Deb's Lake Livingston Real Estate & Stuff!

Seriously...Let's Talk. 

I wrote a lighthearted post recently called...Are you thinking of letting your license go?

and the response has been surprising to me. This is obviously a subject that many of you are pondering. The question touched many a heart and mind and evidently has been on the tongue of more than a few.

I can only give you my personal view of this question and maybe a few questions of my own that will help you to make your own decision.

In my book, this is really heavy stuff. When I decided to get my license it was because I knew it was what I wanted to do.

I was oblivious to the ups and downs of the market and even today I hold tight to my ... "nothing could be greater than to be a Real Estater," attitude.

No it's not as easy as it was but I didn't go into this thinking it was going to be easy in the first place.

Don't just jump out of the business like a frog out of a frying pan.

Grab a pen and paper and start writing. It's important to get your thoughts on paper. At least work these thoughts through in your mind and then listen to your heart.

First of all...why did you get into this business? Because the market was hot...or for a profession?

What do you like about it?

What do you dislike about it?

Are you willing to sacrifice your past for a different future?

Could you do more to make it successful or are you doing everything the right way?

What do you envision for your future? Does it include being in RE?

Have you written your goals out in black and white?

Are you clear on what you have to do to become successful in this business?

Could it be fear that is stopping you from being successful?

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Next approach:

What would you rather be doing? Does that include Real Estate?

Do you awaken with a good attitude each day?

If you do get out of Real Estate how will your attitude affect your next position?

Are you generally happy? Take Real Estate away and would you be happier?

Are you feeling sorry for yourself or spending time worrying about the future?

Could you put that time towards expanding your RE business?

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I don't claim to have any answers. Only questions. These are all questions I have posed to myself therefore I know my answers.

This business is in need of retaining each and every ethical, responsible, professional, caring individual we can muster.

I want to remain in Real Estate and continue to be successful. This is a challenge I must live up to daily and with a good positive attitude.

I wish you the best of luck with whatever you decide. I wish prosperity, happiness, security and fun for each and everyone of my Active Rain friends. I hope this helps.

My advice...hang on.

Later in the rain~Deb

With each dark cloud there is a silver lining. I was gone for the last couple of days and I came back to quite a surprise! First I read a post of Brad Andersohn's explaining that there is a teenie hitch in the AR getalong.

It's okay with me. We all go through glitches don't we? When I navigated to Diary of a Realtor to feature some new posts (since we get awesome submissions daily) and the site was really bright! Everyone of our posts has a gold star. Even mine!

How fun was that to see us all lit up and shining bright! I want each of you to know that you DO DESERVE A STAR...and it was a dream of mine that came true. Every post on AR seems to be featured.

Congratulations to each and everyone of you! We are a star for at least a day.

Later in the rain~Deb

As if the liability with our business isn't already steep enough when you have a hands-on buyer...now we're going virtual?

Yep, it's happening.

We are selling houses without the buyer seeing them till after closing. Who would've thunk it? The wonders of our far reaching virtual world is becoming compelling enough for buyers to send the earnest money check without ever entering the home they are purchasing.

To date, I have now completed two sales (out of five virtual offers) where the buyer has not seen the home till after closing. This is a scary situation.

And, it must be laden with liability. We send all the information, pictures, videos, history and disclosures, information about the neighborhood and schools.

But, we can compare this to reading a great novel. The words create a movie in our minds and we set our own stage. They are the same words to each individual but the perceived "movie" in their minds can be totally different.

So, what if they walk in and say, "this isn't what I pictured." "uh, Ahem."

This is a new aspect of our business that we must explore and somehow protect ourselves from "perceived value" or lack thereof. It could be better than expected but what if it's worse???

This is a "virtual hot house" for complications. Any ideas? Are you selling houses off your web site?

I listened to Rain Radio today on BlogTalkRadio.com!

I feel like I'm getting geekier and geekier each day and loving it. I have recently joined the ranks of TWITTER and am a novice with how it all works. So for me, this was valuable listening.

It was so much fun hearing my friends voices again such as Rich Jacobson, Brad Andersohn, Ron Chaney, Jeremy Blanton, Kim Wood and a various assortment of Active Rainer guests. Woohaa.

I am such a geek now that I subscribed to the RSS, signed in and worked on paperwork while listening to the show. I learned and began to understand the value and significance of the use of interacting and socializing on TWITTER.

Do you TWITTER? Do you TWEET? Have you ever TWOOSHED?

See, I know geek speak...

Now for starters you need to get signed up for R.A.I.N. Radio...an easy task. Activate your RSS (see I don't have a clue what I'm talking about here but it worked for me so it will work for you).

And, voila, you are able to choose radio shows from just about any and all subjects and you can meet up with lots of fellow Rainers!

