245120 Resource 160154 161270 161270 1257884058706 1257884058706 Controlled Lessons in Passion from a Chicken Farmer

Passionate about Real Estate, Passionate about Life

Lessons in life can come from the most unlikely of sources.  You expect to learn from your parents, your teachers, your coaches, and your mentors.  You learn from your colleagues, your clients, your friends, and sometimes even your children. But a Chicken Farmer? Who would have expected that? THE EVENT Last week, I had the fantastic opportunity to attend the <a href="http://www.tedxmidatlantic.com/" title="TEDxMidAtlantic" target="_blank">TEDx MidAtlantic event</a> in Baltimore, Maryland. If you ever have the chance to attend a TED or TEDx event, hop on it without delay.  What's TED and/or TEDx all about?  Here's a blurb from the website: <img height="94" width="246" title="TEDxMidAtlantic" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/5/4/7/2/1/ar125788114312745.JPG" alt="TEDxMidAtlantic" style="float: right; margin-left: 6px; margin-right: 6px;" />"TED conferences bring together the world’s leading thinkers and doers for a series of talks, presentations and performances. TED celebrates the convergence of Technology, Entertainment, and Design. TED events have been called “The ultimate brain spa,” “Davos for optimists” and “A journey into the future, in the company of those creating it.” What can you expect to see? <a href="http://tedxmidatlantic.com/speakers/">Speakers</a> at TED events – some of the world’s most fascinating, innovative and influential individuals – are challenged to give “the talk of their life” in 18 minutes or less. Attendees are as exceptional as the speakers. Sharing and connection happens from the stage or in the lounge. It’s the conversation that will change your life." It was truly a remarkable day.  There were 20 speakers from all walks of life: a Nobel Prize winning chemist, the Chief Technology Officer of the U.S., an economic professor and economic blogger, a Grammy nominated singer/songwriter, a neuroscientist studying the mystical effects of psychedelic mushrooms, a National Geographic photographer, the inventor of the first computer firewall, an actress from HBO's "The Wire", an Eastern European virtuoso guitarist, and more. However, the most inspiring words of wisdom, came from, yes, a chicken farmer. <img height="308" width="200" title="Chicken Farmer" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/1/2/5/1/4/ar125788263641521.JPG" alt="Chicken Farmer" style="float: left; margin-left: 6px; margin-right: 6px;" />THE CHICKEN FARMER <a href="http://www.polyfacefarms.com/talk.aspx" target="_blank">Joel Salatin</a> is "an American farmer, lecturer and author... He raises livestock using holistic methods of animal husbandry, free of potentially harmful chemicals, on his Polyface Farm in Swoope, Virginia." During his talk, Joel discussed how his mission of organic farming and of wholesome, clean, and natural methods produce animals and produce that are beyond compare and much superior to foods from non-organic mass agricultural methods.  He claims that his chickens and eggs embody the true spirit and essence of "chickenness and eggness." Joel Salatin is a down-to-Earth farmer and is someone who is very passionate about his philosophy, his mission, and his business.  His creed and his adherence to his mission have made him a success. In the most quoted, retweeted, and inspiring line, Mr. Salatin simply said: "If we devote ourselves to sacredness in our vocations, the world will rise to meet us." (<a href="http://tedxmidatlantic.com/live/#JoelSalatin" title="Joel Salatin" target="_blank">Click to watch Joel Salatin's speech to TEDxMidAtlantic</a>) THE LESSON FOR BUSINESS Too often, professionals, whether lawyers, doctors, consultants, accountants, or real estate agents, treat their clients and their businesses as just a job, just another customer, client, or invoice. People can see through this.  They can see when someone is just going through the motions waiting for the 5 o'clock bell to strike so they can go home. Those business men & women who are truly successful, those people in life who are truly successful stick to their core guiding principles and are passionate about what it is they do.  This passion shines through.  This passion Joel Salatin talks about having nobility and personal ministry in your profession.  