During my real estate career, which began in January 1997, I have spoken with literally hundreds of people on the phone prior to their visits to Austin. Often, I speak with them several times and begin to develop an image of them in my head. Sometimes, I am dead-on accurate, but many times I am terribly wrong, and they look nothing like I expected. Perhaps I might have pictured a tall, younger man, and an older, portly gentleman shows up to look at homes instead.
I have joked with many of my clients that they have an unfair advantage if we choose to meet in a public place, because they have seen my picture already on my website, and I actually somewhat resemble that picture, believe it or not. It's the same one on my AR profile, and it is about a year old now.
In an interesting twist on this theme, I have made dozens of online friends here in the Rain. In this case, I have read many of their posts, so they have a "voice" of sorts in my head already. I have seen their photo(s), so I already have a good idea of what they look like. Here on AR, however, the voice on the phone is the last piece of the puzzle, rather than the first piece, as it is with my clients.
I have had the pleasure of speaking with several dozen ActiveRain friends during my tenure here, which began in early August of 2007. Many of them sound exactly as I would have anticipated, while others sound nothing at all like I would have thought. Many of them question me about where I am originally from, since I don't sound "Texan" enough to them. I find this funny, since I have never lived outside of this great state. I will admit that I got accustomed to saying "you guys" instead of "y'all" for awhile because of my many out-of-state clients, so I have consciously adding "y'all" back into my vernacular so that my kids will hear it sometimes. No, I am not kidding.
I was born and raised in Dallas (not a suburb, but Dallas proper). I moved to the Austin area almost exactly 20 years ago to go to Southwestern University in nearby Georgetown. I met my wife in Austin in 1991 (she is also a native Texan, from San Antonio), and we chose to make Austin our permanent home. Well, Pflugerville, to be more exact.
When I was 16, I worked as a grocery sacker in Waxahachie, Texas. My mom had remarried, so I lived there for my last two years of high school. Waxahachie is located about 30 minutes south of Dallas, and it was a very small town back in the mid 80's. Many times, people there would assume from my lack of a proper Texas accent that I was from somewhere "up north", and I would kid with them, "I am from up north. About 30 minutes north, to be exact." I guess I was pretty much a smart aleck, but I got a lot of tips with my "charm" back then.
If I have peaked your curiosity at all, maybe you should give me a call sometime and see if you think my voice matches my face and my online persona. You might (or might not) be surprised. I will even tell you my theory on Texas accents when you call. I look forward to hearing from you.
Thanks for reading! I hope you guys have a terrific and productive week! Actually, I hope y'all have a terrific and productive week.
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If you're looking for a home in the Austin area, you can also visit my primary Austin real estate website at www.austintexashomes.com. If you're interested in social media training, visit 210 Consulting. Thanks!
Jason, you're not the first Texan I know that doesn't sound "Texan enough." I heard that Amanda packs enough Texan for the whole state. I love accents, different speech patterns. They're part of what gives us our own style.
Okay, Paul, what did you really think I would sound like??? And why?
P.S. Lisa Heindel doesn't think she has an accent.
Jason, for some reason even though I know you are from Texas, I never hear a Texas accent in my head when I am reading your posts!
I only lived in Georgia for the first 7 years of my life, but if I am angry, tired or toasted, I still twang. Bad. And ya'll is a regular part of my vocabulary.
BobJason !Jason,
Having lived with a Dallas Texan for 15 years now (my wife), I can slip into and out of my phoney Texas accent...Y'all know what I mean? :) Thanks, Fran
Jason, are you prepared for the onslaught of 79,530 phone calls you will be receiving over the next few weeks?
Perhaps you can set up a toll-free nationwide Crouch Conference Call.
CHRISTOPHER - Email me at jason@austintexashomes.com and I will reply with the instructions. Thanks!
DAVE - It does sound a bit silly, I admit, even though I have lived here for 13 years now. I think part of it is the "ville". Pflugerton sounds better to me. Nah - still weird. I guess the Pfluger family had naming rights, so there you go.
MARY - I try to do the same thing, but I don't always succeed. I'm sure you sound just fine.
I try not the hear voices in my head. :-) I am not sure that those of use who are born and bred in the city...Houston, Austin, Dallas proper, and San Antonio...are supposed to have strong Texas accents. I could be wrong. Heck, I may have a Texas accent and not even know it. I do know that I have somehow picked up a New Orleans accent. Maybe it's because most of my clients/prospects are from Louisiana.
I have only spoken to a couple of Rainers but there were no surprises since I don't hear voices when I read blogs. :-D Oooo, I take that back. I did speak to a Rainer-turned-client yesterday and she didn't "sound like" her AR picture.
