The G.E.M. Series EP20: Building Success Through Meaningful Connections With Jessica Caballero
[00:00:00] Blake: Welcome to the G.E.M series powered by rocket level. On this podcast, we empower entrepreneurs to succeed by setting big goals, executing like a pro, and having a fearless mindset. The G.E.M series is all about investing in yourself. We're here to share the path to getting what you want out of life. By sharing the stories of entrepreneurs who have.
[00:00:21] Themselves providing thorough research from our team on what careers and habits are yielding the best results and discussing the mindset it takes to overcome the obstacles that all future entrepreneurs will face investing in yourself, starts with putting in the work every single day. And this podcast is here to help you do exactly that.
[00:00:39] My name is Blake Chapman. I'm the vice president of the ambassador program here at the rocket level. And I am thrilled to be your host for the G.E.M.
[00:00:49] All right. Hello everybody. Today. I am pleased to welcome another incredible guest to the G.E.M series. Jessica Kado, Jessica carved out her place as a creative director in corporate environments, and then ultimately made the switch to working for herself full time in real estate. And I mean, she is a luxury real estate professional and is widely known by our brand.
[00:01:09] Jess in the city, Jessica has achieved. So much she's achieved the coveted president circle award for the top 6% of agents at our brokerage globally and has actually been recognized by the Atlanta realtors association as a top producer. So I guess what I'm getting at is she's, she's killing it. And she's right here with me, Jess.
[00:01:29] How are you doing? 
[00:01:31] Jessica: I'm great. Thank you for 
[00:01:32] Blake: having me. Hey, I am so glad to have you on so Jessica, obviously, I can't sum up everything in a couple of sentences. Could you just tell the audience a little bit about it? Yeah. 
[00:01:42] Jessica: So I have been an Atlanta resident for the past 26 years originally from New York City.
[00:01:49] And yeah, so I've been here. I was in the creative world, much, like you were saying graphic design, creative direction. And I was in corporate America for about. I don't know, 22 years or so. And then I decided to take a leap of faith retire from that career and start a new one in real estate. So yeah.
[00:02:08] had that entrepreneurial spirit my entire life, but I didn't like it. Hone in on it until after 40. I hear you. Yeah, but it happened and I'm happy that it's happened. Because I feel like I'm able to do a lot of things that I love serve my clients and help people build some wealth, which is the best part.
[00:02:27] Blake: Absolutely. Right. Absolutely. Right. That is so cool. It is neat though, you know, seeing people reach that stage where you're like. It doesn't matter. It's just at some point hearing stories like this, about ripping the bandaid off and going after what you want is just, I don't know. It gets me pumped up every single time and I hope everybody can get connected to what they truly wanna do.
[00:02:46] So take me back to the beginning of you, you mentioned having an entrepreneurial spirit at a pretty young age. What, were some examples of that? What was your first kind of goal growing up? You. 
[00:02:58] Jessica: Yeah. So I always knew I wanted to be my boss. That was for sure. You could probably ask my mom about that.
[00:03:04] so as a child. I had a solution for everything. There was never a problem. It was always like, how are we going to figure this out? So I think from a child, I was a problem solver and that's just again, I've honed in on some of those problem-solving skills as I've gotten older. And yeah.
[00:03:21] So I've always led with that. Just innately. So and then being in corporate America, I mean, that's, again, another thing I learned a lot about leading people. I learned about corporate politics, you know, things I didn't necessarily love. Yeah. Yeah. And thinking, you know, I think that I could create my own business and incorporate some of the, you know, I don't know, just some genuine, you know, care for my clients and all of that type of thing and bring it into a business model.
[00:03:54] And and I have, and so it's been, it's been great. It's tiring, you know, it's, it's hard to be everything and wear many hats. Sure. But It's just it, you know, I just love it so much. So it fuels me. 
[00:04:04] Blake: That's incredible. And hearing that background, it makes a lot of sense how you'd be able to leverage that in what you do right now.
[00:04:11] So take me to the mindset of where you were at whenever you're like. You know what? I wanna do something else. What was, yeah. Where, where, what, how are things going around then? Yeah. Yeah. 
[00:04:23] Jessica: So I can, I remember the first time around, so this is the second go around at my own business, but this time it's it stuck.
[00:04:30] The first time around was let's see, I believe. It was 2012. And I was corporate America. I was taking a little bit of a break and I decided to start a small business called the cycle of style. And you know, I love fashion and luxury goods, et cetera. So it was a small concept where I was bringing that to people in a very personal type of space and it was by appointment.
[00:04:53] So I was doing that. And I liked it, but it just didn't take off. And, you know, at the time I had a mentor, my friend, Richard Blackwell loved him. You know, he said, look, don't be upset if your business does not work out. If you've tried everything and you need to, you know, say, you know, this one didn't work out for me, that is part of being a business owner.
[00:05:12] And that makes you stronger. Knowing when to bow out gracefully. And so I did that. I, I gave it three years. I had to bow out gracefully. And, but what that did was it helped me think about, okay, well, if it's not that then what? And so I went back to corporate America for a little while it was with Home Depot, for corporate for about seven years.
[00:05:32] And within that time, it allowed me to think about what I wanna do. What are the skills that I can bring to a business? How do I utilize my network of people that I, I know? And so, and that brought me to real estate, you know, it's first of all, love homes have a few and I appreciate architecture.
[00:05:51] I love business, so I feel like I'm 50% analytical, and 50% creative. So I feel like I could bring that to my clients and the business as well. So you know, that's kind of how. Started. So, you know, my time at home Depot was a little bit of my buffer to kind of figure out things. Yeah. figure out a lot about my personality too.
[00:06:12] I mean, I will say my time there was great in the sense where I got to learn about, like I said, leading what kind of manager? I, I am, you know, I, I did a disc management profile. Has just been awesome. I mean, I'm a high D all day. So I just know that and it's just like, why fight? Why, why fight this?
[00:06:32] I'm gonna do my own thing. So I set out to become a realtor in 2018, actually 2017. I gotta be honest. It took me a few times to pass that test and but I was highly motivated. And then 2018 I became a realtor that was January 2018. And. Then I decided to officially leave corporate America.
