This is not a gimmick. What this is, is preparing myself for a new chapter and determining where & how that begins. I do that by breaking down the valuable lessons I’ve learned about Real Estate and living in our ecosystem of RE professionals, and sharing with you those insights: the wonderful and the crappy and everything in between.
Part of our job as RE agents is to take all the worries away. For many agents that includes burying every negative deep into the ground so that clients only see the bright, shiny objects. “Make everything look good,” they say. When you go that far, you lose transparency to the detriment of a client.
Here I'll be incredibly transparent. But this isn't a pity party! As a matter of fact, my current broker and everyone I know in my brokerage, are honest, talented, ethical, authentic… just plain GOOD people. If I’m ending my time in real estate, then I’ve picked the perfect people to help me punctuate it.
There are still opportunities to do better. Too much of our industry is out of focus. More than not, there are smoke & mirrors: Showcasing ideas of celebrity, overpromising, emphasizing quantity over quality, and falsely equating agent self-promotion with the purchase or sale of your home. Those are all practices that lead to more clients, yet none mean the best outcomes.
When we just “make everything look good,” you as a consumer may never know that your experience could have been, should have been, something much better than it was.
So this is my introduction part 1 of a 4-part series trilogy that will reveal meaningful & surprising moments that you likely haven't yet seen or heard. Whether you’re a friend, consumer, a fellow RE professional, or just a person interested in the human experience: My sharing this inside look - into my life, the business of real estate, and working with people - will benefit you in the long run.
Obviously these are my perspectives alone and don’t necessarily reflect the opinions of my brokerage or fellow real estate professionals. Here’s that preview I promised of what’s to come in future articles in this series:
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Reality Estate Stars. How self-marketing and the competition for clients became the dominant force in our industry - and why putting so much energy into getting clients harms the integrity & quality of people's experiences. This is where money & ego are in the driver seat, and pushing the pedal to the floor.
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Peer Pressure. Knowing who your real friends are, and who aren’t - from both client and agent perspectives. Here we’ll talk about some deeper stuff that may surprise you. “Systems” of building relationships, mostly used with legit, meaningful intention - but can be, and too often are, engaged simply to earn commissions.
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One that got away. Where a competing agent used aggressive tactics, and another that I decided to refer to a peer. How I discovered it turned out badly, and why this event so personally affected my perspective and path forward in real estate.
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Real Me. The big thing I’ve never publicly shared about myself, and how it influences my life, my health, and my profession. We all have something, and most of us are too stigmatized to share it. I’m going to share mine, because I want you all to know: You are not alone in your journey. Like it or not (and there are sadly people who don’t like it), we are all in this together.
*3, 4, and 5 will all be included in the 3rd chapter.
I’ll be writing and posting these stories over the next two weeks. While this process will help me determine my path forward, my real hope is that this will help you see life more clearly. As a creative writer, my passion has always been to tell stories that enlighten people and provoke thoughts…
Most of all, I want to inspire and give strength & validity to others. My goal is for you, I, and everyone to take our lives toward the places & people that really matter - that bring as much value to us as we bring to them.
Your thoughts and feelings mean the world to me. So please share them with me directly, or with others in the comments below. I’m grateful you’re right here reading this, and know with my whole heart that this is exactly, in this moment, where I am supposed to be.
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