He notes that "everyday we are writing a story that will be told about us." He is SO right. REAL ESTATE If you know me, or even if we're meeting for the first time, you'll know that I am passionate about real estate.  I am not selling and helping people buy houses.  I do not view my clients as another sale, another job, another transaction. I fully recognize, understand, and empathize with the reality that a home is not just a home.  It is not just an investment.  A home is not just lines and angles on a blueprint or a structure built atop dirt.  Rather, a home embodies the dreams, hopes, aspirations, and excitement of the people who are purchasing it.  When someone sells a home, they are parting with their memories, their stories, their successes and their failures. <img height="300" width="400" title="A Home" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/3/3/9/9/5/ar12578836259933.JPG" alt="A Home" style="float: right; margin-left: 6px; margin-right: 6px;" />A home is a sanctuary. A home is an oasis. A home is a place to make memories. A home is a place for dreams to be realized. A home is a realization of dreams. A home is a protective castle. A home is makes you a part of a community. A home gives you a place for your children to play. A home welcomes you after a long hard day. A home is the center of your life. A home is a sacred place. That's what I sell.  I'm passionate about it. And it makes me damn proud to be a REALTOR!<div class="agent_signature"> Thank you for reading my blog post. If you like what you’ve read, then please: <div class="Section1"> Follow, Connect, Watch, Subscribe <a href="http://www.twitter.com/blockrealestate" title="Follow Brian on Twitter" target="_blank"><img height="58" width="58" title="Follow Brian Block on Twitter" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/9/5/5/6/4/ar125591207746559.png" alt="Follow Brian Block on Twitter" /></a><a href="http://www.facebook.com/blockrealestate" title="Become a Fan of the Block Real Estate Group on Facebook" target="_blank"><img height="58" width="58" title="Become a Fan of Block Real Estate Group on Facebook" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/8/6/4/8/8/ar125591211188468.png" alt="Become a Fan of Block Real Estate Group on Facebook" /></a><a href="http://www.linkedin.com/in/blockrealestate" title="Connect with Brian on LinkedIn" target="_blank"><img height="57" width="57" title="Connect with Brian on LinkedIn" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/6/4/9/6/9/ar125591215596946.png" alt="Connect with Brian on LinkedIn" /></a><a href="http://www.youtube.com/bablock" title="Watch Brian's videos on YouTube" target="_blank"><img height="56" width="56" title="Watch Brian's Videos on YouTube" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/6/6/4/2/8/ar125591218782466.png" alt="Watch Brian's Videos on YouTube" /></a><a href="../../../../public/rss/160154" title="Subscribe to Brian's Blog" target="_blank"><img height="58" width="58" title="Subscribe to Brian's Blog" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/7/7/1/8/2/ar125591232928177.png" alt="Subscribe to Brian's Blog" /></a> If you plan to purchase or sell a home in the Northern Virginia or D.C. area, you can visit my main <a href="http://www.brianblock.com/" target="_blank">Northern Virginia & D.C. real estate</a> website at <a href="http://www.brianblock.com/" target="_blank">www.brianblock.com</a>. </div> </div> 10 application/xml false brian block chicken farmer joel salatin northern virginia real estate northern virginia real estate blog passion for real estate passionate re/max allegiance selling homes ted talks tedx midatlantic tedxmidatlantic Mozilla/5.0 (Windows; U; Windows NT 5.1; en-US; rv:1.9.0.15) Gecko/2009101601 Firefox/3.0.15 127.0.0.1 127.0.0.1 breg 69.143.58.127 false true false false true 205801 false false true false false false true 245350 Resource 205801 173239 161270 1258324172866 1259122815879 Controlled RE: Lessons in Passion from a Chicken Farmer

ha!

Great comparison Brian! 10 application/xml false Mozilla/5.0 (Macintosh; U; Intel Mac OS X 10_6_2; en-us) AppleWebKit/531.21.8 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/4.0.4 Safari/531.21.10 127.0.0.1 127.0.0.1 74.138.222.208 false true false false true 160154 blog blogsite/BrianBlock/web