[00:06:54] And that was a hard decision, you know, I gotta having something that's somewhat secure to go into something very unknown was terrifying. It was terrifying. I was by myself. I didn't have any support. I had some money in the bank, but that was, you know, that was. And then I had the motivation and drive.
[00:07:13] But the other thing I knew is that I would never let myself be in a bad position. Like if I had to take on a side job or do something in the interim, I would do that. But real estate was the focus and it was like, it's not I wasn't gonna be that person that was in it for, you know, six months to a year.
[00:07:31] And then, oh, I'm not making any money I'm outta here. So, I knew that it was a long game. And I think most things are, yeah, most things that are worth it, long game and lots of growth over the past five years. For me, just from a personal perspective emotionally as a business person, it's been, it's been a beautiful 
[00:07:50] Blake: transformation.
[00:07:51] That's incredible. You know, it's, it's also a few things that I took out of that is one it's, it's really neat that you've been you know, fueled by your past ventures to be able to realize, Hey, look. If this doesn't work out, I'm gonna, I'm gonna make a way to make something work out for myself and keep trying and growing your skills and focus on learning yourself and then bringing that into something that fits well for you.
[00:08:16] And you know, we, I, I was like, when I was looking around a little bit more about you, we do have a couple of mutuals and they spoke so highly of you and said how excellent you are at your job. So yeah, I, I just you know, I you're killing it right now, which I think. Just, just great, because real estate is not, it's not easy, you know?
[00:08:36] Tell me, like, what were your expectations going in and how did they line up with reality? Yeah. When you first got started. 
[00:08:44] Jessica: Hmm. Okay. So I think this is maybe I shared this with other people that start cuz I mentor people and I hear this often, so this is the thing. So I thought when I started that everyone I knew loved family, and friends were just gonna flock to me.
[00:09:00] Mm-hmm it was quite the opposite. It's so funny. 
[00:09:03] Blake: It's like any, yeah. It's yeah. 
[00:09:07] Jessica: And so and then, so it took me about an entire year, my first year to figure out like I'm not mad at anyone to use me, don't use me, whatever. It was just about. Connecting handling things gracefully. I think just, you know, being graceful, what may not happen today will probably happen sometime in the future.
[00:09:25] I had to build credibility and I completely understand that. And I didn't, you know, originally I was upset about, you know, someone didn't use me or whatever, and that was the tough part, but And then the other thing I didn't realize is how much I had to work on self too. I mean, we talk, especially at my brokerage I'm with Atlanta fine homes.
[00:09:43] Sotheby's national Realty, that's a mouthful. We talk a lot about mindset. We talk a lot about, you know Making sure that we're right. And we're in a really good head space to help our clients and, and bring them you know, a high level of service. So I had no idea before coming into this industry that so much of it was about mindset.
[00:10:04] So I so that's that, I mean, that's an important and valuable lesson that I have learned and it's been 
[00:10:11] Blake: super helpful mindset is, is, is everything. What's an example of the kind of mindset that you think? Have to channel to be able to move, move forward and keep pursuing the next thing for yourself.
[00:10:24] Jessica: You can't take anything personal in this business. Yeah. And so that, there's that I think the other part, I want anyone that does business with me, anyone that's a friend to me, I want them to feel better after meeting me. So, you know, when they walk away, they're like, wow, I enjoy that experience.
[00:10:41] So you know, that's another thing. So I'm just really mindful of like, being able to give people that. I don't know if I want them to have a great experience with me. Absolutely. You know, I'll, I'll do any, almost anything from my, my client's friends, colleagues, whatever. Yeah. 
[00:10:55] Blake: Yeah. It seems like there's a high level of needing to be self-aware if you're a real estate agent as well.
[00:11:01] I mean, how do you, how do you learn about yourself? You know so that you can understand how you're coming across the people and all of that. 
[00:11:09] Jessica: Yeah. Well, I think that was a journey that happened well before I decided to embark on real estate. Yeah. So you know, in my late twenties, I was very interested in probably undoing some of the things in my, in my life prior and, you know, really kind of becoming Jessica, not my parents' version of Jessica or, you know, and so, and just kind of breaking away from that.
[00:11:32] I surrounded myself with people that, you know, wanted to learn those things as well. I hired a coach. She was a life coach. And at the time I hired her because I was embarking on a triathlon and doing stuff like that. So, I just needed help with the mindset around that. And then it morphed into just talking about my life and experiences and things like that.
[00:11:54] So I think that that practice for the past 12 years has made me highly aware of some of mine. Just everything, all of it. So it, it definitely my, my, my coach always says she's like, it never has anything to do with anyone else. It's always about like what you're saying to yourself and, and she's, she's not wrong.
[00:12:14] Blake: Yeah. Yeah. I've heard coaches and mentors and, and a life coach as well. How essential is it? Do you think to invest in these kinds of resources? You know, I mean, should, should people, should everybody be doing this? If they wanna better themselves, you. 
[00:12:28] Jessica: I mean, I, I do, I, I think it should be a requirement, but you know, me too.
[00:12:34] You know, sometimes people don't wanna find out about themselves and they're scared. And, and that's the other thing through my journey with coaching, I learned to stop being stop fearing certain things or understanding the root of the fear. And, and why, like, why am I so afraid of this thing? Or why am I so afraid of starting my own business?
[00:12:52] If I fail, then what I mean for me, is failure is not even a thing. Yeah. It's, it's learning. It's character-building moments. It's, you know like this is all to make you better. And so I think I've been able to apply some of the skills and the principles that I learned through coaching and really like spin it differently.
[00:13:11] Once I had a really hard day yesterday, by the way, it was. But I had to spin it differently at least five times for myself. And so I was so in my head yeah. About like, Nope, that's not what I'm gonna say. This is not a terrible moment. We're gonna make this. Right. So, and it does help it, it has helped me quite a bit.
[00:13:30] It makes so much sense to me. I'm 
[00:13:31] Blake: like, 
[00:13:32] Jessica: And it's also attracted things to me that I wasn't attracting before. So I think there is the power of attraction and people see it and they kinda it's like a moth to a flame. Right? Absolutely. 
[00:13:44] Blake: Absolutely. It is. You know, I mean, I feel like failure is this thing where.
