Words of Wisdom from Compass President

"KILLERS!"

I never boast about anything in my career as I think its tacky (although I do think its important to broadcast your attributes in a crowded world), and I always attribute my success to all those around me that have helped me, especially my remarkable team. But there is one thing I will comfortably boast about:  I am a poster-child for the fact that you can be very successful in real estate brokerage AND be ethical, honest and kind, consistently.

Many years ago at a large Company Annual Meeting, Donald Trump was the guest speaker. His speech made special mention of certain agents in the audience that he identified as 'Killers'.....the audience applauded and celebrated. I cringed. I vowed at that moment to never, ever become a 'killer', and certainly never to be celebrated as such. At the time I felt the chance of me achieving great success would be limited by this. I made every attempt to prove this theory wrong.

I don't like killers, even the figurative kind. I think they make our world worse. I think they make our industry dreadful. And I also think we should do everything at our disposal to identify 'killer' behavior (and personalities) and expose it for what it is: lousy. Yes, as agents we have to be very tough and disciplined. Yes, we have to be strong. Yes, we often have to posture and fight. But all of this can happen with an honest and civil style. Reckless ruthlessness and dishonesty needs to be removed from the real estate profession if we wish to earn the respect of the consumer. The consumer deserves better.

To those who surround themselves with 'killers', be reminded of the story of Siegfried & Roy,the iconic Las Vegas performers who surrounded themselves with tigers and lions in their act. They too celebrated killer animals, and we all know how that story ended. Flash forward, those 'killers' in the audience that were being feted and celebrated and rewarded, have since departed and to say their careers have taken a sharp turn would be an understatement. Their reputations in the industry have spiraled from bad to worse. Yet some killers still 'succeed', and continue to get away with terrible behaviors mostly because they bully and invoke fear in others. Killers love to intimidate.

So while I feel certain the 'killers' in our industry will ultimately be punished or fade away, I feel equally strongly that anyone who supports or condones their bad behavior is complicit. It is not OK to remain silent when confronted with lousy behavior that tarnishes the reputation of all of us and our profession.

Have a great day!

Regards,

Leonard Steinberg
President of Compass