On The Mark

It is not enough just to be a nice neighbor anymore.  Hey, everyone is glad that you are nice but anyone and everyone should be nice.  Have you ever read the book, “Good to Great”.  Wait, here is the real question, ‘do you bring VALUE to your neighborhood’?  That is, do you add something to the quality of life in the neighborhood?  Here are 10 ways to increase your value and be a great neighbor to the people living near you.

1. Make your home attractive. A ‘neat’ house makes people feel good about you.  They appreciate knowing that you are responsible and make the value of their homes remain as high as possible.  People want to live in clean, neat neighborhoods.

2. Talk to your neighbors and listen to their concerns. Contrary to the seeming desire for privacy, people still want to know who they are living near.  There is nothing better than being able to identify with your neighbors and to know how you can advise and/or assist them.  When you know your neighbor, you move from isolation and the resulting loneliness it breeds.

3.  Let others know you keep an eye on their house when they are away. Security is a huge issue today.  I want to know that my neighbor will protect my home when I am away.  One night my neighbor called to say that we had left our garage door open.  WOW!  That was a big security blunder that they overcame for us.  We won’t forget it.

4.  Mow a neighbors yard when you know they won’t be home for another few days. I once had a neighbor that was away for a month and had not realized that they needed to care for their lawn.  My other neighbor saw me mow it and was amazed that I cared that much for my neighbors.  He began to view me with alot more respect and we then had many great conversations.

5.  Care for the children in your neighborhood. Give them some refreshment and use it to talk with them and their parents (most parents are out when the children are outside).  People appreciate active and unusual acts of kindness.

6.  Make up a WordPress neighborhood blog and share it with the neighbors. You can add local news, street events, birthdays, graduations, election information, school information or any other thing.  Sharing important information makes you the ‘go to’ person.  You don’t become the controller of information but the provider of it.

7.  Hold a holiday event in your yard. Get the grille out and get some skateboards or hold another type of game event.

8.  Purchase small American flags and had them out to be put next to mailboxes on memorial day, independence day, or veterans day. People appreciate being reminded of important days and they feel good about participating in them.

9.  Sponsor the sign up of food for critically ill neighbors. This one takes a little work but think about how good it would be to receive a meal or plate of brownies when you are ill.

10. Hold a neighborhood yard sale for a common cause such as a school project, disaster relief, or other cause. This is a big matter.  Sooner or later we are all touched by a needed project.  Be the person who really shows care.