In this inspiring episode, we hear the story of the warm-hearted, compassionate Deba Douglas whose compassion for her students lead her into the real estate industry where she is now making a difference in her local community as someone who helps families find housing that is suited to their needs.
From Deba herself:
"I am so excited to share my story and how Douglas Dwellings got started. As former Assistant Principal in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. I have over 16 years of education. I recently decided to transition out of the education and into real estate full time. Over the years, I have had the opportunity of meeting so many different families, and I was able to get a glimpse of the disparities regarding housing in so many of my students. I had students that lived in very affluent areas as well as students that lived in low-income areas with limited resources. I remember having a student that told me he lived in a one bed apartment with his mom, two siblings, aunt, and three cousins. He would complain about having back pains all throughout the semester, as I formed a relationship with him, he shared that his back pain was from sleeping on the floor every night. In that moment, I knew that I had to do something to help in my communities- Douglas Dwellings was formed. We have a realtor on staff to help with all real estate needs. We also purchase, rehab, and rent out houses to support our local communities. We send quarterly flyers to inform our residents about things going on in our neighborhood. We are here to make a difference one house at a time."
In this inspiring episode, we hear the story of the warm-hearted, compassionate Deba Douglas whose compassion for her students lead her into the real estate industry where she is now making a difference in her local community as someone who helps families find housing that is suited to their needs.
From Deba herself:
"I am so excited to share my story and how Douglas Dwellings got started. As former Assistant Principal in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. I have over 16 years of education. I recently decided to transition out of the education and into real estate full time. Over the years, I have had the opportunity of meeting so many different families, and I was able to get a glimpse of the disparities regarding housing in so many of my students. I had students that lived in very affluent areas as well as students that lived in low-income areas with limited resources. I remember having a student that told me he lived in a one bed apartment with his mom, two siblings, aunt, and three cousins. He would complain about having back pains all throughout the semester, as I formed a relationship with him, he shared that his back pain was from sleeping on the floor every night. In that moment, I knew that I had to do something to help in my communities- Douglas Dwellings was formed. We have a realtor on staff to help with all real estate needs. We also purchase, rehab, and rent out houses to support our local communities. We send quarterly flyers to inform our residents about things going on in our neighborhood. We are here to make a difference one house at a time."
Elizabeth Diacos: 0:01
Welcome to the "Get out of Teaching" podcast presented by Larksong Enterprises. I'm your host, Elizabeth Diacos. On the show, we'll look at the who, what, why, where, when and how of moving out of your Education career and into a life you love. We'll meet ex-teachers, delve into what we love about teaching and how to translate that into something new. We'll talk to people who can support and inspire us as we make the transition, and work on identifying the legacy we want to leave in the world. So come along for the ride as we "Get out of Teaching".
Elizabeth Diacos: 0:38
Epidode 4: On today's show, I'm interviewing Deba Douglas from Dallas, Texas, and she's going to tell us all about how she transitioned out of her education career and into a life she loves. So, Deba, tell us all about yourself.
Deba Douglas: 0:54
Well, one, I am super excited to be on the show with you guys... with you, Elizabeth and just a little bit about me: I have had over 15 years of education. On my last stint, I was an assistant principal in an affluent school district in the Dallas area. Prior to being an admin, I was also a head volleyball coach for several years. And I also taught English, special ed, and coached for so many, so many years. So, I loved Education. That was something that I always thought, as a little girl, I would always be a teacher, coach, just impacting the next generation, just because someone impacted me and changed my life. I wanted to, you know, pay that forward to someone else.
Elizabeth Diacos: 1:38
Wow, so you've had a really... quite a diverse career. What got you into teaching in the first place?
Deba Douglas: 1:44
I will say, I had some phenomenal teachers that just loved on me. A little bit about my background is I'm a first year, first generation American. I was born in Nigeria and my parents came when I was about two years old and they worked like crazy. So they kind of told us, "go to school, learn", but not really navigating the academic side, and you know how you're supposed to fill out SAT scores, how you're supposed to fill out the application for colleges. But I had some phenomenal teachers that would love on me that would guide me and get me towards where I needed to because I feel like they saw a lot more of my potential than I even knew was really there. So they guided me. They put me in honours classes. They placed me where I, where they knew I would thrive...and that ultimately just pushed me to a whole 'nother level where I was just like "I want to be a teacher". I want to do this for someone else because, I mean, my parents were great, but my teachers, they took the time to guide me and show me where I needed to be. And honestly, I pay it back forward because when I see them, I give them big hugs and I tell them I am who I am because you guys loved on me and cared for me, and that's really you know, I really just wanted to give back.