Come join @Paul Chaney, @Kim Wood, @Jeremy Blanton, and many other @special guests, as we discuss and unfold everything about "Twitter", the micro-blogging Social Network. How to get Business ...

using one of the latest "viral" tools in Social Media Marketing. Tweet This!

Join me on TWITTER and let's visit and network!

My handle is @TexnDeb         Join me.

Later in the rain~Deb

What led us into the 1960's Music Revolution? The 1950,s. If you weren't there please take a moment to watch this presentation by SergeantPepper27, Emily Maddox, and enjoy the transition that was so spectacular to witness and enjoy...

The 1960,s was a very special time for me. I was a child and the entire world was a learning experience. My friends and I were wide eyed, curious, feeling the freedom to let go and dance to the music. During the summer of 1966 in little Edinburgh Indiana the pool parties were going strong! I could crack the storm windows in my bedroom and hear the music wafting through the neighborhood with a beat that was calling me to turn to my wild side and let it all loose. Of course I would only have to crack the window once or twice during the summers...if I were grounded. Yes, that phenomenon did occur so I would dance in my room. Otherwise, I was right there eating out of the bands hands...dancing, twirling, feeling the beat and feeling so free and young and perfectly wonderful and full of music.

I grew up in the time of the "basement" bands. Everyone had one. And, at least at the time, they all seemed pretty good to me. Life was good and our lives seemed to be centered around music.

WLS Chicago was the most progressive radio station on the US Airwaves and I was lucky enough to pull the station in strong! The music was fantastic, innovative, progressive and heavier than the earlier Beatles, Buddy Holly and Elvis.  We were beginning to hear what I called "real" rock and roll. Chicago, Louie Louie, Jefferson Airplane, Janice Joplin and more and more songs and artists found their way into our lives. Every Sunday evening I would get my shower, crawl into my pj's and plop in front of our black and white TV and watch Ed Sullivan.

I love the fact that my memory can take me back. Back into my little living room with my mom and dad and Ed and other greats such as Elvis, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Monkeys, Paul Revere and the Raiders, The Four Seasons...and yes, I do remember them!

How cool is that?

Ed Sullivan moved on and later in the 1960,s came my favorite show! Talk about walking on the wild side. It taught us some of the greatest music in history. It taught me a new twist in humor and made me laugh out loud. It provided roll models and humor and fun. And how to wear mini-skirts and wear flowers in our hair and made it mandatory to get our ears pierced...

Speaking of piercing ones ears...here it comes...I was hoping I wouldn't have to do this. This has been so much fun and I've enjoyed reliving the greats but JASON CROUCH is making me do this and for that I humbly apologize....really. Really. I mean really.

Here comes the absolute WORST, OBNOXIOUS, TASTLESS, DISCUSTING, DISTURBING, WASTE OF BREATH AND TIME AND LACK OF TALENT EVER TO BE DELIVERED TO THE BIG SCREEN.....

HOLD YOUR EARS OR MUTE the PUTE...but it's worth watching till the end for the glimpse of Goldie...

Will you ever forgive me for this?

Now, there simply is no song worse than this...

And, to show you why I loved this show...Rowan and Martin's Laugh In, I am including a short of the end of this particular segment. At the end they all had so much fun and it still makes me laugh today.



I hope you enjoyed this...most of it anyway. Later in the rain~Deb

Jesse Clifton, Fairbanks Ak Real Estate Broker Jesse Clifton Fairbanks, AK, one of the most cantankerous  sweetest most wonderful people here in the rain provoked me tagged me into doing yet another meme.

Somehow this man finds time to sell RE like a pro, take photos of the Aurora Borialis, be a wonderful husband to Kathy, and father and grandaddy and professed puppy lover and still do meme's.

Go figure??

We all know and love Jesse.

Jesse is a prolific writer here in the Rain and you should, if you have not, visit his blog and begin to read. You will find hours of beauty, fun, sense of humor, awesome dorkiness and just great reading.

The man attempts to become the dinner for all Alaskan bears...

and ignores signs. Anyway, he has meme'd me and this is an interesting task I have been assigned...

I must:

1. Grab the nearest book.

2. Open the book to page 56.

3. Find the fifth sentence.

4. Post the text of the next two to five sentences.

5. Don't dig for your favorite book, the cool book or the intellectual one. Pick the Closest.

6. Tag five people to do the same (this part is really cool)

*The one book that this can not be is the Bible*

So here I go. Yes Jess I did grab the closest (of 2) that were both in my reach from my chair...

This one wins:

While he was an influential person, writer, and business man, not many people know who he was or the impact that he had.

