Isanti - Sherburne - Wright - Anoka County Minnesota Real Estate Blog: June 2008

I am up in Browerville, MN for Browerville days I was not able to sleep in like everyone else even though I was up late.  So I decided to go for a little walk outside.  A time like this morning is why I can understand people wanting to have their own acreage lot.  My sisters place sits on about two acres on a hill and you can see for miles it seems.

So I was out walking. During my walk I was saying affirmations and my breakthrough declaration which I will share more about over the next couple weeks.  I was noticing how absolutely beautiful the sky was and the trees all around were.  So during my walk I was also giving God thanks and praise for all of His wonderful creation.  Doing this alone is such a great feeling!

But to add onto that great feeling, just hearing the birds of the air chirping.  I could not help but think they are probably give God praise too. In fact, I felt I had a revelation that this is what the birds do most of the day...they sing to God! 

It makes a lot of sense to me. The bible says that "the birds of the air don't reap or sow, but our heavenly father takes care of them..."  They lack nothing yet they don't reap or so.  They are so divinely connected to the Source they always have abundance.  They have this abundance because they are constantly singing praises to God! 

Remember we are more important to God then the birds of the air. God will take care of you too! Sing his praises always!

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Chuck Carstensen is a Realtor with The Discovery Team at RE/MAX; helping buyers, sellers, and investors of residential real estate.  He is a speaker and co-author in the best selling book series Wake Up...Live the Life You Love: Your Wake Up Moments (available soon). Carstensen is also a personal development mentor with Success University...where he helps people discover how to be more successful in business, life and health.

Once a year my small hometown of Browerville, MN has their Browerville Days celebration.  Former graduates and residence travel a long ways to come back to Browerville for the celebration.  I talked to one person in the Military and stationed in Italy.  Another couple who live in Omaha, and one person from Chicago just for example.

Yesterday it was raining and cold but that did not keep too many people away from the Street Dance.  Earlier in the day I played some of the worst softball in my life. (I had one hit in three games). 

My kids took part in some kids games during the morning.  Chase, my 5 year old son, took third in the kids tractor pull, his cousin Ashton took 1st for the 3rd straight year.

In the evening we watch the parade. I have never seen so much candy throw out in my life.  (I need to hide that for sure).

All in all its fun to reconnect with some old friends. I also did pick up a good potential customer, so that's all good. Today we play co-ed softball.  We took 3rd in this tournament last year, so hopefully we can make a run for the championship today!

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Chuck Carstensen is a Realtor with The Discovery Team at RE/MAX; helping buyers, sellers, and investors of residential real estate.  He is a speaker and co-author in the best selling book series Wake Up...Live the Life You Love: Your Wake Up Moments (available soon). Carstensen is also a personal development mentor with Success University...where he helps people discover how to be more successful in business, life and health.

My business partner is a great man of God. He has really helped me on my faith journey.  I thank God and him for putting so much faith and trust in me even in the tough times.

The other day we were talking about hearing from God.  It's our knowing that God does speak to us, but we don't always hear because we are not listening.  There can be many reasons for that, but I will share that another time.

He mentioned that he was coming back to the office and he noticed all the cars going in a different direction then the direction that he was going to turn.  He said in that moment he heard God say, "I am taking you in a different direction!"

Understand God was not just talking about the direction he was going to the office.  It's my belief that God was talking about the direction he is going with his faith walk and perhaps integrating his faith into his business. Our work is our ministry.

Like the traffic my business partner saw that day....almost everyone is going in a different direction.  They think work and ministry are separate.  There are some faithful believers of the truth out there that know different. 

So my question is WHAT DIRECTION ARE YOU GOING?  Will you follow the crowd?  Or will you go the direction that God is asking you to go?

Be blessed!  Live a life you love!  Allow God to do a work in you!

Please click here to subscribe to my blog . See the sidebar on the right to subscribe by email.

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Chuck Carstensen is a Realtor with The Discovery Team at RE/MAX; helping buyers, sellers, and investors of residential real estate.  He is a speaker and co-author in the best selling book series Wake Up...Live the Life You Love: Your Wake Up Moments (available soon). Carstensen is also a personal development mentor with Success University...where he helps people discover how to be more successful in business, life and health.

I was driving into the office the other day and I glanced over to a beautiful flower garden that someone had in their yard!  I only had a moment to look as I was driving past it! In that moment I gave thanks to God saying, "Thank you God for the beautiful flowers! Thank you for all the beautiful creation around us!"

After I gave God the praise, I heard the still calm voice say, "That's how I see you. That's how I see all my people.  I look and see my people as beautiful flowers that I created and love!"