Elizabeth Diacos: 2:59
That's such a wonderful testament to those teachers, too, that you you were able to see the value that they brought to you and the care and compassion and love for you. Did your parents speak English when they came to America?
Deba Douglas: 3:14
They did. They did speak English, but I think it was more of just navigating the American culture because I would go to school and listen and being exposed to a totally different world. And I would come home, and it would be, you know, your normal Nigerian strict environment where, you know, academics was very important. But to really know what that looks like of you're supposed to make A's and you're opposed to really focus on your G P A. Those little gaps were missing, and I needed great teachers to really instil and guide me so I could see that true vision.
Elizabeth Diacos: 3:46
Mmm...Okay. Okay. So then you started teaching, and you worked in all these diverse areas. When you left, what was your role as you kind of walked out?
Deba Douglas: 3:57
I was an assistant principal at one of the middle schools in the affluent area of school, and it was a really good school. I loved it. It was amazing, but I just... It was time. You just kind of know when you know it's time.
Elizabeth Diacos: 4:16
Okay. So how by that stage how long had you been teaching for?
spk_0: 4:20
I've been teaching for 16 years.
Elizabeth Diacos: 4:23
Okay, that's a pretty good innings.
Deba Douglas: 0:00
Mmmhm
Elizabeth Diacos: 4:25
So So what was the.. you said that you knew it was time... was there a tipping point or a catalyst for you actually leaving?
Deba Douglas: 4:36
I think it was. I will say it was something leading up... the past two years, prior to that day, I just felt like I was just running, running and sprinting every day. I got to the point that it was just overwhelming and it was completely stressful. I felt that maybe being an administrator, my role was to remove any barriers or any limitations that teachers didn't have to really help them in the classroom. So I truly homed into that, and I really believe that was my role and I focused on supporting teachers. I focused on supporting students and helping our parents and, you know, working with our stakeholders. And I jump jump... a deep dive into my work, and I have two young kids and it was really stressful, you know, coming home and trying to give them what they needed and truly being present. I started realising that... "I am here, but my mind is thinking about all the things that I need to get done for work", and that takes a toll. Mommy guilt is real and I just started realising like "This is not what like was supposed to be". I felt like I was always on high anxiety, high stress, and it just never really went away. And I just literally just started reading different books, connecting at my church, serving more, realising that God doesn't want us to be unhappy. He doesn't want us to feel this heightened level of stress all the time on...and, just kind of the last couple of months that kind of led me to saying, "You know, I'm just going to try something different" was my Dad had recently had another stroke and I remember just dropping everything that was going on. And I said, I'm just going to be here with him Let my Mom take care of some other things so that she could get some rest And I remember just talking to him, and he was just saying that you only have one life, and if you're truly not happy, nothing's going to change unless you start taking some steps towards a different direction. And I think he's talked to me about different things in the past, something similar. But THAT day it stuck, and that day I was like, Okay, it's time. If I'm going to believe in God and know that he is going to take care of me and I have the true faith, I'm going to take a step and let God do his, do its thing and let him work. And that was kind of the tipping point.
Elizabeth Diacos: 6:56
Well, okay, so that's a compelling story. Especially when your dad was ill and he still was able to garner that wisdom to share with you?
Deba Douglas: 7:05
Yes, Yes
Elizabeth Diacos: 7:07
So , I assume then that even though there'd been things, steps leading up to this, there must have still been some fear and trepidation around making this shift after 16years.
Deba Douglas: 7:19
Oh, absolutely. I think, all I knew was Education. I literally went to college and I wanted to be a teacher, and I just transitioned as soon as I graduated to be in the classroom. So all I know is Education. So thinking of trying to transition out of education, that was the hardest thing. And I think it was the people that you're around as well, you know, everyone's an Educator. Everyone's a teacher. There's, this is just kind of the world we live in. But then I just started envisioning myself outside of education, and I think that was the biggest thing of changing my mentality and really identifying that I have strong communication skills. I have strong written communication skills. I have the ability to collaborate and work with others and try to push them to another level. And I started realising those same skills can be useful outside of education. And my husband was a huge cheerleader and really pouring into me, and giving me the confidence to say you are really great at these skills. If you just step out on faith on your own... you're disciplined....you have the capabilities and you're not going to let yourself feel. And those were the things that really got me to start seeing myself out of education ...because it starts with your mentality.