[00:13:50] If you're not failing, then maybe you're not raising the bar, you know? I mean, if you were just constantly in your comfort zone, then you're never gonna be able to take it to that next level, which sounds like you are constantly practicing something like that, which is pretty cool.
[00:14:06] Jessica: Yeah. I constantly try to push myself as it pertains to that. I don't expect it from everyone around me, but I mean, again, I, it is just But I do. I try to push myself as much as I possibly can to be the best version of Jess. 
[00:14:20] Blake: Yeah. Yeah. So, I know you do all kinds of stuff. What are your biggest passions currently?
[00:14:28] Jessica: I know this is so nerdy, but investing in real estate is my passion. It just really is. My significant other David he's upstairs. We have some property together. We have a tiny house in east Atlanta. You know, we are embarking on getting some property in. Oh, cool. Okay. So it's called the Charles it's a tiny luxury experience.
[00:14:49] So I love anything that is about business and then having a creative spin to it. Yeah. Because I have to U utilize that creative part of me. So that was the perfect thing. We embarked that on in 20, 20, oh, sorry. 20, 21. And I had this vision for it and we had it built and we did some marketing around it, made it pretty.
[00:15:11] So that's our baby. Charles is our baby. Wow. 
[00:15:13] Blake: I can, can I stay a couple of nights? What absolutely. 
[00:15:19] Jessica: Oh my gosh. I want everyone to stay there. 
[00:15:20] Blake: Yes. OK. Very cool. Yeah, my wife and I love tiny homes so much, and yeah, that's, that's very, very neat. So tell me a little bit more about your creative side of you.
[00:15:29] Like how do you see that being merged into what we, you know, what, what you're doing currently? You know, if you could expand on that a little bit more. 
[00:15:38] Jessica: Certainly I, so there's the creative side, like physically, right? So when I go into a listing yeah. Or I'm helping people get their homes ready. Of course, I'm pretty good at purging and able to like eliminate things quickly from the equation to make it look like a different home.
[00:15:55] So that's where the trust comes in with my clients. And, you know, especially for the ones that refer to me and don't know me, Please just give me my, my moment. Mm-hmm yes. And, you know, I will redesign restyle and a house in an hour and get that ready. So it's a natural gift. I don't know where it came from, but there's that part?
[00:16:15] I helped my clients after they, they purchased a really good friend of ours. He purchased his beautiful home recently and he's just like, what do I do with this place? It's like, where do I? So, you know, I took on a project where I helped him design his house and, and that was so fun, you know, because it was, you know, he was telling me about his personality and he wanted a smoking room and he wanted to do all his cool stuff.
[00:16:36] So I came up with some ideas and we executed them, again, was just a fun thing. And so, and to see that the smile on his face after the fact, I was like, wow, like this is my place now. So like, I just love that feeling. I just love something about that. And then from a business standpoint, I think there's creativity.
[00:16:56] I mean, I have to be creative all day every day with contracts how we're spinning things, you know all, all of that. So that's another side of creativity. Wow. That's 
[00:17:07] Blake: yeah, I mean, I, I, that makes sense to me. And I feel like a lot of times creativity comes from a place of that's how you can show people that you, you care and you're, it's like channeling.
[00:17:19] Each kind falls into the other. And yes, it goes a long way. I would imagine, especially, in real estate, but really in, in, in everything. Which I, right. Yeah. I, I love so for me though, I think the key thing is you kind of touched on, on mindset, but I mean, you have to just be constantly motivated.
[00:17:36] I mean, you're doing so much right now and I've already, I can already tell that you are constantly motivating yourself. So how, how do you maintain? 
[00:17:47] Jessica: Yeah. So I fall off sometimes I'm human, right? It happens. But I would say I keep it simple. I try to, I keep, or I have a regimen. I try to do it every day.
[00:17:58] Sometimes it doesn't happen every day, but it's my miracle morning. And I try to get up before the rest of the house and just have my hour to hour and 15 minutes for Jessica. And that is what I call my time to dream and be creative. It, you know, that's the time where I reconnect to why I'm doing what I'm doing.
[00:18:18] Cuz I don't wanna lose sight of that cuz the minute I lose sight of that, then I'm off doing things that I shouldn't be doing. So, you know, I, I try to stay connected with that concept. I do my affirmations, so I just recently information took this course. I know they're good. They're really good. I took a ninja selling course through Sotheby's, which is phenomenal.
[00:18:38] And they talked about writing something down 25 times a day, and it was the same phrase, 25 times. It takes about 11 minutes to do it. And then doing that for like 30 days. And then after the 30 days, change that affirmation to something different. And I have got to tell you, I've been doing this for two months and I have attracted some of these things that I've written down.
[00:19:00] It's a powerful tool. And, and so it's almost like meditation when you're doing it because as you're writing it, you're absorbing that. And, and that's like the top of mind. So if you're starting your morning, that way. Like it's free. It's easy. And that's the time for you? So I feel like that is the motivation and that's, so I'm, I'm always connected to why I'm doing what I'm doing and everything around that has to serve that purpose.
[00:19:27] Blake: That is genius. Yeah, because writing something like that down intentionally every single day, I, it just. It helps weed out all the other stuff, you know what I mean? And, and hone in. I I think that's incredible. That is an excellent form of meditation. I love meditation and, and affirmations and mantras, and yeah.
[00:19:48] And honing in. And I think the biggest thing that I get out of it is I, I, I don't, I don't necessarily know that I'm connected to the spiritual side of it as, as much as I am somebody that is using it as a way for me too. Yeah, simplify my life a little bit and focus on what I want. So it sounds like that's sort of what you do and, you know, I'm sure there's a little spirituality thrown into the mix there too.
[00:20:10] Of course, but you know, definitely 
[00:20:13] Jessica: yeah. There's a little bit of that in there. Yes. Very cool. You think that time for yourself is key and carving it out is. I think it's like the only thing that matters sometimes is just having that time for yourself and making that time, whether it's day or night or whatever, but undistracted time solely for 
[00:20:32] Blake: you.
[00:20:32] So has there ever been a time that you wanted to give up or throw in the towel ever whenever you've been doing this? I mean, I just know there's all, there are all kinds of experiences whenever you're going in and doing something new and, and you know, going for it. 
