A Deep Dive into Real Estate Innovation and Success Strategies with Marina Kasyanik

Embark on an inspiring journey with the formidable Marina Kasyanik, a top-tier real estate agent with TFN Realty, as she unveils her remarkable trajectory in the property terrain. Our conversation with Marina goes beyond the surface, delving into her guiding motivations, the balance between familial commitments and a thriving profession, and the initial stumbling blocks she overcame. Glimpse into the world of real estate through her eyes – from the dizzying lingo to the rigours of licensure exams, and the resilience it takes to emerge victorious in this cutthroat arena.

This episode navigates the shifting sands of property trends, underscoring the burgeoning reconstruction sector and the ingenious sales strategies birthed in the crucible of the COVID era. Marina's tales underscore the criticality of entrepreneurial stamina and the necessity for alignment with a brokerage that resonates with one's ambitions. Realtors are akin to orchestra conductors, harmonizing psychological savvy, financial acumen, administrative prowess, and marketing genius to culminate in the symphony of a successful sale. Embrace the mindset of innovation and adaptability that sets the stage for triumph in the real estate spectacle.

Capping off our insightful dialogue, we reflect on the potent cocktail of success and setbacks that forges an unparalleled career in real estate. Marina's personal anecdotes underscore that triumphs and failures are the twin engines propelling professional growth. Carrying forward the wisdom gleaned from missteps, akin to lessons from car mishaps, we highlight how such experiences shape us for future challenges. 

Join us as we celebrate our guest's victories, express eagerness for her continued journey, and invite you to remain plugged in for more captivating real estate revelations with TFN's Real Estate Real Talk.

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Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:01

Hey everybody, this is Diana Victoria Quinn from TFN Realty and you're listening to the Real Talk Real Estate Podcast, the uncensored show that keeps it real for people who love real estate. We'll have some of the best interviews with some of our industry's most exciting people right now on a variety of different topics. We promise not to bore you, Alright. Thank you, everybody for joining another episode of the TFN Real Estate Real Talk Podcast. Today we have Marina Cassianic Dottoro, broker with TFN Realty. We are doing a series of game changers agents with TFN Realty who are changing the game in their own way. So this episode is all about getting to know Marina, her story, where she is and where she's going. Marina is our award of excellence 2023 award winner. So yeah, Marina, welcome.

Speaker 2: 1:09

Thank you. Thank you for having me here.

Speaker 1: 1:11

Thank you for joining us, can you? I know a little bit about you. Actually, I don't know your whole story. Can you share your story how you got into real estate, why you got into real estate, how you're here?

Speaker 2: 1:22

Well, I guess my story is going to be traditional in some ways and I cannot shake off the whole episode of Family Guy when they're saying go to school, and all the single moms are realters. So that's pretty much my story, right? Because you need the flexibility you need to provide for your you know child lifestyle that you want to provide and you also need the hours that allow you to be there and spend time with your family. So that's pretty much how I got into, but I've been involved in the real estate market and transactions prior to that. My ex has been actually introduced me to that and he thanks to him, he pushed me into that direction, because after you're at home for two years, your brain goes to mush and I kind of thought that that's pretty much after you have children your brain goes to mush.

Speaker 2: 2:18

What did you say?

Speaker 1: 2:20

After you have children, your brain goes to mush. Okay, what did I say?

Speaker 2: 2:25

After you're home for two years. But I'm saying just for me. Do you know what I meant?

Speaker 1: 2:29

I know, I know. I know I know because my brain has still not recovered from that.

Speaker 2: 2:34

So, because it's a muscle that you need to train, and if it's not trained, you're kind of like getting okay. Well, I guess that's what it is.

Speaker 2: 2:42

So you go with that and then actually going to a course, and at that time it was in Aurea and I had to pass because I completed my school not in Canada. So I had my university diploma that I was accepting but accepted here, but I needed to translate it and blah, blah blah. So the option was to take a course there to confirm that my knowledge is enough for high school. So I took the test and I'm like that's it Okay.