Elizabeth Diacos: 8:34
Yeah. Wow, Great, great advice. So if there was someone looking to get out, like now, what.. what would be the biggest thing they would... you would suggest they need to do really to be able to make that change.
Deba Douglas: 8:47
The biggest thing was, you have to believe in yourself and you can't get down on yourself, and you have to start envisioning your world outside of Education. What will that actually look like? How will you make, y'know, your money to pay bills or do what you need to do? Because deep down inside, we all have a dream that we feel like ...it's probably ridiculous! But, that's probably the dream that's going to tap us into our purpose. As ridiculous as that sounds, that is really probably your calling. And it's you just taking those steps to research and learn more about whatever that craft is. And I'm telling you once you start walking in that direction, things will just start falling into place. And it's crazy to say that, but I'm on the other side, and I can. I'm a true believer that whatever that crazy dream is, believe it! Because there's something inside of that dream, and if it's on your heart, it's also on God's heart. So keep believing that dream. Keep fighting for that. Keep researching and learning more, connect with people that are doing it. And I'm telling you, the world is going to be amazing.
Elizabeth Diacos: 9:52
You're so encouraging. So it sounds like when you got out, though, that there was so much to learn. How did you take the skills that you had as a teacher and bring them into your newrole?
Deba Douglas: 10:06
I really started, I think, probably leading up into that...maybe a couple of months. I just started diving deeper into what I'm doing now... into real estate. I started connecting with different investors. I started attending y'know, different learning tools that I could learn. So I am more confident in those roles because the biggest thing was the confidence. I wanted to feel like I'm knowledgeable and I'm prepared to step into that new role. So, working with other people that are doing it, there's no point of reinventing the wheel. Just connect with people that are amazing. It's a humbling experience because I'm coming from being an administrator, that I kind of know the world of curriculum and classroom management. And then ....it's a humbling. But it was a great experience! So, I love that. But I think just being confident, loving where you are and knowing it's a journey and not a destination.
Elizabeth Diacos: 11:04
Right. Okay, so when you got into ....what was the decision that you made, or how did you finally get into real estate?
Elizabeth Diacos: 11:18
Ah, lot of it was my educational career. As educators, we come across all different backgrounds of students from their parents and even our coworkers. And I think the biggest thing for me is, I realised there was some (?) So the disparity was so crazy for my students that I worked with. I've worked in low income school districts I worked in affluent school districts and just need how so many different students come from different backgrounds. And I remember one student in particular that, he would always complain about back pain, and I was like, "Well, what's going on?" He was a middle school kid and he said, "Well I have to sleep on the floor." I was like, Wow, you know, it just blew my mind. And as I got had a better relationship throughout the school year, he shared with me that he was living in a one bedroom apartment with his mom, with his aunt and his three cousins, and it just brought me to tears in that moment, and I literally started navigating with real estate, and that's when I went back and told my husband: "Okay, I found what I'm supposed to do." I am supposed to find low income houses or wherever I can find houses, rehab them as if it's in an affluent area so that the students the kids, the parents, the people that we place in these house households, they feel confident in where they're living. You know, just going through this whole real estate world, I've seen how, you know, some people live in homes that are just not up to code. There's mould everywhere, and I just want to be one of those landlords that are just loving on my on my tenants and my clients. And I want to just love on them to just really show them that there's life on the other side....and some things that we do with our current clients is we send out a newsletter every other month. It just kind of tell 'em about three fun festival festivals that they can attend with their families, and we also give them a discount when they send their students grade book. We send them... give them a discount monthly. What we.. one thing that we really do to support our families, is that when they send us their students report cards we will take a portion of that away... we will take a portion of that off their rent, like take $25 to $30 off their monthly rent, just to show them that we are focusing on supporting the kids, that they're just in a season of their life. And we don't feel like this season is going to last forever. And we want to support them as they transition in the different lives.
