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Today My Winter Coat Became a Tired Old Habit...

what's inside the ice? It was one of those gorgeous winter days in Grand Rapids, Michigan. I mean really nice...not just the blue sky with nary a cloud to mar the brilliant sunshine, but the weather was actually WARM...which for the Midwest in winter equates to above 50 degrees! It was a day in which winter seemed to be loosing it's grip although anyone who has lived in Grand Rapids long enough knows that she still has a couple more punches to throw.

As I prepared to go outside, I put IT on without even thinking. IT, was my winter coat. I climbed into my car in my semi-heated garage and drove out while enjoying the sunshine. It did not occur to me to roll down the windows. I just presumed it was too cold. It wasn't until I got to the bank that I noticed a smiling lady about to get into her car and was jolted to realise she wasn't wearing a coat! And...she seemed happy.

In disbelief, I got out of my car and realised I didn't need a coat! I had just presumed that I did simply out of habit. I gladly deposited my coat in the backseat and walked free of several extra pounds that I've been carrying around for the past several months.

It occurred to me that to a remarkable degree, my automatic pilot response to putting on my winter coat is how we handle a lot about life in general. It's easy to go through life with programed responses to all sorts of different situations. Take the real estate market for instance. For the past couple of years, everyone has been talking about how terrible things are and how homes are not selling.

Yesterday, I was asked if I had sold anything for the past 6 months. I was shocked! Of course we have; in fact in January 2008, the tally of homes SOLD by real estate agents with the Grand Rapids Board of Realtors was 18.9% higher than January of previous year...in fact it was the best showing of home sales for January since 2004. Imagine that!

But unfortunately, so many people continue to walk around unaware of what's going on around them. Somewhat like I was with my winter coat today. Bad News has become like a Bad Habit which we pull on without thinking...just like our winter coats in spring weather. Many of us have become accustomed to Bad News and in some ways addicted to. We rush out to buy the latest rag about someones downfall or stay glued to the TV while the media chronicles the same awful story over and over.

Meanwhile, the sun has come out, the birds are starting to sing, the air is ripe with warm anticipation of spring, and...we're in danger of missing it...walking around with our old winter coats of negativity and dour statistics.

photo is courtesy of: audreyjm529's photostream on flickr.com

Posted by Lola Audu~Grand Rapids, Michigan Real Estate on 03/14/2008 07:52 PM

Comments (16)

inspiration, real estate, audu real estate

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16 Comments on Today My Winter Coat Became a Tired Old Habit...

OMG yes Lola, we are kindred spirits here. The cardinals are singing up a storm and I agree let's put the coats away :-) Life is grand!

03/14/2008 07:56 PM

by Carole Cohen Realtor®, ePRO (Howard Hanna Cleveland City Office)

Lola, I agree, we do get on auto pilot and need to lift our heads up a bit and look around at the beautiful sunshine!! Besides, it is nice to have those sunny warm days to make us feel better.

03/14/2008 08:00 PM

by Audrey June-Forshey, GRI, Gaithersburg, MD (RE/MAX Realty Group)

Awareness is the key to life.... and everything in it.

03/14/2008 08:06 PM

by Celeste "SALLY" Cheeseman (RA), e-PRO HAWAII Real Estate & HAWAII Relocation (Century 21 Liberty Homes -Mililani, Hawaii)

Carole...What was most amazing was I saw people walking around all day long all bundled up in their coats. Very striking...very amazing...it was almost me. :) Thankfully not!

03/14/2008 08:11 PM

by Lola Audu~ Audu Real Estate~ Grand Rapids, MI Broker

Audrey...absolutely. You wonder what else we're missing while walking around on "autopilot."

03/14/2008 08:12 PM

by Lola Audu~ Audu Real Estate~ Grand Rapids, MI Broker

Sally...Amen & Amen

03/14/2008 08:12 PM

by Lola Audu~ Audu Real Estate~ Grand Rapids, MI Broker

I wish our market would show an improvement over last year. I personally am doing quite well. But the MLS stats show a significant drop in sales since last year.

03/14/2008 08:25 PM

by Lisa Hill (Daytona Beach Real Estate) (Adams Cameron and Company)

Lisa...your comment is powerful..."I personally am doing quite well." That's the key. I could have spent the entire day bundled up against the cold which I anticipated and expected rather than seeing that someone else was enjoying the sunshine and deciding to ditch my coat and enjoy it myself. If you're doing well, it is possible for others to do well too...however, not by doing the same old things they've always done in the past.

03/14/2008 08:32 PM

by Lola Audu~ Audu Real Estate~ Grand Rapids, MI Broker

Lola,
Great post, great insight and great news! Karen and I went for our first spring time walk after dinner this evening. It was wonderful!

Lots of good news in the Grand Rapids Market. We're picking up steam and it seems like people are hopping off the fence. That's good news for us all.

03/14/2008 09:18 PM

by Eric Webster Grand Rapids, MI, Five Star Realty (Five Star Real Estate)

Eric, Thanks for stopping by. This was a wonderful day to be outdoors. I am very encouraged by the changes I see in the Grand Rapids Market. The air is "ripe" with possibility. But it will take letting go of a lot of worn out, tired old thinking to experience the options at their highest levels. You & Karen are on the leading edge...

03/14/2008 09:59 PM

by Lola Audu~ Audu Real Estate~ Grand Rapids, MI Broker

Lola, we have to look a little more at how our business is going in stead of listening to the Media telling us how it is going. I had a better 2007 than 2006, and I fully expect 2008 to be better than 2007 for me.

03/15/2008 08:33 PM

by George Souto (McCue Mortgage Co.)

George, Thanks for your comment. The power of focus and expectation is enormous. Many have experienced some of their best years in the midst of these challenges. All of us have had to learn new things. This is good; the choice is clear...get better or else! :)

03/15/2008 09:23 PM

by Lola Audu~ Audu Real Estate~ Grand Rapids, MI Broker

I put my coat on today and immediately took it off before I touched the bottom step on my front porch. It was gorgeous today. The media fills our senses with so much of the same info, whether positive or negative, we believe it without checking for ourselves.

03/15/2008 11:24 PM

by Eugene Jones (Royster Real Estate)

indeed, we are creatures of habit - some need to be broken!

03/16/2008 12:53 PM

by Bill & Barbara Jo - Florida Realty Professional - AHWD (Charles Rutenberg Realty)

Lola,

Are you having the snowstorm that we're having today in SE Michigan? Yikes! Enough, already! We've got 6" on the ground, and it's still coming down.

The only consolation is that we're nearly at a new record snowfall for a season!

03/21/2008 06:58 PM

by Vance Shutes, your Saline, MI Real Estate Connection (Real Estate One)

Lola, What a great analogy! Enjoy the sunshine and enjoy the good news! I feel like we're having a spring thaw in Los Angeles as well as I just had a few buyers contact me by email this week. Yippee! Cheers, Harley

03/21/2008 11:34 PM

by Harley Ramsey Chatsworth, CA Real Estate (Keller Williams)

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