October Balloons

In October of last year I wrangled three balloons to do this little photo shoot. Let’s be honest; most of the photos look like the balloons are strangling me. It really was absurd. And on that day I needed a laugh, because all month Oliver had been in and out of the hospital with terrible pain with no clear reason why. It was this mother’s worst nightmare.

BUT when our hundredth house closed at Lanier Property Group, I remember being so happy to have something to celebrate. A true milestone for our company.

As we head into Q4 this year, we are far more profitable than we have ever been, which has been a combination of hard work and God’s grace. I have worked hard to understand how to be a great steward of our resources. Five years in, this social worker is slowly but surely learning how to be a CEO.

This year (profits aside), I had been hoping we could do a repeat photo. 100 houses sold again, by mid-October. But here’s the truth: we won’t be at #100 until December. Yep. No balloons this October.

Selling real estate isn’t always ponies and rainbows. We don’t always crush our goals. In an industry obsessed with numbers, rankings and unapologetic self promotion, all we hear about are the big “wins” and million dollar this and that. You can start to feel like you are the only agent in America that isn’t crushing every.single.goal you set for yourself this year. I mean the market is SO hot, right?

Here is what I have learned in my short years in real estate...if we aren’t careful, the goals that once motivated us can crush us.

So, if you missed your goals this month, this year, or this day, take heart. I invite you to consider that there are other things you may like to measure alongside those sales metrics. A different set of numbers you should analyze. More important things to keep track of?

Have you laughed for 100 days this year? Have you given (or gotten) at least 100 sweet kisses...on the forehead, on the lips, on the top of your head? Have you had 100 cups of delicious coffee, keeping you going on those late nights and early mornings? Have you lovingly changed 100 diapers, or cheerfully answered 100 customer calls? Did you say grace at least 100 times, over one hundred meals? Have you taken 100, maybe 1,000 photos of your puppy or your squishy baby you waited years to hold? Have you read hundreds and hundreds of pages of books that inspired you, downright changed you? Perhaps, at least sometimes, we should measure things that transcend our Profit and Loss Statements, our monthly sales competitions, our cash flow, and our instagram likes. This is simple to understand, but not easy to do.

So here is an invitation: why don’t you grab some balloons and celebrate the things worth counting in your life. The things that really matter to you. Moments that you want to mark and savor. It turns out when we invest in counting life’s simplest pleasures, we feel lighter, buoyant...a great deal like a balloon. When our hearts are full of gratitude, we are able to dance in the harsh wind, no matter how unexpected it may be.

Here’s to an October filled with balloons…