ROBERTA - Call anytime! I look forward to it. Glad to hear that you have your voice back now.
NICK - My business partners probably sound much more prototypically Texan than I do. I also like the accent, but I don't have it, unless I am pretending.
KATERINA - Thanks for saying that. I have been a little surprised that people expect me to have a thick accent.
PAUL - I haven't really detected a twang during our conversations, but I am probably much more accustomed to hearing Texans on a daily basis. I only spoke to Elaine once, and I am having a little trouble remembering exactly how she sounds. I won't touch the Bob comment at all.
ELAINE - Amanda definitely sounds Texan to me. Lisa sounds southern, but she doesn't have a dramatic accent in my opinion.
CINDY - It probably seems more evident when it is in stark contrast to a NE accent.
MARLENE - Your comments reminded me of a lady we know from our church who lived in Ireland for years before moving here. She is originally from Chicago, so I would hear twinges of both, which was odd. Now that they have lived here, she sounds like a Texan with no trace of either other accent. Chameleon!
MELISSA - Voices are a "talent" of mine, but you won't be fooled again, unless I choose to call you from a random phone number. Maybe I can borrow one of my clients' out-of-state cell phones.
MISSY - Did you have a stopwatch handy during your conversation with Adam? As for me, I think you would be disappointed if you expect me to sound really southern. Many people think I am not a native Texan.
Jason,
You peaked my interst! I live in DeSoto and work the Southwest Dallas County area as well as Ellis county. My office is in Midlothian. Please keep us in mind if you have referrals coming this direction. We are new to Active Rain but we really like the networking. We are a team of 3 (my two daughters and I). Stay in touch.
Becky
Jason, you really DON'T sound Texan on the phone! I have friends and family in Texas and they have much heavier accents. Adam sounded exactly like I expected him to, but Paul was a surprise to me. Elaine's voice fits her perfectly and I do NOT have an accent :)
Jason,
What made you write this blog.Very cute, I will be calling you soon as I find more clients that want to move to Austin... You seem to be the hotspot for us Californians lately.
DANNY - You do sound young on the phone, but I don't think you sound like a kid. I hope you're having a great week!
FRAN - I have a voice in mind for you. We should talk sometime and see if it matches or not.
KAREN - I don't have the crazy mad video skills to enter that contest, or I would for sure.
BRIAN - I would be happy to get any calls from AR members. Frankly, I am a little surprised that this didn't make anyone curious enough to pick up the phone.
TONI - I would love to hear your New Orleans accent sometime. It's funny how we pick up different dialects just from hanging around friends or clients.
BECKY - I will definitely keep you in mind. My mom and stepdad live in Ovilla now. Feel free to call me sometime.
PETRA - My dad used to have a caregiver from Germany, but her accent was tough to place, so I understand. Thanks for commenting!
SHARON - I hope y'all have a good one, too!
LISA - I don't remember a strong accent at all, but I thought you sounded more southern. We should talk again sometime and I can give a better opinion. Paul sounds like a little baby girl.
BOB - Good food for thought, huh?
MARY - I have a lot of random thoughts, and sometimes I have trouble getting them all on "paper" fast enough, so I keep a running list of ideas. Keep me in mind if you know anyone moving to the Austin area or looking to invest here.
CAROL - I don't typically think of Lee as being an Asian name, but Li definitely is. I had a friend named Mike Lee who was from Houston. I'm glad to hear that you are parking the car in Harvard Yard.
ROSS - Um, sorry?
Jason,
I love the whole picture thing. I just changed mine cuz i was approaching 3 years old....gotta change.
SO I WOULD LOVE A COPY of the subscribe button code you have on your website.
WOuld you be able to email me that at dave@utahdave.com
That would be great.
You are awesome!
Lisa, you do too have an accent!
I do not!
How did I miss this post?
Helps if I am logged in I guess. :)
Hey Jason! Yep, you sound like what I'd expect you to on the phone. Sorry I missed your call. I am switching out my phone equipment and the only real source of communication I have is my cell phone and it gets craptacular reception in my office. I will talk to my cousin tomorrow I to see what her plans are and let you know. I heard south Austin is her best bet if she wants to live in Austin.
I scrolled through seven pages of your blog to get here. It looks like quite a read. When I can get off before 11:00 pm I will sit down and read more.
Thanks for calling me back.
Nice shades - is that your AR disguise?
Jason,
The important question is, "How do you say YAHOO (as in yahoo.com)?" Ask ACTIVE BRAD, he now knows how we say it down south! But how do you say it? :)