Two Lessons

Right out of college, I taught drama. My passion back then was directing plays. I was very happy when I got the job and I was very happy to move to the next life assignment. I do still love the theatre.
Many times, I have the thought that the game of real estate is much like a play (guess you know by now, my brain works a little differently)! The actors change, but the characters remain the same. People come and go from our lives, but oddly enough, there is always protagonist and an antagonist.
I am sure you’ve seen Our Town, by Thorton Wilder. It is a story about life, its' sorrows and joys. Set in Grover’s Corners, NH, a typical little town with average citizens, I am reminded of the world I live in. People come and go, but memories remain.
I just got back from the Oklahoma Real Estate Commission--something to do with paperwork. If you know me, you know I am terrible at paperwork--and that is a constant. I profess to have some undiagnosed brain disorder that precludes me from being able to accurately file/shuffle papers! Who knows?? Anyway, back to the visit at the Commission. I ran into an old friend, someone I had not seen in at least 8 years. Maybe you know her. Her name is Peggy. I started thinking about the part she had played in my life. At one time, she was the central figure in my play. Things changed. She moved on to another corner of the world and I stayed behind. I guess from Thorton Wilder’s point of view, we both had new lessons to learn.
I met Peggy early on in my career, but it was not until I joined her firm, that I realized I wanted to be a part of her play. She was knowledgeable and more importantly, she wanted to share that knowledge. It was a perfect fit.
I learned two very important lessons from this lady and if you are one of my current associates, pay attention to this part! Here we go,

Lesson # 1--always document. Document, document, document. To her, these were the 3 most important words in real estate. Today as a broker and manager, I find that documentation is the most important aspect of monitoring a transaction. Sometimes our antagonist will make a turn on us and we must have accurate info.

Lesson # 2 is what I call the Lazarus lesson. This applies to the dead deals that come back to life. You know what I mean. We have all seen them. The Lazarus lesson teaches that if the seller wants to sell, and the buyer wants to buy, you can work it out. I learned this thru her dogged determination to close every deal.

It was nice to see this old friend. A feeling came over me that I cannot describe. I know that Act, in our play, is finished but she will forever hold a central place in my "cast of characters."

Thank you Peggy.