Category Archives: Life

Swing of the Pendulum

Life

Yesterday, after six months of carnage in the hotel business, I decided to leave the office early and go clear my head. It was one of those days and I just needed a moment.

When a pendulum swings, it moves from one side to the other but when the pendulum stops and just hangs straight down, it takes a lot to get it going again. That describes the hotel transaction market today. I have been through many cycles and it generally swings from a sellers’ market to a buyers’ market and the shift is predictable and generally smooth. We can transact in either market, you just put on a different hat. This cycle, the pendulum was swinging very high January through the middle of March and instead of swinging the other way, it just fell straight down and has been hanging there for the past six months.

Yesterday I decided to go home and help my two sons-in-laws clean some stuff out of our garage but basically, I just wanted to do something different for a little while. On the way home I cranked up some Lynyrd Skynyrd (Call me the Breeze and Sweet Home Alabama) and realized there are sometimes when you need to be quiet and then there are times you need to turn up the volume. Yesterday was one of the later.

After a few minutes of Skynyrd and some time away from the office, I was good to go. Below is a link (just in case you need some Skynyrd) to Ronnie Van Zant and the Skynyrd band in live concert in 1976 singing ‘Call me the Breeze.’ KT

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EsIqEq9OFxE

Nothing new under the sun

Career, Family, Life

Ecclesiastes was written in 250 BC by Solomon who was the wisest and most wealthy person that has ever lived. In verse 1:9 it says; “What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again, there is nothing new under the sun.”

Have you ever seen a house with rust color carpet or harvest gold fixtures from 1970 that now is back in style? Take cloths designs that circle back around every 20-30 years or the retro house designs and mid-century modern furniture that is now all the rage. The list could go on for pages. The point is to just keep everything because it may eventually come back in style. ha

With COVID, many families in society stepped back into a simpler lifestyle. More time with the children, gardens, walks, alone time, reading more, family time and most of all spending far less time on the phone and internet. Actually, talking to each other. These are just a few examples that echo what Solomon wrote in Ecclesiastes.

In many commercial real estate segments and markets, COVID has caused many commercial investments like hotels, office, retail etc. to go back to the performance levels of the 1990’s. Many markets like New York and Chicago have stepped back into the crime history last seen in the 1980’s where people were afraid to walk down the street.

The point of the scripture is that there is really nothing new that is every truly new. It might be new how you access it but take social media as example, people are doing the same things they have done for 100 years, they just have the internet platform to talk about. It seems new but it is still old stuff. Take Amazon as example, the mail order concept it not new. Sears and Montgomery Ward started doing mail order 100 years ago. Amazon just does it better and faster than Sears did it, but the idea is not new.

People basically have the same feelings, emotions, wants desires, needs as they have had since creation and will continue to have for the future. I was talking with this hotel guy recently that wants to develop a mid-century hotel concept where guests can experience what it was like in 1960. No internet, no 60-inch plasma TV. Just a bed, pleasant people, good food, a land line phone and a swimming pool. Ha I believe I would like to go there for a few days and leave the rapid life pace behind.

Remember, hang on to those bell bottom pants, original Levi’s and that double-knit shirt.

Everybody is a salesman

Career, Life

I don’t care what you do for a living, you are in sales. There are jobs (like mine) that are considered sales jobs and but the thing most people overlook is that all jobs are sales jobs. You are either selling a product/ service or you are selling yourself.

Take the young lad who goes to the grocery store and applies for a job as a bag boy. During the interview process don’t you think he is selling himself? Sure, he is. He is putting forth his very best self in hopes of getting a job. Every time a person talks with their boss or co-worker, they are selling themselves and their personality.

This morning (early) my brother was having surgery and we were told that due to COVID, his wife could only see him in the surgery prep area for only a few minutes. So, I took her up there and while I was parking, she is told at the reception area that in fact, no, she can’t see him. Well the salesman part of me gets involved and I asked the young gentleman at the desk, “if she could have seen him, where is the surgery prep area located?” he says, “oh, you go to floor two take a left and down that hall etc. etc.” I told the young chap “thank you.”

I told my brother’s wife to follow me. You guessed it, I put on my salesman’s shoes and with boldness, walked through door after door, hall after hall until we were standing at the nurse’s desk in the pre-op area. A little begging (selling) was involved but ultimately the nurse agreed that since we were there (only because we found it on our own) she could go in tell him she loved him before the surgery.

Afterwards the nurse asked us who had brought us up there to the pre-op area. I told her it was all my fault and all my doing because (a) it was true and (b) I didn’t want the little person in the lobby to get fired over it.

So, my point is this, every interaction, every conversation, every handshake, every meeting, every interview, every phone call, every zoom call is an opportunity for you to sell yourself. You don’t have to be selling a product or service to be considered a salesman. Everyone is in sales. KT

Yorkie Dogs

Family, Life

Yorkies are probably the cutest, funny, liveliest and hardest to train of all dog breeds. You can’t get mad them because they look at you with those little soft eyes and they pretty much get a pass.

We have a little nine-month-old female Yorkie and she thinks she is the boss. Our little fat Sheltie just lets her run all over him. Literally. She climbs on his back like a jungle gym. Someone ask me the other day if she was house trained and I said sure, she only poops in the house.

Our first Yorkie (passed away in 2012) was a male and Elaine loved that dog like a dog hasn’t ever been loved. She would coddle that rascal every evening and the little mutt would sleep with us up next to Elaine. The funny thing was that Elaine’s favorite room in our house is the formal dining room and I kid you not, that little dog would poop under her dining room table almost every day like it was gift he left just for her. Ha. The worst scolding, he ever got didn’t even faze him because he knew he wasn’t really in trouble.

So now to the new female puppy, Sophie. My favorite room in the house is my home office and guess where she wants to poop? You guessed it, my office!

Therefore, if you want a dog that you can’t help but love and will alert you if the wind blows and one that you can’t ever fully train, get a Yorkie. KT

Rowing in the same direction

Family, Life

I have never been on a rowing team, but I am fascinated by how it works. There are many similarities in rowing to life, work, marriage and relationships.

In a rowing team there is only one person (coxswain) who can see the goal line, the competition and direct the boat (scull) to the destination. All the rowers have their back turned away from the goal and focus solely on the instructions from the coxswain. Even though the coxswain never picks up an oar, he or she is the most important person in the boat and usually the races are won or lost depending how aware and adaptive the coxswain is and how they lead the crew.

In a rowing crew there are times when they row light (half pressure) and times when they give it their all (power 10.) One would think the rowers just give it their all straight off the starting line but that is not correct. They must get in a rhythm, and it doesn’t matter if they have been rowing together for a year. Evert race must get in its own rhythm, or it will veer off course. It is the coxswain’s main objective to get the crew in sync before they start pulling hard.

Work, life, marriage, relationships all have similar requirements. Imagine if a college rowing team were all giving instructions and commands at the same time. It would be a disaster. Such as in life, very few things are more smooth and sweeter than a couple, family or a team pulling together at the same speed and in the same direction. The boat (your life) will glide soother and straighter if there is an agreement on the same goal and moving in the same direction. Everyone doesn’t have to be the boss (coxswain) because everyone gets the same gold medal if they win.

So, in life, it is important to be with people who all are rowing with the same goal in mind and in the same direction. KT