CAPTAIN'S LOG: SEASON 2 EPISODE 1 - A Year in Review

by Team Broady on Thursday, January 14, 2021
“You live life looking forward. You understand life by looking back.”


Happy New Year! 

Aren't we glad to be finally done with that one? Phew! But as the old saying goes: "We're not out of the woods yet".
 
However, rather than worry about any further government lockdowns, forced business closures, overworked hospital staff, and 6 more months of home-schooling... I've decided to take a look in the rear-view mirror instead.
 
A wise man once said,
 
“You live life looking forward. You understand life by looking back.” 

And this quote from John Dewey:
 
"We do not learn from experience. We learn from reflecting on experience."
 
And finally, this one from Kairah James:
 
“Looking back, I realize that most of my stumbling blocks were actually stepping stones in disguise."
 
I especially like that last one - considering what we all had to collectively endure this past year. It felt like one stumbling block after another was being thrown in our paths, with no rational or foreseeable solutions in sight. Now that this year is behind us, perhaps we can look back and see if we can't extract a few lessons from it all.
 
I'd like to start by looking at Team Broady's performance this year as a business and service provider. We must admit, that nearing the end of the 2nd quarter this year, we were on track to have one of our worst years ever. Sales were down. Listings were hard to come by, and any buyers we were working with were facing the toughest odds in a highly competitive seller's market.
 
Then somehow, around mid-June, things started to pick up for us again. The phone started ringing and we finally started to close a few sales. We were also chosen to represent Mondev Construction to help them market and sell their new housing project known as "The Walton". We’ve been extremely busy with this development and have already sold 5 of the 12 units available.
 
We ended the year on a high note, placing among the top 1% of Royal LePage Realtors across Canada - an achievement that earned us the “Chairman’s Club” designation for our 8th consecutive year.
 
It would be easy to chalk this up to a stroke of good luck... but looking back even further, we can see that these fruits were the result of seeds we had planted in years prior. The hard work we had done defining our unique culture, building our brand and cultivating our community was coming back to reward us. 
 
We believe strongly in first principles and the one that stands at our very core is the principle of INVESTMENT. Invest in our clients. Invest in our community. Invest in our relationships. 
 
If there's anything to be learned from our experience as a small business this year - it is that investments yield returns. Trust your investments. Invest wisely. Plant those seeds every day - and they shall produce fruit when the time comes.
 
Secondly, the closures of schools and businesses actually helped remind us of some of the things we had taken for granted for so long. I don't think I've ever gained as much appreciation for teachers and school administrators as I did this year. My hat is off to all of you. With 3 kids relegated to home-schooling, my wife and I were at first completely overwhelmed by it. Lesson plans. Online courses. Outdoor activities. It became our new full-time job!
 
But the time we were able to spend together as a family was priceless. As stressful and chaotic as it was at first... it eventually became routine and we managed to find a groove. This was truly a blessing in disguise.
 
Along with these lessons learned and our ability to pivot and adapt to this year of radical change... we also had a few highlights to celebrate, and some are certainly worth mentioning here.
 
Desiree Ofter went on maternity leave in October, and recently gave birth to a healthy baby boy named Jack. She and her husband Justin have been enjoying every minute of their new adventures in parenthood! 
 
Libby took a leap of faith and signed off on a new condo in Pointe-Claire at “Le Charlebois.” She had been contemplating this downsize for several years now, and this year she finally felt the time had come to make the move. Her new unit will be ready in December 2021.
 
Catherine and her husband Nick undertook some interior design projects at their house. They partnered up with Beacon Home Design who helped them create a whole new look for their home. Catherine has been so impressed with their work that she insisted I talk about them in the Log!
 
One of my favourite accomplishments, which I wrote about in Episode 22, was completing my first marathon. The race I had signed up for was cancelled due to COVID of course, but I went ahead and ran the distance on my own regardless. This was one of the toughest physical challenges I’d ever done and an experience that I’ll never forget! In fact, I’ve already signed up to run another marathon this October.
 
Needless to say, we have an exciting, and highly unpredictable year ahead of us - and we are determined to make the most of it - despite whatever stumbling blocks might be thrown in our path.
 
No matter what obstacles and challenges await - we are prepared for the worst... but always expecting the best.
 
Signing off....
 
 
Capt’n Mark