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You Know When You Were A Kid, And The Brat Next Door Bit You Because He Wanted The Red?

By
Real Estate Agent with MOOERS REALTY ME Broker License 106759

Coloring with water paints, everything friendly, life is good as Maine kid with a hot bowl of tomato soup and home made bread grilled cheese in your belly.

kids art work After sampling a handful of home made cookies only your mom could shake, make, bake. The painting with neighbor kids in on a rainy day was free, easy, creative. Until Jimmy the whiner has a melt down. Agitation building, causing the nuclear air raid sirens to go off at your family kitchen table.

You look at Jimmy, like the others under 44 inches tall around that table and think, he's kidding right?

Goofing off, trying to be funny, looking for attention. All kids do it, heck adults, even parents fine tune the process. It's how they are built, what they think they need from time to time.

But it all boils down to he really just wants the red paint you are currently using to finish off your masterpiece for the day. Maybe he wants it even more because it is not available and he does not want to use green, wait his turn. You are "seeing red too", the red flowers, art your mom will evenutally put on the refrigerator "gallery" once it is dry. Waiting so it won't run and mess up the landscape canvas work. Stain the kitchen floor. Making more work for mom when she is already kinda busy with andrew mooers kid photokeeping the house running.

Jimmy in frustration pushes over his chair leaping up and latching on to your arm like Jaws.

Suddenly the "fire in his eyes Jimbo" version develops a severe case of lock jaw. Tetanus, like stepping on multiple rusted railroad spikes hits, blooms, activates fully. James is not letting up even if you put him under water. He wants the red. Not now, right now. This instant. His urgency is not built on societal drive thru dining, banking habits, rituals either. He has to have it and wants it more because it is not available. No matter what, cut and dry. His pearly white first set of teeth are used as a savage weapon to drive home his point when all else fails.

Do you know any real estate agents, brokers or property buyers and sellers like Jimmy?

How to diffuse the situation? Biting him, sampling his arm, giving back, returning the favor to illustrate, prove a point about what it feels like could cure this outburst cycle. On your arm but maybe not those of others. Mom would not approve and his mom when he stops sobbing at home during kitchen interrogations and show and tell with the dental impression you left on his fore arm just makes the drama take on a life of its own. Like putting out a fire with gasoline.

What sticky situations do you as a day in day out agent, broker, REALTOR run in to? What has worked to keep everyone on task..heading to the real estate closing?  To keep from biting someone, even if you are being nibbled on, sampled, given open wounds. When someone wants a piece of you.

Doesn't it all go back to events as a kid? Aren't we all really still kids with 38 regular suits? Putting our pants on one leg at a time, parting our hair like anyone else? Meeting our needs, one way or another and working hard to put the "fun" in dysfunction like the rest of the herd.

Maine, sample it once, she gets in to your system in a very good way.

I'm Maine Real Estate Broker Andrew Mooers, REALTOR

Comments(10)

Glenn Roberts
Retired - Seattle, WA

Biting can be painful, but clients and other agents sometimes vent in their own unique ways (and I guess I do too). I listen and watch them closely and then when they are finished, I wait, puzzled, and usually they will start back tracking and recanting what they've just said in haste.

Oct 03, 2010 03:25 AM
Joan Whitebook
BHG The Masiello Group - Nashua, NH
Consumer Focused Real Estate Services

I use a lot of mediation and psych techniques... and try to calm the person down as much as possible.  Sometimes, it is just letting them get it all out.

Oct 03, 2010 03:31 AM
Joan Whitebook
BHG The Masiello Group - Nashua, NH
Consumer Focused Real Estate Services

I use a lot of mediation and psych techniques... and try to calm the person down as much as possible.  Sometimes, it is just letting them get it all out.

Oct 03, 2010 03:31 AM
Andrew Mooers | 207.532.6573
MOOERS REALTY - Houlton, ME
Northern Maine Real Estate-Aroostook County Broker

Glenn...Chomping down serves no purpose and way to be cool, calm, collected mild mannered. Melt downs are not pretty.

Joan...Listening is the best way to cut the blue wire, deactivate the bomb by figuring out which wire to cut, course to take. Sometimes there is nothing you can do when one side or both are just plain unreasonable, set in concrete. When you wonder why, it goes deeper. Triggers from their past. Their is not right or wrong way to feel, but understanding emotions, seeing patterns helps keep the process moving, healthy without arm biting or twisting.

Oct 03, 2010 03:48 AM
Robert Vegas Bob Swetz
Las Vegas, NV

Hello Andrew and I picked up your post from Mott plugging it with a re-blog/ re-post! I think it is a wonderful, very well written post and I have suggested it and maybe even a re-blog/ re-post by VB ;) himself!

Oct 03, 2010 04:41 AM
Robert Vegas Bob Swetz
Las Vegas, NV

Well Andrew my plug is off and running and it's a pleasure ...

You Know When You Were A Kid, And The Brat Next Door Bit You Because He Wanted The Red?

It's a pleasure getting your wonderful story out!

VB ;)

Oct 03, 2010 05:01 AM
Rebecca Gaujot, Realtor®
Lewisburg, WV
Lewisburg WV, the go to agent for all real estate

Andrew, great post and suggested as well.  The key for me is to listen, let the person(s) get it all out and hopefully keep myself calmed :)

Oct 03, 2010 05:05 AM
Liz Moras Migic
Chilliwack, BC
Chilliwack, British Columbia - Realtor

O.k.caught this on vegas bob's post :)  What terrific story  and analogy - hey i was just in Maine and loved it!

Oct 03, 2010 05:53 AM
Andrew Mooers | 207.532.6573
MOOERS REALTY - Houlton, ME
Northern Maine Real Estate-Aroostook County Broker

RAS....Thanks for the back stratch. Owe you one.

Rebecca.... Hear the out, keep your hands/arms tucked away in case they bite.

Liz... Where in Maine? One honking big state. More than Portland, Bar Harbor. Come north, way north to Aroostook County.

Oct 03, 2010 08:03 AM