Speaker 2: 3:12

I can do it, I can do it. And then I take the first course and I fail. And I'm like, oh my God, because and I didn't fail because I didn't, you know, I couldn't study. I just didn't know how the test was structured. I didn't understand a lot of terms, because when you're a consumer, you think that, oh, what's there for real estate? And once you open the books and start understanding was behind the scenes and all the terminology and everything that's involved, all the legalities, you're like, oh my God.

Speaker 2: 3:44

I just want to go to sleep Like your brain shuts down, Right? So the first time was a fail and then I remember actually calling one of the companies that helped people pass the test and they said, oh, you'll never pass without us. And I remember getting so mad at that. I'm like no way, I'm not going to pass. Of course I'm going to pass.

Speaker 2: 4:02

And that puts so much fire in you know, me to do it and to commit to it that actually it worked out for the best and I remember actually a couple. I feel a little sad that people who are studying now they're on their own with you know, one-on-one with their computers, right, studying, and reading.

Speaker 2: 4:20

Whereas when you go to the classroom and you actually have a human interaction of instructor and other students, you get the feedback, you also get guidance and I remember the second year instructor really said it so straight for me because she said I remember one thing we were late for from lunch five minutes late we walked in and she said okay, you guys are five minutes late, you just lost your listing. No one ever was late for her classes.

Speaker 1: 4:52

Amazing.

Speaker 2: 4:53

I'm like so simple.

Speaker 1: 4:55

Yeah.

Speaker 2: 4:55

And she didn't need to like lecture us no but it was just the reality and she put in perspective and everybody is like, oh my God.

Speaker 2: 5:02

And then the a couple of things like her guidance was you can be a hundred percent realtor, full time, you can have your integrity and you can make money. It does not need to go different ways. Whereas the third class or the third level, when I started I remember the first thing. The instructor said guys, do you have the second job? Don't quit. And we're like, oh my God. That was, and I think, through my experience with studying, that's defined my career.

Speaker 2: 5:38

Because one day you're so confident and everything goes smooth and the market, you know, is helping you get the clients and the clients are ready to do it, and there's no, you know, struggle, really it just goes with the flow. And then the next day the rates go up and there is uncertainty in the world with economy or the wars or anything that's happening and it's affecting people. And then everybody pulls back and you're like, oh my God, how am I going to make this year? And that's the whole thing is like. You have to have that confidence. You have to understand are you really passionate about that? And a lot of realtors when the years were bad, and I've been doing this over 10 years and I've seen that even in that short period of time, that people who were not a hundred percent there for the passion of actually enjoying what they're doing, they left right.

Speaker 2: 6:30

Because you also have to pay the pay, the fees. You also have to bring some income, and if you're not doing it, then you're out which. I think it's the proper way of any clearing in any career. Right, you're not there just for the dollar sign, and real estate can be very, very beneficial in so many ways and can disguise the limit. Nobody puts that cap on you, but in the same regards, nobody also holds your hand and says okay, here are your clients, right Please.

Speaker 2: 7:06

And this is what you're getting, and this is the layout for the whole year, so you're going to be safe right. So I don't know where I went off the rails, but I think that's my story, yeah.

Speaker 1: 7:20

And so you mentioned that you've been in real estate for over 10 years. How did you make your way to TFN?

Speaker 2: 7:26

Actually, one of the introductions was that TFN was specializing in pre-construction and that was one of the reasons why I joined TFN. I've always gravitated to the brokerage that were more boutique rather than just the numbers, because it attracts again. When you're a new realtor you don't understand that actually, you interview the brokerage and it has to match your personality. A lot of people feel like they're going to the job interview choosing the brokerage and I think at the beginning it was hard to understand for me how to go. So at certain periods and I've changed a couple of brokerages again for the reason that at certain time it worked for where my goals were, what I wanted, where I lived, what my lifestyle was, and then it changed and I needed to change with it, because TFN wasn't on the radar when I started for me and I think it was even more boutique at that time.

