Journal Entry for August 5, 2026
Children go to school. The goal is to become educated to grow up and make a living. Unfortunately, they don't learn how to pay for rent, pay for student loans, and many don't have money for housing, rent, books, laptops, lunches or to pay for transportation.
Real Estate Agents go to Real Estate school. They learn how to pass a test to get their real estate license. Few if anyone will learn how to sell real estate without proper training. But to sell, you have to get sponsored, pay for your education to get licensed, pay for training, join a Brokerage, pay Board dues for MLS privilege, pay for lock boxes and pay for the use of having a lock box, pay for expenses, pay for photography, pay for this, that, and many other things to help you succeed. And then once you succeed in a transaction there are fees to be split.
A METAPHOR FOR CHANGE
Retirement. In my opinion, retirees really need to understand "As the wind blows, you must set your sails." Just as a sailor cannot control the wind, a retiree has no control for unexpected circumstances that causes drastic changes no one could have predicted.
Adaptability to change can be easy or difficult. The most important thing to know is how to maintain a flexible mindset and body. The key is to stay flexible to change and be ready to adjust your course. Be ready for challenges.
Issues that get in the way of a goal. Becoming a caregiver can happen at any time in anyone's life. You may have aging parents, aging children, or a spouse whose health caused major changes. You may find yourself needing special care. Or you're needed to be a guardian to your grandchildren. The home you're living in is too big, not accommodating for your special needs, you're mortgage or rent becomes impossible to pay, or disaster can strike. Change can turn a bright sunny day into a storm that never stops raining, thundering, or throwing lightning strikes your way.
All your life you've been building up resilience. As a real estate agent, you prepared for other people's changes. You were also changing! By being conditioned to being resilient, you learned how to problem-solve, save money for those rainy days. You adapted to many changes that were outside of your control. There were things that occurred and you had to pivot - Bank Foreclosures, Short Sales, a sudden spouse shows up before closing and you didn't know the divorce was never finalized. Maybe there was a major issue. Home maintenance, property taxes became unattainable, HOA, death, criminal charges you didn't know, Lender denies the loan, the list goes on. The buyer or seller changed their mind. A client's transaction did not come to fruition through no fault of their own, or it was their fault! As an agent, you were always taking chances.
Responsibility. You can't control the wind or any external force outside of your control. But you can be prepared before you retire to choose how to set your sail and respond quickly, with or without warning.
Navigating through life's journey. To quote Jim Rohn: "It is the set of the sails, not the direction of the wind that determines which way we will go." Stay open-minded to changes and opportunities to keep moving you forward. I've never seen a sailboat back-up in reverse and start over. Follow your destiny. It is essential to know how to adapt, take responsibility, continue to build resilience, problem-solve, and understand how your money flows.
God provides the wind; Man must raise the sail ---Saint Augustine
Author: Patricia Feager. Images: AI
Comments(20)