[00:20:49] Jessica: Yes. I can't say that I felt that way recently, but I would say in my second year in, I felt that way.
[00:20:56] I was some of the people that were coming my way, you know, I, I had a, I've had a lot of interesting. Transactions and, and conversations with people. And you know, it's hard, to be in a position where people don't value you and your time and what you do, and time is the most precious resource on this planet.
[00:21:14] So it's. It's even more precious than, well, anything else, in my opinion, so you don't get it back. And so when you're giving so much of yourself to people and that is not valued on the other end, that's just a really tough one for me. So I felt that in 2019 a lot, and I think I was more sensitive to it as well.
[00:21:33] I have a little more thick skin now and I can deal with it and I know where to put that, but Yeah, that's probably when I wanted to, when, you know, not being treated with respect or, you know, I think a lot of people think in our line of business that we're, you know, we don't, we don't have good intentions.
[00:21:50] We don't mean well, and we're money driven, which, you know, the last part, you know? Okay. That might be the case for some but I try not to lead with that. I lead with my heart and I lead with the idea. I wanna be in your life forever. I wanna grow with you and your family let's grow old together. I always say that.
[00:22:08] And so just, just know that I'm coming from that place. So, but you know, again, not everyone values that. Yeah. Yeah. And sometimes 
[00:22:17] Blake: so important to. You know, whenever you do get down in, in one of those scenarios to, to find that that self-validation and just, you know, I think what I've noticed is anytime I've felt been into a place of being burnt out or anything like that, it's that I start listening to the negative instead of, instead of listening to the positive and, and it's sometimes that's a tough switch for me to make is or in the past I've.
[00:22:42] Love in life for a while. for the, in the recent, in the recent years. But I've related to that in the way that you know, I've had people I I'm in sales, you know, and you, I, you wanna lead with empathy and, and care and genuinely trying to help somebody. But can there is burnout that comes from, comes from all of that?
[00:23:02] So what do you do to kind of like dig yourself out of the trenches whenever you, or back then when you dealt with when you navigated that? Cause, you've, you've kind of found more tools and you've mentioned thick skin a couple of times Yeah, certainly, 
[00:23:15] Jessica: you know a support system I think is great.
[00:23:17] So I have a mastermind group of other realtors that I work with and, you know, we have our conversations and, you know, we, we care about each other. We care about each other's businesses. We, we pick each other up when we're down. Yeah. Kind of thing. And there's lots of motivation and that type of speech, but amongst my peers, so.
[00:23:37] I value that. I mean, I've had great support from my I've had two brokers so far in my career and so just amazing people that have seen everything, you know, and they're just like, you got this like you've got the skill set to like exceed Excel and be amazing in this industry. Like just, this is just a hiccup.
[00:23:55] And, you know, and, and, and eventually you'll start those people won't even come to you anymore. They'll go somewhere else and that's okay if they do. So I think hearing that and understanding it and, and, and knowing that I don't need to serve everyone is okay. No, 
[00:24:10] Blake: that's true. So whenever you first got started in real estate, I'm gonna take it back a little bit further, cuz it made me think about support systems.
[00:24:19] Okay. What was your family like? You know, did you, was, was everybody pretty like supportive of you to, to make this change? Cause the reason I asked these kinds of things too, just to give a little bit of context a lot of 'em are listeners are people that are, you know, in the corporate environment and are very curious about going and doing something.
[00:24:36] Fills their heart up a little bit more and gives them the ability to be results-oriented and, and go after what they truly love. So I think it's really good for everybody to hear about what the experience is whenever you do rip the bandaid off. And how do you kind of how you navigated that?
[00:24:53] Jessica: I don't know if they wanna hear my perspective, 
[00:24:55] Blake: the hard truth, the hard truth is what's good. You know, it ain't easy. 
[00:25:00] Jessica: Yeah. So my family did not understand what I was doing. They, they were like, you went to art school. You're great at what you do. You have this great job. I don't understand. So and I didn't either, but I just, there was a huge need to fulfill this entrepreneurial spirit.
[00:25:15] And so I did it anyway, had a great group of friends, other fellow entrepreneurs that understood my mad. And they were able to be there for me and just like, you know what, keep going, keep going, keep going. And so my friend group and the people that I associated with changed a little bit from my corporate life, it was a bit it's like I had, it's almost like I graduated high school and went to college and I didn't see the same people anymore that I knew in a sense.
[00:25:44] And I was associating slightly with different people. Not that I don't associate with people from my corporate life anymore. That's not true, but you know, in those initial stages of my career, when I was starting I was very mindful of who I was spending my time with and, and what the conversation was.
[00:26:00] And I knew that it always had to be positive and encouraging. And I was also surrounding myself, with people that were doing much better than I was at the. so and I think that's key, even if they didn't want me to be around them. I that I was that girl 
[00:26:16] Blake: so ideal. Yeah. Yeah. 
[00:26:18] Jessica: It's you just learn so much from people and yeah, so it's that's how I survived.
[00:26:24] I think the first two years, 
[00:26:26] Blake: yeah. Surrounding yourself with those kinds of people will just change your game entirely, you know, and give you so many perspectives. Yeah. You want people that have walked the walk to be around you. And requiring, you know, to get to the level that you want to be at. It requires a little bit of sacrifice in that you, you need to be honest with your relationships.
[00:26:45] I feel like, you know, and recognize, Hey, I was just listening to Reese Witherspoon. She's got a great podcast. And she was, she was talking about how there are three types of people. There are the people that really care and wanna see you succeed and will be constantly pouring into you.
[00:27:00] some people are in the middle that is just indifferent. And then there are people at the very bottom that are gonna constantly spin something into a negative direction and maybe tell you all the things that you, you know, say you shouldn't be doing it or anything like that. And we gotta find that top 3% or that top 30%.
[00:27:17] I feel like, you know, I, I think it's so, so 
[00:27:20] Jessica: crucial. I think it's tough to come by, but when you find them. Hang out, latch on whatever, not latch on. No, 
[00:27:28] Blake: I, I know exactly. I know exactly what you mean 
[00:27:31] Jessica: around them. Read the same air they're breathing. Yeah. Yes. I think that's great. 