Speaker 2: 8:27

But then coming to also understand that real estate consists of so many spectrum real estate directions, including reconstruction, as a stream which became very, very popular within the recent eight, nine years, and that again, when I started it was not a lot of people that were involved in it, it was random. It was not such a massive segment of real estate where, once it became and I met with TFN and Options and I actually was during COVID I did the sales in the Lush for Empires and I saw the other side of the sales and it was very cool. Like I like that whole dynamic of realistically, you're selling a piece of paper to people, right, but you sell the potential, you sell what people can get and you also give them the option of coming up with more funds for them to be able to buy things right, so that gives them more variety. If they're not ready right now, it doesn't mean that they cannot be homeowners. It means that they just need to find a different options, and having options in life is very, very important.

Speaker 1: 9:50

Yeah, I think you said a couple of great things. First, what obviously distinguishes you from other agents being a game changer is that your approach to brokerages was not the what can you do for me. You had a plan, you had a vision, you had goals and it was about from what I hear, about finding the right partner to help you get there. Who can support me? And it's fascinating that you found something that you were passionate about pre-construction and that really interested you, and you wanted to align yourself with a company who had those connections. And I think it's important. When we speak with agents who are looking to change brokerages or join us, 90% of them are starting with what can you do for me? What are you going to give me? What splits are you going to give?

Speaker 2: 10:46

me.

Speaker 1: 10:47

Other than this is my plan, this is what I'd like to achieve, and so how can you support me? So I think that's like a core element of being a strong entrepreneur.

Speaker 2: 11:00

It comes with time and also comes with, you know, some failures too.

Speaker 2: 11:05

It doesn't come right away unless you already have that vision or somebody guided you to that vision, Right, but I had to try different things and understand what really works for me. So by the time that I joined TFN, I did have the idea of where I want to go, what I want to do, and aligning myself with people who have this similar, you know, vision, because that they always say real estate is one of the loneliest professions. Right, You're on your own, you're with your clients, you, there's only so much you can share. You can share a lot of information. You can't really, you know, have that group support in the way that each individual case and every sale I've done, any transactions I've done, any transaction I've done, is unique because there are different people involved, there's different property involved, there are different circumstances involved, there are different conditions that are involved and sometimes you just want to, you know, share that responsibility with someone to find the better solution. But sometimes you're you're, you're by yourself.

Speaker 1: 12:06

By yourself, you can't.

Speaker 2: 12:08

Right, and that's the biggest thing. And actually having like-minded people and having you know the community within the brokerage, it helps a lot.

Speaker 1: 12:17

And, I think, also having a strong relationship with yourself, like it sounds. Like you knew, you took the time at certain points in your career to stop and reflect and think about what's working, what's not working, what do I have to change, where should I pivot? And you know, I've been involved in your career for a little bit now and I see you're constantly trying new things, new ways of doing it, and that's that's the core of real estate, because the strategies and the tools and how we approached our buyers and sellers yesterday doesn't work today and we constantly have to try and modify and new marketing techniques and new ways of doing it.

Speaker 2: 13:00

So you said you didn't know me well. I think you did very well and you're very creative.

Speaker 1: 13:06

You're constantly thinking of what can I do differently, how can I showcase my value to the world in different ways? How can I generate leads? You're always thinking outside of the box, which I think is so important. Off topic, my mother's been in real estate for 45 years and her strategies are very much the same. It's difficult to pivot when you've been doing the same thing over and over again and I've seen her career was at the top and slowly, year after year, is just it's shrinking.

Speaker 2: 13:40

But it's hard to make a change when it worked for her right.

Speaker 1: 13:42

But it would again. What worked yesterday isn't gonna work today or tomorrow, and so we always have to think ahead. Where are my clients going to be in a year or two years from now, and how do I prepare for that now?

