Episode 54: The Working REALTOR®: Embracing Mentorship in Real Estate

REAL TIME Podcast

There are countless ways to succeed in real estate and no two individuals take the exact same route—so, how then does a real estate professional confidently make their next move? There’s so much to learn from other REALTORS® and those who have been in the industry for a long period of time, or have taken a unique path to success.

Mentorship doesn’t just benefit the mentees—mentors also have a lot to gain—like leadership skills, a helping create a more vibrant industry, improved communication skills, insight from different perspectives, a broader network, and boosted confidence. For mentees, the guidance and knowledge transfer is invaluable, networking opportunities can help grow your business, and learning the ins and outs of the industry from someone who’s been through it already can help boost your confidence, too.

Nicole Christy, CEO at the Ottawa Real Estate Board, and Rachel Gagnon, REALTOR® and Top 35 Under 35 with Royal Lepage, join the latest episode of the REAL TIME podcast to talk about their experience with mentorship and how it’s helped their careers.

Transcript

Erin Davis: What did you do the last time you were stuck overthinking a decision you had to make at work or were uncertain what your next move should be in a sticky situation? Who do you trust to help with those tough calls? Real estate mentorship can be a mutually beneficial experience for both the mentor and the mentee and it's something that REALTORS® and real estate professionals alike can explore throughout their entire career, not just in the beginning. Learning never stops. No matter your age, your career or your journey, there's always something to be learned and someone to learn from.

Hi, I'm Erin Davis, and welcome to REAL TIME, the podcast for REALTORS® brought to you by the Canadian Real Estate Association.

Erin: To get a better understanding of what exactly real estate mentorship entails and how to go about creating a successful mentor-mentee relationship, we have two incredible real estate professionals with us who are well-versed in this environment. Joining us today are Nicole Christy, CEO of Ottawa Real Estate Board, and Rachel Gagnon, a top 35 under 35 REALTOR® with Royal LePage. Hello to you both and thank you so much for joining us today to talk about mentorship within the REALTOR® association community.

Now just before we dive in, let's start by having you introduce yourselves, give us a bit of background on who you are and how real estate mentorship has been a part of your career and we're going to start with you, Nicole.

Nicole Christy: Perfect. Thank you, Erin. Yes, I have been in the real estate industry for almost 15 years. I got my start at the Canadian Real Estate Association. It was a co-op position coming out of the University of Ottawa and I've taken the experience, I've learned there, and I've worked for some of the top tier advocacy associations here in Ottawa. Returned to the real estate community back in 2021 when I joined with the London St. Thomas Association of REALTORS® to begin work at the local level. Now I'm here in Ottawa as the CEO of the Ottawa Real Estate Board.

Erin: You, Rachel, what's your story?

Rachel: Yes, so I actually started in the real estate industry in 2015. I was licensed in 2015 as a 19-year-old and I'm a real estate broker here in Ottawa with Royal LePage Performance Realty. I got my start in the industry with a very small brokerage on a very small team, and then a few years later, I transitioned to becoming a solo agent in a large brokerage, and now I'm just in the process of building my own small team.

Erin: Wow, okay. Let's get right to it. What exactly, to you, is mentorship within the real estate industry, and have your experiences followed a set pattern or structure or do you feel like you developed your own unique model? Rachel.

Rachel: To me, real estate mentorship is really, it's an always evolving, pretty much a daily task. It can be as short and sweet as answering somebody's quick and simple question or it can develop into a career spanning relationship that you build. We all know that our days don't look the same and sometimes you run into something that you never thought you would experience, and you need to turn to see who could potentially guide you into figuring out what the solution is. Sometimes that can just be having a trusted point of contact. You can have a few.

Then I would say that you end up having two or three long-term mentors along the way who you share values with and who you look to when it's maybe something a bit more fluid, a bit more gray, and that you need to see how they transition to the other side in their own career, and then figure out how you're going to implement that into your own.

Erin: As far as you know, is your path similar to those of other REALTORS® that you've spoken with, or did you just follow your own heart?

