Yesterday we discussed why April the person blogs.  Today, I’ll explain why April the Realtor does it.

 If you spend any amount of time here, you will find that the actual real estate information is scarce – seems odd for a blogging real estate agent, right?  I don’t think so.  You can get information all over the place.  If you are in need of information you can’t find, email me and I’ll send it to you.  But my purpose in blogging is not to provide real estate information to a vast amount of people – that will come later in the process.  The process of the blog is create the relationship – the essential foundation for the process.

I specialize in residential real estate.  I like homeowners, I like homes.  The process of working with someone to find their sanctuary from the world enthralls me.  As such, I feel that my business is totally relational in nature.

Many relationships can be created face to face.  Some cannot.  Blogging is my way to instigate the former and allow for the latter.

It is my belief that finding an agent to work with is the most important step in the home buying/selling process.  Interview me, find out if you like me, decide if I am someone you can work with.  The process of residential transactions can be an emotional one.  I respect and understand that.  You need to know who you are dealing with.

Blogging affords me the venue to say, “Hello, my name is April.  This is what I believe, this is how I think, and this is who I am,” in a way that is open and non confrontational.  It is my living, breathing resume that I invite you to look over at your leisure and without commitment.

Living in Richmond Hill, much of our market consists of military relocation and an increasing amount of corporate relocation.  Blogging allows those who cannot have coffee with me to get to know me anyway.  I have a soft spot for people who have to find their haven from across the miles.  What a daunting task that is.  Blogging is my small attempt to make that easier.

Marketing property in a fluctuating market is another huge task.  The days of a property only needing to be announced as “for sale” in order for it to sell are possible, but not constant.  Newspaper ads reach a community, as do other hyper local advertising venues.  These are necessary and wonderful, but not complete.  An Internet prescence reaches people everywhere, in their pajamas, at midnight, when they want the information.  It is my job as your agent to facilitate that presence so that your property will reach these folks in a way that was not possible before. 

In essence, blogging is a natural thing for an agent such as myself to do.  It is my resume, it is a relationship builder, and it assists with the marketing of property.  I believe this is true for a great many bloggers in a relational business.  As a consumer, I find it helpful to get to know the person behind the business.  As a business, I know it is essential that you decide whether or not you are comfortable with me. 

This is a phenomenal question of which I get asked fairly often.  Typically it follows the question, “What’s a blog?”

Today I am going to address why I blog as a person.  Tomorrow we will talk about how that relates to real estate.  The most exciting part about this two parter is that I am so hoping you will tell me why you blog and how it grows your business.

Even if I were not a Realtor, I would be a blogger.  I wish I had known about the blogging community sooner.  The characteristics of the folks here have been amazing.

• Free exchange of ideas and information
• abundance of encouragement
• disagreements with love
• agreements with excitement
• instigation to think deeper

I have experienced more personal growth in the last 6 months than I have in the last six years.  There have only been two other times in my life I can remember such a massive transformation taking place – motherhood, and wifehood.  That’s some pretty tall company.

Where does this life changing information come from?  Everywhere.  I have been honored to be included on a list of Women Bloggers.  How neat it was when I realized Liz had thought of me when it came her time to add to the list.  I am still working on mine and it should be up soon.  But you could pick anyone of these blogs and find something you didn’t know.

You can also look to your left – that blog roll is filled with people smarter than me and I am working hard to catch up.  I know that I will because they are opening their arms and their minds to me.

Speaking of encouragement – I am busting at the seams!  This has been a phenom week for my encouragement level.

Sunday, Rosa gave Dave, Tim, Dwayne, Joanna, Dean, Rich, and I the “Thinking Blogger Award.”  The honor is great.  The words she used to tell each of us how much she cared about us left me speechless.

Yesterday, Priscilla Palmer, life coach, decided I was a Rocking Girl Blogger!  That’s a title I could get use to.

So today, I am up early, prepared, motivated, positive, energized, and full of ideas. That has to be good for my clients! I am betting it is good for yours too…

Scott Ginsberg is an original – the name tag thing is brilliant! And, I have often wondered how he can continue to come up with great points ended with awesome questions day after day.  He is without a doubt a staple in my feedreader.

That being said, his post last week gave me pause.  He asked, “Are you the echo or the origin?” He makes a great case for the “origin.” But, I couldn’t help but feel that this subject isn’t as clear as, “Be the Origin.” While I understand and appreciate his point – the echo is getting a bad rap.