I agree with God!  Man looks at the outside, but God looks at the inside.  Each of you are all beautiful to God. More beautiful then the most beautiful flower garden you have ever seen! Next time you stand in front of the mirror tell yourself you are beautiful!  Agree with God!

Be Blessed!  Live the life God created you to live!

Please click here to subscribe to my blog . See the sidebar on the right to subscribe by email.

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Chuck Carstensen is a Realtor with The Discovery Team at RE/MAX; helping buyers, sellers, and investors of residential real estate.  He is a speaker and co-author in the best selling book series Wake Up...Live the Life You Love: Your Wake Up Moments (available soon). Carstensen is also a personal development mentor with Success University...where he helps people discover how to be more successful in business, life and health.

Life's Journey
By: Author Unknown

Do not undermine your worth by comparing yourself with
others. It is because we are different that each of us is
special.

Do not set your goals by what other people deem important.
Only you know what is best for you.

Do not take for granted the things closest to your heart.
Cling to them as you would your life, for without them,
life is meaningless.

Do not let your life slip through your fingers by living in
the past nor for the future. By living your life one day at
a time, you live all of the days of your life.

Do not give up when you still have something to give.
Nothing is really over until the moment you stop trying.
It is a fragile thread that binds us to each other.

Do not be afraid to encounter risks. It is by taking chances
that we learn how to be brave.

Do not shut love out of your life by saying it is impossible
to find. The quickest way to receive love is to give love.
The fastest way to lose love is too hold it too tightly.
In addition, the best way to keep love is to give it wings.

Do not dismiss your dreams. To be without dreams is to be
without hope. To be without hope is to be without purpose.

Do not run through life so fast that you forget not only
where you have been, but also where you are going.

Life is not a race, but a journey to be savored each step
of the way.

----

I was lead to share this wonderful short essay because I feel it speaks to all of us on some level.  Take your time to read it again and meditate on it for a moment.  Something in there is speaking to you!  There is something that might be the missing piece to the puzzle or a way out of the maze you seem to be stuck in. 

Like it says in the opening, "You are different and special..."  Be you and be the best you that you can be. Its my hope that you experience amazing increase in your life!

Please click here to subscribe to my blog . See the sidebar on the right to subscribe by email.

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Chuck Carstensen is a Realtor with The Discovery Team at RE/MAX; helping buyers, sellers, and investors of residential real estate.  He is a speaker and co-author in the best selling book series Wake Up...Live the Life You Love: Your Wake Up Moments (available soon). Carstensen is also a personal development mentor with Success University...where he helps people discover how to be more successful in business, life and health.

I generate a lot of business by doing lead follow up.  Leads come to me in various ways.  I get many off of the 1-800 numbers we put on property signs and flyers.  I also get some internet leads.  Every once in a while I will get a lead and have a good conversation and start to follow up by email with some homes.  What happens is if you don't get face to face with the buyers before another Realtor does - you don't get the buyer.

Here is an email response I got today, "thank you for sending me some houses, but i have a realitor now." ....

My first thought was, "Did she not know I was a Realtor?"  Then I thought, "I should have met face to face with them..."

Finally, I decide I would not waste anymore time on what might have been.  Perhaps its for the best.  Perhaps they won't buy a home or don't qualify and I am saving time.  Perhaps they will buy and maybe the Realtor they have really needed a sale worse then me.  Who knows?

What I have learned is if this happens I just need to RELEASE THE BUYER.  In order to make room for another potential buyer I need bless this buyer off and release them. 

You see, so often we look at what might of been in the past and hold on to it...the pain, the glory, the shame, the what ifs... and by doing so we miss the NEW THING God is looking to bless us with. 

So BUYER I RELEASE YOU and wait in joyful expectancy of the NEW THING that is coming to me now! 

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Chuck Carstensen is a Realtor with The Discovery Team at RE/MAX; helping buyers, sellers, and investors of residential real estate.  He is a speaker and co-author in the best selling book series Wake Up...Live the Life You Love: Your Wake Up Moments (available soon). Carstensen is also a personal development mentor with Success University...where he helps people discover how to be more successful in business, life and health.

I know I wrote earlier today that I would keep with the INSPIRED them in my blog for a while.  Unfortunately this post is not in line with that since Cambridge Lutheran played very uninspired softball tonight and lost 14-7 vs ELIM. We fall to 4-3 on the season. 

We were not very good at anything tonight so I am not sure what to talk about.  The highlight is we had about 30 fans come to watch the game.  (Which is a large number) I think we averaged two fans per game coming into this evening.  I wonder if they will come back?  I had my worst hitting game of the season going 1-4. My fielding is still good.  (I like to look for the good!)