Rachel: I would say I've been pretty true to myself. I really prefer a one-on-one personal approach with my clients, and I think I've associated myself with mortgage brokers, lawyers, and other r REALTORS® who have the similar values along the way. I would say that I've pretty much followed my own path in that regard. Through the years, I've also looked at how other people have structured their own career and seen how I could implement little bits and pieces of their way of doing things into my own. I would say most REALTORS® end up having their unique path and we all end up in the same direction but take your own path to get there.

Erin: Okay, Nicole, let's hear for you what you say mentorship is within the real estate industry and your experiences.

Nicole: Absolutely. Mine is very similar to Rachel's. I find that mentorship really ebbs and flows throughout your career. Some mentorship opportunities or mentorship experiences that you seek out, they have a really short time horizon. They're issue-specific. You're maybe joining a new brokerage or you're joining a new association, and you need to learn the ropes of this new environment. It might be something short-lived like an onboarding. Then there's mentorships that I've been able to benefit from throughout my career. I've been able to turn to these folks at times where I'm struggling, whether it's professionally or personally, to get a sense of how they would manage, navigate these circumstances.

Sometimes you just need somebody who's going to be able to hold up a mirror and give you feedback that's sometimes hard to hear but it's necessary for growth. That's what I've appreciated in the people that have formed that inner circle for me. They're there when I need them. They're a text, a phone call, a Zoom call away, and they're happy to provide that feedback that I need that maybe I don't want to hear in the moment, but that will give me that growth opportunity.

Erin: Nicole, it seems too, if I'm hearing both you and Rachel correctly, that this isn't just a one-way flow of information.

Rachel: Oh, no.

Erin: It's not just you getting everything. It's you sharing what with your peers as well.

Nicole: Absolutely. This is a two-way street. As that relationship grows and it becomes often more of a friendship, it's a mentorship still, but it's a friendship. It could be a colleagueship. It could take a bunch of different forms. While you're sharing your experiences, they're learning a little bit of what's going on in the industry, what's going on at the association, what's going on with the board or the brokerage, and they're benefiting from this exchange. It's an exchange of information, ideas, opinions, and it's something that they then can use for their own benefit as well.

Often you find that your mentors or your mentees are ways to bridge into new opportunities for yourself. As you're having these conversations, they're connecting you with their networks and you're being able to benefit from the relationship that you formed.

Erin: How long does a mentorship usually last? Can you answer that for us first, Rachel?

Rachel: I like to keep it very organic. I think it's very normal that when you have a certain situation that you're trying to get through, that you realize when you've gained the information that you need in order to get to the other side. Then at that point, it just becomes a natural professional or personal relationship, and like Nicole said, typically they become friends. You look to them for professional guidance, and then at a certain point, you get to know them as people and their relationship gradually changes within your life. It's not to say you won't circle back, but I would say that sometimes it's a case-by-case basis, and then sometimes it's a longer growth process that you're looking to go through.

You'll check in with them here and there maybe on a more formal basis, and then sometimes it's in passing just when you touch base on other topics.

Erin: People understand that, right? In the mentor-mentee relationship, is that unspoken that it might turn into a hop-on, hop-off kind of experience, Rachel?

Rachel: I think so. I think everybody is willing to share their knowledge. Even just before jumping on this phone call, I had an agent call me just to pick my brain. At the same time, I'm not necessarily expecting her to call me every time that she has a situation she runs into, but she knows that door is open. Likewise, if I run into a situation, I know that door is open. I think everybody's respectful of each other's times. It's a relationship that you understand once it's established.

Erin: Is there an importance, and we've spoken about this in previous episodes, especially as it pertains to working at home, working in an office, and all of the work that REALTORS® do, is it important to set boundaries in the mentor-mentee relationship? Have you found that, Nicole?

Nicole: I think that there is a respect that you have to form for each other and each other's time. There is definitely boundar,ies and barriers to how much you want to push someone into their personal time. I do find that if you're looking to start a mentor-mentee relationship, having a conversation, a coffee, starting somewhere with just an information interview, if you will, seeing if this is a person that has the time to be a mentor. Or you're a mentor, is this someone who is the right values alignment for you as a mentee? Because you have to build rapport, and you have to make sure that you're able to support what the needs are in either situation.