[00:27:35] Blake: But yeah. No, I think that's incredible that you've built such a strong support network around you.
[00:27:39] And I have no doubt. I mean, it sounds like you probably mentor other people too, right? And you pass that, pass that down. I've 
[00:27:46] Jessica: had in the past. I have had that opportunity and I love that. Honestly, it was just having lunch with someone yesterday we were chatting I hadn't met this person before, but we were networking.
[00:27:57] He's like, you should be a mentor. I was like, okay, like, that's my next career? Figure this one out first. But yeah. You know, going back to what we were saying I think also the I didn't have much fear, like in terms. I wanted to put myself out there and I wanted to talk to as many people as possible.
[00:28:16] So I do remember it was January 2019 and I was down in the dumps. I was like coming off a not-so-great first year. And I ended up calling, it was like five or six of the top agents in Atlanta. These people did not know that I even existed. And I called, I got two phone calls back and And one of them, she's actually in my office today.
[00:28:39] Jerry Metcalf, she really, I saw that name. She, yeah, she was awesome. I mean, she was fantastic. And, and Jerry sat with me and had lunch with me and I said, I just wanna pick your brain for one hour, please. I just need some help. And I need to understand certain things. And she helped me break down, like.
[00:28:57] Trying to like, how do I reach out to my sphere of influence? How do I connect with people genuinely? I didn't want to pick up the phone and PE call people that I didn't know. So how do I kinda reconnect with people and, and do it in a way where it's not business driven all of the time? So I needed to be genuine with all of my interactions, of course, because a lot of people, I am now my friends.
[00:29:21] So she had lots of great insight. She mapped stuff out for me. It was the most amazing hour-long conversation that I had. And that was the year I turned my business around, like from the first year. And the second year was night and day as, oh my gosh. Prop. That's a cool giver mentality. 
[00:29:39] Blake: It is.
[00:29:41] It is. I mean, that's, that imagines if you hadn't decided to cold call a few different real estate agents like you just don't know, but what's, I didn't have 
[00:29:51] Jessica: nothing to lose at that 
[00:29:52] Blake: point. I'd like nothing to lose. No, exactly. But sometimes it's hard for people to get into that mindset and they're like, they don't understand truly how low the consequences are.
[00:30:03] Of doing something that's outside of your comfort zone. You know the risk versus reward is just unreal, you know? 
[00:30:11] Jessica: Yeah, for sure. 
[00:30:12] Blake: It's so cool. Yeah. Once I realized that I felt pretty liberated to do what I want, you know, in life and. Be me and, and go after these things. That's so cool that, that you had that experience though.
[00:30:25] And I'm sure that now Jerry's been like, oh my gosh, I've seen like Jessica going out and like, that's cool. Step by step killing it. So that's great. So you, you, you came into real estate and like the end of 2017. Is that kind of, when you started, you. I got my license January, January 2018. Great.
[00:30:44] So obviously COVID, wasn't too far after. I always want to hear, like, did that impact you in any way at all? When, when it. 
[00:30:54] Jessica: Yeah. So again, another opportunity to be possibly terrified in this industry where it's like, oh no, what's gonna happen. Called one of my top agent friends. And I'm like, what do we do when there's a crisis in the world?
[00:31:05] And like, you keep going, you keep going and you find a new way to do business. That is the entrepreneurial spirit and that's the way you work as a, you know, a business owner. And I'm like, okay. Yeah. All right, I'm going. And so had a great conversation. It was February 2020 with my broker at the time.
[00:31:23] And he said, look, he's like, life is about to change for everyone. And people are going to pause and then they're gonna start making changes. Mm-hmm, that is for sure. And he wasn't wrong. I mean, 20, 20, and 21 were a whirlwind. And I'm so happy that we're in 2022 where it's calming down a bit. And you could give people the time and the energy that they deserve and not be so rushed.
[00:31:47] Mm-hmm with certain things, but it was great. Yeah. Two best 
[00:31:51] Blake: years. I, I was wondering, I kind of had a hunch. Yeah. But you know, I, I know that one thing is that with people sitting around more, they have more time to think about. Making those changes, you know, everything. So sounds like that's how it kinda played out over the last couple of years, 
[00:32:09] Jessica: for sure.
[00:32:09] Yeah, it was pretty crazy, but. Great experience. And you know, when there's when we have the next crisis, I'll be ready for that too. 
[00:32:17] Blake: Yeah. That's Hey, that's, that's great. I also love that you mentioned, you know, the pivot, right? It's like, all right, well, we just have to adjust the strategy and stay agile and, and just keep going.
[00:32:30] I believe that people who stay in the game the longest will, will win, you know in the sense that if you just keep pushing. And stay agile and keep adjusting. Something's gonna stick and something's gonna pan out if you're constantly trying to improve yourself just a little bit every single day.
[00:32:48] I always, I am curious cuz I, I, I love talking to people in real estate. What do you think are some of the key characteristics that allow people to do well in, real estate, and are some of those inherent versus learned you think? 
[00:33:05] Jessica: Hmm, that's interesting. Or 
[00:33:06] Blake: can they be learned 
[00:33:09] Jessica: I think that some of them can be learned.
[00:33:11] So follow up, follow through is huge. So I think that can be learned. I believe that I learned that in my corporate life. So follow-up is everything. Even if I don't have an answer, I will have an answer, I can't get back to you today, but I'll get back to you tomorrow. So just letting people know that you're still there.
[00:33:31] So there's that intuitive, you know, just being able to understand. Read people ask the right questions. Again, I took this ninja course and they talk about people experiencing something at any, every given point and its pleasure or pain and understanding what that is and how you can help serve them based on you know, how they're feeling at that time.
[00:33:53] So I love to dive in and I rarely help a client that just calls me and says, Hey, I wanna look at a house. Can you show me this house? No, I'm not doing it, I need to have coffee with you. We need to have a drink. We need to have a conversation. And cuz I wanna understand, we know what's going on.
[00:34:09] So I think that learning to take the time to do that is key to just a long-term relationship and also building trust as well. So that's possibly something that's learned. Let's see. Yeah, I 
[00:34:24] Blake: would say those are the two big ones. Yeah. I mean. something that you learned a lot about people is that everything is, you know, about the relationship and ensuring that there's a mutual trust there and that you know, we can learn each other's yeah.