Speaker 2: 13:55

Sure, very true, and again, like market changes. So many times, there's so many times, and then on top of that, all the legislation with Tresa and everything that changes, and it all comes at the same time and you're sitting, you're like oh, my God when do I start my?

Speaker 2: 14:12

head is gonna explode from everything, right, but I don't wanna stop now to and again. If it's too much, people should quit. Yeah, but that's, I think, going through this. Actually, when I started, I remember MLS Stratus was just introduced. There was a different system before and I remember getting in and people complaining because now realtors because realtors are not just sales people Sales person, I think, comes in the end. It's like you're doing the psychological work. You're doing the financial analysis.

Speaker 2: 14:50

Everything right. You're doing also the admin work, because you have to upload and do this and do that, and marketing and in the end you get to do the sales. Yes, but I remember that a lot of realtors were very uncomfortable because I think the mentality of, okay, I'm gonna be a realtor because I know that my uncle is gonna be selling the house, or I'm gonna be buying a house, I wanna save on commission right, that mentality does not work for long-term. It may work for a couple of transactions at the beginning, and then how many registered agents right now? 90, 90,000 in Ontario.

Speaker 1: 15:25

In Ontario we're at 94,000.

Speaker 2: 15:28

94,000. But how many agents are active?

Speaker 1: 15:32

Probably 5% of those.

Speaker 2: 15:34

Exactly, but people go with the mentality okay, I think I can do it, I think it's for me. A lot of people actually, and I think that's another thing. I think the way because my husband just finished the course and I heard a lot from him that I don't understand. Why do they put these things, I think, like, especially in commercial course, why do they put these things into the book? I'll never be doing it. I'm saying I think one they really don't want everybody just getting the license, like you're gonna be responsible for a lot of money, like the biggest investment the person will ever do. So they wanna test you, are you able to be flexible and understand different information? And two people who think, okay, I'm just gonna go and do the residential resale and you know, doing pre-construction, or doing commercial, you know, or selling farms, and it really takes them to different directions. So it's one in the same course, but you do have the flexibility of going to different directions, right? So that was again with I don't remember where we started with a question, but now I ended here,

Speaker 2: 16:44

Cause I just lost my train of thought. But yes, being flexible in this, you know, profession is crucial because there are so many changes constantly, constantly and again. Right now there are so many immigrants coming to Canada, right, and they're the ones that are driving this economy. I believe within the next three years, it's another 1.5 million people that are already projected to come to Canada.

Speaker 2: 17:09

But Canada they don't go to, you know, the provinces that do not have the community. So they go to the provinces where their relatives are or the community is already built and it's convenient for them, which will be Ontario, vancouver, quebec and followed by, you know, calgary, because now they're attracting a lot of people and everything else. So it means that majority of the immigrants will be distributed not through Canada, they will be distributed through five provinces, and the provinces that offer jobs, the provinces that offer shelter, those are the ones that people will be going. So these numbers are big and I think Canada has a long way to go in terms of real estate expansion. I don't think we still hit our you know maximum, even though downtown looks like there's no more space to put another tower. But they do yeah, I agree.

Speaker 3: 18:10

Marina, speaking specifically about the success, call the award that you won what it means in your life to have won this award, not just in your professional life, but in your personal life, in your normal life.

Speaker 2: 18:28

I must say 2023 was probably one of the hardest for the business for me, because of everything that was changing and a lot of people wanted to take the sideline and wait, and sometimes, because you're not doing as well as you did, let's say, previous year, you start doubting yourself and it transmits to your personal life. So actually having that confirmation with receiving award in the end of the year saying yeah, it was tough, but you did well right, it gives you a reassurance that you're on the right path.

