The word “humor” (humour in Commonwealth English) dates back to the ancient Greeks. The term comes from “humoral medicine,” founded on the idea that “the balance

Jay Papasan is a best selling author who was named one of the Most Powerful People in Real Estate. He co-authored several New York Times bestselling books

Have you heard the joke that marketing is like sex? Every company thinks they’re good at it…but few actually are.  That joke is usually followed by a

A father and his daughter were walking on the beach while on vacation in Hawaii. Suddenly  he turned to her and said, “Megan, have you ever felt

Are you happy with your life? At 13, I thought I was. Then Chubby proved me wrong. Chubby was my dad. Plump as a kid, his

In 1947 he was selling bibles door-to-door, proclaiming himself “World Champion Bible Salesman.” When challenged, he proved it by selling 170 Good Books in just

My dad started a real estate firm in Cincinnati, Ohio when I was very young. Over the next 30 years he built it up to seven

When I first got started in real estate, I worked for my father’s firm in Cincinnati, Ohio. One night Dad (nicknamed Chubby), and I were brainstorming

Though he was skinny like me, my dad’s nickname was Chubby. He was plump as a kid (like me), and the “Chubby” nickname stuck for

In a small Italian town two hundred years ago, a reputable merchant owed a loan shark a huge sum of money. Because of the exorbitant interest

If you’ve ever traveled by motorcycle, you know stopping for gas can be time consuming. Dismount, take off your helmet and gloves, unzip your riding pants,

Kyle McDonald wanted a house, but he had little savings and no job. He remembered a game from his childhood called Bigger and Better. The goal

I am a fan of Shark Tank, and particularly the outspoken, maverick entrepreneur and billionaire, Mark Cuban. He went from zero net worth to the

I have a sticky note on my bathroom mirror. It’s the first thing I see each morning… “I will not let tradition cage my ambition.” Several

It’s an iconic story of two young men. Picture a beautiful, spring afternoon 25 years ago. Two young men stand next to each other, graduating

Did you ever have something incidental become monumental? It happened to me, thanks to my son. One single sentence. Just nine words. When I first heard it,

A long time ago in a far away land there was a father with three sons. When he fell ill, he knew it was time to

We are experiencing the most unusual housing market in US history. I’ve never seen anything like it in my many years in real estate. It’s truly

It’s one of the most romantic scenes in movie history. Jack (Leonardo DiCaprio) is teaching Rose (Kate Winslet) how to “fly” on the bow of the

Grandpa was a house painter, painting thousands of houses throughout his career.  He was a happy, outgoing man who made friends easily. It was easy to see

Jack is an enterprising young lad. The youngest of four boys, he’s smart, driven, and thrifty for an eight-year-old.  Lately he’s been especially busy working chores, rationing

When my mother became terminally ill, it sent a shockwave through the family. My father was devastated. He made the decision to stop working at our

About ten years ago I had the honor to interview legendary race car driver, Mario Andretti. It was for a story in my book, How Fathers Change

I can’t believe it’s been almost 10 years since I released my book, How Fathers Change Lives.  One of my favorite stories that came from the book was

While a British anthropologist was studying a Zulu tribe in South Africa she observed that the sense of community was unlike anything she had ever

Last Saturday the world celebrated the oldest hand game in human history. Do you know what it is? On August 27th hand gamers around the

His car was 100% immaculate. His clothes were 100% pressed. His closet was 100% organized. At the office he was 100% work. At home he

In the Victorian Era dresses were so large at the bottom they prevented women from reaching door knobs. That’s how the tradition of men opening

Pop Quiz: Are the Mona Lisa’s eyebrows black or brown? What is the strongest muscle in the human body? Do men blink more than women,

An “honesty box” was placed on a table in a company break room to collect money for coffee. On the box it said: “$1 per

He ran a popular saloon, but Prohibition put an end to that in 1918. So he bought a 120 acre ranch and started harvesting grapes

It predates 5500 years of written history. Some scholars say it originated as an act of peaceful intent because it shows that a hand holds no