[00:34:41] In each other's comfort zones learn everything. Yeah. So that you can, you can make sure that the transaction is smooth and, and all of that. Cause at the end of the day, I'm like, The pitch, the pitch is out. Like people don't care about the pitch anymore. Do you know what I mean? People it's, it is just about like, feeling like, you know, somebody and knowing where their heart is.
[00:35:00] Plus, yeah, what's, what's in it for them. And being able to get that across to them. 
[00:35:05] Jessica: So. Yeah. And then I think also being skilled at learning how to deliver honesty. I'm from New York. So honesty is like in my blood. Right. So I love that. Yeah. But for me being in the south, I have to kind of temper that a bit more and, you know, serve it up with a little bit of honey.
[00:35:23] So I, I, I can be honest, but be kind about my honesty and not abrasive mm-hmm so I think learning how to do that and just saying, Hey, you. These are the possible options and these are the things that can happen and just, you know the, but I think sometimes what I see is people are afraid, to be honest with their clients.
[00:35:41] And I think that's where you lose all well. Yeah. You, you just 
[00:35:43] Blake: can't establish trust if you're not able to express that. Yeah. You know, be, have that radical candor. Right. And right. You know, it's, it's not always about being mean, but it is about being a bit blunt and direct with people so that they.
[00:35:57] Hey, this person is not gonna hesitate to tell me something that's a good or bad idea. Exactly. Yeah. Right. What's been a situation where you've had to be kind of radically honest with somebody? Whenever you've been working with them. You know what 
[00:36:11] Jessica: I, so without names, of course, I have been working with a client and they don't know me.
[00:36:17] They met me last year in an open house. They reached out to me this year and I'm helping their aging mother purchase her home. And so she's close to 80 and you know, it's, it's, it's been, it's been challenging cuz you know, she's my client ultimately, but I'm working with her, her children on getting this home for her.
[00:36:36] So. You know delivering honesty to them. Yeah. And, you know, has been, been a challenge, you know, my, my heart's in the right place. I want her to find the best place for herself. Of course. And but you know, I think they're highly sensitive because it's mom. So kind of working around that. Yeah. Well, yeah.
[00:36:55] So I, in that case, I typically give people options. I'm like, there's not just one way of doing this. There are two or three different ways. And if this were my mom and my situation, I would probably go down this road, but you have the options here they are. Yeah. But these are the possible scenarios, knowing what I know about this industry and how things operate, this is probably what will happen.
[00:37:15] That's so, so I can give them some 
[00:37:18] Blake: insight, at least. Yeah. That's, that's really, that's helpful. And I mean, the result of that is that everybody feels. Hey, I'm extremely clear on, on what my, yeah. What my choices are and what, how I can, how I can proceed. So yeah, I think that's yeah, I think that's great.
[00:37:31] And I think something that I that's that popped into my mind is there's so much that goes into getting to the point where you can be able to sell a house to somebody or buy a house for somebody. And I, I feel like there's maybe. A lack of knowledge out there about what goes into making that happen.
[00:37:50] So what do you think is part of your strategy for being able to effectively take care of a customer? What does like the build up to that look like typically for you whenever you're mapping everything out? So 
[00:38:02] Jessica: again, I do try to keep the process simple. Like, let's just say, if it's a first time home buyer, I do try to simplify things as much as possible.
[00:38:10] We have a strategy going into buying or selling and, you know, there's a sit down and I am, I feel like I'm always two to three steps ahead of my client. And, and I always tell you, like, let's take one thing at a time. I know what's coming next, but let's just like, take this one thing that we're doing right now.
[00:38:27] Let's not worry about what's gonna happen three weeks from now. And and I just kind of keep them focus. On, on what's in front of us, and then I'm able to prepare them for the next step. And so I think that's been really helpful. It is definitely a very personal, I am handholding all day and happily, happily handholding but just helping them understand the process.
[00:38:49] And I wanna help them understand that it's not that scary. You know, it's like, this is such an awesome opportunity to be in a position where you could actually buy a home, like amazing you're winning in life. That's so great. How can I. Understand and, and just so like, appreciate this moment, be grateful for it.
[00:39:08] And you know, so, you know, I do try to remind without being preachy, that this is a great thing that they're doing. Yes, very cool. I also try to share my personal stories, you know I bought my first place when I was single and I, it wasn't that expensive. I had to renovate it myself with YouTube and home Depot mm-hmm
[00:39:30] So I did a lot of, and I was able to make a nice profit on my home. So I share those stories with people on this is something that you can do. You don't need a partner to do this with. And so whatever you're thinking, like let's rewrite that story for you and let's, you know, help you focus on what's happening at this current 
[00:39:52] Blake: moment.
[00:39:52] No empowering. So and I love that you're taking people through every stage. It sounds like. Sounds like people probably defer to you, you know? And I feel like that's so essential to put, put people at ease is you don't want them to feel like, well, I gotta step in and, you know, try to figure this stuff out too.
[00:40:12] You wanna feel like, Hey, I'm listening to Jessica, you know? And how do you establish I mean, obviously, maybe authority's not the right way to put it, but it kind of is, you know, in the sense of like, how do you establish authority whenever you first are getting that process?
[00:40:29] Jessica: Yeah. I mean, I just, again, when I engage with them upon first meeting, it's like, Hey, you know, this is something where I'm here to help you. I'm your advocate. So whatever your concerns or whatever, they all go through me and I will help you sort through them as best as I possibly can. And again, we are a partner in this situation and I wanna continue to partner with you.
[00:40:49] And, and that means something to me and my business. So I'm gonna give you all of me. And so that's, and that's really what they get. I mean, I truly do operate from the standpoint. I think that's why I'm so tired at the end of every day. Yeah. but you know, it's what it's, it's just, it's just how I move.
[00:41:07] And I, and, and I like to give that to my clients. That is, 
[00:41:09] Blake: No, I think that's, I think that's essential for being able to, to do what you do. So. Thinking about anybody that is wanting to, you know, level up and, and get to where you're at now, what do you think are some of your favorite tips you've already given so many, but are there, there any additional favorite tips that you'd want to share for somebody that's wanting to improve their skills you think yeah.
