That which defines us
I can, in no way, trivialize what's happening in the financial markets or certain segments of our economy, but it is all relative. And while "It's all relative" does not make as good a...
In defense of reason and landlords
Oregon is on its final turn toward statewide rent control by legislative fiat. California landlords are just catching their breath after dodging the rent control bullet by referendum. Activists rarely rest, and they only...
Things that matter: words
The former pro wrestler, Tyrus, who is partly of African-American descent, tells a story from his high school days of being annoyed by a boy who wore a shirt with an image of the...
Tell me my lying eyes are wrong
The stock market continues to free fall, as do oil prices, even as the dollar strengthens against the whims of China. U.S. growth, as measured by GDP, sighed softly in Q4 to an estimated...
The monsters are due on Maple Street
"The monsters are due on Maple Street," (1960) was a classic. I recall it every time I read divisive tales about some one or group, or ill-defined boogie man, who has singlehandedly turned out...
Everyone loves to be sold
The common thread throughout this wide and diverse sea of goods is identifying a solid value to the intended market.
Here’s a secret. Selling is not that hard. If you understand human behavior, you’re practically...
Lean into it
American optimism lives, though scuffed. The latest Gallup Poll shows an uptick in the Economic Confidence Index, after a six-week "morose." Pundits caution that there remain obstacles ahead that may challenge the air in...
Get your Sully on
Some were there to catch a glimpse of the unassuming captain, who so deftly belly-landed a disabled US Airways A320 jetliner in the Hudson River in January. Others were there to offer honor to the...
Facts don’t care
I was raised in a multi-generational family business. There I learned classic principles of market economics long before I learned what it was called. It was a great Midwestern foundation because certain universal principles...
The creators
“Beauty is the promise of happiness,” wrote 19th Century French writer Stendhal. Beauty “exalts the mind or spirit,” according to Merriam-Webster and “truth, beauty and goodness” are the eternal principles for which the soul...
Beauty will save the world
It is said that beauty preserves the human essence. Through time and modernity, styles will change but human nature, the truth at man’s core—remains constant. Behavioral scientists know this. Marketers know this. Those purveyors...
You choose a job. A calling chooses you.
The attraction is simple. The business of apartments makes us believe, if even in scattered moments, that we can improve the lives we serve and make a living while doing it. How many lives?...
Trust the fabric
As my darling grandmother, a seamstress by trade would say, a good seamstress trusts the fabric. And I do.
Our best days are ahead, most assuredly, and I am excited by morning’s first light.
Multifamily continues...
A primer in tribalism
You know, like, "I'm a Mac," or "I'm a PC."
That's called tribalism.
Back in the day, the unity of the tribe, in its purist form, was based on kinship. If you weren't kin, you were...
The lion’s roar
Indeed, the world is an unbelievably amazing place, rich and beautiful and full of wonder.
Still, some things may simply be too hard to believe, like sleeping in a tent on the Masai Mara in...
