimmied through the little window, landed in the kitchen sink, and straightened my silk blouse and linen shorts. Real Estate 007. I went over to the kitchen counter and grabbed my phone, and then my keys. Only to realize the door key was missing! I heard the front doorbell ring, and I opened the door. My client stood there a moment quietly assessing the ladder, the open kitchen window, and probably my disheveled appearance and he held up the key, "I accidently stuck this in my pocket". I looked at him and cracked up laughing. He looked over at the ladder and started laughing, "You crawled through the window didn’t you, wow, you are resourceful." I locked up the house and told him how he had locked my keys and everything inside, and I had no choice. Long story short....I got invited to dinner with them.

So yes...Realtors can jump even the most awkward hurdles for their clients

 

4 bedroom 2 bath with CHICKEN?

I think any Realtor or Tenant can relate to this one... It is awkward to show an occupied home. Let me clear this up once and for all. Showing an occupied home is awkward for both the RESIDENT and REALTOR!

We had a Realtor in our office that went to go show a very nice four bedroom brick home we have in a renowned neighborhood. It was supposed to be an easy show. We called our tenants the night before the appointment to give them plenty of notice, and we made our appointment. The next morning an agent in our office Carolyn left the office coffee and business cards in hand. She pulled up to the well kept, beautifully landscaped brick home with rock accent, and started her showing with her future clients in tow. The house showed beautifully, nice wood floor entry opening up into a soaring living room with high quality berber carpeting, and vaulted ceilings. (You get the picture). Once Carolyn got through showing her clients the interior of the home, it was time to take them outside and show them the backyard, and sew up the showing. She opened the door to the back yard showing off a privacy wooded fence. "This is the covered patio and the fenced yard sits on a quarter acre city lot, and includes lawn care. Over here is a nice sitting area, and some shade trees, and a chicken." Yeah I said chicken. Carolyn looked again and repeated chicken. The current residents had domesticated a rooster, and they had left it running around in the back yard. The rooster had wandered up during the showing of the back yard looking harmless, and started to peck at Carolyn's sandal clad toes, as she was trying to overcome the oddity of a domesticated rooster living in a suburb. She nudged her foot at the rooster pecking at her feet. Apparently this was a territorial rooster. The rooster began flapping its wings at our agent, and she began to back up under the patio. The rooster followed, flapping its wings and hitting Carolyn, and pecking her toes. Are you laughing yet? Well apparently this particular rooster had anger issues, and would not quit coming back, he began to peck at her sandaled toes, and slap her more ferociously with its wings, and Carolyn's clients had to swoop it up and throw it off of her so they could run into the house. I know you think this is totally fiction, but it is the truth. Those clients have come back to us time and time again, and they always ask us if we have anymore homes with pet chickens in them! HA! Hope you enjoyed one of our many ventures of real estate.

 

Perspective

 

I used to have no idea what this word meant. I mean I knew what it meant literally, but I didn't know what it meant in terms of "real world". I had no idea this one word could change your life forever, and make you step back and re-evaluate your life.

Perspective [pəˈspɛktɪv]

n

1. a way of regarding situations, facts, etc., and judging their relative importance

I have learned in my latter years (I refuse to say older), that everyone is entitled to their opinion or perspective of something. I realize now how different people apply this differently in their lives. I used to think when everyone graduated, that they would all set goals achieve them, and look for the good and others, and lift them up. I believed that you helped the less fortunate, and told the truth no matter the outcome. I assumed everyone around me was doing the same thing. I see now everyone was taught similar things, but it is all perspective on how they applied it in their lives. I see more and more people lifting themselves up, while stepping on the backs of their peers. I see more and more people that talk about doing great things, but are actually doing nothing. I now see the difference between the people talking and the people doing. I understand that everyone’s life is of unique perspective to the individual living it. I often pray for simpler times, and kinder hearts. I think as humans everyone gets too big for their britches, we all make mistakes. You, me, some other guy, a cashier, you name it. I think everyone needs to put this into perspective:

Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment.
Buddha

Don't forget your roots, and don't forget compassion :)

 

Me? Blogg? Did you mean to say frog?

So... I had never heard of blogging. To be honest, when someone close to me explained blogging, I totally thought she was saying frogging. HA. Now that I have educated myself on what the heck this frogging thing was that she spoke of, I enjoy it. I owe that person a BIG thank you for introducing it to me. You know who you are.