Speaker 3: 19:04

Truly and aligned with Diana. I see all the time the hard work on social media and we have worked on some projects and ideas and I can see that you really put the effort and you really go the extra mile. So seeing a person winning an award after all this hard work really feels good and really congratulation for the award.

Speaker 1: 19:29

Thank you so much. How do you define success aside from monetary reward?

Speaker 2: 19:40

I think my definition changed through years too, because at first it was the expectation which I need to meet and then I realized that you actually get really you can get very disappointed if you have expectations and they're not met. So, instead of having the expectations, is understanding that you're doing the best you can and seeing that your actions have a positive result on your clients lives. For me, the biggest, probably success story of this year was when I was talking to my clients and they said they were one of my first clients and through the 10 years that we worked together, this year we sat down, we had a good chat and they actually moved to States this year, which was very sad for me because they were very good clients. But one of the things they said, they said you know what? Because we were working together all these years, now we have two houses mortgage free and for me I'm like wow, exactly, and you know what it means within this market, within these rates. It means that they were not so stressed this year when the rates went up. They were able to live their lives, enjoy their time with family and understand right that yeah, it's tough, but we can make it.

Speaker 2: 21:04

For me, that was the biggest success, you know and understanding that it was not that long. It was 10 years that took them to get there. And people can do it. Even starting now in this market, they can still get there. And again, it's a different mortgage free house than, let's say, for people who were born in 30s. Right at that time, debt, having debt to begin with, was not good, but now having a mortgage free house gives you so much more freedom and complete different understanding.

Speaker 2: 21:37

It's not because everybody has, not everybody. Majority of people have mortgage because it gives you flexibility with your funds. You can afford more right, you can do more things, you can utilize money differently. But actually for people to say you know what? We have two homes paid off from you was like okay, that's incredible.

Speaker 1: 21:56

And I had something to do with that Right.

Speaker 2: 21:58

Exactly and being part of that, that. That that's what I'm saying. For me, that was a success story. It's not something I expected them to do, right, I didn't have any expectations on that, but along along their journey, I was just there to guide them, and sometimes we had disagreements because, again, there are certain stereotypes that your client will insist on right.

Speaker 2: 22:20

Spring Market. We're listing the house on Spring Market and I'm telling them, no, we're not listing, we're listing earlier, before everybody else listed, and in the end I had to let go. So, okay, we'll do it the way you want. They could have got 100,000 more for their house that year when they listed the time that they did, but it did give me. After that they never argued with me so unfortunately, I had to let them go through their decision to say, okay, my advice is not to do it.

Speaker 2: 22:53

I advise you to do this way, but if you're 100% positive because in the end of the day you also don't want to look like you've ruined their dream, because if they're right and you're wrong, that's the last transaction you've done yeah, totally Right. So it's a very sensitive job as well to guide them through this and make a decision. So in the end of the day, what I also learned from my clients they need to believe in what they really feel passionate about. Then it works. It works as an investment and it works as a transaction, Because if they don't believe subconsciously, they will sabotage at one point and it's not going to work and I'm going to be the one who is blamed for their defeat or failure in that transaction.

Speaker 1: 23:41

So yeah, See, we're not just salespeople or psychologists as well.

Speaker 2: 23:46

We're the least of salespeople. That's what I'm saying and I think that was one of the things also like I was born in at that time Soviet Union and going to sales it was not really a prestigious thing. If you couldn't go to university, then you go to sales. But here and I remember even when I got my license because I've graduated the Bidicogical University in Russia and coming here, my mom and my dad were teachers, my grandmother were teachers, so like generational teacher family and coming here in Canada and getting the real estate license I remember my mom at the beginning she's like why don't you go to get a real job?

Speaker 1: 24:27

Mom, you know I can relate. I first got my license I was so embarrassed to tell people I was a realtor. They would ask what do you do, what do you do for a living? And I would avoid it. Like the word real estate, agent or realtor was avoided. I did everything else, but realtor had.

Speaker 3: 24:45

So I get it.

