I’m not sure where to start with this post. Do I start with the personal or the professional? It’s going to make more sense if I start with the personal…..

As most of my readers know, I am single. Like super single. Four years single. And not for lack of dating. Trust. But I’ve come to the conclusion in the last few months that I’m a runner. It’s a fear of settling. I used to be that girl who was in a relationship with someone that wasn’t right for me, just to be in one. Now that I have that self awareness, I get to find a new self awareness….that I’m so afraid of settling again, I run in the opposite direction from even good dating material. I find something wrong with the person so I can reason with myself that it’s best I never see them again. Usually after one date. Two, if I’m trying really hard.

Objections you might call them. Much like in the world of property management. (Except, for me, I’ve got no one trying to overcome the objections.) Which is our job on the front line. But, you can’t do that unless you KNOW THE OBJECTIONS.

About a week ago I had the pleasure of having some of our architectural design team at our community. Our community is close to home office, so it was helpful to see the product in real time versus on the plans. And apparently they are working on some three dimensional type things to assist in the overall scope of wants, needs and building code. All of which battle one another when trying to plan a community. (Much like wants, needs and reality battle one another in the realm of dating.)

Ok, so they swing by to take a look at some floor plans and to pick my brain about anything and everything. Guess what I had the opportunity to do? To list objections that we hear or that we even may know first hand from some of us living on site. It was almost personally therapeutic to be able to do so. Instead of the usual defensiveness you would get from a date for listing objections, you’re getting real feedback. Not only that, it wasn’t an attempt to gain a lease (also important), it was an opportunity to make a difference on future projects. It was our company choosing not to settle.

It’s not as though the list was long or serious. It was a discussion about outlet locations for more convenience, about USB outlets, about different lighting, about outlets in a place where wall mounts could be, about the architect of certain floor plans and how space could potentially be better used. We build amazing product, but, to be provided the opportunity to be a part of something even better? As though it could get better? That’s something that I really enjoyed and that’s when I realized…..

That instead of my dating life correlating with my work life, that this time my work life was correlating with my dating life. It’s okay not to settle. It’s okay to want something better and to find and know the objections to ensure that better is achieved. I’m proud that I work for a company that never settles, always striving to be better, even more proud of having been made aware, that is what I’m doing in my personal life.