It can be challenging, especially, and I'm sure Rachel can speak to it, the real estate industry is cyclical. There's ebbs and flows there too, and people might be busy. If they're busy, they do really need to focus on their career in certain instances or their clients or their families and they may not have space, the capacity to be everything you need them to be in that moment. It's probably something short-lived if you have built a relationship with this person over time, but respecting that and understanding that they can't be everything to you all the time.

Rachel: Yes, I think Nicole hit the nail on the head with what she said, and I think accountability is also a huge one. Whether it's as a mentee, you want to know what's working, and then on the flip side, I would say that as a mentor, you want to know that what you're saying, the person's taking to heart, they're implementing certain portions into their day-to-day, and that you can see that there is growth. It's one thing to talk somebody through a situation, but then when they circle back, whether it's three, six, eight months later, you want to know that progress was made because if at a certain point, it just needs to go somewhere.

Nicole: Sometimes you have to be honest with yourself too. You may not be the resource they need. As a real estate agent or as association staff, we have a limited amount of expertise and we shouldn't be bridging into some of the professional guidance or information that needs to be probably communicated. Is this legal advice you should be seeking? Is this a different professional that should be weighing in here? I may not be the person that you need in this moment.

Erin: How do when you could use a mentor? Let me ask you that, and we'll start with you, Nicole.

Nicole: I think it's if you're at a pivotal moment where you have a decision to make or that you're stepping into an area where you're not familiar. You're joining a new brokerage, you're joining a new association, you are in a different type of client relationship, or maybe it's a piece of the market that you haven't really had experience in. I think that's when you should be looking for somebody to help you navigate a little bit and act as a sounding board. I think you'll know you're ready because you're going to be hopefully self-aware and able to say, "I am maybe not completely confident here.

This is an area that I want to put my right foot forward, I want to serve my clients well, I want to serve the members well," depending on your audience, "and to do so, I'm going to need some input, I'm going to need some support." You may not be reaching out to one person, you might be reaching out to quite a few to get a sampling of what you need to do because as a mentor as well, we have to be comfortable with people taking just what they need from us. They're looking for our opinion, they can't be expected to take everything. Maybe it won't work for them, but parts will.

Erin: Rachel, because you began at such a young age, often when we start something, we don't know what we don't know. How did that you needed a mentor, and then how did you go about getting one?

Rachel: When I started, I didn't have any connections. Confidence was low and obviously, you don't have the knowledge under your belt that the more experienced agents will have. It started off with little tidbits. You grow and you grow through the motions, but then you just get to a certain point where you're ready to take on more. I think Nicole summarized it very well. You just know when you're ready to get to that next level. I think the important part as an agent that's going through those baby steps is knowing how much you're willing to put in to get to that next level. There are times where you'll seek a mentor and they'll give you fantastic information, but you're just not ready to make that jump.

I think being honest with yourself of what your capacities are, what your knowledge is, and getting the information from a few different mentors, like Nicole said, and choosing what bits and pieces you are ready to implement. Maybe you put a little asterisk to refer to some notes of the future, and maybe you circle back to that person when you're ready to dive into that idea more in-depth. You know when you're ready to grow.

Erin: Yes, and as you point out, you can definitely have more than one mentor, so that's good. When we talk about sharing values, which is something that you have both brought up so far, what does that look like? Can we give some examples of what that might mean starting with you, Rachel?

Rachel: Sharing values, honestly, in my opinion, is probably the most important part you can have in terms of looking for a mentor. It's not necessarily that you need to share all of the same values with the mentor you choose, but you need to know what your values are and what the values are for your mentor in order to know how much information you are going to retain from them. Let's say we look at an agent who's one-on-one with their clients and very personable, and they like to have a say in the entire part of the process.

You can go towards a system-based and automation and template-based agent, somebody who really likes to have a lot of structure in their system, but you might go towards them to get mentorship towards how to be more efficient. In terms of how you're going to structure your career as a whole, how you're going to grow through maybe being a solo agent to being a team agent, the people that you're going to collaborate with, how you manage your time, that's a broader subject that you may look towards having a long-term mentor who shares the same values as you.