Speaker 1: 24:46

Now I'm proud to say it. I think it's changed, it's changing, I think it's changing.

Speaker 2: 24:52

But I think there are also a lot of stereotypes about realtors. You know there are so many and it's interesting because I just did the course with a real estate Institute of Canada and one of the questions that they had great, the integrity that you think these professions have. And they had a list of maybe 25, starting from nurses and doctors and realtors were there. Then there were politicians, lawyers, everybody, and realtors ended up in the middle, which I think before they probably would have gone closer to the bottom. And it's, you know, same with contractors. Does it mean that every contractor is going to take your money and run away and leave you hanging right or will do something that you're not aware of? It's not. It's not only the people who do that. They put such a black eye on the whole profession. Right, and unfortunately, you know, when real estate was associated with a used car salesperson, right on that level, it did not have a lot of credit so.

Speaker 2: 26:05

I totally get it right and and and. It's tough because actually that was another thing. You brought so many memories now, when I just got my license and I remember going to a hairdresser and she was doing my hair and she's like, oh, we going. I'm like, oh, I'm taking picture for real estate. She's like, oh, really. And I said, yeah, I am. And I remember talking and she would only come to Toronto once every three months because she actually had a job on Fifth Avenue, new York, and I said, so why did you become a hairdresser? There's so many hairdressers.

Speaker 2: 26:46

And she's like to shake it doesn't mean just because you have so many people having the same license that you have, you know that you don't have a chance. Actually, if you think that way, don't go there.

Speaker 2: 26:58

Yeah right and there are always people in any profession that stand out and unfortunately, what I've seen in Canada and I have my daughter going to school what what Canadian society teaches is do the minimum and you'll be okay. So if you do just above or you already stand out. So it's not that difficult really if you but you have to be passionate about what you do. If you hate what you do, don't yeah don't, don't do it right. Yeah, so that's the biggest thing.

Speaker 1: 27:31

I Actually, last night I was you know, you're on Instagram and you see all of these inspirational quotes and Robert De Niro was speaking about success and he said you know I've learned nothing from success, I've learned everything from failure, and you know we hear this all the time, but I kept Replaying it because, as much as I know, we learn from failure, and we do. I Always feel as though success, when I've achieved something and or I've reached my goals or I've done something according to plan, then I've learned that what I've done worked and it was the right choice. So I guess my question is to you have you learned from your failures? What have you learned from your failures versus success? I know nobody ever wants to talk about that, but I've learned a lot from my failures if I look back and reflect absolutely.

Speaker 2: 28:34

But again, I don't think. I look at them. I've done mistakes, obviously, like it's impossible not to, and sometimes you do it because of the lack of the knowledge. And then you do obtain that knowledge because you didn't know, and sometimes you do it because you know you lost focus, right like it's the same thing. Have you ever been in car accident?

Speaker 3: 28:59

Mm-hmm.

Speaker 2: 29:00

Right, and sometimes it's the fault of people around you. Sometimes it's your own fault because you were not focused use, you lost the respect for what you're doing, right. You, you did not take it seriously, I think. I think Every time when certain things happened, you start learning One, how to avoid it next time and to how to tell other people to avoid it, because you don't want Right the same mistake to be repeated. That's why it's so important to have going back to the first question, having the community of like-minded people and Sharing their experience, and sharing you know the wrong things, that or the things that went wrong in business. You know to learn, and try to learn through other people's Failures to not just through your own right in terms of success. I think it it really. If you only gonna fail without success, you're gonna quit. Then what's the point? Right?

Speaker 2: 30:00

Yeah, you learn a lot but if you don't have a, a certain reward for what you're doing and it doesn't have to be even monitor it it's a feeling right. Success is the feeling of, okay, it worked, I achieved that, I helped. You know. I see the feedback from other people. So if we, it has to be together, it can't be one or the other. Right success again, you know, if you only successful, you know I'm gonna change. They say that the most Selfish people are the ones that were never sick, because they don't know how it is to feel the suffering. They don't know how it is to feel being uncomfortable. So only being successful from day one to the end is great, but you will probably be very stagnant.

