You’ve reached the ‘About Me’ page for Gerald 3.0

I learned that it is important to have an ‘About Me’ page on your blog site. People want to know. So, here goes, the about me page for Gerald 3.0 starts right now! Sometimes I see my adult life as a three act play. This year is the opening of act three. It’s concerning that it is starting in 2020. Now, mind you, I’m not superstitious. It’s bad luck to be superstitious. Still, this has been an unusual year.

Writing About Myself . . .

When I was studying how to write an effective blog, one common thread was to write about yourself. My audience wants to know about me. Lord knows why. This is a daunting task. I am a private person. My personal life is just that. I will try my best to share something about it, here goes.

After deciding to retire from a thirty plus year as a real estate broker, I embarked on a new career as a writer of books. In 2020, timing is everything! ‘Nuff said. This will be the third career change in my life.

My Blog has several categories. It’s because I have lots of different things I think about. Besides musings about writing, you’ll find ramblings on politics, current events, stupid things I see and hear, thoughts about real life, and so on.

I Always Wanted To . . . But

All my life I have wanted to write. I didn’t. Anything following that statement is merely an excuse.

By the time I got to be an old man and plagued with some health problems, I finally slowed down enough to sit still and write. By then, I also had accumulated lots of thoughts to write about. Too bad I can’t remember most of them. I hope I last long enough to get it all out. It’s tough being a late bloomer.

Let’s step back to act one and bring you up to speed.

My college years found me working my way through school as a cabinetmaker. By the time I figured out there was dubious value in most college degrees without a calling motivating it, I found the only thing I could do for a living was build kitchens.

I spent fifteen years learning my craft and became a master cabinetmaker. After looking around during that time, I learned there were few old cabinet makers. They habitually died early of the brown lung from years of breathing sawdust. Not being too slow a learner, I practiced this craft in a healthier way. I stepped out of the shop and into the showroom, selling kitchens to building contractors, and leaving the sawdust behind.

As I gained the sales skills necessary to become successful, I became a sales leader and sales manager of others. The drastic ups and downs of the construction business made it less than ideal for a budget minded family. It was time for a change.

There Were Ups And Downs

During the savings and loan meltdown of the latter 1980s, with home construction on the wane, I got a real estate license and put my sales skills to work for people who could benefit from my help. The real estate business matched the construction industry with similar ups and downs. The only difference is there was less overhead and no sawdust. I conquered this obstacle and made a multi-decade career of it.

Now, in the winter of my life, another change thrust itself upon me. Act Three, I took it with a grin and a grumble. With little more experience than writing a few thank you notes to others, and a couple of years of local magazine articles under my belt, I set about learning the skills needed to write and publish books. It turned out that writing was the easiest part. But that is a tale for another time.

If you’re interested, read my blog entitled ‘And all I wanted to do was write a book.’

Finally! My First Book!

My first book drew upon my multi decade sales career. It’s a self-help book. ‘U Can Be A Networking Maniac’ It shows a step by step path to successful relationship networking for sales and marketing people. It’s available on Amazon and at Barnes and Noble Books if you’re interested.

For my second offering, I penned a great novel about prohibition. It’s the story of a Florida rancher who gets swept up into the bootlegging world of 1920s Tampa.

My next offering is now in the works. It is a second self-help book designed for sales managers and sales team leaders, ‘Teach Your Blind Squirrels How To Hunt’ shows sales leaders how to separate the studs from the duds and make them winners.

Besides reading my half witty books, you can continue to follow my quirky musings through my blog ramblings and vlog ditties or my FaceBook page at: https://www.facebook.com/mandrake7

Whatever ain’t here now is coming . . . Maybe not soon, but coming nonetheless!