Day in the Life

Gratitude

2021 was an amazing year. It brought an unprecedented doubling of my business, personal growth, and also more importantly, vaccinations that hopefully would bring life back to somewhat normalcy for 2022. On New Year’s Eve 2021, in quiet reflection, I looked back on the year, extremely grateful for the health and well being of my family and dear friends and felt equally blessed to have been a part of my wonderful clients’ journeys, whether it was finding their dream home or ushering them to their next life chapter. I am not one who typically makes resolutions at the start of a new year. Oh sure, there is always that perennial favorite of losing 10 pounds, getting fit, and eating healthy that I think we all state as our New Year’s resolutions and that we may actually achieve with some (limited) success. But beyond that, I have never given much thought about what to do or change for the New Year, outside of just simply trying to be the best ME that I can be. New Year’s Eve 2021 was different.

Earlier in that year, I had started a Gratitude Journal whereby I endeavored to note something each day I was grateful for but was woefully lax in consistently posting entries. Some days I had not felt compelled to pick up my journal as it seemed there was nothing to write. Upon closer introspection, I had an epiphany. It wasn’t about what I was thankful for each day that brought me joy, it was about the process of me letting others know how they may have made a difference in my life, that brought me true joy and happiness. At that moment, my New Year’s goal was ordained. In 2022, I would embark on a year long journey of gratitude. I planned to write a thank you note each day to someone that has touched my life in some way, supported me, went the extra mile, made me feel special, made me smile, and helped me be the person I am today.

January 1, 2022, I began my mission to write 365 thank you notes. 255 have been written so far. My favorite notes reached into my past to thank those who made an impression and somehow impacted my life. Like the attorney who hired me for my very first paralegal job that began my career in real estate. I was poised for litigation practice and had been in the midst of applying to law school. That job changed my life forever and was one of the reasons I ultimately turned to real estate brokerage. Or the church friend from a lifetime ago that loaned her wedding dress to me, being a strapped-for-cash-bride, for my own wedding. She had gotten married the year before and although she was a couple inches shorter than I, we were both the same size. I wore ballerina slippers to lower the hem of the gown and the dress looked perfect. I have written thank you cards for gifts or kindness received from loved ones and coworkers, college friends, neighbors, and store clerks to name just a few recipients. Many note cards have been sent to fellow real estate agents that were my mentors in those early years of being an agent and were instrumental in my career growth.

Ralph Waldo Emerson was quoted as saying, “Cultivate the habit of being grateful for every good thing that comes to you, and to give thanks continuously. And because all things have contributed to your advancement, you should include all things in your gratitude.” It goes without saying that all of my wonderful clients, past and present, have or are in the process of receiving cards to say a huge thank you. I could not have asked for better folks to work with, to call my clients and new friends. Without them, I could not have achieved all the success that I am blessed to have attained over the years.

A simple THANK YOU can make all the difference, both to the recipient and to the giver of the salutation. Research has shown that we do not express gratitude as much as we should. Perhaps people are worried that they will not be articulate enough to convey their sentiments, but we underestimate how happy a heartfelt note makes people feel. Recipients are reacting to the message being sincere and not the eloquence of the written words. Each of my thank you cards have been painstakingly written, carefully crafted in my best cursive writing, not an email or text message. There is something more powerful, more meaningful, and more sincere, I believe, when putting pen to paper, the old school way.

Prominently hanging over my office desk, is my vision board. It is a collage of Thank You cards I have received over the years from my clients. I can be having a stressful day and a quick glance at my “Thank You Board '' makes me smile and fills me with gratitude knowing that I have helped bring happiness to my clients and they have shared that with me. I feel blessed to know I was a part of someone else’s real estate journey with happy endings or new chapters. It's so important to spend some time each day reflecting on things that bring you gratitude. Even when times are tough, there is a whole lot to be grateful for. I still have 110 cards to finish writing. I am grateful for being a REALTOR.