Speaker 1: 30:45

And I think failure is also a great thing if you're able to Understand it, acknowledge it yes, I failed in this area, or this didn't work out but then understanding your part in it. And what did I do to contribute or did not do, and how can I make a change so that I can turn this around into something positive. But it takes a very strong individual to do that, because a lot of people want to avoid those Sort of self-talk conversations. It's just easier. Have you ever had these conversations with yourself like it? And I was just thinking for myself. You know, sometimes it's something simple like sending out an e-blast to my database of 10,000 people and no one bites. Well, why? What happened here? What did, did I say or didn't say? So can you think of any sort of situations like that where you've taken the time to reflect and analyze and I did, and it's in real estate and it's in life Both.

Speaker 2: 31:55

Right, like the way you do Anything is the way you do everything.

Speaker 2: 31:59

So the recent part actually was when we just went snowboarding and the one part of the mountain was Mentally freaking me out because I saw the exposed part of the stone or the, the rock and I couldn't get by that and but it was not the hardest run on the mountains. And once I've completed that and I wasn't happy how I did it I felt like I just I felt like I just was sliding down and not really boarding, but the next day I was able to go and do the harder mountain because mentally now I was prepared, I knew what to expect, I knew how to deal with that and I think in business it's the same thing. Sometimes the failure prepares you for harder challenges in life and it pushes you to the next level Because now you have that experience, because you and in some ways in real estate there are quite a few tools. You can take the courses, you can talk to people, you can partner up with somebody who helps you go through this and then, once you do now, you can be in a completely different level. But without having that experience, without understanding how it feels in your body to do this and be not successful in something, without your brain creating these new connections and how to deal with it, how to respond, you can't do it.

Speaker 2: 33:17

And one of the first, I guess. So many memories, right, and it's funny because ten years is a long time, but it's not a long time. And then, all of a sudden, these things. I'm like, oh, how could I do it? The first interview I had with people, I got introduced. I remember they talked to me about selling condo. At that time Shangri-La was building and they said, well, you know, if you have any client, millionaire client, we have this condo in Shangri-La. And I remember I literally got like maybe my license a month before that and I said I only sell in Ontario. And they looked at me. I'm like, the next day, I'm like, what the hell? I googled it. I'm like, what the hell is Shangri-La? And I'm like, oh, earth, swallow me now, right, I'm like, okay, I'm not going back, but I did, I did go back. And I'm like, okay, well, I did some research.

Speaker 1: 34:16

Actually in fact in Toronto.

Speaker 2: 34:18

Yeah, but I'm like Shangri-La. What the hell is that? No, I only have license for Ontario. That's amazing, so that was a fun one.

Speaker 3: 34:27

Real estate could be really. It could be really difficult to have a balance between your family and work right and the line could be really blur and could be like really difficult to have this balance right. What's the technique or what tools do you use to manage that situation and stay like Married?

Speaker 2: 34:55

Yes, yes, right, I'm very blessed to have my husband with the mentality that helps me be successful and understanding what it takes. I'm very happy that now he is also a licensed realtor and we're going to be working together. We worked on different projects together before. Besides real estate, we have other businesses that we work together and we hear all the time like, as a family, don't do business together, right? But I think the biggest thing is understanding the terms and conditions. You're entering the business venture and, in case it fails, you're exiting. So we have very open communication in a lot of things and I'm not saying it's perfect. I'm just saying that when we feel that this connection gets weaker, for whatever we're disconnected, then right away we bring it to each other's attention and try to balance it off, because if you just ignore it listen, that's my second marriage, I know how it can it may not work, right, because Learning from failures.

Speaker 1: 36:12

Exactly there you go, and what did failure teach me? That it can be, successful.

