We’re all just slaves to new technology
I just love technology. It makes my life so much easier. Well,
except when it drives me nuts and doesn’t work properly or takes me
forever to figure out. Actually, now that I really think about it,
I hate technology.
We’re all just slaves to new technology
I just love technology. It makes my life so much easier. Well, except when it drives me nuts and doesn’t work properly or takes me forever to figure out. Actually, now that I really think about it, I hate technology.
Perhaps my view of it has been colored by a recent series of (to borrow a phrase from Lemony Snicket) unfortunate events. First of all, I knocked a cup of coffee onto my laptop and fried its brain. Arrgghh. Luckily, the machine was on its way out already, lurching and stumbling on its last legs, and I had purchased a replacement. Thank heavens I up-ended the cup into the old one and not the new one. The bad news was I hadn’t backed up the old one. (The new one now has an online automatic backup.)
Luckily, most of my work-related programs are online services. Though I subscribed to these services so that I could access them from the four corners of the world, the additional benefit is that they are backed up by the service provider. Whew.
However my PDA (personal digital assistant) was out of juice at the time, so when I recharged it there was nothing to synchronize it with and I lost all of my calendar and contact entries. This is doubly a bummer since I use it as proof for the IRS for various deductions. Quel dommage.
Then I dropped my cell phone and the flip top no longer flipped but kind of flopped. Since my contract was due, I was able to get a replacement cheaply. But of course, that particular phone is no longer made, and all the chargers and adapters I have for it are obsolete and unusable.
The clerk at the store was singularly (or should I say verizonally) unhelpful. I asked her to explain the difference between my various options. She said, “They all do the same thing. It just depends on which one you like.” How am I supposed to know which one I like when I have never seen or used any of them before? Being a rational and sane person, I chose the color I liked. When I got it home my 17-year-old daughter was amazed that I had (inadvertently) picked the coolest phone du jour. She even knew it was a “chocolate mint” which was more than I knew.
I hate it. It flips through its controls whenever I get too close to it. But it looks good. The user manual is the obligatory 3000 pages of options I will never learn to use but that’s okay. I look cool and when you’re in your mid-50s that doesn’t happen all that often.
Whoa, doggies. Ain’t technology grand? I am able to forward my work phone to my cell phone so that people can find me 24/7. Today I am in San Diego, but I’m working. Here I am writing my column. Later I’ll be making phone calls and working out kinks in a transaction. I am assisting a few people who are in short sale or default situations who just want some basic information. And I’m writing a book. All of this is possible through technology.
But, gosh. Wouldn’t it be nice to just unplug and walk along the beach? How about enjoying the restaurants in Old Town or the shopping at Horton Plaza?
Real estate is not like organ transplants. There is not such urgency to it that one needs to be on call every second. But Realtors have trained the general public to feel we should be at its beck and call all the time. This merely reinforces the idea if you call for one Realtor and can’t get him or her, you just call the next one because they’re all the same.
I learned a good lesson many years ago which I pass on here to new agents in the industry: If someone is demanding that you “hop to” at the onset, it will be that way throughout the entire transaction. That person will suck your energy, take your time, be a constant source of pain in your backside, and probably walk away bad-mouthing you at the end. If potential clients value your individual service so little they’re willing to move on to the next agent rather than wait 4 hours for a return phone call, you already know how little they value your work. Surround yourself with the clients who bring joy and kindness to your life.
Okay, enough with the life lesson. Let’s talk about the market. No, on second thought, let’s not. Instead, pick up your phone (providing you’ve read the manual and know how to use it) and call a real estate agent today. Most agents are major nerds – they love to talk about this stuff. You’ll learn a lot and gain insights into today’s market and lending environment.
But even better, you’ll have a trusted advisor in a Realtor. You’ll have someone in your court, not just for one transaction, but for all the ins and outs of home ownership, maintenance, investment strategies, etc. You’ll be glad you made that phone call today.
And be kind to your Realtor!
