Leaning In, Opportunity, The Next Crazy Venture Beneath the Skies

What is that feeling when you're driving away from people, and they recede on the plain till you see their specks dispersing? - it's the too huge world vaulting us, and it's good-bye. But we lean forward to the next crazy venture beneath the skies."

— Jack Kerouac 

Good morning from 8232 feet above sea level. I had a great day yesterday; I think today will be better. Every day I'm getting better and better is one of my old mantras. I might need to pick that one up again, mantras are essential.

I had a conversation with a couple of friends, fellow agency owners. We started with updates, how our months are going, the market, but then I asked for some good news. Matt shared a story about a long time friend that almost died from Covid19; he had the blessing of picking him up at the hospital. He took him home, and the man shared he asked God to save him, God did, and now he is committing his life to become a better human being. I have said all along there are gifts to be unwrapped, this is one of them.

Barrett shared he had encouraged his staff to work 35 hours and donate 5 hours a week to a local nonprofit. I shared the idea with our operations manager, and we are adopting the same approach. Each employee of our team, if they "whadda" can donate 5 hours of their work time to help a local nonprofit or charity of their choice. With 20 people that is 100 hours of charity, we can donate back during this time. As long as our work is getting done, we can help others get through this time.

We had a great workout, the first time we worked out on our deck. The sun was shining; it was 70 degrees; it was a great work out. When we finished, we ran our newly created mountain step system. That in itself is an excellent workout; then we added our 2-mile hike. I can feel my body; it's getting stronger each day. 

I had some other calls, one with a friend that just wrote a book; I'm going to start it today and see what tales he has to share. He lives a different life; I am looking forward to jumping in and exploring a new universe. Our final call was with a newer friend, but a great man. We met Chris via business, but made an immediate connection; he is part of our tribe, we have been working more and more with him, but also share many common interests.

He shared that in his mind, everyone can paint their own picture. We all start with different paints and brushes and a blank canvas, but each of us can paint the picture we choose. We talked about personal responsibility, how life is not fair, but through determination and hard work, we can create the experience we want. I resonate with that thought, I like the picture my Queen and I have painted together.

We have our monthly sales meeting this morning; I am interested to see how far our sales have fallen off this past month. It's been a slower time, but we are still adding new clients. My daughter just asked me if I would run a "new new" call with her today at 11:00, our team is always making connections, keeping busy while taking care of our client base.

I've got a few calls scheduled along with our workout and hike; the weather is simply amazing, 70 degrees, sunny, perfect for another day sitting on top of a mountain.

The world is going to reopen slowly. I'm guessing we have a year or two of disruption before we return to what we had before. But there are going to be many opportunities during these coming months and years. Commercial Property will be devalued now that folks understand working from home is a functional way to run a business. New ideas and companies will form to accommodate our new normal; I can't wait to see the new direction our world will be going. It's truly an exciting time to be alive. You can lean in or lean out, I'm choosing to lean in, and I ask that you join me. Cheers, I'll see you tomorrow.

What is that feeling when you're driving away from people, and they recede on the plain till you see their specks dispersing? - it's the too huge world vaulting us, and it's good-bye. But we lean forward to the next crazy venture beneath the skies."

— Jack Kerouac