Today we’d like to introduce you to Shedel Obey.
Shedel, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I go by Shelly. I am 30 years old and was born and raised in New Orleans! Growing up, pretty early on, I decided I would choose a career in the medical field. Originally, I assumed Pediatrician because it was common, but before I started my freshman year of college, I realized that wasn’t really for me.
I did undergrad at LSU in Baton Rouge; GEAUX TIGERS! Where I received a B.S. in Kinesiology with a concentration in Human Movement Science. This was basically a pre-Physical Therapy degree. While in B.R., I was heavily involved with my church’s youth group and got involved in mentoring middle school and high school-aged girls.
Physical Therapy school admissions were competitive and I wasn’t accepted to any of the programs I applied to my first year. I had to pick myself up, dust myself off, and try again because I really wanted this career path! So, the next year, in 2011, I was accepted to the University of Alabama at Birmingham. The program started Jan. 2012, and by November of 2014, I had earned my DPT (Doctorate of Physical Therapy).
My family and I moved to Houston after Hurricane Katrina. They stayed to build better lives and I returned to N.O. to finish my senior year of high school in 2005. After I finished my PT program, I was considering moving to ATL, but my sister convinced me to come back to Houston to once again be near family.
Early 2015, I took my first job as a PT for Memorial Hermann in the Medical Center. This was a Skype interview and I was immediately hired. I had never actually stepped foot in the building until my orientation, needless to say, I had no idea what the real job description was. I was started in HVI (The Heart And Vascular Institute) and I couldn’t have been more petrified! Walking the unit was so intimidating as I had never seen some of the advanced devices before.
Well, PT proved to be my passion but I would often sit and think of a way to supplement my income and start to earn passive income. I didn’t want to have to constantly be on someone’s clock to “eat”, or earn money. I thought of what if I was sick, what if I broke my leg, or what if I have a baby? I would essentially be back at square one.
I started researching, I wasn’t savvy enough for the stock market, often confused trying to follow along. This is how I got into real estate. I understood basic principles and would often think about what rent-free living would do for my finances. From then on, I was hooked and started aggressively saving to purchase my first property.
I met my (now) husband shortly after, and we had a whirlwind romance! We fell deeply in love and six months later, we were engaged. I threw him a surprise birthday party with relatives and friends from all across the country and he surprised me and popped the question! We planned our date for Aug. 27, 2017, as we all know turned out to be the weekend of Hurricane Harvey!!!!
Our bond has proved to be one of a kind. When we met, he was a Pharmaceutical Sales Rep and had a passion for diabetes due to selling insulin, and he was also an aspiring realtor, what a match made in heaven, lol. After he became licensed and we performed a few independent real estate projects we formed a husband and wife company – Obey Acquisitions, LLC. Real Estate has been very rewarding to me! I love learning different strategies within the game and teaching what I know to interested people or people that think they can’t invest for whatever reason.
Has it been a smooth road?
Haha! My road has been everything but smooth! You know, in a world of pretty Instagram pictures, I always try to remind people “To whom much is given, much is required.” If you ever find yourself envious of others, just know they probably have had to endure things you would never want to have to learn and grow from.
I’ve had two major hurricanes majorly disrupt my life. My senior year in HS was ruined, my family dynamic is completely different, and we were displaced for months. It was a very traumatic experience. Then to have our wedding we worked long extra hours for and paid for entirely ourselves be destroyed by Harvey, well it was a bit much. It was easy to take these external circumstances very personal like God was punishing me or something. From these experiences, I have learned to persevere. I have seen peers and loved ones be completely ruined by the things that happen to them; it cripples them. I cry, I gather my pieces, I pick up with what I have left, and I keep it pushing!
I think it’s important for young women to develop goals and a plan as early as possible. To not be lulled to sleep by the misconception of having all these years to waste because of youth. Of course, life is always about balance so I’m not promoting extremes of either (all work and no play or vice versa), but there’s absolutely no reason we shouldn’t be teaching young women skills that will set them up for success. Let’s teach them good money management strategies while they’re in grade school, let’s teach them financial literacy, let’s teach them good health.
And especially with real estate, the earlier you’re able to invest the better! Imagine getting a 30-year mortgage at 18 vs. in your 30s.
To this day, life feels overwhelming! I have a new marriage and a new baby. It’s easy to want to put my goals off until things are smoother but as a PT that works in hospitals, I have the scary reality that I don’t have forever, fueling me. I’ve had patients that fell ill right after retirement. Beautiful people that worked their entire lives for the moment to finally stop the 9-5, travel the world in an RV with the ones they love, that all of a sudden may not make it the next year.
Even starting this business hasn’t been smooth, we’ve lost money, made mistakes, and have had many sleepless nights. But I think about my daughter. I don’t want her to have to work as hard as me. I don’t want her to have to make all of the sacrifices I did to get me to this point. I don’t want her to have to learn about good health from being sick. And I also want young women and women to get around the people that can teach them how to secure their future, teach them how to achieve financial freedom, and provide generational wealth so that we change the narrative. Instead of leaving behind debts when we pass, let’s leave a legacy!
We’d love to hear more about Obey Acquisitions.
Obey Acquisitions, LLC is a Real Estate Co. founded by me and my husband, Korlynn Obey. We are unique in that we can literally take care of all of your real estate needs. Traditionally, realty companies just help people buy houses, sell houses, and lease apartments. We do that but we are also investors, meaning we flip houses, we have rental properties, we do Airbnb/Home Away/VRBO, we wholesale properties, we help people through the probate process (with and without a will), and oversee contractors for rehab jobs. Best of all, we actually teach people how to do the same things!
A lot of investing knowledge seems to be protected behind sealed lips and high fees. Mainly because investing can be tricky, people have lost money on deals, or simply they don’t have the time to entertain everyone that has an inkling of wanting to get into real estate. At our company, it’s not unusual to come over to our house or have a FaceTime call so that we can assess your needs and help you develop a plan that we can walk you through to execution. We teach classes and even allow you to partner up with us on profitable projects so that you can learn from our mistakes and learn how to replicate the process.
I’m proud of our initiative to get young people owning and investing. To, at least, get their wheels spinning about the process and hopefully get excited to save money, build credit, and own real assets vs liabilities pretending to be assets.
What’s the most important piece of advice you could give to a young woman just starting her career?
If you saw the meme: “What people think success looks like and what success actually looks like” (the straight upward slope and the scribble that eventually makes it’s way upward, believe it. In life, you will have set-backs and what appears to be failures but just always be moving towards your goals.
Write down the big picture, or create a vision board of the big picture. Then write down small actionable steps that will get you there weekly. The last step is important, otherwise, the big picture can get overwhelming and make you stagnant.
If you want to own a business, create a board of what having that business will mean for you and your family. Then create the plan:
Week 1- Read a book on xyz business
Week 2- form my LLC
Week 3- create a logo
Checklists provide gratification and a subtle reminder you’re actually getting shit done when you feel unproductive and think of quitting.
And you have to hang with like-minded people. If this isn’t your current circle, Google networking events in your area, post on social media, and let iron sharpen iron. My best friends and I can barely have conversations without getting great ideas or inspiration from one another.
Then, girl remember to not be too hard on yourself because we’re all just trying to figure this thing out. Even people that LOOK like they have it all together, don’t!
Contact Info:
- Website: obeytheinvestor.com
- Phone: 713-309-6806
- Email: investobey@gmail.com
- Instagram: obeythewife
- Facebook: Obey The Investor
Image Credit:
Kris D. Photography
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