Born in Ann Arbor, Michigan, May 22, 1866, he is the son of Hugo and Emeline (Fox) Haanel, who removed with him to St. Louis when he was in early childhood. He initiated himself into the business world as an office boy for the National Enameling & Stamping Company. For this company he worked for a period of fifteen years. (read more)

 THE BOOK IS:

THE MASTER KEY SYSTEM BY CHARLES F. HAANEL OF ANN ARBOR MICHIGAN.

GREAT READING...WRITTEN IN 1912...THIS BOOK WAS THE LEADER TO THE SIMPLER VERSION OF THE SECRET.

THE SECRET HAS BEEN NO SECRET FOR MANY YEARS AND CHARLES WILL TELL YOU HOW AND WHY AND ANSWER ALL THE QUESTIONS THE SECRET LEFT YOU WITH.

CHARLES STRUCTURES YOUR TRAIN OF THOUGHT TO BRING POWER AND UNDERSTANDING TO YOU, ME, US.

PAGE 56........SENTENCE 5.........

Make the Mental Image: make it clear, distinct, perfect: hold it firmly: the ways and means will develop: supply will follow the demand: you will be led to do the right thing at the right time and in the right way.

Earnest Desire will bring about Confident Expectation, and this in turn must be reinforced by Firm Demand. These three cannot fail to bring about Attainment, because the Earnest Desire is the feeling, the Confident Expectation is the thought, and the Firm Demand is the will, and, as we have seen, feeling gives vitality to thought and the will holds it steadily until the law of Growth brings it into manifestation.

Yeah baby! That's what I believe. I believe we create our own realities. Think good. Think positive, think prosperous and healthy. You will be led to this life one way or another. The way you should be....believe it. Live it and it WILL BE.

And now, oh goody. I get to provoke pick five people to do the same so watch out and get busy writing....

1. Erik Hitzelberger - Louisville & Bullitt County Real Estate

2. Liz Moras Re/Max Chilliwack Realtor's Blog

3 .Spring TX Real Estate, Marchel Peterson

4.  Ann Arbor and Saline Michigan Real Estate  Missy, my author is from your place!

5. The Art Of Marketing You The Blog Artist - marti garaughty - Montreal, QC

6. Simon Conway's Orlando Real Estate Blog

7. Crossville TN Real Estate Crossville TN Real Estate, Melissa Grant REALTOR®, Homes and Land For Sale -

8. Real Estate Financing, The Insider's Insight On Mortgage Jason Sardi, Pennsylvania Mortgage Broker - Allentown, PA

WHAT DO YOU MEAN THAT WASN'T FIVE (5)??? I NEVER COULD COUNT...

Later in the rain~Deb

Is your fear running rampant? The media and their ability to sensationalize the negative is creating a dark cloud over most people. I spoke to a dear friend today who is thinking of letting her license go.

Are you thinking of letting your license go?

How long did it take you to get it?

How much work have you put into your Real Estate Business?

Are you going to let the lag in business win?

I just don't want to see this happening to good agents. We can listen to the media to the point that we could all curl up and not show our faces to the sunlight but what good does that do? That guarantees failure.

Quote:   I'd rather be a failure at something I love than a success at something I hate.

George Burns

I have to agree with George. If you love it then stick with it.

When the clouds clear and you're still there with your ball rolling...you will come back stronger than ever.

Later in the rain~Deb

I do. I challenge you to:

Believe today what will happen tomorrow....

And to make it happen...

Keep a great attitude in the face of adversity...Be strong for the weak....

Be a leader and not just the follower...

Give up something for someone else...

Remain positive when times seem bleak...

Praise God in the face of adversity...

Work when you feel like collapsing...

Win the race even though you've been told you lost...

Smile when the clouds are heavy...

Step aside for the challenged...

Be the one you would aspire to be...

I challenge you to...be the best you can be...never give up...follow your heart...

Let's change for the better~

Later in the rain~Deb

Fall in love today...Lake Livingston area For Sale. Just what you've always dreamed of! Four beautiful acres with private pond and a meandering creek. Wildlife watcher's wonderland.

Totally updated A-Frame home with an entire front of windows looking out over your spectacular view. Recently updated, the home is 2100+/-square feet of luxury. Gorgeous oak kitchen cabinets, custom Italian tiles, Stainless Steel Appliances, lighted corner cabinets to show off your crystal, 23 foot beamed ceilings, huge brick wood burning fireplace, three baths with the guest bath touting an antique clawfoot tub, solid brass fixtures, antique sink and all for the guests!

Owners suite bath is luxuriously decked out with a large 8 jet roman tub, custom ceramic tiles, antique stained glass window, walk-in closet and separate laundry room. This home can be used as a three bedroom with an office or as a four bedroom. A spiral staircase takes you up to a bedroom with another bath with a large stand up shower and a separate bath with a sitting room. At this price it won't last long.

Call Debra for your private showing today! Debra Brooks 936-661-2624