[00:41:31] For, 
[00:41:32] Jessica: Improve their skills or wanna get 
[00:41:34] Blake: I say level up their game, you know, improve their skills. Yeah. 
[00:41:37] Jessica: Level up their game. OK. Yeah. I think just go back to understanding why you're doing what you're doing. and, you know whether it's for your family, whether it's for ultimate freedom, whatever that might be, and then get, you know, granular about what, what that looks like, what your life looks like five to 10 years from now, however far away you wanna plan it out.
[00:41:59] But because I feel like that helps motivate people and drive them. If you don't have a certain goal to, move towards then what are you moving towards? Exactly. So that's just me and that's me, you know, my 2 cents on that. So get clear on what that goal is. And then just, even if it's for an hour or two hours a day, have some sort of time blocking or a, a regimen that you have that is healthy, you know, whether it's the affirmations Whatever, whatever that is, writing things down, reading something good for you listening to a great podcast, whatever that might be.
[00:42:35] That's going to give you more than what you had. I think that's a, a, that's another key thing, but just taking, carving out that time daily for, for you to connect with you. So. That's a big one as well. And then I think once you have some of those things, then you know what you're working towards, you know?
[00:42:53] And then, so I, I kind of, you know, I I'm at that point and then last year I got to a point of my business where I was like, okay, well, who do I wanna be? Like, what kind of service do I wanna provide my people? So then I went on a discovery tour of just in the city and it's. Who am I, you know, and it's like, I'm the girl that loves Atlanta.
[00:43:11] I love to go out to eat. I love a lot I love a luxury lifestyle, and I want to give that to all of my people. I want to share that with them. So now I'm considered the luxury or I'm sorry, the lifestyle Atlanta agent, but You know, but it, it took a process for me to get to that point. I'm like, okay, now I know who I am and what I'm, what my voice is out there.
[00:43:34] And I think people are catching onto that. So that's great. But I think just baby steps, don't do everything at once. Just why are you doing it first? Like 
[00:43:42] Blake: figure that part out. Yeah, absolutely. I love that you've taken steps. Honing your brand, Jess in the city? Yeah. What, what made yeah. Boom for everybody that, that can't see it.
[00:43:54] Jess has this amazing Jess in the city Jess in the city. I think it's like a wood carving painted thing. Yeah, it is very cool. Very cool. Yeah. And love the, you know, creativity intersect intersecting with what you're doing there. Yeah. What, motivated you to wanna start your brand? What do you think?
[00:44:11] I mean, I'm sure you've been able to leverage it in such a great way and it helps you cause me even just seeing that I'm like, well, that's what I want. I would I'd wanna work with somebody that does, you know, what, what you're, you know, what you represent. Yeah. 
[00:44:23] Jessica: So. Well, I guess, I mean, I come from a branding background.
[00:44:28] So going to school for marketing and graphic design. Yes. It's all about the brand. So I was talking about brand well, before it became trendy, such a buzzword now and, and building that. Yeah, I know, but just, well, you know, well, before that Just knowing who you are and, and, and being confident about that and sharing it with the world.
[00:44:48] I, I think that we all should 
[00:44:50] Blake: do it. Why not? I to represent setting than to. I mean, try to be your best self and then figure out visuals that can back that up and, you know, messaging and all of that. I think that's certainly that's super essential and 
[00:45:06] Jessica: we wanted it to be fun too. You know, we wanted it to be fun and playful, a spin on sex in the city.
[00:45:12] People like that show. They love it, whatever, but then there's, there's something. Around that. So yeah, this could be a very serious industry, and people, you know, are serious about it and, and I am, but I do like to have fun and it's not all about, you know, being serious. 
[00:45:27] Blake: Yeah. I know. It's funny. I I was like, I was like, I'm pretty sure that's a sex and the city reference.
[00:45:31] I, I, yeah, I was always hating on it for so long cuz my wife watches it and then I sat down and I was. It just got to a point where we'd have dinner. I'd be like, Hey, are we watching sex in the city tonight? And so now I'm like sex in the city super fan over here. It's kind of funny. 
[00:45:50] I 
[00:45:50] Jessica: mean, I get it.
[00:45:51] Who's your favorite 
[00:45:52] Blake: character? I like Jessica. Yeah. You know, it's like you know, her, she, she does a, a great job in her, in her role there. I love it. But I, I, Miranda is a little nutty too, but. Yeah, but Hey, I like, I like, 'em all I like, 'em all. Yeah. So, you know, I, I guess thinking about all of that are, are something I always like to ask too, are people in, you know, specific industries, like what you're in, are there any myths out there that you'd like to dispel about being a real estate agent that you think is just, you know, Commonly held that maybe you could, you could clear, you could clear up for the record.
[00:46:29] Jessica: Absolutely. I'm gonna start with, we all make a ton of money so I'm not saying that there are not very wealthy people that sell real estate. In all honesty, I have done better in this career than I did in my previous. So I'm very grateful for that, but that is all hard work all day long. So but I think the myth is because of all these fabulous reality shows and the red bottoms yeah.
[00:46:54] Are showing off, you know, this luxury. Lifestyle and, you know, coming outta the Lamborghini and all the things and, and that's super sexy because it's TV, but yeah, when they flash that a hundred thousand dollars commission at the very bottom right-hand screen, you know, they're not getting that that is
[00:47:12] I will tell you who's getting that money, you know, 50%. Probably 25% or so is going to the government. No doubt. Mm-hmm cause you have to pay your taxes and then your broker's fees, you know, we have splits that are negotiated with our brokers and. So by the time we get that, it's still good, but you know, it's, it's just not what they portray on television.
[00:47:34] So I certainly have been approached by people that are just like, you guys make too much money. And for the amount that I work and what I give to my clients I just say to them, you have not had the dust in the city experience because if we're doing we're so ingrained in your life and we know everything that's going.
[00:47:51] And we're playing the role of therapists during that time. Yeah. That's so true. I can assure you. I'm doing all right. It's fine. We're fine. Yeah. 
