From our first apartment’s Christmas tree in 1986 to the empty 2,800 sq ft home she just styled to put on the market last month, she has never ceased to amaze me. My Katrina has been making this world a more beautiful place for as long as I’ve known her.
I am writing this blog today with two goals in mind. The first is to simply brag on my wife. When meeting new people, she has often joked about her name saying I’m the hurricane that leaves beauty in her wake”. ( If you missed hurricane Katrina in 2005 then you probably wouldn’t understand that reference ).
It’s true though, when my Katrina is inspired, she does not stop until her vision is realized. In our early days I would struggle with comprehending the idea for change that she had in mind. I have found that it would be the same struggle that I would have watching an artist paint on a canvas. The first many brush strokes would leave me wondering what the artist was painting, but at some point, it would likely begin to look like something that made sense. However, it would not be until it was completed that I would be able to appreciate what was in the artist’s mind from the start.
I have learned from experience to trust my wife with anything she desires to accomplish. If we disagree on a furniture choice, paint color, landscape idea or simply anything related to what things look like, I willingly defer to her good judgement.
That’s enough of the bragging for now.
My second goal in writing this is to explain to you how to keep a Katrina personality motivated. You want this information, trust me. Once you demotivate a Katrina, you may find yourself on your own. If you’re in the middle of a home renovation or decorating project, that could be quite inconvenient.
1st. Katrinas need time to create. Take staging for instance. Those who expect a house to be fully staged in a single day should do it themselves. Seriously, trying to rush a creative is simply a bad idea. Often times it takes getting the pieces in the space to determine if the original idea will work. Moving pieces around the home to see what works best is just part of the process. Although we have 1200 feet of warehouse space filled with furniture and décor, I know that my Katrina seems to buy at least one new piece for each home before the job is considered complete.
2nd. If Katrinas want your opinion they will tell you what it is. Ok, not necessarily true. However, offering unsolicited opinions can get you in trouble. Remember the artist analogy from earlier in this blog. We cannot possibly see what is in someone else’s head. To start making suggestions in the middle of the process is counterproductive to the end goal.
3rd. Katrinas are like your hair stylist. “Who does YOUR hair?” is the best hair salon slogan in the business. Women sit down in salons across America and let total strangers change their look because they saw another woman’s hair and said “Who does YOUR hair?”. If you are trusting someone to decorate, stage, landscape or renovate your home, trust them. If you have done your research, you’ve only hired them because you’ve seen their work in another home. If you don’t trust them, don’t hire them.
On behalf of Steve Martin Homes Group,
-Steve
Steve Martin Smith is a top Sarasota County area Real Estate Agent licensed in the state of Florida since January of 2015. With an impressive launch, he attained the number two ranking in his first brokerage of 20 agents by the end of 2016. That caused other brokerages to aggressively attempt to recruit him and eventually he accepted an offer with Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate in March of 2017. Since that time Steve Martin has reached many personal heights. Selling $1,000,000+ estates from Panther Ridge in Manatee County to condos in Punta Gorda, Steve has managed to become one of the top selling agents of single family homes in our local Sarasota County market. The growth and success that Steve Martin Homes Group has attained in 2019 paved the way to accept an offer with RE/MAX Platinum Realty. This move to better serve their customers, with offices across Sarasota County, Manatee County and the largest global presence of any real estate brand, is certain to build on a history of pleasing buyers and sellers who choose to trust Steve Martin Homes Group with all of their residential real estate needs.