Why did you get into Real Estate?

After reading a post in one of my blogs geared toward newbies, I started wondering what made many of us choose Real Estate for a career.

For me, it was after 20 years in the grocery business.  I had held many positions in a grocery store including bakery, courtesy clerk, checker and Assistant manager.  Grocery is a hard business, so I am no stranger to work and definitely had my skills tested in customer service after serving as a manager in a large supermarket.  I would work at least 5 days a week, holidays, week-ends, you name it.  As a manager, my shift was mainly 3pm to midnight or later.  That made it real hard with children because I would never get to see them during the school months.  I also have arthritis, and a bad back, and a light case of Lupus, which made it hard to keep up the hectic pace day in and day out at the store.  I have a friend who has been a Realtor in the area and watching her, I noticed that she had a lot more family time.  She did not spend Thanksgiving and Christmas working, and she was bringing in more money than me to boot!!  I did not do too badly as a union grocery worker, and the benefits were great, but as my body started hurting more and more each day that I spent on the cement floors, and all the lifting...I started thinking "Why couldn't I do that?"  One day I flipped the newspaper open to the want ads, just checking to see what else is out there..and I noticed an ad for Real Estate classes at the local college.  At that time I had already applied to work as a 911 dispatcher, and was first in line for the next position, but I started thinking that even though I'd be taking a job that would be easier on my body, I'd still be working strange shifts, and of course holidays...Well, the rest is history, here I am and I'm happy.  No regrets.

I would really like to hear why many of you decided to become a Realtor...