Finding a job
When you’re fresh out of graduate school, you think finding a job will be easy. You think, surely, my employer will see my passion, my qualifications, my knowledge, and they’ll want to hire me. They’ll pay me a great wage, and I’ll get benefits like health insurance and a 401K.
That wasn’t my story.
Accepting the notion I was going to have to commute over an hour, take time away from my husband and my cattle company, AND for low pay was a hard pill. With those terms, how long would it be before we bought land? How long before we built a house? How long before I could grow my cattle company to what I envisioned? Agreeing to those terms felt like signing my life away, along with all my hopes, dreams, and ambitions.
I needed a job that fit all my criteria. Something that had a positive impact on someone’s life. Something that allowed me time to spend with Levi (my husband) and time to mentor in the junior livestock industry. I needed a job I could build a life on.
What next…
Enter real estate. Simple enough right?
Misunderstanding of the decade. Being a REALTOR® is so much more than looking at pretty houses, writing a contract, and closing deals. It’s a puzzle where at least 2 pieces are missing at all times, and you have to make it work by an overly ambitious closing date.
Do I love it? Absolutely. The mental challenge to figure out each puzzle and how it all fits together is exactly what I needed from a job. But the BEST part? The clients. My friends, and some now family.
I get the unique opportunity to (hopefully) be a guiding light in one of the biggest and most impactful things someone can do in their life. Especially a first-time home buyer. I love the idea I am able to do everything I can to set them up for a better life. I get to do something that matters.
And I still have random Tuesday evenings to AI heifers, Saturday mornings for showmanship practice, and week-long trips across the country to show. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve negotiated deals with a can of Final Bloom in my hand, walking behind a calf combing hair as they go in the ring.
I get to have it all.
(With a lot of elbow grease and early mornings). Can’t have that filet mignon lifestyle with a hot dog work ethic
Moral of the story is…
Don’t worry about what your job is, just learn to love it. You can learn to enjoy anything. Worry more about what you want your life to look like and what REALLY matters to you. I needed to do something impactful, to keep my hands busy, something to afford my dreams, and something to take the pressure off Levi to provide.
Being a REALTOR® means I get to do all that.