Just about 3 years ago, I decided to write a blog post. Within a month, I stumbled upon Active Rain and signed up.  I had absolutely NO idea how much that simple decision would change my life and career.

Yesterday, 2 extraordinary events intersected together in 1 day aka 1,440 Minutes. During the Annual Broker Meeting of the Grand Rapids Association of Realtors®, I was nominated by Pat Vredevoodg, 2007 NAR President for the position of President-Elect (2009) & elected by the board of Brokers of the Grand Rapids Association of Realtors®.

It was a moment ripe with symbolism on a variety of levels.  Pat captured a unique essence during her brief nomination speech which she termed as a 'tweet' about why the Brokers present should cast their vote in favor of the nomination.

Here's Pat's insightful Twitter nomination: Vote for Lola Audu because she is "Smart, Caring, Cutting Edge, Daring, Forward & Clear Thinking, Humble, Funny, RE Pro, Motivator, Responsible, Experienced, Mom, Inspiration"

Later that afternoon, I picked up a direct message on Twitter from Todd Carpenter, NAR's Social Media Manager who asked me to check my in-box for a message from President-Elect of NAR, Vickie Cox Golder. Here are excerpts from the e-mail which showed up this morning,

Dear Lola,

Congratulations!  You have been identified as an influencer in progressive ideas about real estate and, as a result, we invite you to participate in a new pilot program for the National Association of Realtors ®.  NAR's leadership would like to include your voice in our governance system in 2010 and have selected a national NAR committee for you to join. .....

By serving on a national NAR committee, you will have the opportunity to bring your ideas about today's competitive and evolving marketplace to the industry's leaders and you will be in a position to spark change within the business......

NAR has made a commitment to elevating the voice of young professionals and early adopter of social media in the real estate business, and we want to hear from you.....you were recommended to serve on the Housing Opportunity Committee.

What an opportunity!  I'm so grateful to God that the tapestry which He weaves in our lives through our experiences is never conventional nor is He ever limited by pre-conceived limitations about who we are or can become.

The Smartest  $10.42 Investment I've Ever Made!

 I signed up for a subscription to  Real Estate Shows in March & posted my first video montage soon thereafter.  My first creative effort was a mailing to inform clients & friends about our new office location.  I thought that utilizing a promotional video  might make the e-card more interesting.  Since then, I've discovered a number of novel & interesting uses for Real Estate Shows . This Marketing Tool can take your promotional efforts to a whole new level, if you'll allow your imagination to develop wings!

Marketing a Business!

When we moved, I wanted to let people know about our brand new office.  I saw a post on-line in which Real Estate Instructor, Monika McGillicuddy, used this format to showcase her new training center.  This inspired me to try my first experiment with Real Estate Shows.  I found the format fairly easy to understand and the tutorials were fantastic.  When my family pre-viewed it, they swore that I'd had someone else put it together for me!  An unexpected Result was that this show is now showing up on Google when Audu Real Estate is typed in a search!  Now, that's Extra Mega Bonus for $10.42 a month of Unlimited Access to this Marketing Tool!

Interviewing for a Job!

We were contacted by a client who located one of our agents on-line.  They were intereviewing several agents & wanted to interview an agent from our company.  Ed Vogt set out with her camera to capture these images of the Crystal Springs area in Kentwood, Michigan.  We used this as a Marketing Promotion for our Services before Meeting with the client.  Now, how's that for A Pre-listing Promotional Package!  Once it's done, it can be easily modified & used again & again. This was excellent use of my $10.42!

Welcoming Friend & Clients into the Area!

When Ed & Penny decided to make West Michigan their new home, I created this Video to Celebrate the completion of the construction of their new home & to introduce Penny, an Interior Designer & Stager to the professional real estate community.  Ed & Penny can forward a show like this about their home to their family & friends.  It's a wonderful way to spread the Good News!

Advertising or Promoting An Event!

The Blogging Seminar in Grand Rapids, Mi on April 11th, 2007 was the first time I used Real Estate Shows to highlight an Event which brought real estate agents, brokers, mortgage lenders, home stagers, builders, & home warranty providers together to learn about Blogging.  If a  picture is worth a thousand words...this presentation showed in a way that my words never could have portrayed what happened that snowy April morning! 

It has occurred to me that this format will be an excellent way to promote the Graduation Open House for my son.  The shows can be easily e-mailed to invited guests celebrating highlights of highschool & reminding guests of the event.  Any one who has a child graduating knows that there are tons of Open Houses taking place...an e-vite like this creates an impression.

Generating Excitment for A Real Estate Auction!

The great thing about an Auction is that you KNOW when a home is going to sell!  My first experience with a real estate auction is proving to be highly educational.  We've teamed up with Masterbid Acutions Inc. to Auction a home on 2728 Shire SW, Grand Rapids, Mi.  Auctioneers saturate the marketplace with advertising to promote the property & generate excitiment.  This show advertises the auction & provides potential bidders with an on-line preview opportunity.  Thinking "outside the box" is what  Real Estate Shows & my $10.42 per month Investment is all about!

Marketing the Community!

