Category: Personal Reflections

Oh, Maslow’s pyramid and all that psychological think! Is there anything greater than interdependence and self-actualization? Yes, this is a rhetorical question. Right now, no. Or, better put, nothing we know of. But our culture evolves. I wonder what the future will think, looking back upon this moment, about what our perceived upper-bounds were in terms of compassion, interconnectedness, justice. I’m confident that they’ll find us amusing, perhaps with a judgmental view.

I’ve seen some creative uses of PDFs, Adobe’s ubiquitous document tool. My favorite lately: printing out the fill-in PDF form, filling it in on a typewriter, then scanning and resending. A rather unique blend of old and new technology. This got me thinking about how important the PDF has become.

In real estate now, the PDF is used for most documentation. And our transaction forms (at least in Seattle) are all fill-in PDFs. The ability to edit and manage these forms is critical to business. Fortunately, there are many tools for this, and one isn’t bound by the brutal Adobe pricing structure. I fully recommend this investment for every business.

The end of this week, leading into the weekend, I have been barraged by a huge number of “open house” and “newly listed” marketing messages. It’s a completely subjective analysis, sure, but reinforces many of the messages I’ve been getting lately: this summer’s Puget Sound real estate market is hot. 

Just read Om Malik’s “In 12 years of blogging, the more things change, the more they stay the same”. Though I launched this site nearly 10 years ago, I’ve been blogging longer. Whether more than 12 years, I’m unsure. His article, though, gave me pause. Lately, I’ve been distributing my interests across multiple sites. The logic being to ensure content consistency. However, as Om points out, by doing such I run the risk of being just another site. Without the unique blend of content that reflects my interests, that tells my story, things become somewhat sterile and devoid of uniqueness. Blogging’s strength is how it brings unique voices forward.

Now, what to do with such knowledge. One thing: work on reintegrating my web presence. More postings here, vs all the distributed channels. Also, though, I shall feel free to expand and explore all my interests here. Expanding on the unique perspective that is, well, me. So, forward I go.

Happiness and satisfaction are not static, but constantly evolving. I need to kept growing. The shinyness fades over time, needing continuous refreshment.