It was February of 2007 when I wrote my first Blog post here on ActiveRain. Hardly seems like four years could have gone by this quickly. I realized today that all the time and information I have contributed here is pale in comparison to all that I have learned and the relationships I have made. As I looked at the numbers, reviewed the stats, counted subscribers and analyzed traffic, it really hit me. Even after all the posts and thousands of hours I've spent here, it all boils down to one really important thing for me...
ActiveRain Is ALL about creating and building relationships. The points are great and the business is wonderful too, but what keeps most of us coming back is the deep rooted, sincere and meaningful relationships that get established from our time and efforts here. Sure the SEO is great, and the referrals rock, but no other blogging platform out there has a community culture quite like ActiveRain. You'll get much more out of it than you'll ever put into it.
Some of the greatest people I've ever met with masterminds in Real Estate are right here.
(if you don't see yourself in the above photo, it's only because all 200,000+ wouldn't fit on this page)
The make-up of the ActiveRain community is unique in so many ways. The relationships here are very real. There are so many very special people on this network. They're not just sharing information, not just blogging, not just commenting on posts, they are out meeting each other in person, supporting and encouraging others, people helping one another all across the country. It's really all about people here.
As I look back on my ActiveRain journey, there are so many wonderful memories that I cherish. Not just from the Blogging, the comments, even some of the crazy stuff that goes on around here either. I'm talking about the memories from my travels, meeting people I've communicated with for years online and then finally getting to meet them in person for the first time. It's the hugs, the handshakes, the gifts and all the sharing. There is really nothing that compares to all I've seen and been part of in my four years on ActiveRain.
So this anniversary, instead of reflecting on and sharing accomplishments and successes, or survivals and achievements, I want to just say "THANK YOU!" to all my friends here on ActiveRain and all around the globe. Over these past years it has been YOU that kept me coming back, YOU that I was reaching out to, YOU that ultimately I want to connect with, and it has always been YOU that has made this place what it is for me today. Sincerely, I thank you.
Without YOU, there would be no ActiveRain...
Without YOU, there would be no reason to return...
Without YOU, there would really be no me...
May our journeys be amazing, may our missions be worthy, and may our paths cross IRL one day. In our pursuit of happiness, may we live a life that is full of rich and meaningful purpose. It is with nothing that we start in this world, and we leave with only one thing, that which is most valuable... our relationships. Nothing else really matters in the end. We'll take no goods or merchandise with us when it's time to go, but the relationships we create and carry through life are really the most valued commodities in this world.
Build your castles and mansions on "people" and relationships for they are the strongest foundations on earth.
It's been a truly amazing and incredible four year journey and adventure, thank you for sharing it with me.
Comments(81)