A Little Meditation each Day Keeps the Stress Away

Everyone has his or her morning routines. Some people get up and head to the gym for a quick workout before heading into the office. Some people get up and sit down at their computers to answer emails and write for a few hours. Others meet up with friends for coffee and discussion before tackling their busy day.

My daily routine starts each day at 4am, yes that includes the weekends. I know, sounds a bit early for some people and that’s ok, for me, this is a time I can have to myself before getting my day going. I have found over the years that meditation works wonders for my mind and my spirit. By getting up each morning and focusing my mind and readying my person for the day ahead, I am able to tackle each day with a calm and ready demeanor. I grab a large glass of water and I do yoga or PiYo in the morning and then I always read something inspirational to help me get going for my day and then I may post something on my social media to help others feel inspired as well.  Nothing too elaborate but I make sure to stick with the same routine as it now is a habit and I look forward to it every day. I also follow a group on Facebook called Miracle Morning that is a group who takes everything based off a book by Hal Elrod. 

I know meditation can be a hard thing to start doing, we all have those racing minds especially right when we wake up in the morning. Below are some suggestions I have if you think this is something you think you would like to try out. For me, I know it has helped me to be a better wife, mother, friend and businesswoman. Starting each day by centering myself helps me center the other parts of my life.

1.    Start small, 3-5 minutes: It can be hard to sit still and let your mind rest, and trust me, 3 minutes will seem like a lot at first! But work on concentrating on your breathing and focusing your thoughts. Eventually, you will be able to meditate 20+ minutes if you so choose.

2.    Understand meditation can help with stress, irritability, anxiety and overthinking: I think every one of us suffers from one of these attributes and mediation is a healthy way to help work on controlling those.

3.    Find your own method that works for you: We are all individuals and as such we probably will have a method of mediation that feels right to us. I personally like yoga even though I know that isn’t for everyone. Try a few methods out, research different techniques and eventually with a few trials and error you will find one that works best for your mind and soul.

4.    Make sure you are comfortable: If your kids are running around, the dog is barking, and you are sitting on a hard wood floor, it will be almost impossible to meditate. Make sure to choose a quiet place as well as a comfortable place where you will not be disturbed and let everyone else in the house know that your meditation time is quiet time.

 If you are not a morning person, but rather a night person, I know many people who also find time to meditate each night to let their mind quiet for the night. Regardless if you are a morning or evening person, mediation has changed my life for the better and I would recommend it to anyone who is trying to find peace and tranquility in their personal life and professional life. 

Photo by anyaberkut/iStock / Getty Images

Fall in Denver: What to do with your Family and Friends

It is already the middle of September and fall is slowly starting to descend around Colorado. The mornings are a bit cooler, the leaves are starting to change to their fall colors and pumpkin lattés are making their rounds to the local coffee shops.  I love the changing of the seasons, just one of the many reasons Colorado is such a great state to live in. There is so much to do here in the fall as well, from Oktoberfest to the Great American Beer Festival to heading to the mountains for a great hike in the fall foliage, below is a list of fun activities for you and the family to enjoy:

Festival Italiano – Sept. 12th-13th // Belmar, Lakewood

Who doesn’t love some amazing Italian food paired with some fabulous wine? With over 70 of the finest Italian food vendors from around the state, this is the perfect event to go to with an appetite ready to be filled. Enjoy everything from gelato, sausage, baked goods, pasta, ceramics, antiques, pizza, wine and much, much more. There will also be wine tasting, chef demonstrations, Italian movies, and a place for your kids to stomp on grapes, talk about a fun time for the whole family!

Oktoberfest – Sept. 18th-27th // BallPark Neighborhood, Denver

This is a tradition among many people in Denver because this is such a family-friendly festival that honors German heritage. Bring young and old alike and enjoy German attractions including music, performances by international dancers, great good and drink, children’s activities and vendors selling German goods.

The Great American Beer Festival – Sept. 18th-26th // Colorado Convention Center and various locations around the city

For all of those who know a thing or two about beer, this is the place for you. With more than 49,000 beer enthusiasts from around the world, the Great American Beer Festival has become known worldwide as a place to come taste the best of the best. Take your 21-and-up friends and enjoy one-ounce beer samples from the festivals 700-plus breweries that come from all over the country.

Freight Fest – All weekends now through the end of October // Elitch Gardens

It’s almost time to start thinking about Halloween and I can bet your kids have already been planning their costumes for the holiday! Take your family to Elitch Gardens Theme & Water Park in downtown Denver for a spooky good time. The park is transformed into a ‘scream’ park until Halloween so make sure to go check out the haunted houses and the trick-or-treat trail.

