We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Amber Garneski a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Amber, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Have you ever seen (or implemented) a really awesome way to show a client you appreciate them

Loving my clients (and those that support me) is how I show appreciation. They are the heart of my business. While I can list off things like the events we’ve thrown, professional family photos, personal cards written, thoughtful gifts, and random “have a coffee on me” texts… To me, showing my clients that I appreciate them is also simply treating them like human beings, friends from the beginning, providing reassurance that they are working with a professional, and being a true advocate for them and their interests. I give them the tools and motivation they need to reach their goals while still maintaining a human connection.

It’s being a resource that sticks around long after they have bought or sold their home. I check in with them, and they know they can call me when they need an electrician or just wanna say hi. It’s going the extra mile and being someone they can count on professionally and/or personally.

Amber, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I am a local Realtor here in Delaware, born and raised and love where I live! I enjoy sharing things to do and places to go on social media. Supporting other local small businesses is important to me.

I have a wonderful fiancé named Chris, and we have an amazing daughter, Austin Jean, who is 5 years old. They are the center of my world and I feel extremely blessed! We are super close with both sides of our family, share mutual friends and spend lots of time together at different gatherings, camping and the beach. We have an amazing village of support!

Prior to real estate, I worked as an interstate relocation coordinator for 15 years, moving people all across the country so I understand the logistics and struggles of moving. I enjoyed my job and the people I worked with very much but I longed for growth. After having my daughter, she motivated me to make a change.

When she was 6 months old, I enrolled in real estate school. One thing I never want to feel in life is regret, and I know that if I didn’t shoot my shot, I would live with that feeling forever.

Fast forward 5 years, and here I am, not just helping people buy and sell homes, but serving as an advisor and support system, assisting people in making major decisions. It’s crazy to look back and realize that this was once nothing but a daydream.

As a Realtor, you can be placed into this box where people have a certain perception of you and what you do, but the truth is not many people truly understand. In reality, real estate school teaches you little about actually being a Realtor, as this business has a low barrier of entry but is one of the hardest to succeed in. We work a lot for free, as we only get paid when a home sells, so there is a huge risk involved.

A lot of the public doesn’t realize we are independent contractors, each running our businesses differently. The brokerage I choose to operate under does not directly affect how I run my business, treat my clients, or the service I provide. Although there are some great brokerage models out there, you should never choose your agent based solely on a brokerage name. Consumers should always do their due diligence and focus on the actual agent and what they have to offer. Invest more time upfront in choosing the agent you’re working with and have fewer headaches later.

A comparison I use to help understand the brokerage aspect is a hair stylist or barber renting a chair. As a consumer, you choose the individual who cuts/colors your hair because you know they do it well or someone referred you, not because of the name of the salon.

My brokerage is Crown Homes and I choose to work with them because it’s a good business decision for me and they provide great value to me as an agent. My clients choose to work with me because of the value I provide.

When you work with me, you are working directly with me. However, as another value-add to my business, I partner with Kristen Rosaio, an amazing agent who also prides herself on client care, education, and service. We started building The Rosaio Team in 2020 and continue to grow and evolve, providing top-level services, in depth consulting, beautiful staging, and extremely thoughtful client care. I feel incredibly lucky to be in this business with all the women on our team! They are amazing!

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

We struggled financially at times growing up and I had an insecurity about it that always lingered in the back of my mind. No one in my family went to college or owned a home besides my grandparents at that time. We rented, so we moved around 5 or 6 times growing up. My dad struggled with addiction, went to prison when I was 11, and my parents divorced.

I watched my mom struggle as a single parent for many years, and while it broke my heart, it also inspired me. She is truly resilient and always found a way to make things happen when it came to her kids. She still does. She is truly amazing.

Like my mother, I am a caretaker by nature, also the oldest of four children, and given the situation, I matured early on. I took on that protector role for my mom and my siblings. We may have not always had a lot, but there was plenty of love in our family and that’s important. I remind myself of that as I raise my own daughter.

Professional settings were always appealing to me. When I was in elementary school, I often imagined myself working in a bank when I grew up. And as I got older, I would think: ‘If I could only secure a stable job and financial security, that would be my dream.’ And just maybe one day I’d own my own home.

At 22, I got that dream office job and at 26, the house. On closing day I popped a bottle of cheap champagne (which I still love!), sat on the floor of my tiny kitchen and cried tears of joy. I was a homeowner! And I thank God for that because it has served me through and through.

I learned that I can have all the things I want; I don’t need to limit myself or feel insecure because I didn’t grow up with money or have a degree. Those things don’t define me or anyone else. If anything, the things I didn’t have fueled my ambition for what I truly wanted.

I could have easily gone down a dark path growing up, but I made a choice to push myself in a different direction. I chose to make little changes and tried to focus on doing the next right thing. Now I look at my past as a positive. It’s a big factor in the woman I am today. Through my struggles, I have gained integrity, built character, humility, and the confidence to stand up for myself and others. I believe my past is also a reason I am able to make great connections with so many different people on a deep level. That is something special.

Your past defines you, but you hold the power to make it positive.

Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?

I am a huge fan of podcasts and audiobooks! I love learning and being inspired! Some of my favorite podcasts are Hustle Humbly (Real estate), Goal Digger (Jenna Kutcher), Ed Mylett and Empire Building. Some amazing books are: The Go Giver (all of them), Who not How, Atomic Habits, Rich Dad Poor Dad, How are you Really?, Go for NO and 10x is easier than 2x.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://amber-garneski.business.site/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amberg_realtorr?igsh=MW8wcGdobXFxNDJkNg%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/H4TiGhmM4gxcg4aR/?mibextid=hu50Ix
• Youtube: UClujBW1GuxgJB3-BuPJG7Fg
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@amberg_realtor?_t=8kV2HhFmc5G&_r=1

Image Credits
Heartbeat Branding Co.