Dropping Prices & Chasing Dogs

I realized I haven’t given a house update since the end of May and it’s pretty much because nothing has been happening.

The woman who was interested in our house and came by four times apparently fell off the face of the earth. Same goes for the guy who came to see our house twice. We had a bunch more showings, but all the attention dried up right before the holiday weekend.

It’s annoying and frustrating and crappy all rolled into a ball.

Our new & improved front garden

In our downtime, I added some fun to our back deck with some new deck chairs, pillows and a cute little lantern for our patio table. Our front garden was also looking a bit rough, so my mom and I spent last Friday afternoon planting new bushes and flowers. Everything is looking great, so now I just need a buyer to come by and fall in love with the place!

In order to sweeten the pot, we decided to reduce our price from $242,000 to $229,900. The other houses in the neighborhood are in the $238,000 – $242,000 range, so hopefully this will draw some attention over to us.

I actually hadn’t really been obsessing on the house not selling because we were distracted by our Vegas trip and then with all the Potter drama.

Speaking of Potter drama, he’s been acting pretty close to normal (for him) the last week or so. Last time we went to the vet, his tests showed that he doesn’t have diabetes or pancreatitis. However, his protein levels were low, which could apparently be an issue. The vet asked me to wait two weeks and then bring in a urine sample for him to re-test.

Yes, you read that right I’m supposed to bring in a urine sample from my dog. And not just any urine sample, I’m supposed to get a sample from him first thing in the morning.

Which means, this Saturday around 6:30 am (which is apparently the magic time that he likes to wake up, go outside and eat), I’ll be standing outside half awake waiting for him to find something to pee on. The moment he starts, I’m going to have to jump him mid-pee to collect his urine in a Tupperware container.

I don’t anticipate this going smoothly. In fact, I’m imagining myself wrestling my peeing dog to the ground while the neighbors point and laugh.

So, we’ll see how this goes. Maybe I’ll get lucky and he won’t care what I’m doing while he’s thinking about the deliciousness of his dog food breakfast. One can only hope.

And yes, in case you’re wondering… I’m going to throw the Tupperware away afterward.

An example of when business casual is a bit TOO casual

Want to know a little secret about me? Well, I’m one of those hot weather people.

Ok, it’s not that much of a secret, but I’d so much rather it be 95 degrees outside (even with the Maryland humidity) than deal with that windy 20 degree crap we get in the winter.

I love to indulge my inner lazy person on the weekends by throwing on a pair of gym shorts, tank top and flip flops. Add in a pool or beach and I’m ecstatic about lazing around in my swimsuit with a drink in one hand and my kindle in the other.

However, please note that this is how I dress on the WEEKENDS – not when I come to work.

I’d like to take this opportunity to share a true story with you. At one of my previous jobs I worked with a lady that we’ll call Ms. SassyPants. She worked in a customer service position and was quite sassy (hence the name) in her dressing style, even changing things up with natural-ish looking wigs every now and then.

Well, one beautiful summer day she decided to wear a strappy tank top with her work pants. The light and silky tank top was so strappy that her brightly colored bra straps were quite visible as they stuck out on her shoulders. Sounds like a situation for Clinton and Stacy, right?* Well, I guess she must of thought so too, because a few hours into the workday she decided to keep those distracting bra straps from ruining her look. By taking off her bra.

So, now she’s running around the office and meeting with customers braless. And she wasn’t exactly a little sprite of a girl. Oh, and the office was cold.

Totally inappropriate, right? Well, she must have thought so too because she decided that the best course of action was to put some Band-Aids on top of her nipples in order to ‘hide the chill’ she was so obviously feeling.

For the rest of the day, she bounced around the office in a thin, silky tank top with weird square nips sticking out from her body. Classy.

Did I mention that Ms. SassyPants worked in the customer service department? She was the person that represented our company to a customer.

*Sigh*

Ok, I admit that I laughed my butt off at the time. I still giggle a little as I remember the look on the bosses face when he realized that he needed to speak to her about her interpretation of business casual.** But I wonder even years later, what the hell was she thinking? You know that old adage, “dress for the job you want, not the job you have”… was she aspiring to be an exotic dancer?

I know I’m not the only one who has noticed that some people’s business casual attire is a bit more, um…casual than others. The morale of the story is, don’t be THAT girl (or guy). If you’re digging around your closet in the morning and your fingers land on something you wore to the club a few weeks ago, put it back and keep searching.

* This is a “What not to Wear” reference. If you did not know that, you really need to park your butt on the couch and watch more TV.

** The funny part is that the boss was too afraid to say something to her and instead sent an email to the entire company about how “beachwear” was not acceptable for work. According to the rumor mill, she grumbled that her outfit wasn’t beachwear because it was expensive…

Do I really have to go to networking events to build my business?

I touched on the ‘how to’ part of networking in this post which dealt with how to turn a networking acquaintance into a friend. However, I didn’t really get into why it’s a good idea for you to spend the time and effort to network.

If you’re anything like me, you drag yourself out of bed to get yourself ready for work, fight the traffic to get there, work all day long, then hop back in your car to face more traffic. When you finally get back home, you need to throw yourself in to your home commitments which may include working out, making dinner, taking care of children/spouses, etc. So why do you really need to add a networking event to your busy day?

Do you want your business to succeed? Do you want to succeed? Well, then you should probably throw some networking events into your mix. It does take time, but if you use that time efficiency the benefits could definitely make it worth your while.

For most types of business, you’re not really selling your product (even if you do have a product-based company), you’re selling yourself. No, not in a Pretty Woman kind of way, but in the way that people want to be around/purchase from people they actually like.

Think about it, you could be an account representative for a printing company, a photographer, an insurance agent, a mechanic or even a dog walker. If people don’t like you, they’re not going to purchase something from you.

Tips on How to Network:

  • Choose your venue wisely. There are tons of networking events out there, from chambers of commerce to industry-based associations. Make sure you pick one that is a good fit for both you and your business.

 

  • Don’t Glide in Like a Shark. Deals are rarely sealed at a networking event, but are frequently born there. Don’t walk in with the intention of throwing a business card at everyone in the room and adding appointments to your calendar. Come with the goal of building a relationship with someone.

 

  • First Impressions Count. Dress appropriately for the type of event you’re attending and don’t huddle up with people you already know. Make sure that you’re open and approachable. Also, this is not the time to throw back at the bar, you want to be sharp and not be the drunken fool that people are pointing at.

 

  • Be Yourself and Be Curious. Everyone likes to talk about themselves, but don’t make it all about you. Ask questions about what their company does, what types of clients they service, what sets them apart from the competition, etc.

 

  • Don’t Forget to Follow Up. Make yourself a note on their business card so that you remember who they are. If you feel like they’d be a great connection, follow up with them a few days after the event to invite them to lunch. If you spoke about something in particular like a 5k that’s coming up, shoot them off an email with the information

Remember, a network of contacts is not a collection of business cards, but of people. If you take the time to build lasting relationships with your contacts, you will not only earn their business but often they will refer you to others as well.