Blog – Tuesdays with Mary

Tuesday, July 9, 2024 I’ve been thinking a lot lately about my second favorite equation in life.  It’s one I revisit often as a reminder to myself.  I also offer it to others, from time to time, whenever someone finds themselves in one situation, but wants to move into a different one.  The equation goes like this: Consistency over Time = Results or C x T = R.  It’s simple, elegant and has the advantage of being true to nearly any scenario. Too often we try to take giant swings toward radical change, only to realize soon after that we [...]

Tuesday, July 2, 2024 I’ve been thinking about our co-workers and colleagues and what to do when they come to us in frustration. If you’re a manager, it probably happens more than you’d like. The shy almost inaudible knock at the door.  Then they don’t quite enter when you look up and greet them. Instead, they ask with hesitation “… Have you got a minute?” The tone suggests it’s OK if you do not, in fact, have a minute … but that tone is misleading. Always say yes, and then settle in, it’s going to be more than a minute.  [...]

Tuesday, June 25, 2024 I’ve been thinking about topics versus outcomes when it comes to court cases. It’s SCOTUS opinion-palooza season, the time when we get a flurry of significant and high-profile opinions toward the end of the court’s term.  And while as of the time of this writing, we don’t yet have opinions handed down on our two Chevron Doctrine cases, several opinions that have been issued recently are worth a look, because it’s hard to miss the emerging pattern. Notice that in each of these cases there is a topic.  In fact, it is probably the topics that [...]

Tuesday, June 11, 2024 I’ve been thinking about honor. I hope you were able to watch and enjoy some of the celebrations and commemorations of the 80th anniversary of D-Day last week. I’ll admit to feeling an extra tug this year, as we look back at what was, what it meant, what was sacrificed and what we could soon face again.  I’ve watched the planes carrying those D-Day veterans load up at major U.S. airports, and the incredible welcome those old guys and their families received upon reaching Europe.  I wondered what making this journey now means to them. I’ve [...]

Tuesday, June 4, 2024 I’ve been thinking about meeting your heroes. No doubt you’re familiar with the adage, never meet your heroes, you’ll only be disappointed. I suppose it might apply to situations when a hero is a celebrity, or perhaps a politician. I’ve never held anyone in one of those jobs out as a hero (at least none that are living) so I can’t be sure. I have, however, had plenty of opportunities to meet many of my heroes; more than a few of them work in this business. This morning, I was listening to an interview with presidential [...]

Tuesday, May 28, 2024 I’ve been thinking about new recruits and maximizing opportunities to attract young workers to our industry. Let me introduce you to a couple of terrific young people who are potentially interested in working in your business. Their recent experiences might cause you to rethink where you find new talent and how you engage with them. For today, we’ll call them Sophia and Carl. Sophia and Carl are each high school seniors, bright and advanced kids, enrolled in college courses for credit. Sophia is a creative type with an interest in marketing; she has a real talent [...]

Tuesday, May 21, 2024 I’ve been thinking about what matters most.  This time of year, we get to see some good, some bad and some just plain awkward advice given during commencement addresses.  Given some of the strife on our college campuses lately, many of these events have taken on increased scrutiny. This week, while we are at NS3 learning so many new things, I wanted to leave this video here for you.  You might have heard some of the circumstances surrounding this commencement, but did you hear the actual speech itself? Until Next Time, Mary Schuster Chief Knowledge Officer [...]

Tuesday, May 14, 2024 I’ve been thinking about consumer engagement.  More specifically, about how difficult it can be for a title and settlement company to build lasting bonds with future homebuyers and sellers.  It’s something I’ve been wrestling with on and off for nearly 30 years, and over that time I’m not proud to admit that I’ve been on every side of the argument.  How do you get a buyer or seller to ask for your company by name? There’s no single magic recipe, that’s for sure.  But I’ve always believed in education as a vital ingredient of any successful [...]

Tuesday, May 7, 2024 I’ve been thinking about your DNA, and mine too.  Something might have missed last October is the direct-to-consumer genomic testing company 23andMe fell victim to a cyber-attack.  It’s also true that the company once valued at $6 billion is now valued at roughly $0.  Those things are both related and unrelated, but it’s an interesting story. In case you aren’t entirely familiar, 23andMe set out to solve a problem.  The problem, as they saw it, was that genetic testing is not yet routinely used to understand potential health futures for most Americans.  They believed our health [...]

Tuesday, April 30, 2024 I’ve been thinking about commitment. More specifically, about what it means to make a commitment. About how we select the things we commit to. How we choose to keep our commitments, despite inconvenience or discomfort. One of the things I love the most about the people in our business is how seriously we take our commitments. In my view, it’s the single common thread that binds together each of us who work in this business. We make, keep and fulfill our commitments. Commitment as a concept presented itself early in my life. Long before it occurred [...]