October ’62. Cuba. Missiles. Blockade. Nuclear fallout drills at school… I’m only 14… but old enough to know things aren’t right.  An American U-2 spy plane had photographed

Joel Osteen is among the most successful televangelists of all time. His sermons are viewed by millions of Americans, and are broadcast in over 100

“The first rule of selling is scarcity…’It’s a one of a kind. It’s irreplaceable. There will never be another one like it.’ Scarcity causes buyers

I’ve written and spoken a lot about how the fears we all have (failure, rejection, embarrassment) are merely dents to the ego. They are what I

A father and his daughter, Katie, go to a movie theater and see a long line of people waiting to buy tickets. Katie walks to the

The 1980s was known as the “fitness decade”.  On April 24, 1982, actress turned exercise guru Jane Fonda released her debut aerobics video, Workout.  Then there was

Ah…baseball. America’s favorite pastime. It’s a national tradition that dates back to the 1860s. The MLB is the oldest major sports league in the world, officially

Tex Earnhardt was my best friend. After opening his first Ford store (with 2 cars to sell) in 1951, he eventually became a TV celebrity and

A college professor stands at the front of his class holding a full glass of water. “How heavy does this glass of water feel to me?” he

If you’ve sold a home in the past you know that sellers typically pay a 5%-6% real estate commission, with about half (2.5%-3%) paid to the

An old Chinese farmer is tending to his field when he sees his only horse galloping off into the distance because his son accidentally left

The Federal Reserve (“Fed”) is about to derail our economy, make homes more costly to buy, and discourage homeowners with a reason to sell from

A young boy is buying food for his family from street vendors in his village. As he approaches a watermelon stand with an elderly man attending to

A few weeks ago the Fed announced it would raise interest rates seven times this year to temper inflation. The Fed could be in for a

Last week my son, Brian, and I were talking about the wisdom I learned from Chubby (my dad). Brian told me he’d recently seen an article

He comes from a wealthy family, is attending Harvard, and plays ice hockey. Her family is working class but she attends Radcliffe and studies classical music. Despite

Tom is a six year old boy who is struggling in math so his parents hire a private tutor for him after school. On the first

It’s 3 AM when Kate is awakened by a loud knock at her door. She quickly throws on a robe and stumbles downstairs. With dreary eyes she

Morning talk show hosts Jim Sharpe and Jayme West had some fun with me on the radio last week joking “Greg broke the Internet with

Parking Spot Swap Brad has just been appointed the new CEO of a department store chain. Because he is a staunch believer in “servant leadership,” his

Did you hear the big news?! Last week Paradise Valley Mayor Jerry Bien-Willner signed a new ordinance to amend our town code regarding short term rentals.

We all make mistakes. As Alexander Pope said, “To err is to be human.” It’s a fact of life.  However, there are ways to minimize

As a boy his father taught him how to train dogs to “stay on the scent” of a rabbit. In the morning he would set out

“I will never sell another piece of real estate,” said my son, Corey. “I regret selling my condo before buying my current house,” he added. My

To start the new year I’m sharing my favorite article from last year when I wrote about the power of fear.  We all know fear sometimes

This week before New Year’s I’m going to share four things I learned over the years that have made my life better. I hope they  do the

Have you seen the movie The Perfect Storm? It was a disaster drama movie released in 2000. The film tells the true story of a commercial fishing

Five frogs are sitting peacefully on a lily pad. One decides to jump into the water. How many frogs are left? If you answered four you

Candace is struggling. She is going through a bitter divorce, was laid off from a job she loved, and her two kids are fighting incessantly because

If you’ve ever traveled by motorcycle, you know stopping for gas can be time consuming. Dismount, take off your helmet and gloves, unzip your riding pants,

The date is January 28, 1896, a frigid Tuesday in the small English village of Paddock Wood. Walter Arnold is feeling frisky, so he decides to

“A brand for a company is like a reputation for a person.” Jeff Bezos Last week I wrote an article about the failure of Zillow’s home buying

Did you hear the news about Zillow? It finally admitted what I’ve been saying for years – its home flip business is a flop.   Zillow’s stock

I’ve read hundreds of business books over the years. I remember when Dad gave me my first one, How To Win Friends And Influence People by Dale Carnegie.