Brighton Buddhist Church Redevelopment Project – Open House Sept. 24th // 21 S. 1st Ave Brighton, CO

This event would be one not to miss because it has been my baby for the past several months now! I have been updating you all on this amazing project we have taken on in Brighton renovating the beautiful Buddhist Church and now we want everyone to come see this amazing renovation in the making. Mark your calendars and bring your families for some drinks and appetizers while enjoying this beautiful historic building.  If you would like to join us for this amazing event please RSVP by clicking on this link: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/brighton-buddhist-church-redevelopment-project-open-house-tickets-18377324071

Make sure to check out some of these wonderful fall activates and make it down to Brighton for the open house next week! If you have any questions on the project, feel free to get in touch with me beforehand, I would love to tell you more about it!

Teamwork: Working with Your Spouse or Significant Other

Being an entrepreneur comes with a lot of responsibility. Whether it is dealing with clients, balancing budgets or preparing the calendar for the month ahead, at the end of each workday it is up to you to make everything happen. This can be daunting for many people when they first venture out into the working world as an independent worker. When I first started as a REALTOR, I loved the flexibility it allowed me and the ability to work my own hours. What I came to find though as I continued to grow as a Realtor and as a businesswoman was that while I worked well by myself, I worked even better with a partner.

Running a business alone can take a lot out of someone and one of the ways I have been most successful at what I do is by working with my “team”. My husband Jay and I have been working together since almost the beginning. We work side by side as business partners who both push one another to be our best selves while continuing to grow as individuals in every aspect of our lives. When we first started off, we made the decision to build our business life together and that is how we continue to run smoothly today.

My mother and father have worked together in their real estate and management business since 1983 and are still working together today.  Event though my mom had a full time job with the State of Colorado for 33 years she still helped my dad with his business.  Once my mom retired from the State she came on full time with my dad to continue running their business full time together.  Before Jay and I went our on our own we helped my mother and father with their business and we still help them a little today.

Not everyone can work with their spouse/significant other and we have had our challenges over the years. But what we both have realized is that we both understand one another’s strengths and weaknesses, which help us, work together in a way that makes our business bond stronger. If there is an area I lack in, Jay pulls more weight there and vice-versa. Together we are a force to be reckoned with and what better way to have multiple streams of income than to work together and grow businesses together?

Recently, Fast Company wrote an article about working with your significant others and some of the pros for doing so which I have shared below:

“THE CASE FOR:

Increase Stress Resistance - Research has shown that work-linked couples are generally more resilient in the face of stress. The main reason is that they tend to perceive that they have their partner’s support, which helps them cope with difficult moments at work. In addition, partners are more likely to be more supportive about each other’s work problems when they work together. Thus working with your spouse can help you navigate difficult job situations.

Lower Chance Of Burnout - Meta-analytic studies have shown that people are less likely to burn out in their careers if they experience support from their work colleagues. In line, burnout rates are generally lower in work-linked couples than the average employee population. A further reason explaining this finding is that couples who work together need to invest fewer psychological resources on integrating their work and family lives, which enables them to use more resources in both areas of life.

Higher Engagement At Work - Given that work-linked couples have more integrated work and family roles—their behavior, attitudes and values don’t change much between work and family contexts—they are more likely to be engaged at work. Conversely, when employees experience a psychological distance between the role they play at work and the role they play in personal contexts, such as at home, they are at risk of experiencing disengagement, and even alienation, at work. People strive to maintain a coherent self-view, and that is always easier when they behave in consistent ways across different settings.

Importantly, many of the above benefits still hold when couples don’t share a common workspace or organization. Indeed, even sharing an occupation or profession can reduce stress and burnout while increasing engagement levels.” (Chamarro-Premuzic, 2015)

When you think it is time to take the step into working independently, consider working with your spouse/significant other to build a strong team. If you ever have any questions about what it is like for Jay and I feel free to ask, always happy to share how we continue to find success as business partners.  

The Start-Up Realtor: Some Advice for New Agents

The Denver real estate market is hotter than ever these days and more and more people are joining the industry as real estate agents. I have been an agent since 2005 but in the real estate industry since 1998 and I continue to learn and grow as the market continues to expand and develop throughout the city and the state. It has been a rewarding job where I have met many amazing individuals who have become life-long friends. Selling houses and buying houses is a job that I find great satisfaction in and why wouldn’t I? I get to help families find their life-long home, I get to help newly married couples find their first home, and I help older couples sell their house they’ve had for 30+ years to find a smaller house to spend their retirement in.  I also get to help those investors, like myself who are building their investment Portfolios.