Next week we play Karmel Covenant Church of Dalbo.  They crushed us last year...well not really I walked about 12 people in the first inning so that lead to way too many runs.  I don't pitch this year. Thank God! 

Next week I am expecting the upset! (We are the underdogs.) Fun times either way!

Please click here to subscribe to my blog . See the sidebar on the right to subscribe by email.

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Chuck Carstensen is a Realtor with The Discovery Team at RE/MAX; helping buyers, sellers, and investors of residential real estate.  He is a speaker and co-author in the best selling book series Wake Up...Live the Life You Love: Your Wake Up Moments (available soon). Carstensen is also a personal development mentor with Success University...where he helps people discover how to be more successful in business, life and health.

I wrote a couple weeks about having blog burnout.  If you look back over the last month or so my blog has been pretty uninspired.  (Since it's pretty boring I don't actually suggest you spend too much time on going back over my blog. Your time might be better spent prospecting).

I say that to point out I am now inspired. I am now feeling its time to start writing blogs like I am suppose to write them.  It is my goal to motivate and inspire people. Whether you're an agent, buyer, home stager, inspector or some other profession - at time we all need some inspiration.  Maybe certain days we just need a little nudge.  Perhaps other days we need a thunderous shake...I don't know what it is for you today, but if your like most people you need something.

So today here is what I want to share and receive it if it applies to you!  I have been increasingly spending time in prayer and meditation and mostly I had been doing that in small periods throughout the day and then in a larger time frame in the evening before going to bed (about 20 minutes).

I really enjoy doing the meditation at night.  After that I read and I seem to get so much out of what I read. It has helped me become a master attractor of wisdom and understanding from what I read.

And then Sunday night I heard or sensed the calm voice in me say, "Why don't you do this in the morning so your whole day is filled up with the gifts of understanding and wisdom for all people, things and circumstances?"

I thought, "That sounds like a great idea! Help me get up with joy and energy then!" 

So yesterday I did and it was truly a great day!  In fact my spiritual guide (coach) on our call yesterday told me to do exactly what that calm voice (I call it God) told me to do the night before. I did not tell him what I was told to do.  He just reaffirmed it.  And reaffirmed a couple other things that he would have no awareness of from me, only from God! 

So it's a great feeling knowing I am connected with the Source (God) and he uses other to reassure me!  We all have this unlimited, unstoppable connection within us, if we allow time for the connection to be made! 

I believe this is a choice.  Not a special gift. Just a decision to BE, to ALLOW, to BELIEVE and to RECEIVE!  I know some of you are connected, but many of you probably don't know what I am talking about.  That's okay...Jesus said, "Seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened..."  He also said, "Ask and believe that you have already received!"

How great and awesome!  You are all blessed!

Please click here to subscribe to my blog . See the sidebar on the right to subscribe by email.

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Chuck Carstensen is a Realtor with The Discovery Team at RE/MAX; helping buyers, sellers, and investors of residential real estate.  He is a speaker and co-author in the best selling book series Wake Up...Live the Life You Love: Your Wake Up Moments (available soon). Carstensen is also a personal development mentor with Success University...where he helps people discover how to be more successful in business, life and health.

I am making a declaration that "I Love Real Estate" and there are so many reasons to love it. Such as:

I love helping people find the home of their dreams!

I love helping first time homes buyers find the right home and help them feel peace and ease doing so!

I love helping investors find a home that will cash flow and bring more prosperity into their finances!

I love handling the challenges that come with every transaction!

I love the new opportunities that are available each day!

I love getting home at night knowing I did the best I could and had fun doing it!

Please click here to subscribe to my blog . See the sidebar on the right to subscribe by email.

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Chuck Carstensen is a Realtor with The Discovery Team at RE/MAX; helping buyers, sellers, and investors of residential real estate.  He is a speaker and co-author in the best selling book series Wake Up...Live the Life You Love: Your Wake Up Moments (available soon). Carstensen is also a personal development mentor with Success University...where he helps people discover how to be more successful in business, life and health.

About once a week I like to take a small portion of an online course at Success University and share it.  This is a Brian Tracy course on sales. This one really hit me as a great bit to share.  I have came a long ways in this area and can go further, and I know there are a lot of people in Real Estate and related fields that need to hear this one. 

One benefit of this behavior is that you respect yourself more when you accept responsibility. And, you already know the outcome of respecting yourself more - you become more positive and optimistic. And you already know what happens when you are more positive and optimistic - you sell more. You make more money - you become unstoppable.

**Full content available for members of Success University.