I have recently started to blog, to promote myself as a person...and a Realtor, I guess you could say...but honestly...more as a person. I also had an alterior motive to blogging...I recently went back to school in my spare time (ha ha yeah right what spare time) and I have all english classes left. My professor seems to think I have a knack at writing, (although my grammar and spelling can be something to be desired with auto correct) so she suggested I start blogging, to switch gears and stretch my writing legs. Must be working so far, as I am averaging a very high grade, on top of work, kids, and the other regular stuff. I have to say I like to write a few short story lines here and there, it also brings alot of positive insight to my life. So I say FROG ON!

Knock Knock M.I.A.

True story. I went to go show a condo once. It was located in a strip of attached condos, with alleyway parking. Very cute little condo with tons of parking. This particular day I was meeting a client over there to show it. I arrived ten minutes early, and walked the property. I opened the door, and cracked the blinds to let some sunlight in. Then I stood expectantly on the front porch and waited on my client. The appointment time came and went. I thought no problem, maybe they caught some traffic. So I walked around the perimeter of the entire condo to kill some time, and to inspect its overall appearance. I walked back to my place by the front door. Ten minutes late. My cell phone rang, and one of the receptionists from the office called to tell my my client said they were on property and I wasn't. I explained to my client I was standing in the front door way. After a moment I began to walk around to see if my client would spot me and come to me, so I stood on each possible corner of the condo for five minutes. Needless to say, it resulted in twenty minutes after the appointment time, and no client. Deciding not to give up I went into the alleyway parking area and began knocking on random cars windows, and asking total strangers if they were here to meet me to view the home. Yes, this happened at lunch time, so tons of people were home for lunch. I had to have looked like a lunatic. People were looking at me crazy, and saying no and double taking as they went into their condos bolting the deadbolt behind them. I knocked on every door in the parking lot. No Client. Finally giving in I called the receptionist back. I asked if my client had contacted her, she said yes a few more times stating I wasn't at the very place in which I stood at that very moment. I whipped around. There was no one but me outside, and the lawn care guy with a leaf blower that was looking at me strangely. My incoming call beeped on my cell phone and I flashed over. It was my Client! I opened my mouth to apologize and ask where they were so I could meet them. My client cut me off, "We called the wrong Agent." My client was giggling, "We are in Austin and we have a Realtor here that has your same name, and apparently Austin and the B/CS area have a same address location! We are so sorry, but we have some condos we want to look at with you next week in the B/CS area, and we will just add the one you are standing at right now to the list!" HAHAHA. Happened to me, but hey I tried to find my M.I.A. client by old school knocking, my real estate instructor would have been so proud!

Poetic Justice Realtor style

There once was a Realtor who wore high heeled shoes
They were so high she walked like gumby too
She tossed her hair to and fro
Sure to be the spotlight in her home show

Her client made a joke and she giggled and slipped
He grabbed her arm before she could trip
She decided to remove her shoes so she wouldn't fall
Even though to her client it could be an unprofessional call

Instead he laughed and sighed
"I wonder how you worked up so high"
The realtor said at the end of the day I am just like you
But sometimes we are human and trip and stumble in our shoes


***This is totally about the time I almost fell out side after a rainstorm while showing my client a home, I had to take off my muddy heels to commence the home show, and my client was all the more appreciative that I was just like him in the human sense.

 The moral: We all are people, and we all stumble and fall, its the people that pick us up that mold your lives

:) Heather Dunlap

"The Bulldog"

I have my moments. I am human, just like everyone else. But there are these days, that I have to look at people like a Bulldog. Yeah I said it, I twisted my head like a bulldog. If you have no idea what I am talking about, I will fill you in, I am a Boxer Bulldog enthusist, and a bully breed enthusist, and they pups twist their heads when you do stuff like drop their food. They twist their head in silent intelligent superiority, and look at you as if WTF...The human equivalent of "The Bulldog" as I like to call it, is head scratching. Now on to my blog.

I deal with lots of stuff on the daily. Lots of really cool really interesting stuff in both my personal and professional life that leaves me a huge sense of fullfillmet and the feeling that I was able to help another person today. This is only my first blog, so once I do a few more I will divulge exactly what I do. Back to the stuff I deal with. There are these days and moments when I deal with a certain person or situation, I am alomost positive I will have to drive straight to my chiropractor, and get some relief of whiplash due to my constant "bulldogging" or the wrinking of the forehead and twisting of the neck from side to side, because the person in front of you seems to be speaking minimal english and lacks having the general idea good sense. You think, note to self, offer this poor guy coffee later, so he can drive his point home in a make-sense fashion.

