Jeff Garner

Navigating Personal and Professional Challenges With Purpose

By Jane K. Asher

Photos by Dawn Townsend Photography & Design

When COVID-19 hit and Michigan’s stay-at-home order was enacted, the hustle and bustle of the real estate industry was forced to a halt, posing many significant challenges to even the most seasoned real estate professionals. However, the work stoppage — and the new regulations that followed — were especially taxing on rookie agent Jeff Garner who, at the time, was just beginning to find his groove in the real estate business after leaving a 25-year career in the environmental, health and safety field.

“We were considered nonessential workers, and my business had to stop completely,” said Jeff. “Then, when we were allowed to return to the real estate industry, there were new restrictions. I had only been in the industry for 18 months, so my business was suffering from my lack of knowledge and preparation for market disruptors.”

Then, as Michigan began to reopen — in addition to navigating the new challenges of an unfamiliar professional territory — Jeff encountered an unexpected personal challenge when he traveled to Saginaw to take his 78-year-old mother to her doctor’s appointment. At the appointment, the doctor informed Jeff that his mother, who had been experiencing bouts of dementia, could no longer drive or continue to live alone. “This was a huge shock,” Jeff said. “I immediately realized I would need to bring her to my home to stay with us and provide care for her,” Jeff said.

That same day, Jeff’s mom — who was a real estate agent for 47 years — joined Jeff and his wife, Stacey, at their home in Brownstown. Jeff quickly began to realize how their new, multigenerational living situation would drastically alter his and Stacey’s day-to-day lives. He says that the hardest part of the transition was discovering the magnitude of care that his mother needed: Even simple tasks like eating and taking medications had to be strictly monitored on a regular basis. “The situation demanded a lot of patience and compassion during an already professionally stressful time,” he said.

Before long, Jeff had an entire household of extra responsibilities on his plate: paying bills, managing appointments and administering medications. “Additionally, we are now required to monitor and constantly care for my mom’s health and well-being,” Jeff said. “It was a tough adjustment but an easy decision for my wife and me to provide her the care and support she needed.”

During the quarantine, Jeff — who was homebound like so many Michigan workers — sought to make the best of the situation and used the opportunity to further develop his real estate knowledge and sharpen his industry skills. “eXp has an amazing training program, and it ended up being a good time to take advantage of the classes to prepare myself to be a better agent,” he said. “I also attended multiple mega-agent Zoom trainings to support agents during the quarantine.”

Rather than getting back to business and life as usual once the lockdown was over, Jeff had to juggle extra responsibilities at home with his mother, which affected his professional performance and business production at eXp Realty. “Between all of the tasks of caring for my mom and all of the time involved, my days were so divided,” Jeff said. “My prospecting, as well as my time in the office, declined, and my usual business routines were disrupted.”

Jeff appreciates all of his eXp colleagues who encouraged and mentored him along the way. “They also provided humor and fun with weekly social Zoom meetings where we could connect and laugh with one another,” he said. “I am also forever grateful for the collaboration of the eXp superstar agents throughout the United States — with their help, I have learned how to get through challenging times as a newer agent.”

On a personal level, Jeff is thankful that he had Stacey to lean on for the past 25 years of their marriage and especially during the chaos and hardships of this past year. “Stacey has been my rock; she has supported me both professionally and emotionally in my career,” he said. “Being a nurse, she has also physically helped care for my mother, and she’s been amazing at addressing the many challenges of my mother’s care.”

After about two months, Jeff was greatly relieved when Jeanette Cruz offered to provide full-time, live-in care for his mother. In 1981, Jeanette was an exchange student from Ecuador who lived with Jeff and his family throughout her senior year of high school. Since then, the Garners have maintained a close relationship with Jeanette, who, following the death of her mother, wanted to come stay and care for her American mother. “The best part is that Jeanette is a family member who loves my mom, and my mom completely trusts her,” Jeff said. “I still have lots of financial and medical responsibilities for my mother, but at least she is able to safely live in her own home again where she is well cared for.”

Furthermore, now that Jeff has a little more personal time, he’s looking forward to getting back to the bowling alley — he’s bowled three 300 games to date — and to his competitive cornhole league.

As a result of his struggles over the past year, Jeff has gained some valuable professional and personal insight. In retrospect, Jeff knows that he did not have enough leads and contacts in his pipeline to offset his gap in production, and he now understands the importance of building and maintaining a solid business base. “Seasoned agents have been through the ups and downs of real estate. Next time, I will be more prepared for market fluctuations,” Jeff said. “No matter how much you think you know, there are always things to learn in real estate.”

Jeff realizes that everyone encounters difficult situations — many of which are beyond our control. However, through his resilience and capacity for self-evaluation, Jeff demonstrates that the best way to navigate through the unknown is by collaborating with others and taking measures to better prepare for the next personal or professional challenge.

Jeff Garner - Real Inspiration