I think if you go towards a mentor who is successful with the values that you share, in the long run, you're probably going to have a much higher return of the information that they're sharing with you and that you can carry into your own world.

Erin: Nicole, how does that look to you, the sharing the same values?

Nicole: Yes, I think there's an importance in understanding what your top values are in your career. For me, I was looking to grow. I'm a learner just by interest, by personality, and I wanted somebody who is collaborative, somebody who's very transparent. I want to know the good, the bad, the ugly when it comes to how they navigate certain situations. I need somebody who's going to be really transparent with how they manage, how they rose through the system, how they rose through their career, and be really introspective about how they communicate with me so I can learn. If I can learn from the mistakes, the lessons, those are usually where the most growth is.

That is what I'd be looking for somebody who's very transparent, who's very collaborative, who's very open, and who has the time to dedicate to it, and they're also aligned with seeing the success of the industry, seeing the success of the association. Those are key to me.

Erin: Now, there's often the perception that working in real estate can really be quite isolating. When, of course, in reality, it's a large community of professionals working toward common goals, right? We all know that choosing a REALTOR® is such a personal choice, but the same goes for choosing a friend or a mentor. Can you share your experience with this decision-making process for you? Or maybe recommend how somebody who's watching or listening may want to approach it, especially if they're a little bit apprehensive. Rachel.

Rachel: When I first started in 2015, I started with a very small company. We're talking three to five agents at most, and that feels very isolating when you're looking to try and get a different opinion or a different perspective. I went looking to see who I could find that I could resonate with and maybe just get a, again, just a different opinion on how to navigate through certain situations. I remember it was my first year and I was about to submit an offer on this big agent's property. I gave him a call. I was obviously a bit apprehensive to ask him a few questions. Being greener, you don't totally know what direction to take things.

I remember he picked up and he was just the most friendly, genuine person, and just ready to give his time and get to know me in the industry as well. I remember hanging up the phone and saying, "That's the kind of agent that I want to be a few years down the line." Then at that point, we built a relationship, and even circling back to a few years ago, he was my first call when I was looking to transition brokerages. I really valued his perspective on the challenges that I was facing, what I was trying to overcome, and even transitioning from being a team agent to a solo agent. The doubts that I had in giving me confidence and metaphorically holding my hand through the process.

Yes, I think looking outwards and trying to find somebody who shares the same values like we touched on earlier and you'll know. When you find the right person, what they're saying speaks to you and really just treat that relationship with respect.

Erin: Okay, two questions. Did that house sale go through?

Rachel: It did.

Erin: Yay, okay. Is he still somewhat of a mentor to you now or has the relationship changed?

Rachel: He is still, yes. He's still very much my mentor and actually now as I'm transitioning into the next phase of my career, which would be a bit more leadership and less sales, he is definitely my go-to and he knows it. I would say that now that I have years of experience under my belt, he also circles back to me now and it's become a more collaborative relationship like we touched on earlier where he feels like he can gain different perspectives from me and sometimes he has doubts of his own and whether we circle back in person over the phone or sit down for a quick lunch, it's definitely become a reciprocal relationship.

Erin: That sounds wonderful. Wonderful. Okay, Nicole, can you share your experience with your decision-making process or recommend how somebody who might be a little on the fence or apprehensive about getting a mentor, how that would pan out?

Nicole: It's definitely something that you can either seek out. That's looking at people within the industry or within your spheres of your network and seeing something in them, whether it's an experience or they've reached a certain pinnacle in their career and that's where you're looking to go and you can seek them out. Then some of it is just falling into it. Often if it's somebody who's perhaps in a position of authority, so my first mentors were supervisors. They were people that I reported to. They were invested in me.

They wanted to see me grow and the slow constructive criticism or slow constructive feedback that happens with the day-to-day work, I would be ingesting that and I'd be trying to seek out how to do things a little bit better, how to take the next steps. Then slowly that rapport grew where I felt comfortable going to them and saying, "I really do want to learn how to do this. I see myself going here." That's where they were able to provide more strategic advice and say, "Okay, if that's what you want to do, here's where you need to go. Here's the courses you should be taking. Here's the people you should be speaking with."