Even while I read Scott’s post, my brain immediately returned to a conversation over at Liz’s place where we were discussing the differences between using another’s work to make you great, or stealing it.  I believe now, like I did then, that there are very few truly new ideas – we get our special in the delivery.

I can hear Jay now and buddy, you are absolutely right! Content thieves, cut and pasters, copyright violators and their ilk are…well, I won’t get ugly – we’ll just leave it as not good.  But, I am not talking stealing ideas. I am talking finding inspiration.

Why do I look to creeate relationships with people smarter than me? Because they are smarter than me! Few things are more admirable in a person than the willingness to teach. Few things are more inhospitable than hording information. 

I so love to sit at the feet of that person who is a gracious teacher.  I walk away feeling refreshed and ready to take on the world – and share with them the gem that I have gleaned.

What good is it to learn, be inspired, and be the end of the movement?

What is the purpose of teaching one person, one thing, and never having that multiply into its full potential?

I am not comfortable with being the end of the line. When standing at the expanse of the Grand Canyon, most are excited about the echo.  It’s intrigue lies in the fact that while it has the properties of the original, the delivery is somewhat different.  Even those shouting usually repeat a phrase they have heard somewhere else before – “Hello!”

Do I feel that I am and belong to a community of “originals”?  You bet I do.

Do I think that all the ideas shared have originated with the person currently expressing them? I know they do not.

But I am not discouraged by the remix of the idea because the delivery is where it’s at.  I appreciate the effort and generosity of those who will learn something for themselves, pour their own heart into it, and offer it to me so that the greatness grows.

I hope I do the teacher justice when it is my turn to pass the idea on in my own special way.

Yesterday I talked about the common thread in blogging.  Today, I want to show my appreciation for those who are stepping up to be the needles. 

Chris Cree, SuccessCreeations, will always be at the top of my list – he is the whole reason I am even here.

Rosa Say, Managing with Aloha Coaching, has taken me under her incredible wing.  She exudes grace and kindness. I still have a hard time believing she lets me write for Joyful, Jubilant, Learning.

Lani Anglin, RERevealed, is my friend. She gives me a safe place to wonder and forces me outside of the box.

Dawud Miracle, webdesigner, is an awesome family guy with a big heart.

Timothy Johnson, Carpe Factum, is not only fresh and smart, but is open with what he knows and generous with his time.

Liz Strauss, Successful Blog, is a woman for the ages.  An open thinker with an open heart, she will makes those around her consistently feel appreciated and valuable.

Phil Gerbyshak, Make it Great, is the only person I know who is more positive than me and Terry Starbucker. He also understands the awesome power of a simple phone call.

Jay Thompson, The Phoenix Real Estate Guy, has made it a point to share all that he knows – which is a good thing for me, because he knows a lot.

Shailesh Ghimire, Arizona Mortgage Guru, is always on the look out to add value where value is needed.

I can’t express enough the sentiment I wrote about yesterday – if I had only known sooner about the awesome community located in my computer…

But I am sure glad I know about it now.

I would love to hear about your community of folks.  Who are your “needlers?”

I love to blog.  As my blogs approach their six month birthday (I can hardly believe it has been that long) I take time to reflect on their effect on me.  It has been profound.

Blogging has taught me why I love real estate. It has also introduced me to a number of other things I would like to pursue. They all have common threads.

• Community
• Learning
• Coaching
• Expression
• Ideas
• Value

There may be more, but that about sums it up.

There is a greatness in the desire to be the best you can be in order to

1. realize your personal best
2. provide for your family 
3. help others achieve their best.

Being awesome in and of itself seems unfulfilling.  Providing only for you and yours seems short sighted. Providing only for others seems unsustainable. But when these things work together, wondrous things occur.

These are the types of projects I want to be involved in.

Real Estate does this.  If you have ever worked with a first time home buyer, a seller with an unexpected move, a tough family situation, you realize there are more things at sake than just a commission.

Blogging does this. I would have started a long time ago if I had known the community that thrived in my computer. The willingness to teach, the desire to learn, and the openness of community is mind blowing.

It challenges me and I therefore, challenge you.

• What is it that makes your desired profession great?
• What are those common threads that draw you to an idea?
• What do you do to add to that collective?