TEAM Hughes Real Estate School Blog

By: Carrie Hughes

Let me share some memories from the 1980’s. My first real estate license was effective June 3, 1983, and I was living in Ocala, FL at the time. An unpleasant divorce had been looming, and as the mother of two young daughters, I was faced with having to raise them without child support or financial help from anyone. Living in New England became increasingly more difficult; I made the decision to take my two children, rent a U-Haul trailer that I could pull, and head back to the safety of home, which was in Northern Florida. I ended up in Ocala with my kids, one uncle about 15 miles away, and not knowing anyone.

After working as a secretary at a Century 21 office, it didn’t take me long to realize I was on the wrong side of the desk. The rest was history, and I made it a point to never look back.

As a newly licensed agent, my broker offered to pay my way to hear a speaker by the name of Tom Hopkins. “Tom Hopkins got his start in real estate. His first six months in real estate were anything but successful. He sold only one home and averaged $42 a month in income. He was down to his last $150 in savings when a man came into his real estate office promoting a three-day sales training seminar with J. Douglas Edwards. Tom hadn’t yet heard of either “sales training” or Mr. Edwards. But he decided to invest his last bit of savings in the program.” (Taken from Wikipedia) He then realized that successful sales strategies could be taught, successful sales people could be created, you didn’t necessarily have to have that outgoing winning personality people refer to, but you had to be willing to do certain things outside your comfort zone.

After Tom Hopkins, it was Zig Ziglar, Mike Ferry, Floyd Wickman, and others who got my attention. I was motivated, I had the systems in place, and the sky was the limit! Tom Hopkins’ story of door knocking has stayed with me all these years. His first broker told him he had to wear a suit and the only suit he owned was his high school band uniform, so that’s what he wore! Now, I don’t know if that’s a true story, but it taught me to dress the part, talk the talk, walk the walk, and project an air of confidence and success. My first year wages amounted to about $1.00 an hour, but I didn’t give up.

That first year was the only year that I did not receive recognition as at least a million dollar producer, and later a multi-million dollar producer. There were some lean times as well, and those were the times I practiced real estate as a secondary career, but I never gave up. As my passion for teaching real estate grew, my efforts to transition did likewise, and I went into full-time training, recruiting and teaching in 2005.

Our pre license courses can get you up and running quickly. The next pre license classes are forming for February. Don’t put it off – register on our website today! You can start making your own memories and you’ll never have to look back!