Elizabeth Diacos: 13:56
So do they have to achieve a certain grade level to get that discount?
Deba Douglas: 14:03
Usually, if we have...we really try to just drive it as A and B honour roll. If we can see an A and B honour roll, we will immediately take the $25 off their next month's rent. We just really want to focus on we're a family, we're supporting each other. They need me just as much as I need them and we're going to go through this journey and their lives together.
Elizabeth Diacos: 14:25
That is an amazing... so that must be hugely motivating for the students, and the parents, to make sure they do their homework and that kind of thing, knowing that they're going to get a discount on the rent?
Deba Douglas: 14:37
Absolutely. And I think it's a really good thing. A lot of the houses that were in... it's kind of a little bit low affluent areas, But we really strive to get the parents to understand how important Education is. And if your landlord is thinking it's important, I would think the parents would be more motivated to follow up with their student at home, making sure they're doing their homework, because they could probably do something even more... something fun with their family. Saving that 25 or $30 each month.
Elizabeth Diacos: 15:06
Absolutely. Or the kid gets to do something special. That's wonderful!
Deba Douglas: 15:11
Yes!!
Elizabeth Diacos: 15:12
So it sounds like you're actually really, actively a member of your community.
Deba Douglas: 15:21
Yes, yes, we really try to just focus on helping people. I mean, I feel like as an educator, that's kind of what our role is, where the hearts of the world and I think I'm doing the same thing just in a different avenue in a different way. So, I think that's just kind of what my heart is to help others, and especially people that may not be... they may not be the most vocal, or they're kind of the people that people have already written off or thought there were less than I really want to help them build their confidence. That's because someone's with the time to build mine, and support me.
Elizabeth Diacos: 15:54
Yeah, wow! So I've been talking to another colleague who's also going to get out of teaching Facebook group Kylie Leota and she talks about connecting to your why. And it sounds like you've actually done the same thing there with going into real estate from Education that you've found , your sort of core purpose and you just translated it into another context.
Deba Douglas: 18:11
Absolutely! And I feel that doing that, I'm still helping my kids that I serve. But I'm just doing it a different way, where I'm not dealing with the politics of the education or the part... or the district. I'm doing it the way that I feel like it's best. I think it's teachers. There's many times that we're on our campus and were like this is what my student needs. But unfortunately it may be, limited resources, or it may be something that's hindering giving that student what they need. And now that I'm in the real estate world kind of create the rules that I would like to set plays. But number one, my first focuses, we will help people. We will do whatever we can to support forthem. There was one time I had Tio go into one of my tenants homes to help them. I think there's feeling was leaking or something was going on. And so I had contractors there and I was just making sure everything was done before my tenant came home. And I've noticed that she did not have a bed frame and that her matches on the floor, and I literally called her the next day and I said, You know, I don't want to intrude, but I know what it is that the mattress was on the floor and it possible, and it was during the Christmas time. So I said, If if it's okay with you, I would love to just buy you guys a bed frame and immediately she was in tears and she was just like, no one's ever been this loving and caring for me. And I was like, I just I just know what's right and does that hurt my expenses or anything? my overall business land. You know, it may do a little bit, but my focus is helping people and those returns. We'll come back later. And if anything, she knows that it's not really about me being your landlord. Lee getting the cheque at the first of every month. It's about me loving and caring for you. And if there's ever a time or anything you need, I'm here for you.
Elizabeth Diacos: 18:13
Wow, you must be the only real estate agent in the world that feels that way. Certainly, I think real estate gets a pretty bad rap here in Australia. So, it's nice to know that there are people in the world who are actually really doing a caring job for their tenants. So, yeah, I'm feel quite... It's quite heartwarming to know that. Okay, so So let's just shift focus for a minute. If you were going to advise someone who is trying to transition out of education and into a life they love, which clearly you have been able to do...what were was the obstacles for you, and what advice would you give them?
