Retire Me No Way!

Happy New Year everyone!

I’m happy to inform you that the market is strong, and the new year is starting off very well. After a slow second half of 2022, 2023 seems to be happily on its way to another great year for Arizona luxury real estate.

An interesting thing has been happening to me lately. I’ve been asked quite a bit if I’m retiring. Apparently, that’s the word on the street, so I decided I’d share my thoughts. As I began to ponder why anyone would make something like that up, I also began to ponder the actual idea of retiring, and what that would look like or mean to me. I came to conclude that although many of my friends and colleagues have stepped away from their respective fields, I am NEVER retiring.

Don’t get me wrong, there is certainly nothing wrong with retirement, and my friends who have done so sure are having a great time, but for me, I gotta get to the office.

First, I’m 58 years old and to some that may seem old, but I feel like I’m in the prime of my life both personally and professionally.

Second, I’m honored to have a career where I have achieved the kind of success that I could have only dreamt of when starting out. Not just financial success, but true happiness. This business has been good to me, and I hope I can say that I’ve been good to it. I love helping people buy and sell homes, I love mentoring other agents, I love the art of the deal, and I love the people I work with daily. Why on earth would I leave that?

Third, I’ve come to understand that I am a very lucky man where at 58, I have a long career ahead of me. My identity is wrapped tightly in my work and my wish is that everyone I know could be as content as I am. This old guy even still kicks it pretty good in the gym.

Here’s the question, why at 58, is there an assumption that my career or my desire to achieve would somehow diminish? Many of the men I respect most in this world are still working, and for the most part, they do it for the same reason I do, the enjoyment, the stimulation and the feeling of success that never gets old.

Finally, and most importantly, I am lucky enough to get to work with my wife and my two sons. My family is the only thing that fills me with more pride than my work and seeing what we’ve created and accomplished together has me extremely excited for what the future holds. Family business certainly can be challenging, but there is nothing like the rewards of our shared success.

So… how crazy would I be to leave something that I enjoy so much? I’m just crazy enough to say I’m working until they kick me out, and I couldn’t be happier about it.

Retire? Not me. I’m having too much fun!