Deborah Stroud’s Union County roots run deep, as both parents, J.T. Russell and Frances Heiskell Russell, are natives of this area.
As the daughter of a preacher and owner of a construction company, Stroud learned all about working hard, a lesson which has served her well.
She grew up here, graduated from Horace Maynard High School, and then from the University of Tennessee. Stroud initially wanted to go into the airline industry and obtained a degree in Transportation and Logistics; however, as she put it, “God had another plan for my life and it turned out much better than mine could have!”
Having grown up around properties and construction, Stroud spent her first year after college preparing real estate estimates for her dad. She transitioned to the agency side and was a very successful real estate salesperson, ranking in the top two percent of Knox area Realtors. When asked to what she could attribute her real estate success, she chuckled saying, “Sheer determination and not knowing any better! I thought all Realtors sold a house a week so that was my goal and no one told me that was unrealistic so I did it!”
After about ten years selling houses, Stroud had her daughter and decided to approach the housing market from the mortgage banker side, pursuing the illusion of “banker’s hours.” She soon learned that bankers work long hours, but it is still a Monday-Friday workweek, not the seven-days-a-week grind of a Realtor — and that has been a good fit for her family for the last 21 years and counting.
Stroud’s advice to others pursuing similar careers is to get an education, make a plan for what you want your career to look like, and then execute it. Followup is the golden key to success in business, but you must also know the added value that you bring to the table and just take it one step at a time. You will need to tweak it as you learn more about your industry and what works best for you. “Plan your work and work your plan.”— what great advice from a successful businessperson.
But there is more to life than earning a living. Stroud believes in pursuing other passions, outside of work, and her passion is painting.
She embarked on her love of filling a canvas through a friend. When she was a Realtor, a couple of very happy clients invited Stroud and her husband over for dinner to express their gratitude. During the home tour, the host kept bragging about the beautiful English cottage setting paintings stating over and over again “June did that.”
It wasn’t until later in the evening that Stroud realized he was talking about his wife June, not some talented stranger. Being new to the area, the artist had lost her painting buddy and offered weekly classes … and so began Stroud’s love affair with painting.
Stroud found herself in high-stress positions at work, and responsibilities at home added more to her plate, but she found that cranking up some tunes and using the canvas as a portal to somewhere she’d like to go became an effective tool and a fun way to reduce the stress in her life. We all have normal stressors in life, but this year we all seem to be more weary and bearing a heavier load. For this reason, Stroud is on a mission to share what has worked so well for her with others. Lucky us.
On the second Monday of every month from 7 to 9 p.m., we can join Stroud and others online as she guides us through cute trendy artwork for the extremely affordable price of just $10/class! (The next class will be held November 9 featuring the truck and tree pictured below.) It’s a great way to connect with others and learn a new skill, and just plain have fun.
The class is designed for beginners but is open to anyone just wanting to enjoy a virtual escape. The registration fee is for the online class only. Upon registration, you will receive a supply list so you will know what is needed to complete the project.
Now those of you who have been gracious enough to grant me an interview quickly learned that I talk faster than I write, and I imagine I paint even slower, but the good news is these classes are available to participants for 30 days after the event, so there will be plenty of time to go back and finish or tweak our projects! This upbeat experience only has two rules: Be Kind and Have Fun! I look forward to receiving instruction from Deborah Stroud and attending these virtual classes with girlfriends and family with the distance barrier removed, and hope to see you in one of these fun classes, too!
You can find out more on her Facebook page: laughmorepaintoften. Visit her Facebook Events page (https://www.facebook.com/laughmorepaintoften/events) to see future opportunities to relieve stress, laugh more and paint often.