Often, they're happy to facilitate setting up those meetups, those information coffee meetings where you can leverage the network they have to build to where you want to go. If you're feeling apprehensive and you're either seeking out or you're falling into a mentorship and you just want to expand what that mentorship looks like and just maybe test the waters to see if this is something that person is also interested in entering into with you, I would say just start with just an information session. This is where you just, "Hey, I'd like to take you for coffee and just pick your brain about something. Hey, I just wanted to touch base about this project or this article I saw or this deal that I'm doing."

It's just a one-off, but you're testing the waters to see how they respond and they're getting to know you and you're revealing a little bit more about what you want and where you want to go and you'll take it from there. You'll see if the values align, if the time that they have to dedicate to you is enough for what you need, and then you can formalize it a little bit more. If you're apprehensive, just start with something really organic and something where there's no ask. It's just an information exchange.

Erin: I'm glad you brought up the ask because we all have in our phones those calls that come up or texts and it's always from someone who only gets in touch when they need something. Is there a way for a mentee to give back to the mentor, even in the early stages, so that the mentor feels that they are also getting something out of this relationship besides just the good feeling of helping someone else to succeed? Or is that not in the expectations? I don't know, qhat do you think? Rachel.

Rachel: I would say it's definitely a give and take. Like I have a few newer agents now who are doing what I did in my first year and they'll circle back to me for information, for help in certain circumstances, but if I circle back to them and say, "Hey, I need somebody to help host an open house," or, "Could you help me with this walkthrough," or, "Could you help me with X, Y, Z," whatever it could be, they're always willing. Honestly, it's been a huge part in terms of me transitioning into the mentor role where I know that it's a reciprocal relationship. I know that I'm not just giving and never seeing this person ever again. It definitely helps to keep the motivation up because you're both gaining from each other.

It's not to say that you always have to gain from somebody, but it definitely shows their willingness. It shows that they're willing to constantly give back. Oftentimes, I would say that is a preface to knowing that when they get to the next level, they'll also be willing to help the person that's below them. It's just the gift that keeps on giving. Yes, I definitely think that you don't always have to have it be reciprocal, but it definitely helps both sides when it is.

Erin: Nicole, what do you think of that?

Nicole: I absolutely think that there can be a little bit of give and take. Certainly, we have, in the industry, created these forums where there is a bit of that. We have young professional networks or YPN, sometimes they're called your professional networks. We have them, anyway, in Ottawa at the local, provincial, and national levels where there is these YPNs that connect people who are looking to grow, looking to build a career in the industry, possibly looking at leadership roles in the industry on the volunteer side and connecting them with people who are also eager to see the success of the association of the real estate community and they're coming to provide exchange information, provide information.

I think that in those formats and in those forms, you can see that give and take because those newer agents are coming from careers outside of the industry and now coming into real estate can imbue some of the information that they're providing with their expertise, whether it's demographic information or new understandings of how technology works or different techniques. There's that old adage, you can't teach an old dog new tricks, but you absolutely can. We see at the YPN events, a mix of agents of all experience levels, ages, backgrounds. I think it's a great way to give and take.

Erin: Now, somebody watching or listening today might be going, "Hmm, maybe I would be a good mentor." What are some of the signs that you might be a good mentor? We'll start with you, Rachel.

Rachel: I think if you feel confident in something, and it could be anything. It could be that you are very strong with Google systems or it could be that you feel very confident how to prepare a listing or how to meet with clients in certain circumstances. You could approach your brokerage, let them know that this is something that you feel comfortable talking on and let them know that anytime an agent has a question in that subject, that your door is open. They can give you a call anytime. I think they would appreciate it. It gives a collaborative energy throughout the office or just throughout the industry in general.

On the flip side, if you see agents in passing, particularly the agents that might be a bit more green or have a different expertise level in that subject, you can let them know that your door or your phone is always open if they need a helping hand. Maybe, you never know, somebody could be apprehensive and may not want to reach out, but the fact that you took that first step and opened the door for them, they may just feel that much more comfortable reaching out to you when they need to.

