Keith Strawn

Sometimes, with the game on the line in the bottom of the 9th, the pitcher gives you a perfect pitch to hit. I mean, he throws a fat, lifeless tater over the heart of the plate. It's like the All-Star Game home run derby, and you should be able to park that ball in the upper decks. Instead, you whiff!!! Nothin' but air.

A buyer gave me a big, juicy pitch to hit the other day, and I whiffed. Big-time.

This prospective buyer told me she had decided to work with another agent because of her mortgage lender's national tie-in with that Realtor's parent company, a franchise. She didn't specify, but there was some sort of incentive. Maybe there was some closing cost assistance involved somewhere, or some other "saving." Whatever the incentive, she said this affiliation between lender and preferred real estate franchise would mean more money in her pocket. That was the pitch I needed to knock out of the park.

It's like the FSBO who is trying to "save" $15,000 in commission and then underselling their home by $50,000.

But not only did I strike out, I didn't even take a swing. I was driving and talking (a subject for another blog), and wasn't focused enough on the conversation (yet ANOTHER blog topic), and that was pretty much the end of the conversation. I wished her good luck, and that was that.

Of course, after we got off the phone, I immediately thought of several major flaws in her logic. Such as......

1) If her assigned Realtor is a lousy negotiator, she may pay $20,000 too much for the home.

2) What if the Realtor doesn't encourage her to request a home warranty? Two months after she moves in, the water heater or A/C may go, and whatever money was in her pocket is now out the window.

3) If the Realtor does not work with her to ensure certain home inspection items are addressed -- an aging roof, for instance, well, guess who's going to pay for that when the roof begins to leak?

I could go on, but -- as Larry King would say, what's the point? I had my chance, and I blew it.

The great thing about real estate, though, like baseball, is that you always get another at-bat. An old sales manager -- my first sales manager -- told me that mistakes are not a problem, but repeating the mistakes is.

So next time this issue comes up, we won't be blogging about a strikeout, we'll be blogging about the high fives we got as we rounded the bases. Have a terrific day.

A lot of you do wonderful things with your posts, in terms of photos, links, etc.. I'm a visual guy, so I really appreciate an excellent point punctuated by a peppy photo.

A couple of weeks ago, I was able to add a photo to a post, but at the end of the piece. The photo would have been much more effective, I though, higher in the story, which for some reason, if memory serves, I couldn't quite figure out.

I'm sure this is an easy fix, but is there a simple way to insert photos into the middle of a post?

Also, I've noticed some really eye-catching background on some of your home pages. Any suggestions on that would be helpful, or any suggesstions on how to jazz up a post.

Have a great, prosperous day, guys.

I was wondering if you've seen my 2009 business plan?

I can't seem to put my hands on it. I've looked in the trunk of my car, where every other extraneous piece of business-related paper seems to end up. I've searched in my house, and my office. It's nowhere in site, though.

Maybe that's because I haven't done it.

Sometimes, the truth is cleansing. So let me be honest. For the ninth straight year, it's December, and I am preparing to enter another year without a business plan. This, despite the fact the need for one has never been more obvious because of the shaky real estate market.

I have often thought of the insanity of trying to build a house without plans, surveys, engineering, etc. And yet, year after year, I begin in January with no plan.

Make no mistake, I have had some very good years. I've supported my family on my income since getting my real estate license in 1999. I've consistently ranked very high in sales at our local MLS. But, in the meantime, I never have a sense that I have a handle on things. I always go to bed thinking about what I should have done that day, and what needs to be tomorrow.

I seem to be always at the mercy of the moment, instead of the captain of my destiny.

The truth is cleansing. Well, now you know the truth, now I need some accountability. At the risk of further public humiliation, I will have this plan done by Dec. 31, 2008.

Wish me luck.

Suddenly, Thanksgiving was over. My wife, Jennifer, and I stood in a light rain Sunday afternoon and watched as my sister-in-law, Kathy, and her two children pulled out of the driveway. They were the last of the family to leave. Others had started to slip away earlier in the day. One brother-in-law, in the midst of divorce, was heading back to Atlanta with his two children, ending their first Thanksgiving without their mother. Another brother-in-law was off to finish the semester at Georgia Southern University in Statesboro. Another went back with his family to Charleston. Then Kathy was gone, and it was just us again. What started with a thunderous reunion of cousins, uncles, aunts, nieces, nephews, grandparents and grandchildren last Thursday ended quietly Sunday afternoon in an Autumn drizzle under a steel gray sky. I couldn't help but wonder what happened to the long, drawn-out Thanksgiving affairs from years ago, the ones which seemed to last forever. Now, they are over in the blink of an eye. This year, I didn't even get to see my parents or my brother, all of whom remained in Atlanta. As I stood in the driveway with my wife, Jennifer, with the rain tapping lightly all around, I thought of all the changes since our first Thanksgiving as a married couple, back in 1992. Jennifer's mother was still alive. All family marriages were in tact. Now, there have been deaths and divorces, with more divorces on the way. There have been struggles with substance abuse among family members, who were just 6-years-old back when the family convened for that first Thanksgiving. With these life changes in mind, there is a temptation to become melancholy as you watch the last of the Thanksgiving visitors pull out of the driveway. But this was the week that Mumbai was thrust squarely into the American consciousness, so I'll take my melancholy, put it in a drawer, and save it until I really need it.

Sometimes, the simplest things in life are the best.

A thanks is one of the simplest best things in life. Anyone is capable of offering it, from a 2-year-old child to a 90-year-old.
It doesn't cost a penny, yet it can warm the heart of the recipient like a diamond ring.

Today, Thansgiving 2008, I have much to be thankful for.

I am thankful that my wife, and my six beautiful children, are all waking up under the same roof on this Thanksgiving Day. I have a 13-year-old son and a 12-year-old daughter, so I know this will change soon enough. So, for now, I am blessed to enjoy another chaotic, thunderous Thanksgiving, surrounded by those whom I love the most.

Even as the real estate market moans, groans, and weezes along, I am thankful to be a part of a profession that is so central to so many lives. How many professions provide an opportunity to so positively impact so many people over the course of a career? We Realtors really do have an opportunity to forge a unique and honored place in the lives of our clients. I'm thankful for that.

On the way home last night, as I turned off Bay Street, and began the modest ascent up the Woods Memorial Bridge and over the Intracoastal Waterway, I couldn't help but be thankful to live here in Beaufort, SC.

I'm thankful this morning for the opportunity to help out at the Parish Church of St. Helena, our church home, as we host our annual community meal.
I'm thankful for friends, both in Beaufort and beyond.

I'm thankful for all the users of Active Rain, who take time out of their day to provide helpful feedback to blog posts, and I'm thankful for the information and insight provided by other bloggers on this site.

Please have a wonderful Thanksgiving. Enjoy your family, friends and all the blessings in your life. If you are on the road, please travel safe, and we'll see you soon.