Do You Have What It Takes?

Where shall I begin?

So much happened during my first years in the real estate business - personal and otherwise.

Some of the happenings I had tried to forget for the last several decades.
Some of them I could not forget even if I wanted to.
Some of it helped shape me who I became today.
And, some of of it I wished had not happened.

Do you ever feel that way about some part of your life?

I did make it through my first six months in my new business!
I did better than I expected. 
I did have lots of help from my "angels." 
My banker friend advised me to save for retirement. My business owner friend advised me on some decision-makings. 
My lawyer friend helped me "toughen-up."
"Don't let the turkeys get you down," he told me.
"You can't survive in this business if you cry," he said. No more tears.

I did not have to go and work for someone-else.

Several ladies joined me as my associates, one of them became not only my associate but also my friend. She stayed with me for more than fifteen years.

When June and I made our first sizable commission, we celebrated by buying two decent office chairs for ourselves! You see, the chair I bought from the previous owner of the office was so worn out that it often would fall down the shaft without warming. Many a time I almost fell to the ground unexpectedly. And it was not funny when that happened while you were in the middle of a serious transaction.

June and I  became partners in being landlords - we bought several properties together. We also invested in some oil wells together. That was not a smart move. We had little knowledge about the oil business. There were lots of Operators, some good, some not. But that was the time when oil business was booming in Oklahoma. We joined the crowd. A mistake definitely. Luckily I did not lose any money. Neither did I make any. 
A lesson learned.

June had been widowed not long before she came to work with me. She and I both wanted to "make it" in the business. She was a classy lady, dependable and trustworthy. We are still friends. She lives in Texas. I often would visit her when I go to Texas.

I was under Stress without realizing it. And I became ill. The doctor could not find anything wrong with me. I was hospitalized for a few days.

After a bit of serous thinking, I realized what was wrong, and tried and eventually succeeded in adjusting to my Real Life World. 

It started me thinking.
What a burden most young men had to face?
In my days, the man was the bread-winner. When a young man marries and has a family, he takes on an enormous burden. I, being a girl, was not trained to be a bread-winner, or to run a business. I did not have the mentality to be a business owner - I had to learn as I went.
I told myself, I could do it. 
There were sacrifices to be made though. 
we women were trained to be caregivers. We took care of our husbands, we took care of our children, we took care of the household, and we, sometimes, forgot to take care of ourselves.
I just needed to make adjustments.
Balancing Home Life and Business Life is a tough act to follow.

You do know that the president of General Motors did not have to leave the office at five and go home to prepare dinner for his wife. Right?