Though the three of us were only separated by  3 1/2 years, as the oldest, I was smarter, and always knew better than my two younger brothers. Until they both got bit by the chess bug.

Checkers was fine! Clear and straightforward, simple rules I understood, and most importantly, I could win!

But there were different, and incontrovertible rules for moving different chess pieces. I was annoyed, it felt arbitrary and unnecessarily complicated, something that didn’t come easily, and I didn’t want to be bothered to learn or understand. It was an attitude that resurfaced when faced with memorizing  Regents Geometry theorems.

In 10th grade I transferred out of Regents Geometry, into the less stringent regular Geometry. When I was 12, my solution to keep up was to copy my brothers’ moves.

Having no respect or  understanding of the principles of the game, or a grasp on any strategies, I did not hold my own for more than a few moves.

VERY sad to say there is not a more perfect analogy for how Home Staging in Westchester County is regarded by many Real Estate professionals, and homeowners.

Being an HGTV junkie, an Open House aficionado, someone’s who’s owned and sold houses before,  or is even a really smart and successful agent or broker-copying what you’ve seen does not make you a Home Stager. 

Selling a house in Westchester County? It wasn’t that long ago that preparing your house for sale meant tidying up, and having a sign put in the yard.  But we live in different and more complicated times, and under the very best of circumstances, selling is an emotional process.

At The Refreshed Home Interior Decorating and Home Staging is as much about picking the right paint color as it is picking the right words.

It’s being able to directly and easily address the best place for the sofa or the desk…the litter box or the smoker….the budget, a bad attitude, or your fears. It’s vision and expertise, empathy, a thorough understanding of the players, and of the field.  It’s 32 years of seeing firsthand the transformative powers of a space that works. It’s where experience matters, and kindness counts.

I still don’t understand chess, or theorems. Or for that matter-many other things like doing taxes, how to ice skate, fix a car, or electricity in general. But I’ve learned respecting the people who do-does not lessen me, or my other abilities. In fact, it often makes me smarter, keeps me legal, solvent and safe, so I can get on with my life.