This is Not for the Faint of Heart

Two weeks into 2022, it’s already proving to be somewhat of an adventure and not for the faint of heart. Interestingly, “Adventure” is my word for the year, and it didn’t disappoint.

I like picking a word for the year that I use as my decision touchstone.  There was an excellent article in the NY Times if you want to discover more.

I think I mentioned in an earlier email that we’re buying a house. It’s about 10 minutes from our current one. Or if I didn’t, well here you go … 🙂 

Now that we’re nearly done with the whole buying process (We’re closing today.), it has been a wild ride. 

I have to admit, I haven’t bought a house since 2006, and the process has sure changed. AND, it’s also so different from the processes and procedures in CA vs. NJ.

I’m not sure which state was more convoluted. I mean, no wonder the younger generation isn’t as keen on buying houses. (Also, with housing prices increasing, how can they afford one, especially in major metropolitan areas like San Francisco.)

We put our offer on the house we’re buying back in September, and we’re now closing in January. I guess that’s a pretty reasonable time frame. Yet, the hoops we had to jump through now with all the rules changed after the meltdown in 2008. It’s a bit much. 

For example – You need to show proof (The paper trail.) of all the cash you’re putting down as we did. Most important is where it came from and proving that it’s ours.

I could go on, and I don’t want to get mired in details, which is ironic because that’s what I’ve been mired in for 3 months! And this whole process is definitely not for the faint of heart. 

The takeaway from this whole adventuress experience (besides me accessing my inner patience with this entire process) is thinking about – how can this process be improved?

Or better yet, what can be done to disrupt this industry, if anything? (And unfortunately, I’m not the right person to answer this, so I will leave that up to more qualified people.) 

The takeaway, though, is when you answer questions like these, that’s how great ideas, industries, companies, and entrepreneurs are born.

I read a very inspiring story in BestFriends.org quarterly magazine. It’s one of my favorite nonprofits that I support. Their goal is to eliminate all kill shelters in the US by 2025. 

They wrote about “The Myth of the Perfect Adoption.” Talk about disrupting an industry – dog shelters adoption procedures. They helped change the adoption process in many shelters in key high kill states. 

They discovered these shelters created adoption questionnaires and processes based on disqualifying candidates. 

What? 

Some shelters needed mortgage or financial statements to proceed with an adoption. 

Wow.

I love this because they explored why so many pets were being put down and discovered that the adoption process that was created ended up making it so much harder to get pets adopted.

I wanted to share this with you to encourage you to look into your business, process, procedures, and even dig in deeper.

Like – why did you start your business? What problem are you solving? How can you disrupt the industry you’re in? 

How can you think outside of the box, or as Walt Disney said – There is no box! 

I want to inspire you to start thinking about what’s the big idea of your business. How do you do things differently? You’re unique, and so is your business. 

Are you showing that to your dream clients/customers?

The more you can stand out, show how you’re unique and different from the competition – that’s the gold in your marketing.

And if you can also disrupt an industry, squash myths, change and improve processes procedures, and inspire others –  whoa – we need you!

Here’s to more adventures, ice cream, and definitely chocolate chip cookies!