At the age of 12 I had become an incessant chatterbox, often to the irritation of my dad, Chubby. One Sunday afternoon in 1960 I was in

Sara was a pretty good student at Florida State with a dream of becoming an attorney…until she took the dreaded LSAT to determine her aptitude for

In 2007 Brian Chesky and Joe Gebbia were roommates in San Francisco, and they had a problem…they couldn’t afford their rent. The roommates had met in

Lori Holden had the same fears most children experience growing up (meeting other kids, speaking in front of her class, trying new things). Her dad taught

A few days ago a friend sent me an article titled Americans Haven’t Been This Down on the Housing Market Since 1982. The crux was “how fast

Patrick was the oldest of three boys, born in 1988 in a small village in Ireland.  His mother, a microbiologist. His father, an electrical engineer. Patrick took

Jim invited his mother over for dinner. When Mom arrived she was a bit surprised to meet Jim’s breathtakingly beautiful roommate, Krista. Mom had assumed her

They tried to keep it a secret. But the word leaked out. The company would release its first cell phone. Underground photos circulated around the

Yes, you read that right…Spongmonkey.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZuPTZWhz46M I know, the name alone might make you cringe. Spongmonkeys were the pair of horribly annoying, disfigured, singing rodents that appeared

Have you heard the joke that marketing is like sex? Every company thinks they’re good at it…but few actually are.  That joke is usually followed by

When Robinhood launched in 2015 with $3 million in venture capital, established stock brokers  laughed it off as just another fintech fad, much the way taxi drivers

During the height of the Cold War in the 1960s nuclear paranoia was at an all time high. I remember those scary “duck and cover” drills we

The Boston Globe named his company “the Apple of its time,” calling it “a juggernaut of innovation.” When Harvard scientist Edwin Land founded the company in Cambridge,

When my three boys were young I fondly remember nights with them studying at the kitchen table after dinner. When they were old enough to deal

When my oldest son, Brian, started high school at Brophy I told him if he got straight A’s I would buy him a car when he

It’s August 19, 1971. Men armed with machine guns stand guard at Santa Martha Acatitla prison in Mexico City. The warden is expecting a visit from

With the 4th of July weekend upon us, I thought it would be fun to share some Independence Day facts you might not know… Button Who? 56

“Ninety percent of all millionaires become so through owning real estate.” -Andrew Carnegie You’ve probably heard of D.R. Horton. Dubbed “America’s Builder,” the company has been the

It was the fall of ‘66. I was 18. Freshman year in college.  My friend Bob and I wanted to bum around Europe the following

On March 13, 2020, COVID-19 was declared a national emergency. Lockdowns followed, and the world seemed to change overnight.  Trying to stay safe forced us to “draw

A father was helping his young son learn to fly a kite at the beach. The son complained, “Dad, I’m at the end of the

It’s called the Chunnel(short for Channel Tunnel). Completed in 1994 after 6 years of construction, it’s a 31 mile undersea tunnel connecting England to France beneath

In 2015, Luis Mota opened his first Mexican restaurant on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. He hoped to have lots of happy customers, so he named

It’s a frigid, stormy night. The rain is pouring down in sheets, making it difficult to see the road ahead of you. You stop at a

He was raised in South Africa. He worked in a factory, and many nights slept on a couch in the break room.  Recently interviewed, he was asked, “A

As he snuck me into the back, I felt like a kid on Christmas morning. “Now remember Greg,” he said, “You know I can’t sell

“The human race has one really effective weapon, and that is laughter.” -Mark Twain The word “humor” (humour in Commonwealth English) dates back to the

You’re at home about to fall asleep when suddenly you hear the faint shuffle of footsteps downstairs.  You’re single. No pets. No kids. No boyfriend. Nobody has

“A story should have a beginning, a middle, and an end, but not necessarily in that order.” -Jean-Luc Godard My three-year-old daughter was learning to

Two years ago I wrote an article called The End Of Real Estate. It was a month after two of America’s most aggressive law firms filed a class

Have you seen the movie, The Edge? Super-smart billionaire Charles Morse (Anthony Hopkins) and fashion photographer, Bob Greene (Alec Baldwin) endure a harrowing quest for survival

It’s a cold and rainy night in Atlanta. Terri is home alone with her kids when she hears a knock on the door. She answers

Driving home the other night I had KTAR on the radio because I listen to Jayme West and Jim Sharpe going to the office each morning.

