Getting to Know Monica and Megan: Phobias

You’ve met them at events, listened to their presentations, but how well do you really know Monica Conchola and Megan Maloney? We’ve launched a fun series to help you really get to know these two dynamos. Here are things about these two you probably didn’t know — just in time for spooky season! 

We all have them — the things that give you the creeper jeepers — fears that might seem irrational but are often rooted in a life experience.

A recent conversation with our Houston Realtor relations team has uncovered the things that make Monica and Megan cringe faster than a Realtor saying they’ve never heard of Johnson Development.

Let’s see if you feel the same…

Enclosed Spaces

Megan didn’t even have to think about this one. Being in a locked car, airplane, or an elevator seriously freaks her out — and for good reason. When she was about nine years old, Megan and her family boarded an elevator at a hospital along with two other families. Shortly after it started moving, the elevator stopped. They were trapped for about 30 minutes, though Megan says it felt like hours. Since then, she’s much more comfortable in wide-open spaces.

Rats

The very word “rats” is enough to freak out Monica. She doesn’t like their look, their squeaks — nothing about them. As a child, she was visiting a friend when a small rodent ran over her foot, which she credits for her dislike of rats. But that wasn’t her only encounter with a rat. In her pre-Johnson Development days, she was managing a welcome center when she opened the door and spotted a rat. She immediately ran to the parking lot and stayed there until the exterminator assured her the rat was gone.

Snakes

Megan had two experiences with snakes that have left her wishing she never meets another one. She grew up on acreage and remembers her uncle having to chop one with an axe when it got too close to her. The other encounter isn’t quite so typical. Her parents used to host a crawfish boil for Super Bowl every year. It was a tradition that whoever helped post-party could skip school the next day, so Megan was more than happy to pitch in. She and her dad took the remaining crawfish boil out back and threw it over the fence. The hot liquid hit a large black snake that jumped up into the air — high enough to startle both Megan and her father and leave her with a lifelong fear.

Something Too Tight

Not every tight feeling pushes Monica into a panic, but types of jewelry will do it. It all stems from when she was pregnant and experienced swelling so severe that her ring had to be cut off. Now panic sets in if Monica wears something that she feels she can’t take off. And it just happened about a month ago — a permanent bracelet from an event was just a bit too tight for her liking and she had to rip it off.

Do you share any of Megan and Monica’s phobias? Let them know, so you can jointly stay away from rats, snakes, enclosed spaces, and too-tight jewelry!