Deba Douglas: 18:59
I think the biggest obstacle was the technology. I felt like I was a very fluent technologist person on my campus, that I was.... you know, we did a lot of Google Drive and Google sheets, and I was creating websites and different fun things for our campus. And then when I got into , I guess you know the the corporate world or or, you know, a different avenue of real estate. I realised that there was areas that I was lacking, when it comes to marketing and being on social media and posting different things to build my clientele, I think that was the biggest thing. Another thing was probably just trying to figure out how you navigate in the world because, you know, within the district you kinda knew who the hierarchy were and how should try to navigate those worlds and who to go to. So it's a humbling experience and just taking time to ask questions. I would always be... asked questions. If I know someone that was doing a great job at it, I would connect with them, reach out to them, see what I can do to add value to their world so that they would take time to mentor me and guide me
Elizabeth Diacos: 20:06
Fantastic, OK and so, what ... how would you advise someone who's wanting to leave? But who's feeling the fear? They're worried about, like the hundredthings that they're worried about money and what a day looks like. You know what day in their life would look like... all those things. What advice would you give them?
Deba Douglas: 20:28
I would, I think a lot of it, it's soul searching. I feel like through this process, I've learned more about myself and taking the time to realise some areas that I need to grow. And I need to be more proficient in. So, it's really more about taking that deep look at yourself and looking at "Where do you want to go?' And are you willing to take those steps to get yourself there? Because there's one thing about being where you are and kind of complaining about it, and you're kind of okay with how life really is. But then there's other others of us... It's just like I want more out of life and I'm willing to take that step. I'm going to take a step back financially to do what I really want to do, and it's cutting back. It's kind of looking at your expenses and realising , y'know, I really don't need this every month. I don't need the latte from Starbucks. I don't need those things. And you realise that life is more precious and more valuable than things. And you start realising, and connecting more relationships with people and really be pouring into people. I feel like a lot of people have really spoke to me and say You just seem more happier or you just seem more present, you just seem more planted and you want to pour into other people, and you just have to... One is the mentality, you know, getting over what you think you can't , and realising all the things that you can do cause I think teachers are the hardest working people and they have probably the best skill sets than any other department, or any other avenue of work.
Elizabeth Diacos: 22:01
So Okay, what if someone is in Dallas and they need somewhere to live? How do they go about getting in touch with you, Deba?Well, I would absolutely love that. You can get in contact with me and looking me up on Facebook under Douglas Dwellings LLC. You can also reach out to me on instagram with the same :Douglas Dwellings LLC What does the LLC stand for?
Deba Douglas: 0:00
It's really just the corporation of the LLC
Elizabeth Diacos: 0:00
I see, OK
Deba Douglas: 0:00
Yes. So you could reach reach out to me on.... And also, you can find me on just Deba Douglas on Facebook and Instagram. I would love to connect with everyone. I feel like I'm a big believer and supporting each other through this transition. I had a strong support system that guided me and poured life into me during this time, and that was really the biggest thing I needed as I kind of went through this kind of rocky territories of not knowing where tomorrow is gonna look like.
Elizabeth Diacos: 23:02
Yeah, wow! So how long have you actually been out?
Deba Douglas: 23:09
Well, I'm sorry.
Elizabeth Diacos: 23:10
How long have you actually been out of education now? When did you leave your teaching job?
Deba Douglas: 23:14
I left in October of 2019. So literally in the middle of the school year.
Elizabeth Diacos: 0:00
So, that's not long. So it's February now, So it's only like five months...
Deba Douglas: 0:00
Yes, and I will say I feel like I've gotten 10 years...10 years back on my life and just talking with my children. You know? They love Mommy. They love how present... And how we'll do you know impromptu to dances in the middle of the morning. In the middle of the day, I'm able to be more present, love on them relentlessly and unconditionally, more than I've ever done before because that weight of the heaviness of work is no longer there.
Elizabeth Diacos: 24:05
Look, thank you so much for coming on the show today for sharing your story, and just for your, the warmth and the compassion that you bring to your role now in a new ...in a new space but yet with the same core purpose. Thank you very much.
Deba Douglas: 24:23
Thank you so much for having me, it was an absolute pleasure.
Elizabeth Diacos: 24:26
You've been listening to the Get out of teaching podcast presented by Larksong enterprises with your host, Elizabeth Diacos. Do you know someone else who could benefit from hearing more stories of hope and transition from teachers all around the world? Please take a moment to share this and other episodes via your podcast app. Each share helps me reach listeners just like you, who can benefit from this content. The "Get out of Teaching' podcast is proud to be part of the "Experts on Air" podcast network. For show notes and other resources, please visit larksong.com.au/podcast