Real Estate expertise centers on having information & knowledge about the local area.  This is even more important on-line.  After all, most buyers will not be buying sight unseen.  I've taken some pictures of local scenes which I am in the process of utilizing to create a Scenic Park Tour of great spots to visit in Grand Rapids, Mi during the summer. 

This is a way to make your efforts at picture taking do double & triple duty...First do the Blog post, Create a Show which highlights the community, Earn Photo Credits by posting the pictures on Localism & then watch Google index your show as a permanent marker that positions you as the Neighborhood Expert.  Now THAT is my $10.42 per month working hard AGAIN & AGAIN & AGAIN! 

Have you asked yourself yet...What in the World am I waiting for???   Head on over to Real Estate Shows, sign up for FREE to see for yourself & get yourself a piece of the best $10.42 Investment in real estate marketing history...

*Jeff Turner did not pay me to write this post! :)

* Real Estate shows cost $125 for a one year subscription hence the breakdown to $10.42 per month.

Copyright 2007  Audu Real Estate  All rights reserved

The Art of Giving

The frenzy of activity that marks the month of December is unmatched.  End of year parties and activities, gift buying, and holiday shopping can rapidly merge into an experience which is taxing and depleting emotionally, physically and financially.

In our desire to give materially, we are unaware of the toll that we unconsciously exact on our spirits and our bodies.  The truth is that wholesome giving cannot be primarily defined as a material activity although it may manifiest in a physical material form such as money or gifts.  In its highest context, giving is a spiritual activity which can manifest in any number of forms for the intended recepient.

To explore this concept further, let's take a more intimate look at different levels of giving.  The most basic form of giving is simply giving something material.  Although this is valuable, if thought and intention particularly loving intention is not added to the material, such giving can be incidental and lack warmth or in some situations be detrimental or dsyfunctional.

Some examples of purely materialistic giving include parents who don't want to invest time in relationship with their children and opt to give them things instead.  Another example is giving aid to corrupt and broken systems, organizations or governments without oversight or concern that the intended recipients are afforded the opportunities promised.  In both of these situations, the outcome is depleting. 

Incidentally, the results of this type of materialistic giving may deplete at a number of different levels.  The least obvious but most devastating being the depletion of the soul and spirit.  Recipients of this type of giving are not uplifted by the spirit of intentional generosity, but rather are objectified.  The results of giving at this level are limited in the power to effect lasting change.  For a child this  lack of intention and attention can be profoundly harmful emotionally and psychologically, for giving of this nature slams a huge wrecking ball into the basis of self-esteem, one of the major pillars of what it means to accepted as fully human and appreciated for who you are.  Donors of this type of gift are usually unaware of this type of impact or may simply be lazy or so deflated by guilt t and exhaustion themselves that they are incapable of giving in any other way.  For both the donor and the recipient, wholeness is needed.

A higher level of giving is demonstrated by being intentional and paradoxially grateful.  Gratitude is a characteristic which we often associate soley with the recipient of a gift and not with the donor.  But, I would suggest that intentional giving starts not simply with being thankful, but being humbly grateful.  Focusing on the privilege of being able to give changes the platform.  To give is to be truly blessed.  To truly give to anothers need or bliss requires that I focus my attention and intention on being grateful for the opportunity to bless another, to essentially empower another.  It also requires a humble gratitude for the gift of their presence in my life.  Thereby changing the equation for the "potential giver" from an elevated position to a recipient of grace.

Giving of this quality transforms the nature of what is given.  All material forms have a predecessor in the unseen realm.  The Celebration of the Birth of Jesus at this time of year was a gift that was prophesised centuries before he arrived as a minute embryonic cell in Mary's womb and eventually manifested as a baby born to rule, but lying in the extremely modest environment of the manger.  The intention of this gift was clearly the love of God for humankind.  The transformation afforded through the gift of Jesus Christ literally redeems life and provides reconnection to God through acceptance of His gift of life.  Now that is radical, the Giver of life being so full of humility and love that He would humble himself to take on a physical body with all its weakness to ensure that through His death, we could live.  This is the spiritual nature and meaning of Christmas.

How can understanding this transform our giving?  Firstly, the focus is not on what you give.  The "what" objectifies giving.  Some of life's most profound gifts come through the giving of in service to another, sympathy, friendship, love, and a listening ear. I am reminded of the fact that at this time American soldiers throughout the world, but particularly in the Middle East are giving the most precious gift of all, their lives in service to our country.  This is truly a gift for which all Americans should be deeply grateful and support with their prayers for safety and protection for these brave individuals.

Giving of ones self is the highest form of giving particularly when it is done to enable the highest good of another.  The grace of this type of giving transforms a simple cup of cold water to the least amongst us to a gift which resounds in the heavens and impacts life far beyond the limited dimension of what we can readily see, measure or understand.  It is this type of giving which Mother Teresa employed through her work in the slums of Calcutta, India where the most forgotten, destitute and dying in society were blessed with dignity and comfort. 

This year, I encourage you to transform your giving by exploring the art of intentional loving awareness and gratitude as you buy and give presents.  But in addition, be mindful of the wealth of opportunities for giving which explode the boundaries of the material and provide truly rich opportunities to litterally create goodwill and peace here on earth.

©2006 Audu Real Estate All rights reserved