The saying that time flies when you're having fun definitely applies to blogging on ActiveRain.  500 Blog Posts have been a journey for me that started back in 2006.  Like a lot of journeys, this one has had more than it's share of pit stops and layovers.

I think back to my first introduction to ActiveRain when I read a short blurb about the new phenomena of blogging for real estate agents in my daily update of industry news from Inman News, where I proceeded to this new website offering free blogs to those in the real estate industry.  So I signed up.  Didn't do squat for 6 months, but I had a blog, by golly.

I worked hard that year, I transitioned from being a Keller Williams agent in the high end Temecula market to being an independent working for a rent a broker in my local Hemet - San Jacinto Valley, where the price of the homes were less than half of what was offered in Temecula, only 30 miles to the south.

Not sure what bug bit me, but the day after Christmas I started blogging.  I managed to pump out 29 articles in that week alone.  Obviously, I had some spare time on my hands, as that is a very slow time for real estate here, as I am sure it is wherever you are.

PIONEER

It was fun being a Pioneer on this new frontier.  I was part of a group that actually established the protocol for much of what is commonly accepted as correct blogging etiquette today.  This was no easy task and I know that I was not only challenged on my tactics but challenged many others.  I guess like many early trendsetters I found myself on the outside looking in, more often than not.  By early Spring, I transitioned once again from my rent a broker to a small boutique outfit, that was the closest real estate office to my home.

Anyone who knows anything about my personal life knows that my wife, Sherri, and I met in an AOL Chat Room back in 1996.  So, I definitely am an early user of the web.  Those who know me, also know that Sherri was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer - CLL at about the same time, and was given a 5 year life expectancy.

By the time I became involved in ActiveRain, Sherri had already beat all the odds.  However, at this point, she was starting to take turns for the worse.  There was more than one occasion where I thought she would be gone over the next couple of months.  In April, 2007, Sherri had voluntarily stopped her 6^th round of Chemo treatments, as she thought the cure would kill her before the disease would.  She was given 6 months to live then.  That was 30 months ago.

There is no doubt that our faith in God is what has kept us strong, as we know that He has a plan for us which He is not finished with yet. When He is ready for Sherri, His Angles will appear and escort her to the Judgment Throne and she will have the incredible opportunity to meet Jesus Christ.  Although my blog has not been about my walk, I have certainly taken more than one opportunity to share some of my personal beliefs, adding another element of who I am as a man, a husband, a REALTOR® and as a Christian.

BUSINESS TOPICS

My real estate blog always has been dominated by my desire to reach out to the public and build my business.  Initially, I found numerous ‘special reports' that I had rights to and publicized this as blog articles...you know the type, 10 Things Every Buyer Should Know About...

Another painful segment of my career that parallels my blog is my introduction into Short Sales - which actually started back in 2006 - not only do I have the blogs to prove it...I started the ActiveRain Group, "Short Sale REALTORS" that now has 899 members who have contributed over 3600 meaningful posts on the topic.

It has been a while since I have been involved with short sales on any level, so much so that I now discourage anyone from either listing or writing offers on short sales as they have been a major time waster with little or no results.  I have been reconsidering my position as I continue to monitor the market and see that more and more are starting to close escrow and that the government guidelines will probably make them lucrative for the first time since I've had anything to do with them.

My business transitioned from the Short Sale niche into working directly with Asset Managers and the banks listing and selling REO homes.  Like the Short Sales, I started doing BPOs back in 2006 and this is what led me to the path of listing the bank owned homes.

LOCALISM

My blog has always been about local real estate.  I write just about every article I can with a local slant towards either Hemet, San Jacinto or at the very least the State of California.

ActiveRain launched Localism with anticipated excitement.  I did my part by forming and moderating the Group, Localism Beta that has 635 members and almost 3,000 individual posts.

Of course, to do a community justice in a blog, the author should definitely include market reports to let everyone know that the agent truly is a local expert in the local market.

AGENT TO AGENT

By being part of a community it is important to give back and not just take.  Here on ActiveRain, I have published numerous articles that have been "Members Only"; many of which have been educational in nature.  Many of the articles were written in a Series format, such as my, "Common Mistakes", "Back to the Basics", The Five Star Institute, or on "Business Planning".

There were numerous articles I wrote about SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and shared some of my early successes with Google and ActiveRain.  I remember the thrill of finding myself on page 1 of Google for the very first time, just a couple of weeks after I started actively blogging, when I wrote Whooo Hooo - Page 1 GOOGLE RESULTS - You Can Too!

According to my Point Summary on my ‘home page' I have sponsored 14 different individuals to start blogging.  One of the early friends I turned on was JACK, who I wrote a couple of articles to help get him started. Unfortunately, my efforts were in vain with Jack, but apparently the articles did help others.

My newest blogger is Colleen Bigler, who just got started a few days ago.  Colleen and I talk every week.  Not only is she one of my investment clients, she is my number one source for hard money.  I have high expectations for her, once she grasps the mechanics of what is going on.  So please go ahead and bookmark her blog and help me encourage her to share all that she offers.

CLIENTS

As already mentioned, in my opinion, the main reason to spend the time blogging is not for my personal satisfaction and allow myself an outlet to express myself and even occasionally rant...no it is all about business.  We all pay for our leads, one way or the other.  When we get a lead ‘for free' that comes to us from our efforts on ActiveRain, is it really free?

I write in spurts for one type of client at a time...typically.  For example, when I want to attract Investors, I'll write with Investment advise.  Then there are the articles that I write geared towards First time buyers, Sellers, as well as your garden-variety move-up Buyers.

Of course, if I am reaching out to the public and sharing with them my industry knowledge, I must include a number of articles on Financing and the different options, which include FHA, Conventional Loans, Hard Money and of course Cash - always  one of my favorite topics.

It seems like I could go on and on looking back at all that ActiveRain and I have accomplished together...but like anyone who has read this far, I have a life and I need to move on.

There has been a song running through my head as I have gone back and forth filling in details for this monumental post...a song from my youth (OK, I was in my 30's, but that's still young). The band was Grateful Dead and the song was just called TRUCKIN (at least that's all I ever called it).  The line I'll leave you with is...

...What a long strange trip its been...