Blog – Tuesdays with Mary

Tuesday March 25, 2025 Update: 23andMe has filed for bankruptcy. Last May, I wrote about the 23andMe data breach and the concerns it raised about the security of genetic information. At the time, the issue was clear: a breach had exposed customer data, leaving many to question how well these companies protect some of our most personal information. Next, I wrote about what could happen if the company couldn’t get back on financial sound footing here. Now, a new warning has emerged—not about another breach, but about the company’s financial future. California Attorney General Rob Bonta recently issued a consumer [...]

Tuesday, March 18, 2025 One of the things I’ve always loved about this industry is how strong the relationships are. Over time, we build networks that go beyond business transactions. We celebrate each other’s wins, commiserate over setbacks, and, when things get hard, we show up. It’s easy to think of professional relationships as primarily transactional - built on deals, contracts, and deadlines. But anyone who’s been in this space long enough knows that the real value lies in the people. I’ve seen colleagues become lifelong friends, competitors turn into allies, and mentors evolve into trusted advisors who guide us [...]

Tuesday, March 11, 2025   Posted without comment. Addressing Risks from Perkins Coie LLP        EXECUTIVE ORDER        March 6, 2025   By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered: Section 1. Purpose. The dishonest and dangerous activity of the law firm Perkins Coie LLP (“Perkins Coie”) has affected this country for decades. Notably, in 2016 while representing failed Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, Perkins Coie hired Fusion GPS, which then manufactured a false “dossier” designed to steal an election. This egregious [...]

Tuesday, March 4, 2025  It feels strange to be here, this place we find ourselves together; caught between what we knew before and what might lie ahead.  There is no clear sense of direction yet, let alone a destination or eventual outcomes. This doesn’t feel like a typical uncertainty, either. It doesn’t seem to be the low-grade uncertainty that we recognize; the type that often runs in the background but that at least grants us some sense of how things might unfold. This feels different. Many of the usual trail markers that once guided us seem out of place, and [...]

Tuesday, February 25, 2025 I’ve come to believe that many of the best opportunities in life and business don’t come from the first conversation, but from what happens after. How many times have you met someone at a conference, had a great conversation, exchanged business cards, and then… nothing? Or had a moment where you thought, I should check in with them, but then the day got away from you? The follow-up is where relationships are built. It’s where ideas turn into action, where a passing conversation becomes a lasting connection. And yet, so many of us either forget to [...]

Tuesday, February 3, 2025 Some days, life feels like a sturdy old book with well-worn pages, its chapters unfolding just as we expect. We settle into our routines, comforted by the predictability of morning coffee, familiar conversations, and the quiet hum of daily life. And then, without warning, the page turns faster than we anticipated. A gust of change sweeps through, and suddenly, we’re standing in a new chapter we didn’t see coming. Rolling with change isn’t always easy. Whether it’s life or your life’s work that suddenly shifts course, the feeling of uncertainty can be unsettling. We can cling [...]

Tuesday, January 21, 2025 It’s Tuesday, so let’s talk about Monday morning quarterbacking—it’s practically a national pastime. We’ve all been there, rehashing the details of what went wrong or what could have gone better with the perfect clarity hindsight affords. It’s human nature to connect the dots once the outcome is known, and with that clarity, we often wonder why the right decision didn’t seem so obvious in the moment. The truth is, recognizing missed opportunities is always easier after the fact. The variables that seemed complex and uncertain when we were in the middle of the situation often feel [...]

Tuesday, January 14, 2025 As we step into 2025, the air feels charged with possibility and uncertainty. What lies ahead for housing finance and real estate? Much of the answer depends on how well we can navigate a world where complexity is often the only certainty. Among the challenges that demand our attention, one stands out: nested vulnerabilities. These hidden risks, woven into the very fabric of our systems, can remain dormant until the moment they cascade, disrupting entire processes and industries. The question isn’t whether they exist but how prepared we are to identify and address them. In housing [...]