Last year I wrote an article that opened, “It can be difficult to buy a house without much money.” This year a more accurate line would be…”It can be

Last Wednesday I was interviewed on KTAR radio about the current state of the housing market. I was asked: How low is the current inventory of homes

Last week while having lunch with a friend, I could tell he was trying to ask me something but simply couldn’t spit it out.  So I

Many schools are closed across the country, and it could be a while before they fully reopen.   Schools systems have scrambled to make online education

As early as I can remember I’ve been fascinated with flight. I credit my father, Chubby, with this intrigue. He was a flight instructor in World War II and

Today’s real estate market is like a rodeo. The competition for buying homes is more fierce than Bodacious.  In case you don’t know, he’s the 1,900

Cows kill more people than sharks. Surprised?  So was I. But it’s true. More people are trampled or kicked to death every year by cows. So why do sharks

She was 17, but in India, it was forbidden. She liked him, he liked her, but it wasn’t an arranged marriage, so they dated in secret. It

Do you know about The 100% Rule? I learned it from my dad, Chubby. He was the epitome of “all in” — never unclear, uncommitted, or “kinda

With 2021 around the corner, many are pondering New Year’s resolutions. Some will be setting goals, but I will be making choices, taking chances, and causing changes.

Is it the beginning of the end? With the Covid vaccine shots now being administered, we all hope this nightmare ends quickly.  But is it also end

I write a lot about my dad, Chubby. His guidance, inspiration, encouragement, and life lessons propelled me to a better life. Chubby earned the right to

It’s ironic…as I begin writing this article about language, I realize that the very subject I’m writing about is what gives me the ability to

Ever wonder where the word “buck” comes from?   In the 18th century, buckskins (deerskins) were often traded as a form of barter.  Ever hear someone say they had

A deadly virus is ravaging the country.  It’s a national emergency.  The quest to find an effective vaccine is critical. Sound like today?  It was actually 1952. Before COVID, poliovirus

A few weeks ago I wrote the first article in a new series called The Key To Captivating. It was about interesting and often unknown facts that

It’s been about a week since the election. While some celebrate, others commiserate. I expect we can all rejoice at the disappearance of political ads. Now

The Plaza Hotel.   I don’t have to tell you where it’s located (because you already know).   20 stories.  282 rooms.  A Manhattan masterpiece. Over the past 113 years it

Hummingbirds can fly backwards and even upside down. Their shoulders have unique ball and socket joints that allow 180 degree wing rotation. This characteristic also

Many years ago my son, Brian, was excited to buy his first new car. He did weeks of research before deciding on a top of the line

In the late 1970’s I was invited to give a 20-minute presentation to over 1,000 Shaklee distributors in Cincinnati, Ohio, where I grew up. I had

October ’62. Cuba. Missiles. Blockade. Nuclear War?… I’m 14… old enough to know the mess we’re in.  An American U-2 spy plane just photographed “hidden” Soviet SS-5 land-based

It started with a phone call from my son. Brian: “Hey Dad, have a few minutes to talk? I have a question.” Dad: “Hey Bri,

“O say can you see by the donzerly light. What so proudly we hailed at the twilight’s last gleaming…” When I was in elementary school, we sang

Remember? The age old tradition of opening the door for a lady?Did you ever ask yourself why ladies don’t open doors for guys?Where better to begin

Guy: Hey honey, I have something important to tell you. Want to know? Girl: Of course! Guy: Remember when you told me about the guy who never opened