Erin: Nicole, what would you suggest people look at inside themselves for signs that they might make a good mentor?

Nicole: I think part of it is just looking inside and saying, "Do I have the time to dedicate to this? Am I looking to be a part of the future of the industry? Do I want to have a part in how the industry grows in its success?" If the answer is yes to these questions, I think you'd be great to be a mentor. There's ways to seek it out. Obviously, we talked a lot about falling into mentorship, but I think a lot of the things that Rachel said is just putting it out there because people are going to be apprehensive. You have something to offer, but they may not know how best to seek it from you. It could be just also establishing yourself as a subject matter expert.

Being part of social media groups, being part of committees, being part of different aspects of the industry where you can carve out that space as a subject matter expert so people know to come to you. Because you might have some great skills and if people aren't aware that you have a rich career in commercial real estate or that you've come from a background in the finance industry and if they're having questions around investment and things like that, maybe you'd be a good mentor in those fashions. Setting yourself up, putting it out there, establishing yourself as a subject matter expert, and somebody who has the time and capacity to do this, I think those are key.

Erin: Nicole, you already mentioned some of the resources that particularly young people starting out can get into or join in. For somebody who hasn't yet been able to build a professional network, what resources should they look at in a local, provincial, or national level? Do you have some suggestions for us? Then we'll ask Rachel.

Nicole: Absolutely. I think there's a lot of resources that we've built out over the years. There's obviously the YPN networks at the local and the provincial, and then with the National Association, they've been providing resources to these networks to see them grow, to see them be able to offer more to the folks seeking out, not only mentorship but opportunities to network. Certainly, YPNs provide educational events, there's panels, there's speed mentorship dating, things like that are one-off events, but there's also often a forum where you can connect and find somebody who has self-identified as wanting to be a mentor and you can self-identify as wanting to be a mentee.

You can find the right person from this pool of people who are ready and willing. I think also depending on where you feel comfortable, but at your local association, getting in touch with the board, the staff can also help facilitate finding someone that might align with where you are and where you want to go. Our boards, our committees, they're full of people who have had successful careers and are now looking at giving back and they've proven that because they've dedicated time to the board and we can help you build those connections or at least connect initially, and then you can see where it goes from there.

Rachel: I think if you're within a brokerage that's able to provide that resource, then you're already in a good spot to start. I know within my brokerage, we actually have almost daily training sessions with what Nicole described as industry specialists. Somebody who is self-identified as being very strong in a certain subject and that already starts one good connection. Again, like Nicole mentioned, your local board, they can put you in touch. They'll know that this person sat on this panel and would probably be a good resource for you for a certain question.

I definitely think tapping into, on a small scale, your brokerage, and on a larger outside scale, tapping into your local network. If you're willing to take it higher than that, definitely into the provincial and national levels, you definitely have some great resources.

Erin: This idea of working together and lifting people up, that really does come through when we talk about mentorship in real estate. Now, Nicole, you've gained a lot of experience in your career first with CREA, then the London and the St. Thomas Association of REALTORS®, and now with the Ottawa Real Estate Board. How have mentors helped you along your journey?

Nicole: I was able to find mentors early in my career that have thankfully stuck with me to today and I still lean on them. They are still references that I've used to get those new positions, seek out those new opportunities. I think that I was able to find people early who saw something in me maybe I didn't even see in myself. They were the ones that initially put the challenges and opportunities in front of me. They gave me the push where I didn't have the confidence.

They said, "Let's try it out, see where you go, just give it a chance." Those are the people that I think really lean into the mentorship role in a way that you can see expand and help serve throughout the rest of your trajectory wherever you choose to go. When you're coming back and you're not sure what the next step is for you, maybe you're looking at jumping from one broker to another to seek new opportunities or moving into a new career, they're the ones that you can circle back to and say, "Hey, do any opportunities?" They're the ones that you can start speaking to identify what the next best thing could be or what the next step could be.

