Merry Christmas

Wishing you and your family a very Merry Christmas!

How a cow changed Christmas

I saw this note from Andy Andrews and couldn’t help but want to share it with you!

The pretty girl with chestnut colored hair in the middle of the picture is Kim Pace. Kim is the daughter of close friends of ours, Jim and Mary Pace from the Atlanta area. The lady in the multicolored dress is Jane. She is flanked by her local pastor (an unpaid position) and surrounded by her children and one of Kim’s staff. Jane and her children dressed in their best clothes for this photograph.

Kim is a missionary in Kenya. She is 30 years old and has been on the African continent for almost a decade. A couple of years ago, Jim and Mary were visiting their daughter and went with her to the western part of the country. There, they experienced poverty that we, in our country, find tough to even imagine.

One morning, in a one room, mud hut, Jim and Mary met Jane. Jane’s husband had been killed in a job related accident the year before. Seeing her “guests” sitting on her dirt floor, Jane was horrified that she had nothing—no food, no tea—to offer them. Kim assured her friend that her parents were expecting nothing and were not offended. Still, Jane was embarrassed.

As the children sat quietly in the laps of the adults, Kim noticed a child missing. “Jane,” she asked softly, “Where is Purity?”

Jane’s eyes filled with tears as the corners of her mouth tugged down. “I had to give her to another family,” she said. “I could not feed her.” Then, with guests in her home, the young mother put her face in her hands and cried.

Jim stepped outside the tiny hut and saw Edwin, Jane’s pastor, nearby. Wiping tears of his own away, Jim told Edwin what had happened and began to take every dollar he had out of his pockets. But before Jim could go back inside with the money, Edwin stopped him. “Please sir,” he said, “you are most generous, but may I make a suggestion?”

“Of course,” Jim answered.

“If you really want to help Jane,” the pastor said, “don’t give her all your money. It will only run out. Just buy her a cow.”

Jim was taken aback. “What?” he asked. “A cow?”

“Yes,” Edwin went on to explain, “Jane can use the cow’s milk to feed her family and any that is left over can be sold in order to afford some grain for bread. A family with a cow will never go hungry. In fact,” Edwin added, “one cow can provide enough nourishment to keep almost fifty children alive.”

“How much is a cow?” Jim asked carefully.

“About five hundred of your dollars,” was the answer.

Jim looked. He had more than that in his hand. The cow was purchased that day.

A week later, Jim was back in America. In New York City on business, he found himself unable to shake from his mind the experience with Jane and her family. One afternoon, in a hotel lobby waiting on a friend, a lady seated nearby struck up a conversation. After asking Jim where he was from and a bit about his family, this woman then asked an unusual question. “What is the most gratifying thing you have done recently?”

Jim raised his eyebrows, smiled and said, “I bought a cow.”

After relating his experience, the woman asked, “Can I buy a cow, too?”

“I guess,” was Jim’s answer and after a quick phone call, he gave the woman an address to use.

Neither Jim nor Mary has given a speech or written a letter requesting help. Kim has not asked that anyone pay special attention to the people to whom she ministers in western Kenya. Edwin operates an orphanage with 1,800 children and oversees two medical clinics. He receives no salary, yet never advertises his needs. Everything that has happened since Jim and Mary’s first of six trips to Kenya has been done by word of mouth. And as of today, 123 cows have been purchased.

Several months ago, Polly, the boys and I began talking about the children in Africa. You know, perspective is a wonderful thing. As crazy as the economy is here, we are attempting to be extremely grateful for a roof over our heads, clean water, and food to eat. Austin (9) and Adam (6) have done extra work to earn dollars for “Miss Kim’s children”. Polly and I have managed to save a bit of extra money that, I suppose, would have gone for vanilla lattes or another shirt or more fishing equipment.

So yesterday, with what we had saved, we bought two cows. The check was sent to:

Brackenhurst Ministries
104 Bridgewater Drive
Peachtree City, GA 30269

We think it might be our best gift ever.

Merry Christmas,
Andy

for more information on Andy Andrews visit www.AndyAndrews.com

The Biggest Loser

Ok, so I don’t watch a ton of reality TV, but there is one show in particular that has always caught my attention…  The Biggest Loser.  I love this show for so many reasons above and beyond the amazing amounts of weight that these people are able to shed.

One of the biggest pieces that draws me to this show is that for the most part, the contestants are people that have lost hope in one way or another and have either thrown in the towel on what life has to offer, or are just eating their way through it to protect themselves from some past pain.

My wife would love to have Bob as her trainer and Jillian just scares the heck out of her.  As much as I like Bob, I would take Jillian hands down simply because she hits you head on like a ton of bricks.  The one thing that I will say about both of the trainers is that they are both going after more than the weight.  They are working to get these people to work through what got them to this point to begin with.

What happens in the end is an amazing thing!  These people not only have dramatic changes on the outside, but also on the inside.  They have a new lease on life and realize that they are capable of so much more than what they ever thought was possible.  It is the shift in mindset that amazes me most of all.  The people who finish this show are not the same people that begin the show!

The other really cool thing that happened this season was that a woman won the second year in a row!  Last year everyone believed that it was impossible for a woman to win The Biggest Loser because men had an easier time dropping weight than women.  That was, of course, until Ali won.  With Michelle winning the very next year, you can’t help but think that Ali broke through a belief barrier.

Now, why am I posting on the Biggest Loser on a real estate blog?  I see so many parallels between what these people go through and what so many of us go through.  In this market we feel beat up and sometimes want to throw in the towel.  Then there are others that are having the best year of their carreers.  Imagine if we could commit to 12 weeks  of an absolute focus on our business and lives.  Know also that you can’t do it by yourself and neither could the contestants on The Biggest Loser.  We need accountability and coaching!  This is a time when most people trim expenses and cut out of their budget what they need the most.  Most all of the top producing agents that I know of have spent more on training and coaching in the last 18 months than they have in a long time and their business continues to grow.

Take a chance, commit to transforming your business in 2009.  Commit 12 weeks of purpose and focus on improving your business.  Imagine what would be possible if you did!

Robin Siino joins our team!!

I cannot begin to tell you how excited I am to announce that Robin Siino has joined our team as the Productivity Coach for Keller Williams Realty in Sacramento and Natomas!  Robin brings an unparalleled passion for coaching and consulting real estate agents to achieving the success they truly desire.  She lives and breathes our mission of “Building Careers Worth Having, Businesses Worth Owning and Lives Worth Living.”

Her new role will allow her to work within her gifts and add yet another tremendous resource to an already strong foundation at Keller Williams Realty.  I truly believe that our associates and partners will see an unfair advantage over their competition when they engage and participate in Robin’s Productivity Coaching program!

Welcome to the family Robin!  I am sure I speak for so many when I say that we are so excited to have you on our team!

Contact Us today to learn how our Productivity Coaching Program can help you build a THRIVING career in Real Estate.

The Gift of Profit Share

Profit Sharing is an AMAZING opportunity!  It is a very real way to create a truly passive income stream.  Watch this video to understand more about the benefits of Keller Williams Profit Sharing and its impact on our associates.