Maureen Sharib 2

The Making of A Names Sourcer

Part 1. Part 2. Part 3.

The Parents

Regarding parental influence, Maureen believes that "Entrepreneurs beget entrepreneurs and employees beget employees".

Her parents were self-employed realtors. And, her mother, especially, was a very hard driver. (I saw Tiger Woods on 60 Minutes on Sunday and although his father was a Green Beret, he said his mother is much more competitive).

The Hay

Ask about foundational experiences and Maureen immediately refers to the episode of the hay.

As a girl, Maureen was a "horse nut". And, when she was about twelve, she and her brother, who is a year younger, both had horses.

Her dad ordered some hay but, apparently, he made an error and instead of delivering fifty bales, the supplier dumped five hundred bales about five hundred yards from the barn.

So, the two kids had to drag it into the hayloft before it rained. They did it in three days and Maureen considers this to have been a seminal event in her life.

-- It was an extraordinary feat for two little kids. Imagine two young kids dragging all that hay.
-- What were you thinking?
-- I just knew I had to get it done. I felt responsible. Kind of guilty.
-- Did you order it ?
-- No. But it was purchased because I had a horse. I just remember feeling really responsible for it -- and made to feel really responsible.

It's sounds like her character was formed prior to the event but it became a touchstone for her future thinking. And, not her's alone.

Grand Canyon

Recently, her brother, Tom, who is now a vet, went hiking to the bottom of the Grand Canyon. It takes all day to get to there so he planned on spending the night in a lodge he knew from previous trips.

But when he arrived at the bottom, he found the lodge closed for repairs. Bad news. Water is a huge issue in the Grand Canyon and he didn't bring enough to get back to the top. So, he didn't think he was going to make it. And, in fact, when he got half way up he thought he was going to die.

Of course, he didn't. But he told Maureen that he was thinking about the farm all the way, telling himself, "If I could do that as a kid, I can do this."

The Cookies

Here's another telling experience from an even earlier time.

When Maureen was about eight, she was a girl scout. Like many girls scouts, she sold cookies door to door and her brother, that poor sucker, helped her. It was winter and they would load up a sleigh, tie all the cookies on it and go door to door until the sleigh was empty.

It had to be empty before we could go home. And that might mean one hour or six. We would be cold and wet. And I don't know why he would do it. But I sold more girl scout cookies in the state of Ohio at the age of eight than anyone else.

Professional Life

Maureen started out in geology at college but switched to economics. Her parents were in the real estate business and she had been selling real estate as a summer job, so, when she finished school that's where she went.

She started off sellling farms. She would drive out to the country in her car and go and knock on doors asking people if she could sell their farms.

She seems to think it was pretty hard but, obviously it was something she could do and, after she cut her teeth on farms, she "segued" into her parents' field which was selling not only commercial properties but the businesses inside them, as well.

The Crash

She sold Mom and Pop style small manufacturing operations and retail stores. "I was good at it," she says. "I just wasn't suited to it. It wasn't my cup of tea."

I have the impression that she went into real estate without giving it much thought but, given that, I don't know how unsuitable it was. After all, she worked successfully on her own for fifteen years.

But people kept telling her, "I would like to do what you do." So she took on thirteen people "with all their problems" and didn't like it. "I'm not a manager," she says, "I'm a lone wolf."

The problem was that when her employees had problems, she not only did her work but their's as well. And, after a while, it became so unpleasant that she quit and simply took some time off.

END OF PART 2. Part 1. Part 3.

I am the Canadian Headhunter and I approve of this posting

Comments

[Maureen Sharib]

I approve of this posting and my kid brother, the sucker, would too.

:)

In fact, CH, when we're done with this I'm gonna send it to him and I'll post his comments back here too. IF he's still talking to me after you've dragged up all the emotional trauma from our childhoods.

Maureen