Inspiring Excellence

Bob Parks Making a Difference

LeAnn and I had the privilege of joining Bob and Marie Parks recently at the Kevin Carter Foundation's Celebrity Wishes Event to support Make-A-Wish of Middle Tennessee.  Not only did they raise $130,000 for a great cause, the event was a blast!

Bob Parks Realty has always been focused on making a difference in our communities especially in the lives of children.  It is an honor to be a part of this kind of corporate culture.

With all the talk about lack of character in the NFL lately, let me share some good news.  Kevin Carter has been gone from Nashville for a couple of years now, but doesn't miss the opportunity to show back up to help raise money for this cause.  Here is Bob, Kevin, and a recent recipient of one of the wishes. 

Rumor has it that Kevin (a former Florida Gator) will even sing "Rocky Top" if you donate $3000 to Make-A-Wish.

Friends and Family

Even making the trip down here to watch LeAnn run the past couple of years, I had no idea how much fun it is to be a participant.  Once you start running, you find out how many other people you know that are runners also.

The picture is of my brother-in-law, Bill Greer, and me at the finish.  We actually don't look too bad considering that we just finished our first Country Music 1/2 Marathon.

Several friends, former clients, and other Bob Park's agents were part of the fun yesterday.  Congrats to....

Marathoners:

Todd Overby  3:37

Craig Brandon 4:07

Scott Slavens  3:02

Jeremy Thiessen  4:48

Currin Kozak  5:20

Half-Marathoners:

Tony Hunsinger  2:17

Randy Elrod  2:11

Bill Greer  2:38

Angela Blankenship 2:03

Ken Futrell  1:54   Kelly Futrell  2:33

Susan Brandon 2:49

Lyle Lynch  2:12     Susan Lynch  3:39    Robin Lynch  3:01

Lisa Lowe  2:49

Then after a great day, we got to share a fantastic meal with friends John and Angela Blankenship.  John was my inspiration to get started first with regular exercise, then to running.  John, thanks for dinner and pushing me to do this!

See you all next year.  My room is already booked!

My First 1/2 Marathon

I enjoyed great weather for my very first 1/2 marathon at the Country Music Marathon in Nashville, TN.  The whole gang came to watch and found me as I made my way over the Woodland Street Bridge a few hundred yards from the finish.

What an experience!!!  Running down West End this morning in the midst of 32,000 other people was quite a rush.  Somewhere around 8 miles in I knew my knee wasn't going to allow me to keep the pace that I had started with.  But I finished in 2:17....I guess this becomes my PR (personal record).

Lessons from the 1/2 marathon....

- finishing feels better than a sore IT Band

-ice is a good thing for sore knees

-Nashville was an awesome place to run my first run

-doughnuts at the finish line...quite a treat

-the Country-fried steak at lunch never tasted so good (Phil - just for you)

A big thanks to Randy Elrod who became somewhat of a coach toward the end of my training.  He ran my last long run with me two weeks ago and ran most of the way with me today.  Randy, thanks for helping make it a memorable day.

Watch for official race times of some family and friends tomorrow.

Leaders in Real Estate

Larry Kendall leads The Group, Inc., a real estate company in Fort Collins, CO.  The Group is the best in the business when it comes to our industry. They have only full-time agents that have passed a minimum of two strenuous interviews and made a commitment to excellence in their careers and life. They have led the nation in per agent production over the past 15 years.

In the days of paragraph-long mission statements, they keep it simple: “Having fun, making money, helping people.” They are masters of systems that help their agents create outstanding relationships with their customers and provide “no surprises” type customer service that is superb.

Most importantly, they help their agents have a life outside of real estate. None of us on our death bed wish to be remembered most for being a great real estate agent. They work hard in real estate so they can make sure they live out their passions outside of work.

Bob Parks Realty has been coached for five years in these same systems. Bob Parks (our owner) and over 150 of our agents and brokers have made the trip out to Ft. Collins for one of their Ninja Retreats.

Standards of service will be the thing that separates great real estate agents and companies in the next few years. Look for companies like Bob Parks Realty and The Group Inc. to lead the way.

Legacy

This is the River Birch tree that sits in front of the Warf Building at Vol State Community College in Gallatin, TN. The tree was planted in 1994 in memory of a 20-year teacher that had passed away a few months earlier.

The plaque in front of the tree says "in Howard's teachings, mathmatics was not the only lesson he taught. His example was the lesson of how to live life to its fullest." That’s my dad. (Now you know why I like the name Bud. The legal option was Howard George III.)

When I think about those words, I think about leaving a legacy. In his book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Steven Covey reminds us that at death we will all wish we had spent more time away from work leaving a legacy with those closest to us. My dad left a legacy through my sister and I, his students, and countless others. My legacy starts at home with Blake, Logan, and Annalee, then spreads through teaching and sharing in the lives I’m blessed to touch. When I walk in this realization, everything else falls into place. How is your legacy looking?

Bud's Blog

Bud’s blog… quite an interesting thought. I think it appropriate to begin this new adventure with several days of an introduction of why I am choosing to blog. So for the next several days you are going to get the “why” behind this blog. Enjoy.

In April 2006 I met my blogfather, Randy. Randy’s wife Chris is a phenomenal agent with our company, Bob Parks Realty, and set up a luncheon for everyone to get to know each other better. So Randy, Chris, LeAnn (see family photo section for my lovely wife), and I grabbed lunch and listened to Randy’s story. It would be an understatement to say that this meeting would be life-changing. More than a friendship has grown over the past 12 months. Now I join plenty of others in Randy’s blog family tree. Thanks Randy for challenging me to continue searching for my passion in life.

Welcome to that search.