I've been very lucky to have those folks in my corner and those people have been able to stay with me through each one of those new chapters in my career.

Erin: I'd say they'd be lucky to have you in their corner too. How about you, Rachel? You have an impressive list of accolades under your belt, don't blush, being in the top 2% of agents in Canada with Royal LePage three years in a row. How has having a mentor as you began your career helped you to get to where you are today? Maybe even higher than you would have already gone. Who knows?

Rachel: Yes, definitely. I have to give a lot of credit to having the mentors along the way. I would say for myself, I'm the type of person who if a situation lands on my lap that I'm uncertain of, it will escalate very quickly in terms of stress levels. Having somebody that's a phone call away or that's a conversation away and a trusted resources has just been so significant. I would say that probably the biggest thing in terms of building your confidence is having a mentor that you trust on the other end of the phone just because every day you run into a new situation. You run into things you never thought would exist, but here you are, here's a situation.

Sometimes it's time-sensitive and there's a lot of money on the line and you really want to take care of your people, but there's certain circumstances where you just don't know what you don't know. Having somebody that you trust on the other end of the phone, be it small or big, could be a day-to-day task, just like it could be a major milestone moment in your career. Having those people around you is, I would say, everybody should try and have at least one mentor in their life, if not a few.

Erin: To be a mentee at the same time too. It seems like you can be both. It just seems to make sense because we never ever stop learning. Is that right, Nicole?

Nicole: That's right. Really, no matter what career you're in, whether you're on the real estate side, the association side, learning is a part of how you grow and how you thrive. This industry is evolving just so quickly as we can all attest to, whether it's on the technology side, the market, the market conditions. To stay up to speed and competitive in these times requires you to be tapping into those networks, learning, being a self-learner, identifying what you don't know, and then seeking it out where you can. I think it's a great trait to have. I think a lot of our mentors, my mentors anyway, they have that same value system, they have that same expectation.

They're learning as I'm learning and they're able to bestow down what they're synthesizing from what they're learning. That's a benefit to me and I can also provide that service going back up.

Erin: I'm curious about both your perspectives on this one, but I'm going to start with you, Rachel. What would you say are some important tips or considerations when it comes to real estate mentorship?

Rachel: I think a good mentee definitely carries a certain sense of accountability for themselves, knowing, again, like we spoke earlier, the metric of their success levels, knowing themselves well, how much work are you willing to put in, respect for their mentor, being open to new ideas. I think a lot of us have a certain direction we want to take it, but realizing that there's not just one way to reach one end result. Just being flexible in the type of information we're willing to receive and being open to different perspectives.

Nicole: I think Rachel hit the nail on the head. It's really just being honest with yourself. What do you want to get out of this? Then putting in the time and effort, listening, being attentive. It's okay to disagree with what somebody is telling you. You get to choose, it's your career, what you want to take and what you want to cast away, but making sure that if you're asking somebody for their time and we're all busy, we all have families, that you are willing to move forward and at least take what they're saying and put it into motion in some sense so that there is that return in value.

Erin: Are there things that you've encountered during your day and thought, "Oh, I went over this with my mentor"? Does that ever come back to you like that? Is it the gift that keeps giving? What do you think, Rachel?

Rachel: I would say probably my most significant lesson that I've learned from a mentor along the way, and it was probably my first week in real estate, and it was try and keep a paper trail of almost everything. You don't know when you're going to need it and it makes for a lot of emails, but when you do need it, you are going to be very happy it's there.

Nicole: It's your insurance of happy.

Rachel: Yes.

Erin: It's a virtual paper trail, right?

Rachel: Yes, exactly. That is something I've carried in my back pocket through the years and it saved me more than once. I would definitely say that that's probably the smallest one-liner that has carried me through my career.

Erin: That's fascinating. Anything like that pop to your mind, Nicole?

Nicole: Yes, I also have a one-liner. It's funny how the one-liners stick with you, but it's sometimes you have to move out to move up. Sometimes you've outgrown the role. What you're seeking next, you're going to have to leave what's comfortable, what you know to gain the breadth or depth of experience that you need to take that next step. For me, I was working at the Canadian Real Estate Association here and I wanted to make that leap to more of a leadership role, but I needed more depth in the housing space within the leadership space.