Now I know I got you reading, so I guess I will give you an example, better be ready to crack up.

My husband, children (8 & 5) and I were walking into a Hastings right near campus. The college aged girl with all her alumni garb on was standing in front of us chatting on her phone. We were going to side step her so she could finish her phone conversation, we even shushed our boys out of respect because she was on the phone. But I suppose that she didn't want to be the last person through the door, so she snapped her phone shut, stepped out in front of us. She flicked her hair over her shoulder, and grabbed the door handle with purpose. We all hung back so she coud make her grand entrace, but there was one small hitch. Apparently the 3 inch black lettering that said "Push" had totally evaded her! She jerked back on the door handle so hard she almost stepped on my youngest son. I just figured it was an honest mistake, and started around her, to open the door for her, so she could recover from a normally embarrasing mistake. But I guess I wasn't going to put baby in a corner. She hurrided around me, bumping my should with hers, and grabbed the door handle again. I hung back, to let her have her "who's in first" glory, as people stacked up behind us. She jerked on the handle again, and to no avail, it didn not budge. I mean at this point I am trying not to laugh. I start to motion to the Bold push sign on the door, but she turned to me, "I got this" she said, so I held my hand up and stepped back, and started looking for the prank camera as my husband snickered and my children shifted feet. Guess what... there was no camera, so I start wrinkling my forehead and twisting my head side to side "the bulldog" as this chick is now rattling the french doors entering the Hastings. Now the cashiers are looking at her from the inside of the store like she is crazy. This time she sighed, and really gave it a good rattling, when she got just short of planting her feet on either side of the door to pull, my husband snickers, and she released one of the door handle and sighed and put her hand up as if Hastings had locked their doors in broad daylight. My husband side steped her and grabbed the door handle, and my oldest son looked over at her and said, "It says to push", as my husband held the door open for us and the gathering crowd behind this colligate with the "me first" attitude. We walked into Hastings laughing, with a drove of people behind us.

That my friend is a "bulldog" story

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9K4Fm0JPKQw

ME...Honesty is best

After reading "The Bulldog" you are starting to get to know me. I have humor. I blog for fun. I don't want to blog to advance. and have a bunch of social friends to e-bully people I don't like. I want people to like ME. The REAL ME. That is why I have chosen not to divulge my work information. I think it is important to evolve as a person. It is even better to evolve as a person that people like, trust, and can relate to as being human.


Let's face it. It is a social world. Long gone are the days were you made eye contact, shook hands, and built meaningful and professional relationships. This is the best I have got. I have to make this our first meeting and handshake. Then once you know me, and realize how I operate in my personal life and business life morally, then I will eventually real my entire self. I am baffled everyday at the many communities of people that are able to connect on-line, but are totally emotionally and morally DISCONNECTED. I mean there used to be work ethic, now there are entitlements. There used to be integrity, and honesty, now there are finger pointing, and legal threats.



When did we all get so disconnected? I guess I am old school. I am from the working world of sometimes you having to tell the truth even if you don't have the eloquent words, or even if you don't really want to do it. Truth can be brutal but it is the most important thing in business. Truth. Not beating around the bush, and indirectly handling a situation. I mean you have to roll up your sleeves and take truth head on. In the end, it makes for happy people all around. I can be brutally honest, and often times it leads to people putting their hand on their chest and taking a step back. But then they look at my demeanor, listen to me explain how I have been there (believe me there isn't much I haven't seen...) Then they smile, and say, "Wow, thanks for being so honest with me."


It worries me that people take that backwards step and looked more appalled when I tell the truth, than if I turned into a smooth talking forked tongued liar, telling them exactly what they want to hear. I mean I could bundle a pack of lies up in a really cute little designer package to get my way, and then leave you there to open it, to see that I didn't deliver and never meant to.

NOPE. NOT ME. I AM NOT WIRED THAT WAY. If you care to meet and know a real person with old school values, with a hint of new-wave technology backing her convictions, I am your girl.

So I am going to say take care, and have a good day. Thank you for reading my blog. And guess what I am going to MEAN IT.

http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/j/johnsteinb411693.html


:)