Speaker 2: 36:16

With my daughter. I'm very again blessed because she's always been my helper and she helped me do the staging for the houses or go for the showings and in a lot of ways. And now she's excited, she comes up with the ideas and she knows that I do work not nine to five but I do have some flexibility when other people may not take time off and compensate that time. On a classic weekend when everybody, when my clients, have time to go and have showings, right, I need to work, but during the week I may find time. So again, having that understanding with her is very, very important.

Speaker 1: 36:54

Amazing.

Speaker 3: 37:00

You're saying like, stay up to date, like in the technological perspective kind of thing. It's really important and we can see, like in social media and all your ideas and projects, you are really up today in all that kind of stuff. How do you manage to keep this input so fresh and the technology doesn't really?

Speaker 2: 37:25

Oh, that's a huge compliment that I'm up to date with everything that's happening. I think people right now, like 10 years younger, who are born with a phone in their hand right, are way more organically feeling what the technology is doing right. I remember the huge lineup for the first iPhone when it came out right and I looked at it and I'm like I don't need it, I'm okay with like just a dial. I had BlackBurr at that time, which was okay. Well, that's amazing. Oh my God, I can actually send a picture.

Speaker 2: 37:57

Oh wow, that was like. But staying with technology again, if you're uncertain line of work, right, you want to stay up to date, and this actual technology makes it also easy to be up to date because it's always in front of you and it is part of your business, it's part of your everyday life. It's very hard to actually separate it from you. So when you see things are changing and moving and you feel like, okay, I don't know how to do that, thankfully there are so many courses, there are so many videos that teaches you instantly how to do it, and sometimes I actually do ask younger generations to teach me, because for them it's natural right.

Speaker 2: 38:43

And asking you know, even you know my daughter, who is almost 14, but okay, show me. Yeah, right, because I understand that there are certain things I can teach my parents, because they have no clue what this happened and they're not up to date all the time. But if you're in this every day, you learn a lot. But then when you feel and I see what she's doing, I'm like what, how? So it's again, it's asking for help, it's learning, it's staying up to date and seeing what the trends are.

Speaker 3: 39:17

And you're really doing it really really well, thank you. So I think our last question would be what would you think, what would you say is the key factor that differentiates you and what would you say is the key factor that differentiates TfN from other brokerage?

Speaker 2: 39:35

I think in a lot of ways, for me, it's people Like it's not only the access to projects or the technology or the podcast that we're just doing now. Right, it's a great bonus to that, but feeling comfortable working with people and being able to come today it's a great way to feel right. Guide me to either talk to somebody who knows the answers, or what do I do and what are the decisions? Because, again, being in this lonely profession, having like-minded people surrounding you, giving you so much step ahead above everybody else, so for me that's the right fit.

Speaker 3: 40:20

Yeah, Awesome, perfect, thank you so much.

Speaker 1: 40:23

You know there's companies that have great tools, great programs, but it's your colleagues. You know you could have the best training, and sometimes it's just about sitting in a room with other agents and brainstorming and talking about okay, maria, how was your month? You know, what are you seeing in the market? How are you dealing with your clients? It's this type of interaction that's sometimes more valuable than anything else.

Speaker 2: 40:44

So agreed, thank you. Thank you very much. Thank you for chatting with us.

Speaker 1: 40:49

Congratulations again, thank you. I'm looking forward to all of your future. Yes, absolutely Exciting ventures yeah, thank you Amazing.

Speaker 2: 40:55

Thank you, that was fun.

Speaker 1: 40:57

Thank you so much for listening. Thank you to our guests and our editor. We hope that you enjoyed this new episode and, if you did, please subscribe and leave a rating and a review. Our goal is to continue to provide you with interesting content and exciting topics, to stay up to date with TFN's real estate real talk and to get all the behind the scenes content. You can follow us on Instagram at TFN Realty Inc, and on YouTube.