[00:47:59] Blake: Oh my gosh. 
[00:48:02] Jessica: Yeah. So there's that. And you know I think, you know, the industry dare I say it's saturated, but it is you know, I think that a lot of people have their license and some people utilize it full time, some don't, whatever.
[00:48:14] I, I'm not trying to knock anything of course, but So, and these are all entrepreneurs, so everyone conducts their business differently. So what I like to say to people is if you're, if you're gonna hire a real estate, Really interview them, ask them questions and, and understand who you wanna work with at the end of the day.
[00:48:31] And instead of making it about, I don't wanna pay you your commission, ask, ask that person, what are they gonna bring to the table? And why are they gonna work hard for you instead of going directly to their pocket? Cause that's, that's a hard one, you know, it's like I never have conversations with people where I talk about their salary.
[00:48:47] No, not ever. No. And nor would I exactly. So it's an industry in which people that they lead with that. And so that's I've gotten better about that conversation over the years. I know my value and my worth and but I would say that the biggest thing in this industry is those fancy shows.
[00:49:07] Blake: I know, I know. I I can't, there's like some, the Hamptons one that I saw something there's all kinds of them. 
[00:49:13] Jessica: Okay. So let me be very clear. It's not that I don't watch them. I do. I will say there's one. I think it's called Lux listing Sydney in Sydney, Australia. And I watch it predominantly because the real estate is stunning there.
[00:49:27] The architecture is very different. It's got a little bit of a California vibe and these people are selling houses that are like fortune million in and up. I mean, it's. They're probably 
[00:49:37] Blake: doing very well. Yes. Yeah, but it goes down to the percentages, right? I mean, you're, you are a top 6%. Yeah, producer, you know, and, and that's the thing is like, there's a lot of real estate agents and you gotta, you gotta, you know, that is a good thing for people to understand is like, you gotta work to make that stuff happen.
[00:49:56] You can't sell one house or, and expect to chill on that paycheck for the rest of the. 
[00:50:03] Jessica: No. Yeah, no, that would be hard. that would so yeah. And so, and I also think, you know things are on the market, you know, I, I hear a lot of things. Anytime you hear the big R word recession. A recession means a lot of different things.
[00:50:20] And it's not as detrimental as we think that it is currently, especially right now. It's not, it is a normalizing of the market. The past two years have not been normal. And so when I have to talk to my clients and they hear the word recession, they are freaking out, they are like, we're not buying real estate.
[00:50:38] We're not buying real estate. So there's, there's a lot of conversation around that. I will say, you know, again, we have a great group of brokers and economists that talk to our group at Sotheby's. And I mean, these are the people that I trust at the end of the day when it comes to talking about finances and, and possible things that are gonna happen in the future.
[00:50:56] I mean, that's what I'm listening to. I, I mean, dare I say it it's been seven years since I've watched the news because what the news is pumping out is what they want. They wanna scare you. First of all, this is what I think they wanna terrify you. So. For me, I get my economy news sources, all that stuff from trusted professionals in the industry, rather than CNBC, CNN, all those, you know, networks, et cetera.
[00:51:23] It's just, I think that they intentionally instill fear in 
[00:51:28] Blake: you. Well, I mean, it's, you know, they looked that up recently and. 
[00:51:34] Jessica: I don't even know if I should have said those networks probably shame on me for doing 
[00:51:37] Blake: that out loud. It's actually, there's a statistic now that I think it's like 70% of Americans don't trust the media anymore.
[00:51:45] And it's just gotten outta hand. I'm I'll go. I'm fine with saying that I, it, it is fear tactics and trying to increase viewership. And all of that, but you know, at the end of the day, you just like, yeah, I, I, you gotta listen to the people that, that know the market, like, like you have your trusted people.
[00:52:02] So I think that makes a lot of sense. 
[00:52:04] Jessica: Yeah. If I, if I could say anything, just be selective about who you're getting the information from. Yeah. And, and let it be someone that's doing it day in and day out. Absolutely. 
[00:52:14] Blake: So you're primarily working the, in the Georgia market. Are you? Yeah. Are you gonna, are you gonna branch out?
[00:52:20] Get a little bit further out of the state, the state line. 
[00:52:25] Jessica: I am actually, I am currently, I'm getting my Florida license. So I spend some time in south Florida as a teenager. I lived in book Raton with my mom. And so I have a lot of families there and love south Florida. So, you know, I. I felt like, you know, we're gonna embark on some investment properties there and own, I may as well bring that service to my clients.
[00:52:48] So, you know, if they wanna get secondary homes, investment properties, I can certainly help them in the south Florida area. That's so 
[00:52:53] Blake: exciting. Very, very cool. That's yeah. You know, I just need to play. Yeah, well maybe you can go out and get a couple of homes for yourself down there too. That's that's pretty.
[00:53:03] Yeah, branching up. Oh, absolutely. Wonderful. Well, I am so excited to keep, see you keep going on your journey. In closing, I like to ask two things. What is your favorite thing about what you do? And also, can you just go ahead and, you know, share any plugs? Where can people find you keep up with everything that you're doing and you know, if they need your services, where can they holler at you?
[00:53:29] Jessica: Sure. Absolutely. The biggest thing is connecting. I love connecting with people. I love connecting people to their homes, to a new life, all the things. So definitely a connector by heart. And then you can reach me on Instagram. It's just in the city underscore Atlanta. I am on TikTok as well, just in the city, of Atlanta, and still on Facebook, these days.
[00:53:50] Wonderful. And then, you know, again, you can just look up just in the city and you'll find my information. If you wanna talk real estate, Jessica, 
[00:53:57] Blake: thank you so much for hopping on this was a pleasure meeting you. So many incredible insights for everybody. Yeah. I'm looking forward to seeing everything that you're gonna be doing in the coming years.
[00:54:08] Thank you, Blake. I appreciate it. All right, thanks. Have a good.
[00:54:15] Thank you for joining us on this episode of the G.E.M series, the podcast for anybody dedicated to investing in themselves. If you'd like to see the resources mentioned in this episode, learn more about what we are up to at a rocket level, or come over and join our team. Just click on the links below until next time.
[00:54:31] This is Blake Chapman, and remember to be awesome and do awesome things.