That's where I moved up, I moved out, and I was happy to come back to the real estate community bringing what I learned from these experiences and other places that then I can take and use it to better the industry we have here, the REALTOR® community, and my board at the Ottawa Real Estate Board.

Erin: Okay, those are two great one-liners, if you will. It all comes back to one main point, it seems, after this great conversation with you both, which is having a tight-knit community. Why do you both feel this is so crucial to a striving industry? We'll go back to you, Nicole.

Nicole: I think it's having a tight-knit group that can serve as your sounding board. It can provide you with the feedback you need, whether it's constructive or whether it's supportive. You need a little bit of both probably. Then that also allows you to build out a network. It starts with a small group, and then hopefully, it organically grows to their networks, to folks that they know, to people that they trust.

Because if you trust somebody within that close circle and they have a trusted relationship with someone and you need a lawyer, a mortgage broker, you need somebody with experience in this, that, and the other, a recommendation from someone in that tight-knit group, that's going to be held with so much more esteem. You build the small group, and then you expand the network, and hopefully, between those two things, you have the building blocks, the infrastructure for a really strong and successful career.

Erin: You, Rachel, why do you think that having a tight-knit community is just so important to a thriving industry?

Rachel: I think that confident, pleasant agents just make for confident, educated clients. At the end of the day, it's a collaborative industry. We're going to cross paths at one point or another. If that can be a positive experience, we're all going to be better for it. I think that the stronger the industry is as a whole, and that can be through transfer of knowledge and mentorship, the better we're all going to be for it. I don't think there's really anything we can lose.

Erin: Okay, so what's next? You're both enjoying thriving careers so far, but obviously, there's so much more to come for you both. What are you hoping to achieve? We'll start with you, Rachel.

Rachel: I'm pretty happy with my sales career. I really can't say anything about that, but the next challenge that I've given myself is stepping into more of a leadership role. Leadership, communication. I've looked towards people within the real estate industry and outside of the real estate industry to try and help me navigate these new waters and become more confident in the information that I can pass down and different structures. Yes, definitely the leadership side.

Erin: For you, Nicole, what's the future hold for you?

Nicole: Oh, that's a great question. I'm relatively new here at the Ottawa Real Estate Board, so I am getting settled. It's been about three months, but what I'm looking to do and what I know the board is hoping is that we can establish ourselves and grow the vision we have as being all things real estate in Ottawa. Serving the members, being a voice in the community on housing, real estate, making sure that people in Ottawa, citizens have a resource when it comes to their housing needs. That's something that I look forward to building and growing here at the Ottawa Real Estate Board.

Erin: Congratulations on your new position, by the way, and good luck to you. Good luck to you as well, Rachel. Let me just end with this question. If somebody watching or listening leaves with one thing about this conversation, Rachel, what do you hope it is?

Rachel: I think once you're really ready to put in the hard work and find the people that align well with you and everything else should fall into place.

Erin: Nicole?

Nicole: I would say successful people have a lineup of people behind them that help them get there. If you're looking to be successful, start building out that network so you have the folks behind you to help propel you all the way through.

Erin: Sounds great. We thank you both for your time and your experience and wish you both all the best in the future. Can't wait to see what's next. Thank you.

Nicole: Thank you.

Rachel: Thank you.

Erin: Thank you, again, Nicole and Rachel for that insightful and inspiring conversation. The benefits of real estate mentorship are clearly long lasting, and you never know when the connections you make will circle back around to help you in the future. Now, if you're wondering where to start, reach out to your local board or association to see if they have any programs on the go or they could point you in a direction that you may not have considered. Of course, if you liked this episode and we hope you did, please tell us by giving us a rating or review us on your preferred podcast platform. We always appreciate it.

REAL TIME is brought to you by the Canadian Real Estate Association. Production is courtesy of Alphabet® Creative with tech support from Rob Whitehead. Thank you so much for joining us. I'm Erin Davis and we'll see you next time on REAL TIME.