Many people out there are getting their real estate licenses and getting into this hot market of ours. Getting started in real estate is an exciting prospect with many positive outcomes and endless opportunities and a fantastic potential for income. Now there are all the television shows on HGTV and ‘Million Dollar Listing’ that make new real estate agents have a bit of a skewed view of what real estate really is on an every day basis. Real estate consists of problem solving, troubleshooting, constant learning, trial and error, and so much more.

A lot of being a good real estate agent also comes from your own personality and if it fits in with what the job demands of you. If you are an outgoing, personable, and hard worker who is not afraid to put in time and effort then this is a good job to consider. This is a learn as you go kind of career, you will make mistakes and that’s ok. You can read text books and continue to take classes after you pass your test but the real learning comes from out in the field. This is a hands on job where you need to be able to make good connections and have people you can count on. I would recommend finding a brokerage that meets your needs, one with a training program and a lead generation platform. Finding a broker you can trust to support and guide you will help you become the top agent you want to be.

One thing to be weary of in this field which many new agents deal with is ‘paralysis by analysis’ which basically means trying to gather all the information about everything and being overwhelmed by all of that which leads to you not being able to perform as a top agent. There is so much information to know and you will not know all of it and that is ok! Like I said earlier, this is a hands on job where you learn the most out in the field and you will make mistakes from time to time. Correct those mistakes and work on developing yourself as a agent who knows their stuff.

Being a Realtor is such an amazing opportunity so don’t be too scared if you are thinking of giving it a shot! The Denver market is the perfect place to get your feet wet and the potential for growth is happening everyday. If you have any questions about being an agent or any houses you have been looking at recently, give me a call and let’s grab coffee and chat. 

Open House! Join us September 24th from 3-7 for The Brighton Buddhist Temple Redevelopment Open House

As you drive on the highway out of Denver, away from the city towards the towns surrounding, you may find yourself on US-85 heading towards a town called Brighton, Colorado. Just a hop, skip and jump away from Denver, or about a thirty minute drive, this small town has a lot of character as well as a lot of history. First established as a city back in the 1860’s, Brighton first possessed the name Hughes Station because of the Hughes Stagecoach Station that was built as well as the Boulder Valley Railroad. During that time, Hughes Station was a place for the railroad and fur traders to stop as everything was expanding west. In 1881, the City of Brighton was born, named after the birthplace of the founder Daniel Carmichael’s wife. From that point on, Brighton continued to grow and thrive as a city as it continues to do to this day.

When you first exit the highway into Brighton, you may take notice of a church nestled quaintly at the edge of town. Built back in 1938, the Buddhist church was first the idea of a Japanese man named Shunpei Momii. The church took two years to finish and was dedicated on February 18th, 1940 as the Brighton Buddhist Church with 160 members. From there, the church continued to grow and flourish but as the years passed, the membership started to decline as most of the members were in their 70s and 80s and many of their children and the generation below that married into other religions or left the area. Eventually when there was just not enough to keep the church going, it was sold to the Tri-State Buddhist Temple in Denver.

So here we are today with this beautiful Temple and some amazing plans. On August 4th of this year, the Temple was designated “Historic” by the city of Brighton. Because of that, Carolin Corogin with C2 Studio US, LLC ( Developer)  and I are working hard to preserve and reserve this special space. We are a group of women investors who strive to help nurture the city of Denver as well as the surrounding cities with the intention of keeping Colorado beautiful and preserving some of the great historic monuments. Additionally, we will be working with the BJAA Brighton Japanese American Association and other former members of the church to possibly have a ceremony prior to its rehabilitation.  We are sensitive to their culture, what they built and admire the beautiful building they hand-crafted, so we want to make sure they are involved if they would like to be.

Our plans for the church are simple; we want to make this a gathering place for all people, a spot where family and friends can enjoy time together. We are currently looking to put a brewpub in the location so if you know of anyone who is looking for a great location have them come check out the space on September 24th between 3-7 for our open house. We are going to have Dave Tamkin Singer/Songwriter from Boulder playing at the event along with Orange Crunch Food Truck serving the food.  We will also be serving some Colorado craft beers (Currently Seeking out Sponsors) at the event.  Bring your friends and family and see this building before we start a major renovation!