I thank my lucky stars that the first sales desk I sat at was directly adjacent to Helene. We sat in an open workstation, three feet apart from each other. We were so close that when either of us were on the phone, we could overhear the other person’s entire conversation. Helene was the top broker in New York City at the time – a position she had held for over a decade. A legend in the business, she had a reputation for being a tough negotiator, a difficult person to deal with – mainly because she had no time for drama or bullshit. She taught me more in my first month of sales than I could have learned if I had spent years sitting in another seat.
I liked Helene a lot and I really respected her. She was a straight shooter, driven, and always got the job done. A true pro. She knew everything about every building, apartment, seller and buyer in the market. She was the best of the best. Looking back, I think she was disliked by her peers because they were jealous of her success and felt threatened by her knowledge and acumen. She worked harder than anyone I knew and earned every bit of my respect. Helene was a different breed of agent. She had no private office, car service, or special treatment. She simply put her head down and hustled. For her, it wasn’t about feeding her ego, it was about getting the deal closed and representing the client. Plain and simple. Clients hired her because they knew they she was an expert and their interests would be well-represented. She was the smartest negotiator I’d ever met. She also knew every detail about every property she represented and knew how to nuance a situation while keeping the upper hand.
The first deal I closed in our shared workspace was thanks to Helene. Due to the proximity of our seating arrangement, we knew every bit of each other’s business. We knew each other’s clients, who we were working with, their budget, and their general requirements. We had no secrets. One afternoon, she walked into the office and said “I just saw the best two bedroom apartment downtown and you should show it to your young couple from California. Call Richard and get them in”. Two months later, I was closing on that apartment and collecting my commission. Helene didn’t expect a referral fee for this deal. It was how we worked, and it was reciprocated. In short order, we became fierce competitors, but always had a mutual trust and respect.
A year later, I took over her position as top producer downtown, in large part from what I learned from her. When I was awarded my first new development assignment I brought Helene in to help. It was a conversion of an old loft building and nobody had more experience at that time than she did. The project was a huge success and helped me launch my career in new development marketing and sales.
Over the course of my 30-year career, I realized that what I learned from Helene in that little shared workspace would be the most valuable information I’d ever learn as an agent.
She taught me:
- Work hard
- Know your product.
- Focus on the client – not your ego.
- No smoke. No mirrors. No bullshit.
Let’s do this.
-Shaun